Penelope Allison "Penny" Peyser is an American actress, writer, and filmmaker.
Early life
Peyser was born in
Irvington,
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
, and attended
Irvington High School, where she starred in student musical theatre productions. She is the daughter of Marguerite (née Richards) and
Peter A. Peyser
Peter A. Peyser (September 7, 1921 – October 9, 2014) was a United States representative from New York, serving from 1971 to 1977 as a Republican and from 1979 to 1983 as a Democrat.
Political career
Peyser's political career began in ...
, who at the time was mayor of Irvington, and later a five-term United States Congressman in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Peyser was attracted to acting when, at the age of six, she saw
Julie Andrews
Dame Julie Andrews (born Julia Elizabeth Wells; 1 October 1935) is an English actress, singer, and author. She has garnered numerous accolades throughout her career spanning over seven decades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Fi ...
in ''
My Fair Lady
''My Fair Lady'' is a musical based on George Bernard Shaw's 1913 play ''Pygmalion'', with a book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe. The story concerns Eliza Doolittle, a Cockney flower girl who takes speech lessons f ...
''. Peyser performed in high school productions of ''
The Boy Friend'' and ''
Bye Bye Birdie
''Bye Bye Birdie'' is a stage musical with music by Charles Strouse and lyrics by Lee Adams, based upon a book by Michael Stewart.
Originally titled ''Let's Go Steady'', ''Bye Bye Birdie'' is set in 1958. The short story "Dream Man", authored ...
''. She told
Bruce Kimmel
The English language name Bruce arrived in Scotland with the Normans, from the place name Brix, Manche in Normandy, France, meaning "the willowlands". Initially promulgated via the descendants of king Robert the Bruce (1274−1329), it has been a ...
in an interview that she enjoyed singing and acting throughout grade school:
My triumph was in sixth grade when I decided to insert a musical number in our non-musical production of ''Oliver Twist''. I was playing the Artful Dodger and couldn't resist the opportunity to sing ''Consider Yourself'' along with a self-choreographed tap dance. Now that really brought the house down and imagine the director's surprise.
High school – I was a theatre geek with a minor in field hockey. ''Bye Bye Birdie'', ''The Boyfriend'', ''Born Yesterday'' – wouldn't you have loved to see me in the Judy Holiday role?
Peyser began higher education at
Skidmore College
Skidmore College is a private liberal arts college in Saratoga Springs, New York. Approximately 2,650 students are enrolled at Skidmore pursuing a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree in one of more than 60 areas of study.
History
Sk ...
, where she majored in theater and performed the lead in ''
Lysistrata
''Lysistrata'' ( or ; Attic Greek: , ''Lysistrátē'', "Army Disbander") is an ancient Greek comedy by Aristophanes, originally performed in classical Athens in 411 BC. It is a comic account of a woman's extraordinary mission to end the Peloponne ...
'' ("while still a virgin and knowing not of what I spoke," she told Kimmel
), then transferred to
Emerson College
Emerson College is a private college with its main campus in Boston, Massachusetts. It also maintains campuses in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California and Well, Limburg, Netherlands ( Kasteel Well). Founded in 1880 by Charles Wesley Emerson as a ...
in
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
. At Emerson, she continued to study drama and acted in
Sam Shepard
Samuel Shepard Rogers III (November 5, 1943 – July 27, 2017) was an American actor, playwright, author, screenwriter, and director whose career spanned half a century. He won 10 Obie Awards for writing and directing, the most by any write ...
's ''
La Turista
''La Turista'' is a play by the American playwright Sam Shepard, first performed at American Place Theatre, New York City in 1967, directed by Jacques Levy. The title refers to the most common illness among tourists. The two main characters are S ...
'', among other plays. After graduating in 1973 with a degree in theater, she made her professional debut by joining a Boston
improv group called The Proposition. Peyser told an interviewer, "They'd take suggestions from the audience and turn them into skits. It was the most high-pressured job I ever had and the lowest paying. I figured it couldn't get any worse than that. After that, I went to New York and began my waitressing career."
Peyser did indeed work as a waitress in Manhattan. She also gained experience as "a
glorified chorus girl" in
Off-Broadway
An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...
productions such as ''Diamond Studs'', and performed in the original production of
Lanford Wilson
Lanford Wilson (April 13, 1937March 24, 2011) was an American playwright. His work, as described by ''The New York Times'', was "earthy, realist, greatly admired ndwidely performed."Margalit Fox, Fox, Margalit"Lanford Wilson, Pulitzer Prize-Wi ...
