Alice Nunn

Alice Nunn
Alice Nunn
	Nunn in 1965
Born	Alice Elizabeth Nunn; October 27, 1927; Jacksonville, Florida
Died	July 1, 1988 (aged 60); West Hollywood, California
Resting place	Old Jacksonville City Cemetery, Florida
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1956–1987

Alice Elizabeth Nunn (October 10, 1927 – July 1, 1988) was an American film and theatre actress.[1] She was born in Jacksonville, Florida and died at her apartment in West Hollywood, California.[1] Although she played many roles across her 31-year career, appearing in more than 50 films and TV series,[2] she is primarily remembered for her role as Large Marge,[1][2] the ghost of a deceased truck driver, in Tim Burton's 1985 film Pee-wee's Big Adventure, which is number 5 on the IFC list of the 25 scariest moments in non-horror film history,[3] and has earned her a cult following from her fans.[2]

Life and career

Alice Nunn was born in Jacksonville in 1927. Her parents were N.G. Nunn and Alice Bush. She showed an early interest in the performing arts and took part in school productions of My Sister Eileen.[1] She studied acting at Wesleyan University and took classes with the American Theater Wing.[1] She did some radio work and she finally got an acting part in New Faces of 1956.[1] She also played in the theatre alongside Shelley Berman and Nancy Walker.[1]

She became a character actress and first appeared on television in episodes of Petticoat Junction...1967's episode "Shoplifter at the Shady Rest" (as Mrs. Benson), 1968's episode "Mae's Helping Hand", as well as 1969's episodes "The Other Woman" (as Mrs. Birdwell) and "Kathy Joe's First Birthday Party" (as the 'Lady with wallet').[1] She also appeared in Ironside, and The Wild Wild West.[2]

She went on to appear in numerous sitcoms such as Camp Runamuck where she played Mahala May Gruenecker, the head counselor of Camp Divine, and the chief opponent of Commander Wivenhoe played by series star Arch Johnson.[1] In her sitcom appearances during the 1960s, Nunn often played strong-willed and edgy women but in a humorous vein.[1]

Nunn's first film appearance was in 1971 in Johnny Got His Gun, where she played the role of a nurse.[1] She was a regular cast member of the Tony Orlando and Dawn variety show and played small parts in films such as the "Fat Lady" in Mame in 1974 and Airport 1975 where she appeared as the "Passenger with a Dog".[1] In 1978, she appeared as Mrs. Callahan in Brian De Palma's The Fury.[4] In 1980, she played the role of Duffy the Cook in Alan Beattie's slasher/mystery Delusion (Also known as The House Where Death Lives), with Patricia Pearcy and Joseph Cotten. In 1981, she played the role of the maid Helga in Mommie Dearest.[1]

Her most memorable role was as Large Marge, a truck driver who frightens Pee-wee Herman in the 1985 film Pee-wee's Big Adventure, providing one of the scariest moments in non-horror film history.[1][3] In the 1986 film Trick or Treat, she played Mrs. Sylvia Cavell, and in 1987, she appeared in Who's That Girl with Madonna. Her last role was that of Nurse Palmer in the 1987 film Three O'Clock High.[1]

In 1988, Nunn died at her apartment in West Hollywood, California, of a heart attack at age 60.[1][2][5]

Filmography

Film
Year	Title	Role	Notes
1971	Johnny Got His Gun	Third Nurse
1971	The Steagle	Mrs. Furst	Uncredited
1974	Mame	Fat Lady
	Airport 1975	Passenger with Dog	Uncredited
	Snakes	Sis
1978	The Fury	Mrs. Callahan
1978	The Fifth Floor	Emma
1981	Delusion	Duffy
1981	Mommie Dearest	Helga
1983	Focus on Fishko	Old Mimi	Short
1985	Pee-wee's Big Adventure	Large Marge
1986	Thrashin'	Truck Driver	Uncredited
1986	Trick or Treat	Mrs. Sylvia Cavell
1987	Who's That Girl	Woman Parole Member
1987	Three O'Clock High	Nurse Palmer

