Rhea Perlman
{{short description|American actress (born 1948)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2020}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Rhea Perlman
| image = Rhea Perlman (1988) - cropped.jpg
| caption = Rhea Perlman at the 1988 Emmy Awards
| birth_name = Rhea Jo Perlman
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1948|03|31}}
| birth_place = Brooklyn, New York, U.S.{{cite book|last1=Brant|first1=Marley|title=Happier Days: Paramount Television's Classic Sitcoms, 1974-1984|date=2006|publisher=Billboard Books|isbn=9780823089338|page=166|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_3XnpqmYAxcC&pg=PA166|access-date=May 6, 2017|language=en}}
| years_active = 1972–present
| height = {{convert|5|ft|0|in|m|sigfig=3}}
| occupation = {{hlist|Actress|author}}
| alma_mater = Hunter College (BA)
| spouse = {{marriage|Danny DeVito|January 28, 1982|October 2012|end={{abbr|sep.|separated}}}}
| children = 3, including Lucy DeVito
| father = Philip Perlman
| relatives = Heide Perlman (sister)
}}
Rhea Jo Perlman{{cite web|url=http://www.veromi.net/Summary.asp?fn=Rhea&mn=&ln=Perlman&dobmm=03&dobdd=31&doby=1948&city=&state=&age=&vw=&Search=&Input=&x=0&y=0|title=Veromi.net - People Summary|website=www.veromi.net}} (born March 31, 1948) is an American actress and author. She is well-known for playing head waitress Carla Tortelli in the sitcom Cheers (1982–1993).{{cite news|last1=Itzkoff|first1=Dave|title=Rhea Perlman and Lucy DeVito in 'Love, Loss, and What I Wore'|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/18/theater/18perlman.html|access-date=May 5, 2017|work=The New York Times|date=November 17, 2009}} Over the course of eleven seasons, Perlman was nominated for ten Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actress, winning four, and was nominated for a record six Golden Globe Awards for Best Supporting Actress in a Television Series. She has also appeared in films, including Canadian Bacon (1995), Matilda (1996), The Sessions (2012), Poms (2019), and Barbie (2023). In 2025, she had a guest role in the second season of the crime mystery series Poker Face.
Early life
Perlman was born on March 31, 1948, in Coney Island, Brooklyn, to Philip Perlman, a Polish-Jewish immigrant who was a manager at a doll parts factory and Adele, a bookkeeper.{{cite news|last1=Barnes|first1=Mike|title=Philip Perlman, 'Cheers' Barfly and Father of Rhea Perlman, Dies at 95|url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/philip-perlman-dead-cheers-barfly-792445|access-date=May 6, 2017|work=The Hollywood Reporter|date=May 7, 2015|language=en}} She grew up in Bensonhurst in a Jewish family with additional roots in Russia.{{cite news|last1=Lacher|first1=Irene|title=No Religious Ballyhoo in Her Family|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1998-dec-28-cl-58173-story.html|access-date=May 5, 2017|work=Los Angeles Times|date=December 28, 1998}} She has a sister, Heide, who is a television writer, story editor, and producer who worked on Cheers, Frasier and The Tracey Ullman Show. In the mid-1980s, her parents moved to Los Angeles, and her father became an extra on Cheers. His character became known by his real name, Phil, and he managed to get a few lines over the years as he appeared in more than 30 episodes. He created a second career as a character actor, appearing in several films and television shows, including Throw Momma from the Train, Hoffa, and Frasier.{{cite magazine|last1=Kennedy|first1=Dana|title=Rhea Perlman's real life is super sweet|url=http://ew.com/article/1996/10/04/rhea-perlmans-real-life-super-sweet/|access-date=May 6, 2017|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|date=October 4, 1996}}