's ''
The Hot l Baltimore #REDIRECT The Hot l Baltimore #REDIRECT The Hot l Baltimore
the title is a play on the word 'Hotel' with a missing 'e', hence, ''"Hot l"''. The only "official" rendering with a capital "L" (official being defined as actual promotional material) is ...
'',
and well as, more recently, in ''Ethel Sings - The Unsung Song of
Ethel Rosenberg
Julius Rosenberg (May 12, 1918 – June 19, 1953) and Ethel Rosenberg (; September 28, 1915 – June 19, 1953) were American citizens who were convicted of spying on behalf of the Soviet Union. The couple were convicted of providing top-secret i ...
'' at the Off-Broadway Samuel Beckett Theatre.
Film and television acting
Peyser moved to Hollywood upon landing a minor role in ''
All the President's Men
''All the President's Men'' is a 1974 non-fiction book by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, two of the journalists who investigated the June 1972 break-in at the Watergate Office Building and the resultant political scandal for ''The Washington ...
''.
Robert Redford
Charles Robert Redford Jr. (born August 18, 1936) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is the List of awards and nominations received by Robert Redford, recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Awards, Academy Award from four nomi ...
, who produced and starred in the film, objected to casting a politician's daughter, but she informed Redford that her father was a liberal Republican who had criticized
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...
, and she got the part.
Two months later, she was cast as Ramona Scott in ''
Rich Man, Poor Man Book II
''Rich Man, Poor Man Book II'' is an American television miniseries that aired on ABC in one-hour episodes at 9:00pm ET/PT on Tuesday nights between September 21, 1976 and March 8, 1977. A sequel to '' Rich Man, Poor Man'' that had aired the prev ...
''. Peyser then replaced
Devon Scott
Devon Patricia Scott (born November 29, 1958) is a former American actress and daughter of actor/producer George C. Scott. She starred in the first season of ''The Tony Randall Show'', which ran from 1976 to 1978; she was replaced for the secon ...
in the role of Roberta Franklin for the second season of ''
The Tony Randall Show
''The Tony Randall Show'' is an American television sitcom that aired on ABC during its first season from September 23, 1976, to March 10, 1977, and on CBS for its second (and final) season from September 24, 1977, to March 25, 1978.
Synopsis
Th ...
'', her first regular TV role.
She also appeared in smaller guest roles in numerous TV series, including ''
B. J. and the Bear
''B.J. and the Bear'' is an American action comedy television series which aired on NBC from February 10, 1979, to May 9, 1981. Created by Glen A. Larson and Christopher Crowe, the series stars Greg Evigan. The series was produced when the CB ...
'', ''
Barnaby Jones
''Barnaby Jones'' is an American detective television series starring Buddy Ebsen as a formerly retired investigator and Lee Meriwether as his widowed daughter-in-law, who run a private detective firm in Los Angeles, California. The show was or ...
'', ''
The Incredible Hulk
The Hulk is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in the debut issue of '' The Incredible Hulk'' (May 1962). In his comic book a ...
'', ''
Knight Rider
''Knight Rider'' is an American entertainment franchise created by Glen A. Larson. The core of ''Knight Rider'' is its three television series: the original ''Knight Rider'' (1982–1986) and sequel series ''Team Knight Rider'' (1997–1998) ...
'', ''
The A-Team
''The A-Team'' is an American action-adventure television series that ran on NBC from January 1983 to March 1987 about former members of a fictitious United States Army Special Forces unit. The four members of the team were tried by court marti ...
'', ''
The Fall Guy
''The Fall Guy'' is an American action/adventure television series produced for ABC and originally broadcast from November 4, 1981, to May 2, 1986. It starred Lee Majors, Douglas Barr, and Heather Thomas as Hollywood stunt performers who moonli ...
'', ''
Tour of Duty
For military personnel, a tour of duty is usually a period of time spent in combat or in a hostile environment. In an army, for instance, soldiers on active duty serve 24 hours a day, seven days a week for the length of their service commitment. ...
