Ellen Albertini Dow facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ellen Albertini Dow
Dow as Rosie in The Wedding Singer
Born	Ellen Rose Albertini (1913-11-16)November 16, 1913 Mount Carmel, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died	May 4, 2015(2015-05-04) (aged 101) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Resting place	Saint Peter's Cemetery
Alma mater	Cornell University (1935)
Occupation	Actress, acting coach
Years active	1985–2013
Spouse(s)	Eugene Francis Dow Jr. ​ ​ (m. 1951; his death 2004)​

Ellen Rose Albertini Dow (November 16, 1913 – May 4, 2015) was an American film and television character actress and drama coach. She portrayed feisty old ladies and is best known as the rapping grandmother Rosie in The Wedding Singer (1998), performing "Rapper's Delight". Dow's other film roles include elderly lady Mary Cleary who "outs" her grandson in Wedding Crashers, Disco Dottie in 54, the recipient of Christopher Lloyd's character's slapstick in Radioland Murders and a choir nun in Sister Act. She was best known to small screen audiences for her guest appearances on sitcoms The Golden Girls (playing Lillian, a friend of Sophia's) and Will & Grace (as Karen Walker's mother-in-law Sylvia).

Early life

Albertini was born on November 16, 1913, in Mount Carmel, Pennsylvania, the seventh and youngest child of Italian immigrant parents, Ellen and Oliver, from Non Valley, Trentino. Oliver was a car dealership owner. She studied dance and piano at age five and would later move to New York City, where she studied and worked with renowned dancers and choreographers Hanya Holm and Martha Graham.

Secondary education

Dow earned a B.A. and M.A. in theatre from Cornell University, where she became a member of Kappa Delta sorority, graduating in 1935. Dow studied acting with Michael Shurtleff and Uta Hagen, and worked with mimes Marcel Marceau and Jacques Lecoq in NYC.

Career

Educator

When Dow moved to Los Angeles with her husband, she taught drama at Los Angeles City College. She and her husband later taught at Los Angeles Pierce College.

Acting

She founded the Albertini Mime Players and was its producer for 19 years.

Her television work includes appearances in such television series as Star Trek: The Next Generation, The Golden Girls, Newhart, Designing Women, Just Shoot Me, Will & Grace, Seinfeld, Ned's Declassified, Hannah Montana, Scrubs, Sister, Sister, According to Jim, Six Feet Under, Wings, The Nanny and My Name Is Earl.

Personal life and death

Dow married Eugene Dow Jr. on June 27, 1951. She described herself as an avid hat collector. Eugene died on October 11, 2004. They had no children.

Dow died on May 4, 2015, at the age of 101 due to pneumonia.

Dow was a practicing Roman Catholic and a lifelong Democrat.

Filmography

Film

Television

See also

In Spanish: Ellen Albertini Dow para niños

• List of centenarians (actors, filmmakers and entertainers)