Television
Year	Title	Role	Notes
1965	Hazel	Hildegarde	Episode: "Hazel's Inquisitive Mind"
1965-1966	Camp Runamuck	Mahala May Gruenecker / Mahala May	21 episodes
1967	The Phyllis Diller Show	Mrs. Hill	Episode: "Phyllis, the Beauty Queen"
1967	Judd for the Defense	Mrs. Merrell	Episode: "A Civil Case of Murder"
1968	The Wild Wild West	Hilda	Episode: "The Night of the Big Blackmail"
1967-1969	Petticoat Junction	Mrs. Benson / Lady With Wallet / Mrs. Birdwell	4 episodes
1970	The Bill Cosby Show	Winona Fisk	Episode: "Growing, Growing, Grown"
1971	Mayberry R.F.D.	Mrs. Plunkett	Episode: 'Millie's Egg Farm"
1971	The Jimmy Stewart Show	Big Mother	Episode: "Another Day, Another Scholar"
1972	Evil Roy Slade	Claire Beckendorf	TV movie
	McMillan & Wife	Woman / Mrs. Maxwell	2 episodes
	Ironside	Mrs. Winston	Episode: "Buddy, Can You Spare a Life?"
	Emergency!	Mrs. Lucille Rodgers	Episode: "Musical Mania"
	Alias Smith and Jones	Hotel Clerk	Episode: "McGuffin"
1974	Tony Orlando and Dawn	Regular
1975	Love Nest		TV movie
1976	ABC Afterschool Special	Connie	Episode: "Francesca, Baby"
1977	Great Day	Molly	TV movie
1977	Westside Medical	Carrie	13 episodes
1978	Chico and the Man	Mrs. Keever	Episode: "Ed Brown's Car Wash"
1980	The Love Boat	The Harridan	Episode: "Celebration/Captain Papa/Honeymoon Pressure"
1974-1981	Happy Days	Mama Delvecchio / Mrs. Stewart	3 episodes
1981	Eight Is Enough	Horace's Wife	Episode: "Vows"
	Checking In	Mrs. Sabitino	Episode: "Whose Side Are You On?"
	Stockers		TV movie
	Callie & Son	Mrs. Watkins	TV movie
	Dark Night of the Scarecrow	Mrs. Bunch	TV movie
	Flamingo Road		Episode: "The Stranger"
1980-1982	WKRP in Cincinnati	Mrs. Hutchinson / Mrs. Nedelman	2 episodes
1982	Hart to Hart	Bujie	Episode: "The Harts Strike Out"
1982	Nine to Five	Bag Lady	Episode: "Temporarily Disconnected"
1984	Knight Rider	Nurse Gilmore	Episode: "Lost Knight"
1985	Crazy Like a Fox	Mrs. De Curtis	Episode: "Eye in the Sky"
	Misfits of Science	Sailor Sam	Episode: "Sonar... and Yet So Far"
	227	Woman	Episode: "Football Widow"
1986	Riptide	Nurse Carla Winters	Episode: "A Matter of Policy"
1982-1986	Simon & Simon	Woman customer at Quickie Mart / Barney - seller of maps to stars' home"	2 episodes
1987	Murder, She Wrote	Henrietta	Episode: "No Laughing Murder"
1988	My Sister Sam	Lily	Episode: "Walk a While in My Shoes"

References

"by Bruce Eder critic of All Movie Guide via Hollywood.com". Archived from the original on 2009-12-22. Retrieved 2010-04-30.
E.J. Fleming (11 September 2015). Hollywood Death and Scandal Sites: Seventeen Driving Tours with Directions and the Full Story, 2d ed. McFarland. p. 101. ISBN 978-0-7864-9644-0.
Willmore, Alison (October 29, 2005). "The 25 Scariest Moments in Non-Horror Movies: 5. Large Marge". IFC. Retrieved February 6, 2020.
Canby, Vincent (March 15, 1978). "Film: De Palma Mixes Genres in 'Fury':Psyching a Spy". The New York Times. Retrieved February 6, 2020.
Strickland, Sandy (April 9, 2017). "Old City Cemetery a history museum". The Florida Times-Union. Retrieved February 6, 2020. There’s actress Alice Nunn, who co-starred in the TV series “Camp Runamuck” and is remembered for her role as Large Marge, the scary truck driver in the 1985 film “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure.” She died in 1988 at age 60.

External links

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[Hollywood.com-1] "by Bruce Eder critic of All Movie Guide via Hollywood.com". Archived from the original on 2009-12-22. Retrieved 2010-04-30.

[Fleming2015-2] E.J. Fleming (11 September 2015). Hollywood Death and Scandal Sites: Seventeen Driving Tours with Directions and the Full Story, 2d ed. McFarland. p. 101. ISBN 978-0-7864-9644-0.

[IFC-3] Willmore, Alison (October 29, 2005). "The 25 Scariest Moments in Non-Horror Movies: 5. Large Marge". IFC. Retrieved February 6, 2020.

[4] Canby, Vincent (March 15, 1978). "Film: De Palma Mixes Genres in 'Fury':Psyching a Spy". The New York Times. Retrieved February 6, 2020.

[5] Strickland, Sandy (April 9, 2017). "Old City Cemetery a history museum". The Florida Times-Union. Retrieved February 6, 2020. There’s actress Alice Nunn, who co-starred in the TV series “Camp Runamuck” and is remembered for her role as Large Marge, the scary truck driver in the 1985 film “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure.” She died in 1988 at age 60.