'', ''
Quantum Leap
''Quantum Leap'' is an American science fiction television series, created by Donald P. Bellisario, that premiered on NBC and aired for five seasons, from March 26, 1989, to May 5, 1993. The series stars Scott Bakula as Dr. Sam Beckett, a physi ...
'', ''
L.A. Law
''L.A. Law'' is an American legal drama television series that ran for eight seasons on NBC, from September 15, 1986, to May 19, 1994.
Created by Steven Bochco and Terry Louise Fisher, it centers on the partners, associates and staff of a Los ...
'', ''
MacGyver
Angus "Mac" MacGyver is the title character and the protagonist in the TV series ''MacGyver''. He is played by Richard Dean Anderson in the 1985 original series. Lucas Till portrays a younger version of MacGyver in the 2016 reboot.
In both po ...
'', ''
Criminal Minds
''Criminal Minds'' is an American police procedural crime drama television series created and produced by Jeff Davis (writer), Jeff Davis. The series premiered on CBS on September 22, 2005, and originally concluded on February 19, 2020; it was r ...
'', and ''
The Mentalist
''The Mentalist'' is an American drama television series that ran from September 23, 2008, until February 18, 2015, broadcasting 151 episodes over seven seasons, on CBS. Created by Bruno Heller, who was also its executive producer, the show fol ...
''. Peyser worked with
Paul Bartel
Paul Bartel (August 6, 1938 – May 13, 2000) was an American actor, writer and director. He was perhaps most known for his 1982 hit black comedy ''Eating Raoul'', which he wrote, starred in and directed.
Bartel appeared in over 90 movies and ...
and
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spie ...
in a 1986 episode of ''
Amazing Stories
''Amazing Stories'' is an American science fiction magazine launched in April 1926 by Hugo Gernsback's Experimenter Publishing. It was the first magazine devoted solely to science fiction. Science fiction stories had made regular appearances i ...
'', of which she was the star. She co-starred as Tracy Beaumont in the 1979 TV movie ''
The Girls in the Office
''The Girls in the Office'' is a 1979 American made-for-television romantic drama film starring Susan Saint James, Barbara Eden, Robyn Douglass and Penny Peyser as four young women working in the office of a new department store in Houston, Texas. ...
'' and also starred as Emma Gayser Bedell in the 1982 TV
mini-series
A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format h ...
''
The Blue and the Gray''.
For two seasons, Peyser appeared in the role of Cindy Fox in the 1984-86 CBS series ''
Crazy Like a Fox''.
Her other feature films include ''
The In-Laws'' and ''
The Frisco Kid
''The Frisco Kid'' is a 1979 American Western comedy film directed by Robert Aldrich, starring Gene Wilder as Avram Belinski, a Polish rabbi who is traveling to San Francisco, and Harrison Ford as a bank robber who befriends him.
Plot
Rabbi Av ...
''.
Peyser continued acting in theater in Los Angeles, in which she portrayed the lead role in ''A Moment in the Sun'', ''Red Flags'' and ''
The Twilight of the Golds
''The Twilight of the Golds'' is a play by Jonathan Tolins and produced by Charles H. Duggan that premiered at the Pasadena Playhouse on January 17, 1993. Strong reviews propelled it to theatres across the country including a stop at The Kennedy C ...
''.
Peyser has written for the ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' as well as other publications.
Filmmaking
Peyser co-produced, wrote and directed the documentary ''Trying to Get Good: The Jazz Odyssey of
Jack Sheldon
Beryl Cyril Sheldon Jr. (November 30, 1931 – December 27, 2019), known professionally as Jack Sheldon, was an American singer, musician, and actor. He performed on ''The Merv Griffin Show'' and participated in episodes of the educational music ...
'' (2008), which features interviews with
Clint Eastwood
Clinton Eastwood Jr. (born May 31, 1930) is an American actor and film director. After achieving success in the Western TV series '' Rawhide'', he rose to international fame with his role as the "Man with No Name" in Sergio Leone's "''Doll ...
,
Billy Crystal
William Edward Crystal (born March 14, 1948)On page 17 of his book ''700 Sundays'', Crystal displays his birth announcement, which gives his first two names as "William Edward", not "William Jacob" is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. ...
,
Merv Griffin
Mervyn Edward Griffin Jr. (July 6, 1925 – August 12, 2007) was an American television show host and media mogul. He began his career as a radio and big band singer, later appearing in film and on Broadway. From 1965 to 1986 he hosted his own ta ...
