Phyllis Smith (born July 10, 1951) is an American actress and casting associate. She is best known for playing

Phyllis Vance ''The Office'' is an American television series based on the British television comedy of the same name. The format of the series is a parody of the fly on the wall documentary technique that intersperses traditional situation comedy segments wi ...

in the television series ''

The Office ''The Office'' is a mockumentary sitcom created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, first made in the United Kingdom, then Germany, and subsequently the United States. It has since been remade in ten other countries. The original series of ...

'' and her critically acclaimed voice role as Sadness in the film ''

Inside Out Inside Out may refer to: *Backwards (disambiguation) or inverse Books * '' Inside Out: A Personal History of Pink Floyd'', by Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason * ''Inside Out'', Christian book by Larry Crabb * ''Inside Out'', novel by Barry Eisler ...

''. She also starred as Betty Broderick-Allen on the critically-acclaimed

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

series ''

The OA ''The OA'' is an American mystery drama television series with science fiction, supernatural, and fantasy elements. ''The OA'' debuted on Netflix on December 16, 2016. Created and executive produced by Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij, the series ...

''.

Early life

Smith was born in

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

in 1951. She is the second eldest of nine siblings. She graduated from Cleveland High School in 1968.

Education

Smith graduated from the

University of Missouri–St. Louis The University of Missouri–St. Louis (UMSL) is a public research university in St. Louis, Missouri. Established in 1963, it is one of four universities in the University of Missouri System and its newest. Located on the former grounds of Bel ...

in 1972 with a degree in elementary education. In the 1970s and 1980s, she worked as a dancer, a cheerleader for the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals hav ...

football team, and a

burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.

performer. She said that there was "no stripping, but I did wear feathers." She was forced to quit dancing after suffering a knee injury. Following this, Smith worked briefly as a telemarketer, lasting only three hours before resigning. She later worked in

Hollywood, California Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Pictures, ...

, as an actress and in casting. Smith’s first paid acting role was as an extra in the film ''

Caddyshack ''Caddyshack'' is a 1980 American sports comedy film directed by Harold Ramis, written by Brian Doyle-Murray, Ramis and Douglas Kenney, and starring Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, Ted Knight, Michael O'Keefe and Bill Murray with supporting role ...

''.

Career

Smith was working as a casting associate under the direction of Allison Jones on the television series ''The Office'', when she was offered the role of

Phyllis Lapin ''The Office'' is an American mockumentary sitcom television series that depicts the everyday work lives of office employees at the Scranton, Pennsylvania, branch of the fictional Dunder Mifflin Paper Company. It aired on NBC from March 24, 2 ...

, a character created specifically for her, a soft-spoken saleswoman who tended to disagree with pompous office manager Michael Scott. She received Screen Actors Guild Awards in 2006 and 2007 for her performance in ''The Office'' in the category "Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series". In June 2008, Smith appeared with the cast of ''The Office'' on ''

Celebrity Family Feud ''Celebrity Family Feud'' is a broadcast network spin-off of the syndicated American game show ''Family Feud''. Like the primetime ''All-Star Specials'' aired during the late 1970s and early 1980s by the show's then-network home ABC, the episode ...

''. In 2011, she played a supporting role in the film ''

Bad Teacher ''Bad Teacher'' is a 2011 American comedy-drama film directed by Jake Kasdan from a screenplay by Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky. Starring Cameron Diaz, Justin Timberlake, Lucy Punch, John Michael Higgins and Jason Segel, the film tells the ...

''. In 2015, she voiced the character Sadness in the Pixar film ''

'', receiving high critical praise for her performance. Later, she appeared as a regular in the Netflix series ''The OA''.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

Production work

References

External links

*
Deadspin profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Phyllis 1951 births Actresses from St. Louis American female dancers American dancers American film actresses American television actresses American female erotic dancers American erotic dancers Annie Award winners American burlesque performers Living people National Football League cheerleaders People from St. Louis County, Missouri University of Missouri alumni University of Missouri–St. Louis alumni American cheerleaders 21st-century American actresses American voice actresses