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It has been reported that Penny Marshall, the star of ’70s sitcom Laverneย & Shirley, has passed away at the age of 75.
TMZ reports that Marshall died on Monday night at her Hollywood Hills home from complications of diabetes. She was best-known for her role asย Laverne DeFazio in Laverne & Shirley, as well as her successes in directing films such as Big with Tom Hanks, which grossedย more than $100 million.
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Carole Penny Marshall was bornย on October 15th, 1943. Both of her parents were involved in the creative arts. Her mother,ย Marjorie Irene was a tap dance teacher who ran theย Marjorie Marshall Dance School. Her father,ย Anthony “Tony” Masciarelli, was a director and later producer of industrial films.
Marshall began her own career in the arts at the early age of three, taking tap dancing lessons at her mother’s tap dancing school. She would later go on to teach tap lessons at the same school. Surprising to many, she received her college degree inย math and psychology.
Her very first break into the media industry was with her commercial for Head and Shoulders shampoo. She soon accepted an offer from her brother to appear in a movie that he wrote and produced calledย How Sweet It Isย (1968). This would cause her to go onto other roles in movies such asย The Savage Sevenย (1968) and, soon, become the executive producer of hit TV series, The Odd Couple.
The characters of Laverne & Shirley, who originally got their start on the hit sitcom Happy Days,ย would go on to be a large part of Marshall’s television and film history.
Marshall went on to direct films with big-name Hollywood celebrities such asย Awakeningsย (1990) starringย Robin Williamsย andย Robert De Niro,ย A League of Their Ownย (1992) withย Geena Davis,ย Tom Hanks, andย The Preacher’s Wifeย (1996) starringย Denzel Washingtonย andย Whitney Houston.
She has been nominated for awards for her work over the course of almost five decades. She was nominated for several Golden Globes forย Best Performance by an Actress and actually was the recipient of the TV Land Fan Favorite Award in 2012 for her performance inย Laverne & Shirley.ย She was also the winner of the 1994 Muse Award for theย New York Women in Film and Television.
We will always remember Penny Marshall in Laverne & Shirley and all the other work she’s done.
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