Charlotte Rae Movies, TV Shows, and Filmography
Charlotte Rae
Acting
Biography
Charlotte Rae Lubotsky (April 22, 1926 – August 5, 2018) was an American actress and singer. On screen, Rae was best known for her portrayal of Edna Garrett in the sitcoms Diff'rent Strokes and its spin-off, The Facts of Life. She was born to Russian Jewish immigrants Esther (née Ottenstein), who was a childhood friend of Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir, and Meyer Lubotsky, a retail tire business owner. She was one of three sisters, along with Miriam and the late Beverly (December 21, 1921 – June 2, 1998). She graduated from Shorewood High School in 1944. For the first ten years or so of her life, Rae's family lived in Milwaukee, then moved to Shorewood, Wisconsin. She did radio work and was with the Wauwatosa Children's Theatre. At 16, she was an apprentice with the Port Players, a professional theater company that came for the summer to Milwaukee, with several established actors such as Morton DaCosta, who would eventually direct The Music Man on Broadway. Rae attended Northwestern University, although she did not complete her studies, where she met Cloris Leachman, who many years later succeeded Rae on The Facts of Life for the show's last two seasons. At Northwestern she met several unknown stars and producers, including Agnes Nixon, Charlton Heston, Paul Lynde, Gerald Freedman, Claude Akins and songwriter Sheldon Harnick. When a radio personality told her that her last name wouldn't do, she dropped it, to her father's chagrin. She moved to New York City in 1948, where she performed in the theater and nightclubs. During her early years in New York, she worked at the Village Vanguard (alongside up-and-coming talents such as singer Richard Dyer-Bennet) and at the posh Blue Angel, home to budding talents Barbra Streisand, Mike Nichols and Elaine May. She moved to Los Angeles in 1974.
Filmography Movies
Acting
Hair
Upon receiving his draft notice and leaving his family ranch in Oklahoma, Claude heads to New York and befriends a tribe of long-haired hippies on his way to boot camp.
You Don't Mess with the Zohan
An Israeli counterterrorism soldier with a secretly fabulous ambition to become a Manhattan hairstylist. Zohan's desire runs so deep that he'll do anything -- including faking his own death and going head-to-head with an Arab cab driver -- to make his dreams come true.
Rabbit Test
Lionel's life turns around after a one-night stand on top of a pinball table... he becomes the world's first pregnant man!
The Worst Witch
Mildred is one of the young girls at a prestigious witch academy. She can't seem to do anything right and is picked on by classmates and teachers. The headmistress of the school, Miss Cackle, has an evil twin sister who plans to destroy the school. Can Mildred foil the plan before the Grand Wizard comes to the Academy for a Halloween celebration you'll never forget?!!
Beane's of Boston
To keep from being fired by his father, Franklin Beane has a bright idea for a theme week for the Mens and Ladies Wear department of Beane's of Boston department store. Pilot episode for a US remake of "Are You Being Served?"
Our Town
3-act play by American playwright Thornton Wilder.
Christmas Cottage
Inspired by the picturesque paintings of Thomas Kinkade, The Christmas Cottage tells the semi-autobiographical tale of how a young boy is propelled to launch a career as an artist after he learns that his mother is in danger of losing the family home.
Hello Down There
Given the chance to live in a simulated underwater home for a month, a scientist convinces his family to take advantage of the offer. Once the family agrees to move in, underwater mayhem occurs!
Words by Heart
The only black family living in a small midwestern town at the turn of the century confront prejudice, as seen through the eyes of the young daughter.
Tom and Jerry: The Movie
The popular cartoon cat and mouse are thrown into a feature film. The story has the twosome trying to help an orphan girl who is being berated and exploited by a greedy guardian.
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