She studied drama at Hunter College in New York, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1968.{{cite book|title=Hunter College Commencement Exercises|date=June 11, 1968|publisher=Hunter College|page=14|url=http://library.hunter.cuny.edu/old/sites/default/files/130th_commencement_06111968.pdf|access-date=May 6, 2017}}
Career
=Career beginnings=
Perlman began her acting career with a small role as an attendant in the off-off-Broadway play Dracula Sabbat, which ran from September 1970 to June 1971.{{cite web|title=Dracula Sabbat at Judson Poets Theater and others 1970–1971|url=http://www.abouttheartists.com/productions/86265-dracula-sabbat-at-judson-poets-theater-and-others-september-11-1970-june-24-1971|website=About The Artists|access-date=May 6, 2017}} In 1972, she played a bit role in the film Hot Dogs for Gauguin. That same year she appeared in Westbeth Playwrights Feminist Collective's production of Up – An Uppity Revue, along with her future husband, Danny DeVito.{{cite news|title=Cheers: funniest lines|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2016/05/20/cheers-funniest-lines/cheers0/|access-date=May 6, 2017|work=The Daily Telegraph|date=May 20, 2016}}
One of her first notable parts was a recurring role on the television show Taxi as Zena, the sweet girlfriend of Louie De Palma (played by DeVito). Following that, she had a role in a small play portraying a much tougher character.{{cite news|last1=Raftery|first1=Brian|title=Cheers Oral History|url=https://www.gq.com/story/cheers-oral-history-extended|access-date=May 5, 2017|work=GQ|date=September 27, 2012}} Producers Glen and Les Charles saw her in that play, which led to her landing the role as wisecracking barmaid Carla Tortelli on their sitcom Cheers in 1982.
=''Cheers''=
The series struggled with ratings in its first season, but by the time it ended in 1993, it was one of the most popular and successful shows of all time, winning 20 Emmy awards out of 95 nominations.{{cite book|last1=Shapiro|first1=Mitchell E.|last2=Jicha|first2=Tom|title=The Top 100 American Situation Comedies: An Objective Ranking|date=2015|publisher=McFarland|isbn=978-1-4766-2340-5|pages=8–9|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b3vXCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA8|access-date=May 5, 2017}}
Perlman won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy four times: in 1984, 1985, 1986 and 1989.{{cite web|title=Rhea Perlman|url=http://www.emmys.com/bios/rhea-perlman|publisher=Television Academy|access-date=May 5, 2017}} Over her 11 seasons on Cheers, she was nominated for an Emmy every year but 1992, becoming the Cheers star to have the most wins and nominations. She was also nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress six times, more than anyone else in that category. In 2011, NBC named Carla Tortelli as one of the greatest TV characters of all time.{{cite news|title=50 Greatest TV Characters|url=http://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/50-greatest-tv-characters/41/|access-date=May 5, 2017|date=March 29, 2011}}
In 1986, Perlman starred in an episode of Steven Spielberg's Amazing Stories titled "The Wedding Ring," which also starred DeVito as her character's husband.
=Motion pictures=
In the 1990s, Perlman starred in several TV movies and motion pictures. In 1992, she starred in the made-for-TV-movie, To Grandmother's House We Go opposite Ashley Olsen and Mary-Kate Olsen, playing the wife of Jerry Van Dyke's character; the couple kidnapped the Olsen Twins' characters, hoping to cash in on ransom before Christmas. Other TV films in which she starred included the dramas A Place to Be Loved and In Spite of Love. Perlman's motion picture roles included There Goes The Neighborhood (1992), Canadian Bacon (1995), Carpool (1996), Sunset Park (1996), and Matilda (1996). She had a cameo in the film 10 Items Or Less (2006), and also starred in the 2007 independent film Love Comes Lately.
