Elmarie Louise Wendel (November 23, 1928 – c. July 21, 2018) was an American actress and singer best known as Mamie Dubcek on the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

sitcom '' 3rd Rock from the Sun''.

Early life

Born on a farm in

Howard County, Iowa Howard County is a county located in the US state of Iowa. As of the 2020 census, the population was 9,469. The county seat is Cresco. The county was founded in 1851; it was named for General Tilghman Ashurst Howard, a Representative of India ...

, one of five siblings, Wendel spent her childhood travelling with her musical parents and dancing with her sisters in and around

the Midwest The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...

in club and concert hall venues, including the Grand Ole Opry. She eventually made her way to New York City where she appeared in, among other productions, the original 1959 off-Broadway production of ''

Little Mary Sunshine ''Little Mary Sunshine'' is a musical that parodies old-fashioned operettas and musicals. The book, music, and lyrics are by Rick Besoyan. The original Off-Broadway production premiered November 18, 1959 at the Orpheum Theatre in New York Cit ...

'', starring

Eileen Brennan Eileen Brennan (born Verla Eileen Regina Brennen; September 3, 1932 – July 28, 2013) was an American actress. She made her film debut in the satire '' Divorce American Style'' (1967), followed by a supporting role in Peter Bogdanovich's ''The ...

and

John McMartin John Francis McMartin (August 21, 1929 – July 6, 2016) was an American actor of stage, film and television. Life and career McMartin was born in Warsaw, Indiana, on August 21, 1929, and raised in St. Cloud, Minnesota. After graduating fro ...

Career

A national touring company of ''

Annie Annie may refer to: People and fictional characters * Annie (given name), a given name and a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Annie (actress) (born 1975), Indian actress * Annie (singer) (born 1977), Norwegian singer The ...

'' took her to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

, where she made a successful transition into film and television. She garnered the role of the eccentric Mrs. Dubcek on '' 3rd Rock from the Sun''. From 1996 to 2001, she appeared in about 70 episodes of the show. She made appearances on such shows as '' Seinfeld'', '' Love & War'', '' Murphy Brown'', '' Murder, She Wrote'', and ''

Empty Nest ''Empty Nest'' is an American television sitcom that aired for seven seasons on NBC from October 8, 1988, to April 29, 1995. The series, which was created as a spin-off of ''The Golden Girls'' by creator and producer Susan Harris, starred Ri ...

''. She appeared in ''

And the Band Played On ''And the Band Played On: Politics, People, and the AIDS Epidemic'' is a 1987 book by ''San Francisco Chronicle'' journalist Randy Shilts. The book chronicles the discovery and spread of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immun ...

'' and '' Far from Home''. She had a recurring role as Gina, a lascivious assembly line co-worker of the title character on ''

George Lopez George Edward Lopez (born April 23, 1961) is an American comedian and actor. He is known for starring in his self-produced ABC sitcom. His stand-up comedy examines race and ethnic relations, including Mexican American culture. Lopez has rece ...

''. In 2008, she appeared on '' General Hospital'' in the recurring role of Peg. Her musical theatre credits include ''

Wonderful Town ''Wonderful Town'' is a 1953 musical with book written by Joseph A. Fields and Jerome Chodorov, lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green, and music by Leonard Bernstein. The musical tells the story of two sisters who aspire to be a writer and act ...

'', '' Cole Porter Revisited'', ''

'' and '' Gigi''.

Personal life and death

Wendel's daughter, J.C. Wendel, is also an actress. Her death was announced on her daughter's Instagram on July 21, 2018. No cause or place of death was given but Wendel had resided in

Studio City, California Studio City is a neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California, in the southeast San Fernando Valley, just west of the Cahuenga Pass. It is named after the studio lot that was established in the area by film producer Mack Sennett in 192 ...

, at the time of her death.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wendel, Elmarie 1928 births 2018 deaths Actresses from Iowa American television actresses American film actresses American voice actresses American video game actresses American musical theatre actresses People from Howard County, Iowa Place of death missing Singers from Iowa 20th-century American singers 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses 20th-century American women singers