Sadie Gertrude Stern (October 31, 1934 – November 17, 2023), known professionally as Suzanne Shepherd, was an American actress and theater director.[1][2]
Suzanne Shepherd | |
|---|---|
 Suzanne Shepherd on The Sopranos | |
| Born | Sadie Gertrude Stern October 31, 1934 Elizabeth, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Died | November 17, 2023 (aged 89) Manhattan, New York, U.S. |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1960s–2023 |
| Spouses |
|
| Children | 2, including Kate |
Background
editShepherd was born Sadie Gertrude Stern on October 31, 1934, to a Jewish family in Elizabeth, New Jersey, the daughter of Dora (Mendelson), a cook, and David Stern, a distributor of jukeboxes and vending machines.[3] She began using the name "Suzanne" when she was 13.[3] She attended Battin High School and Bennington College, and studied acting with Sanford Meisner.[3][4] She later went on to teach Meisner's program of acting study, the first woman to do so.[5]
Career
editShepherd was a founding member of the Compass Players in the early 1960s, along with Alan Alda and Alan Arkin.
Shepherd was known for her portrayal of Aunt Tweedy in the film Mystic Pizza, Karen's overbearing mother in the film Goodfellas, Carmela Soprano's mother Mary DeAngelis in the HBO television series The Sopranos, and the assistant school principal in Uncle Buck.[4] She also played the role of Mrs. Scarlini in the 2000 film Requiem for a Dream, and Big Ethel in A Dirty Shame. In 2016, she played the role of Lucille Abetemarco the mother of Detective Anthony Abetemarco played by former Sopranos co-star Steve Schirripa in "Good Cop Bad Cop" the second episode of the seventh season of the CBS police procedural drama Blue Bloods. In 2018, she reprised the role of Lucille Abetemarco in "Trust" the sixth episode of the ninth season of Blue Bloods.[4]
Shepherd was also a theatre director, working in New York and in regional theatre.[4]
Personal life and death
editFrom a marriage to David Shepherd, which lasted from 1957 until their divorce in 1966, she had a son, who died in 2011, and a daughter, artist Kate Shepherd.[3][6] Her second marriage, to Carroll Calkins, lasted from 1996 until his death in 2006.[3]
Shepherd died from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and kidney failure at her home in Manhattan on November 17, 2023, at the age of 89.[3][4][7]
Filmography
editFilm
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Mystic Pizza | Aunt Tweedy | [4] |
| 1988 | Working Girl | Trask Receptionist | [4] |
| 1989 | Uncle Buck | Mrs. Hoargarth | |
| 1989 | Second Sight | Marilyn Bloom | |
| 1990 | Goodfellas | Karen's Mother | [4] |
| 1990 | Jacob's Ladder | Hospital Receptionist | |
| 1995 | The Jerky Boys: The Movie | Mrs. B | |
| 1995 | Palookaville | Mother | |
| 1996 | Bullet | Cookie Stein | |
| 1996 | Trees Lounge | Jackie | |
| 1997 | Lolita | Miss Pratt | [4] |
| 1998 | Illuminata | Marco's mother | |
| 1998 | Living Out Loud | Mary | [4] |
| 1998 | American Cuisine | Martha | |
| 1999 | On the Run | Lady in Travel Agency | |
| 2000 | Requiem for a Dream | Mrs. Scarlini | [4] |
| 2001 | Never Again | Mother | |
| 2004 | A Dirty Shame | Big Ethel | [4] |
| 2008 | Choke | Waitress | |
| 2008 | Harold | Maude Sellers | |
| 2009 | I Hate Valentine's Day | Edie | |
| 2012 | Delivering the Goods | Mrs. Weinbaum | |
| 2013 | Jerome's Bouquet | Elana Klein | Short film |
| 2017 | Where Is Kyra? | Ruth | [3] |
| 2018 | Furlough | Elizabeth Anderson | |
| 2018 | The Week Of | Aunt Iris | |
| 2023 | The Performance | Tess | [4] |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Law & Order | Arraignment Judge Victoria Sawyer | Episode: "The Reaper's Helper" |
| 1998 | Vig | Agnes | Television film |
| 2000 | Third Watch[4] | Sheats | Episode: "Young Men and Fire..." |
| 2000, 2004 | Ed[4] | Elaine / Edna | 2 episodes |
| 2000–2007 | The Sopranos[4] | Mary DeAngelis | 20 episodes |
| 2002 | Law & Order: Criminal Intent | Joan | Episode: "Homo Homini Lupus" |
| 2003 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Old Woman | Episode: "Desperate" |
| 2010 | Gravity | Scarf Woman | Episode: "Dogg Day Afternoon" |
| 2016–2018 | Blue Bloods[4] | Lucille Abetemarco | 2 episodes |
References
edit- ^ Brantley, Ben (February 23, 1994). "Theater in Review". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
- ^ Genzlinger, Neil (June 22, 2005). "From South Africa to New Jersey, Where Things Go No Better". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
- ^ a b c d e f g Williams, Alex (November 23, 2023). "Suzanne Shepherd, Actress Known for Playing Mothers, Dies at 89". The New York Times. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Lewis, Hilary (November 19, 2023). "Suzanne Shepherd, 'Sopranos' and 'Goodfellas' Mother, Dies at 89". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 19, 2023.
- ^ Suzanne Shepherd, interview with Sanford Meisner, Yale Theatre 8, nos. 2 and 3 (1977): 38–43.
- ^ BWW News Desk. "Photos: People Are Living There Opening Night". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
- ^ "Actor Suzanne Shepherd, who played mothers in 'The Sopranos' and 'Goodfellas,' dead at 89". NJ. November 18, 2023. Retrieved November 19, 2023.