In 1994, Perlman voiced 9-Eye in The Timekeeper, a Circle-Vision show at the Magic Kingdom in Tomorrowland. She later starred in the 1996 sitcom Pearl as the title character and was featured on the 2001 TV drama Kate Brasher. Among her notable guest appearances was on the fourth-season premiere of Becker, which starred Cheers co-star Ted Danson. Perlman also appeared in a 2000 television film How to Marry a Billionaire: A Christmas Tale, in which she impersonated Jackie Kennedy. She also portrayed a therapist called Dr. Parella in the 2000 film Secret Cutting, which follows the story of a young girl named Dawn who self-injures. In 2007, Perlman appeared as Bertha in the West End of London in the comedy Boeing Boeing. In 2008, she starred in the Hallmark Channel original movie, The Christmas Choir, and appeared in Beethoven's Big Break in 2008 as Patricia Benji. In 2009, she appeared as Tanya's mother on the series Hung for Home Box Office Networks. In 2011, Perlman had a guest appearance as Mittens in one episode of Wilfred.
In 2009, Perlman and her daughter Lucy DeVito starred in the off-Broadway play Love, Loss, and What I Wore, adapted by Nora and Delia Ephron, at the Westside Theatre. From 2014 to 2017, she starred in a recurring role on The Mindy Project as Danny's mother, Annette Castellano.
In 2023, Perlman earned critical praise for playing Barbie creator Ruth Handler in Greta Gerwig's film Barbie.{{Cite web |date=2023-07-24 |title=Barbie's Creator Appeared In The Movie — But She Was Totally Different IRL |url=https://www.bustle.com/entertainment/barbie-movie-ruth-handler-rhea-perlman-cameo-explained |access-date=2023-07-28 |website=Bustle |language=en}}{{Cite news |last=Peters |first=Fletcher |date=2023-07-28 |title=Rhea Perlman Puts a Fantastic Twist on Barbie's Real Creator |language=en |work=The Daily Beast |url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/obsessed/who-is-ruth-handler-barbies-iconic-tax-evading-creator |access-date=2023-07-28}}
= Writing =
Perlman is the author of the illustrated children's book series Otto Undercover, whose six books to date (as of the middle of May 2012) are Born to Drive, Canyon Catastrophe, Water Balloon Doom, Toxic Taffy Takeover, The Brink of Ex-stink-tion, and Brain Freeze.
Personal life
File:Rhea Perlman Danny DeVito 2006.jpg Perlman met Danny DeVito on January 17, 1971, when she went to see a friend in the single performance of the play The Shrinking Bride, which also featured DeVito.{{cite book| author-link=Frank Lovece|first1=Frank | last1=Lovece | first2= Jules | last2= with Franco | title=Hailing Taxi: The Official Book of the Show | year = 1988 | location = New York | publisher = Simon & Schuster / Prentice Hall Press | pages = 53, 286 | isbn = 978-0-13-372103-4}} They moved in together two weeks after meetingLovece, pp. 53, 80 and married on January 28, 1982.{{cite news | first= Carol | last= Wallace | date= December 12, 1983 | title= Chalk Up a Successful Marriage for TV's Tart-Tongued Twosome, Danny De Vito and Rhea Perlman | url= http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20086560,00.html | work= People | access-date= October 8, 2012 | url-status=dead | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121120221558/http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20086560,00.html | archive-date= November 20, 2012 | df= mdy-all }} They have three children: Lucy Chet DeVito, Grace Fan DeVito, and Jacob Daniel DeVito.{{cite web |url=http://www.etonline.com/news/125687_Danny_DeVito_and_Rhea_Perlman_Separate/index.html |title=Danny DeVito and Rhea Perlman Separate |work=Entertainment Tonight |access-date=October 8, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121010013810/http://www.etonline.com/news/125687_Danny_DeVito_and_Rhea_Perlman_Separate/index.html |archive-date=October 10, 2012}} Perlman, who is Jewish, and DeVito, who was raised Catholic, raised their children celebrating the major holidays of both religions but did not give their children any religious identity. Perlman told the Los Angeles Times in 1998: {{cquote|We do all the holidays to keep the traditions and the culture going, but I truly don't have a great feeling about any particular organized religion, and I don't think it's right to impose one on my kids. I feel like I'm bringing them up to be good people, and that's what it's about.