Dody Goodman

Dolores "Dody" Goodman (October 28, 1914 – June 22, 2008) was an American character actress, known for her playing the mother of the title character (played by Louise Lasser) in the television series Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman. Her high-pitched voice could be heard announcing the show's title at the beginning of each episode.

Personal life

Born Dolores Goodman in Columbus, Ohio, she was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Dexter Y. Goodman. She had one sister, Rose, and one brother, Dexter Jr. She attended Columbus North High School and is a member of the Hall of Fame at Columbus North High School. She attended Northwestern University, where she studied dramatics, and two ballet schools—the School of American Ballet and the Metropolitan Opera Ballet School.

Goodman was notoriously secretive about her age, successfully shaving off 15 years (giving a birth year of 1929) for many years before the discrepancy became publicly debunked.

Stage

Goodman's Broadway came in 1941. She gained a measure of newspaper column space for her dancing solos in such Broadway musicals as High Button Shoes (1947), and Wonderful Town (1953). In 1955, she stopped the show in Off Broadway's Shoestring Revue with the novelty song "Someone's Been Sending Me Flowers." She also headlined Off-Broadway in the Jerry Herman musical revue Parade in 1960 with Charles Nelson Reilly. She played the role of Dora in the 1962 revival of Fiorello!. She returned to Broadway in 1974 to appear in Lorelei with Carol Channing.