,
Chris Botti
Christopher Stephen Botti ( ; born October 12, 1962) is an award-winning American trumpeter and composer.
In 2013, Botti won the Grammy Award in the Best Pop Instrumental Album category, for the album ''Impressions''.
He was also nominated in ...
,
Dave Frishberg
David Lee Frishberg (March 23, 1933 – November 17, 2021) was an American jazz pianist, vocalist, composer, and lyricist. His songs have been performed by Blossom Dearie, Rosemary Clooney, Shirley Horn, Anita O'Day, Michael Feinstein, Irene Kra ...
,
Tierney Sutton
Tierney Sutton (born June 28, 1963) is an American jazz singer.
Career
Sutton was born in Omaha, Nebraska, but grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She received a bachelor's degree from Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut, and attended ...
and others. The film won jury and audience prizes at the
Nashville Film Festival
The Nashville Film Festival (NashFilm), held annually in Nashville, Tennessee, is the oldest running film festival in the South and one of the oldest in the United States. In 2016, Nashville Film Festival received more than 6,700 submissions from ...
, the
Newport Beach Film Festival
The Newport Beach Film Festival (NBFF) is an annual film festival in Newport Beach, California, typically held in late April. In 2022, it was announced that the festival have permanently changed its date to be held in October, as the festival beg ...
, the
Indianapolis International Film Festival
Founded in 2004, the Indianapolis International Film Festival seeks to create a shared experience by championing films that entertain, challenge, and expand perspectives in Indianapolis and beyond. Indianapolis International Film Festival is als ...
and the Kansas City Filmmakers Jubilee. She also wrote, produced, filmed, and directed the feature documentary ''Stillpoint: Life Inside a Zen Community'' (2014) about a community in the hills above
Santa Cruz, California
Santa Cruz (Spanish for "Holy Cross") is the county seat and largest city of Santa Cruz County, in Northern California. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 62,956. Situated on the northern edge of Monterey Bay, Santa Cruz is a pop ...
of which "Umi", British former radio deejay
Tom Lodge
Thomas Odoard Marshall Lodge (16 April 1936 – 25 March 2012) was an English author and radio broadcaster.
Early life
Lodge was a figure in British radio of the 1960s. He was a disc jockey on Radio Caroline. He was the son of the writer Oli ...
, was the master, and Peyser's sister, Caroline, who is suffering from
multiple sclerosis
Multiple (cerebral) sclerosis (MS), also known as encephalomyelitis disseminata or disseminated sclerosis, is the most common demyelinating disease, in which the insulating covers of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord are damaged. This d ...
and was dubbed "Mouna" by Umi, was one of the members.
''Stillpoint'' trailer
/ref>
Personal life
Peyser began dating James Carroll Jordan when they were working on ''Rich Man, Poor Man Book II
''Rich Man, Poor Man Book II'' is an American television miniseries that aired on ABC in one-hour episodes at 9:00pm ET/PT on Tuesday nights between September 21, 1976 and March 8, 1977. A sequel to '' Rich Man, Poor Man'' that had aired the prev ...
'' together. Jordan told an interviewer that they fell in love during their eighth episode together. They were married in 1977, and divorced in 1984. They have a son, James Buckly Jordan, who is Managing Partner of Canyon Creek Capital.
Peyser was married to David Brady from 1991 to 1998; they had a son, Devon P. Brady of Lionsgate Films
Lionsgate Films (formerly known as Cinépix Film Properties) is an American film production and film distribution studio, headquartered in Santa Monica and founded in Canada, and is the flagship division of Lionsgate Entertainment. It is the larg ...
.
Peyser is currently married to Doug McIntyre
Douglas John McIntyre (born November 11, 1957) is the former host of ''McIntyre In The Morning'' on KABC 790 Los Angeles. He retired after 22 years in broadcasting on December 14, 2018. McIntyre is a long-time columnist for the Southern Califo ...
, who hosted the radio talk-show ''McIntyre in the Morning'' at KABC in Los Angeles.
Filmography
Film
Television
References
External links
*
Trying to Get Good
{{DEFAULTSORT:Peyser, Penny
Living people
American television actresses
People from Irvington, New York
Emerson College alumni
American film actresses
20th-century American actresses
21st-century American actresses
Actresses from New York (state)
Year of birth missing (living people)