}} In addition to their three children, the couple have two grandchildren.{{cite web |url=https://parade.com/news/danny-devito-rhea-pearlman-another-grandchild-on-the-way-daughter-lucy-pregnant-feb-2024 |title= Danny DeVito and Rhea Pearlman Have Another Grandchild on the Way |work=Parade Media |date= February 26, 2024 |access-date=July 21, 2024}}{{cite web | url=https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/danny-devito-found-daughter-lucy-210837987.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAADFgPfZzKSidtOLPSQWOgov4_2FHCD1eb0V1FMi41B_t5E7S2XX5cydjafHc5GbYg0hPEwxYE2e5RypMA5X6rm2tSsj1j4GX3ks4ksy8IAtBeKBZ3gNo9ganvKS_5pZQDOcoVlox2sZ-4kt1UX7A188o6PxNnxmQZXbLIRsDKywD | title=Danny DeVito Found Out Daughter Lucy Was Pregnant 30 Minutes Before Performing on Broadway: 'I Just Burst into Tears' | date=December 17, 2024 }}
The family resided in Beverly Hills, California, and they owned a vacation home in Interlaken, New Jersey that they frequented to get away from Los Angeles.Boon, Jon. [https://radaronline.com/exclusives/2012/10/danny-devito-new-york-move-divorce/ "Single In The City! Danny DeVito Moving To New York: He Misses The Big Apple!"], RadarOnline, October 15, 2012. Accessed January 24, 2023. "Danny and Rhea used to stay at his vacation home in Interlaken, New Jersey whenever they wanted a break away from Los Angeles. He never really felt an affinity to California and lived there purely for work reasons."{{cite web |url=http://tax1.co.monmouth.nj.us/cgi-bin/m4.cgi?district=1322&l02=132200013____00016_________M |title=Monmouth County, New Jersey Tax Assessor's Office property record for Danny De Vito and Rhea Perlman |publisher=Tax1.co.monmouth.nj.us |access-date=February 10, 2010 |archive-date=April 24, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200424142800/http://tax1.co.monmouth.nj.us/cgi-bin/m4.cgi?district=1322&l02=132200013____00016_________M |url-status=dead }} Throughout their relationship, Perlman and DeVito have acted alongside each other several times, including in the TV show Taxi and the feature film Matilda.
Perlman and DeVito separated in October 2012. However, in March 2013, it was reported that they had reconciled.{{cite news | first= Elizabeth | last = Leonard | date= March 15, 2013 | title=Danny DeVito and Rhea Perlman Are Back Together | url = http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20682518,00.html| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130317092417/http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20682518,00.html| url-status = dead| archive-date = March 17, 2013| work=People | access-date=March 16, 2013}} The couple later separated again for a second time in March 2017 on amicable terms. Although the two no longer live together, Perlman said she has no intention of divorcing DeVito.{{cite web |title=Why Rhea Perlman won't divorce Danny DeVito |url=https://nypost.com/2018/03/08/why-rhea-perlman-wont-divorce-danny-devito/ |website=New York Post |access-date=July 9, 2018 |date=March 8, 2018}} In 2019, Perlman told interviewer Andy Cohen that she and DeVito have become closer friends after their separation than they were in their final years as a couple.{{cite web |last1=Squires |first1=Bethy |title=Rhea Perlman and Danny DeVito May Be Separated, but They're Still Bros |url=https://www.vulture.com/2019/05/rhea-perlman-and-danny-devito-are-still-pals.html |website=Vulture |date=May 10, 2019 |access-date=26 May 2019}}
Filmography
=Film=
=Television=
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Year
! Title ! Role ! class=unsortable| Notes |
|---|
| rowspan="2" | 1976
| Jean | |
| I Want to Keep My Baby!
