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Classmates.com
At 15 she won a special summer drama scholarship to Northwestern University, and later, as an undergraduate, she won the school’s best actress award in her sophomore year.
02of 12APLeachman set off for Atlantic City, and as Miss Chicago, she was one of the finalists in the 1946 Miss America pageant.“It was really fun,” she told PEOPLE in 2008. “You had to get yourself together — do your own makeup, your own hair and what you were going to wear. My mother was with me the whole time. My father came the last two days [of the competition].”
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AP
Leachman set off for Atlantic City, and as Miss Chicago, she was one of the finalists in the 1946 Miss America pageant.
“It was really fun,” she told PEOPLE in 2008. “You had to get yourself together — do your own makeup, your own hair and what you were going to wear. My mother was with me the whole time. My father came the last two days [of the competition].”
03of 12John Springer Collection/CORBIS/Corbis via GettyAfter arriving in New York City, Leachman found early success on Broadway; in 1950, she co-starred with Katharine Hepburn inAs You Like It.
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John Springer Collection/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty
After arriving in New York City, Leachman found early success on Broadway; in 1950, she co-starred with Katharine Hepburn inAs You Like It.
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AP Photo
“The family is the center of my existence. I put all my hopes and caringness and deepest feelings into it. That’s why I feel no resentment at arriving so late as an actress. I chose to have children early, and I don’t regret it,” she told PEOPLE in 1974.
Son Bryan died in 1986 of an overdose. “I think about him every day,” she told PEOPLE in 2008.
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Cloris Leachman.CBS Photo Archive/Getty Images
06of 12CBS/GettyThe actress' big break came in 1970 withThe Mary Tyler Moore Show,on which she played Phyllis Lindstrom. She won two Emmys for the part and later scored a spinoff series,Phyllis.For that, she won a Golden Globe.
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CBS/Getty
The actress' big break came in 1970 withThe Mary Tyler Moore Show,on which she played Phyllis Lindstrom. She won two Emmys for the part and later scored a spinoff series,Phyllis.For that, she won a Golden Globe.
07of 12APIn 1972, she won her sole Oscar for Best Supporting Actress inThe Last Picture Show.In a 2008 chat with PEOPLE, she called it “one of the best pictures ever made.”
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In 1972, she won her sole Oscar for Best Supporting Actress inThe Last Picture Show.In a 2008 chat with PEOPLE, she called it “one of the best pictures ever made.”
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09of 12EverettLeachman worked exhaustively through the rest of her life, appearing in everything fromThe Muppet MovieandFacts of Life(pictured) toThe Ellen ShowandMalcolm in the Middle, for which she won two Emmys.
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Everett
Leachman worked exhaustively through the rest of her life, appearing in everything fromThe Muppet MovieandFacts of Life(pictured) toThe Ellen ShowandMalcolm in the Middle, for which she won two Emmys.
10of 12Kelsey McNeal/ABCIn 2008, Leachman was introduced to a new audience when she appeared onDancing with the Stars,becoming the oldest competitor to do so at 82.“It’s so wonderful. I’m going to be so sorry when it ends,” she told PEOPLE. She made it to seventh place.
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Kelsey McNeal/ABC
In 2008, Leachman was introduced to a new audience when she appeared onDancing with the Stars,becoming the oldest competitor to do so at 82.
“It’s so wonderful. I’m going to be so sorry when it ends,” she told PEOPLE. She made it to seventh place.
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Cloris Leachman.Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic
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Cloris Leachman.Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
“There was no one like Cloris,” her manager, Juliet Green, told PEOPLE. “With a single look she had the ability to break your heart or make you laugh till the tears ran down your face. You never knew what Cloris was going to say or do and that unpredictable quality was part of her unparalleled magic.”
source: people.com