| Rae Finer | |
| rowspan="3" | 1977
| Mary Jane Harper Cried Last Night | Judy | |
| Having Babies II
| Cheryl | Uncredited |
| Intimate Strangers
| Unknown | |
| 1979
| Like Normal People | Jan | |
| 1979–1982
| Taxi | Zena Sherman | 5 episodes |
| rowspan="2" | 1982
| The Selling of Vince D'Angelo | Mrs. D'Angelo | rowspan="2" | Television film |
| Drop Out Father
| Tawney Shapiro |
| 1982–1993
| Cheers | Carla Tortelli | Main role |
| rowspan="2" | 1983
| Vince's Wife | Television film |
| Saturday Night Live
| Herself (co-host) | Episode: "Danny DeVito & Rhea Perlman/Eddy Grant" |
| 1984
| Francine Kester | rowspan="2" | Voice, television film |
| rowspan="2" | 1985
| A Girl Named Alida | Rose Johnson |
| St. Elsewhere
| Carla Tortelli | Episode: "Cheers" |
| rowspan="2" | 1986
| Lois | Episode: "The Wedding Ring" |
| Annie
| Rose Johnson | Voice, 12 episodes |
| rowspan="2" | 1987
| Carla Tortelli | Episode: "Pilot" |
| Stamp of a Killer
| Claudia | rowspan="3" | Television film |
| 1988
| A Family Again | Aunt Dee |
| 1989
| Alida's Problem? | Rose Johnson |
| 1990
| Paula | Television special |
| rowspan="2" | 1991
| Blossom | The Godmother | Episode: "Dad's Girlfriend" |
| Sesame Street
| The Old Woman Who Lives in a Shoe | Episode: "The Old Woman Who Lives in a Shoe's house arrives on Sesame Street" |
| 1992
| Roc | Connie Mason | Episode: "The Stan Who Came to Dinner" |
| 1993
| Jerri Blair | Television film |
| rowspan="3" | 1994
| Carla Tortelli | Voice, episode: "Fear of Flying" |
| In Spite of Love
| Emma | rowspan="2" | Television film |
| All-Star 25th Birthday: Stars and Street Forever!
| Worm TV Host |
| 1995
| Ardeth | Voice, 2 episodes |
| 1996–1997
| Pearl | Pearl Caraldo | 22 episodes |
| rowspan="2" | 1997
| Mrs. Eileen Mulrooney | Episode: "Harassed" |
| Almost Perfect
| Rhea Perlman | Episode: "Dating for Ratings" |
| rowspan="2" | 1998
| In the Doghouse | Phil Markowitz | rowspan="3" | Television film |
| Houdini
| Esther |
| rowspan="2" | 1999
| Mrs. Beelzebub |
| Mad About You
| Ramona | Episode: "Valentine's Day" |
| rowspan="3" | 2000
| A Tale of Two Bunnies | Thelma | rowspan="3" | Television film |
| Secret Cutting
| Dr. Parella |
| How to Marry a Billionaire: A Christmas Tale |
| rowspan="3" | 2001
| Dr. Helen Tooth | Episode: "Falling Up" |
| Kate Brasher
| Abbie Shaeffer | 6 episodes |
| Becker
| Dr. Katherine Simmons | Episode: "Psycho Therapy" |
| rowspan="2" | 2002
| Frasier | Carla Tortelli | Episode: "Cheerful Goodbyes" |
| What's New, Scooby-Doo?
| Agnes | Voice, episode: "A Scooby-Doo Halloween" |
| rowspan="2" | 2003
| Louise Salchek | Episode: "Dumb Bunnies" |
| Other People's Business
| Mrs. Wabash | Television film |
| 2004
| Eleanor Frank | Episode: "Homework" |
| rowspan="2" | 2006
| Crumbs | Camile Spadaro | Episode: "A Loon Again, Naturally" |
| Stroller Wars
| Penny | Television film |
| rowspan="2" | 2008
| Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Roxana Fox | Episode: "Unorthodox" |
| The Christmas Choir
| Sister Agatha | Television film |
| 2009–2010
| Hung | Vera-Joan Skagle | 4 episodes |
| rowspan="2" | 2011
| Wilfred | Mittens | Episode: "Compassion" |
| Oliver's Ghost
| Eloise | Television film |
| rowspan="2" | 2012
| Jacki | Episode: "Everything Goes Better with Vampires" |
| The Manzanis
| Camille | Pilot |
| 2012–2013
| Nessie | Voice, 13 episodes |
| 2013
| Crypt Keeper's Wife / Grandmother / Witch | Voice, episode: "Caffeine-Induced Aneurysm" |
| 2013–2014
| Kirstie | Thelma | 12 episodes |
| 2014
| Janet | Episode: "Uncle Benjamin" |
| 2014–2017
| Annette Castellano | 17 episodes |
| 2015
| Crystal Buff | Episode: "No, I Don't Want a Fucking Smiley Face" |
| rowspan="2" | 2016
| Mom{{Cite web|url=http://www.thefutoncritic.com/listings/20160128cbs03/|title=Diabetic Lesbians and a Blushing Bride|work=the Futon Critic|access-date=January 30, 2016}} | Anya | Episode: "Diabetic Lesbians and a Blushing Bride" |
| Brooklyn Nine-Nine
| Estelle | Episode: "Coral Palms, Part 1" |
| rowspan="2" | 2017
| Me and My Grandma{{Cite web|url=http://www.tubefilter.com/2016/11/01/rhea-perlman-youtube-red-me-and-my-grandma/|title=Rhea Perlman cast alongside Eva Gutowski on 'Me and My Grandma'.|work=Tubefilter|date=November 2016|access-date=March 15, 2017}} | Grandma Skalecki | 6 episodes |
| Tim & Eric's Bedtime Stories
| Maureen | Episode: "The Duke" |
| 2018
| Shooter | Associate Justice Gibson | 2 episodes |
| rowspan="2" | 2019
| Margot Letien | Episode: “Food in a Geoffy”{{cite web|last=Dawn|first=Randee|title=A mini-'Cheers' reunion is coming to TV! See the pics|url=https://www.today.com/popculture/mini-cheers-reunion-coming-goldbergs-t162763|website=Today|access-date=September 18, 2019|date=September 17, 2019}} |
| Harley Quinn
| Golda | Voice, episode: "Being Harley Quinn" |
| 2021–2023
| Cid | Voice, 11 episodes |
| 2022
| Durlawn | Voice, episode: "Wet Bodies" |
| rowspan="3" | 2023
| Accused | Joyce | Episode: "Brenda's Story" |
| Not Dead Yet
| Janice | Episode: "Not A Fairytale Yet" |
| It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
| Bertha Fussy | Episode: "The Gang Gets Cursed" |
| 2023–2025
| Beatrix Hasp | 3 episodes |
| 2023–present
| Curses! | Margie | Voice, 10 episodes |
| rowspan="2" | 2025
| Judy | Episode: "Love Thy Neighbor" |
| The Studio
| Matt's Mom | 2 episodes |
| TBA
| Too Much | | Upcoming series |
References
{{reflist}}
External links
{{commons category}}
- {{IMDb name|0674231}}
- {{IBDB name}}
- {{iobdb name|22113}}
{{EmmyAward ComedySupportingActress 1976-2000}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Perlman, Rhea}}
Category:20th-century American actresses
Category:21st-century American actresses
Category:21st-century American Jews
Category:Actors from Monmouth County, New Jersey
Category:Actresses from Brooklyn
Category:Actresses from New Jersey
Category:American film actresses
Category:American stage actresses
Category:American television actresses
Category:American people of Polish-Jewish descent
Category:American people of Russian-Jewish descent
Category:American voice actresses
Category:American women comedians
Category:Comedians from Brooklyn
Category:Comedians from Monmouth County, New Jersey
Category:Hunter College alumni
Category:Jewish American actresses
Category:Jewish American comedians
Category:Jewish women comedians
Category:Lafayette High School (New York City) alumni
Category:New York (state) Democrats
Category:People from Coney Island