Barbara Luddy

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Barbara Luddy
Barbara Luddy.jpg
Born(1908-05-25)May 25, 1908
Great Falls, Montana, U.S.
DiedApril 1, 1979(1979-04-01) (aged 70)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
OccupationActress
Years active1925–1977
Known forOriginal voice of Kanga from the 1960s Winnie The Pooh film series and in The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
Original voice of Lady in Lady and the Tramp
Merryweather in Sleeping Beauty
Spouse(s)
R. Ned LeFevre
​
(m. 1942)​

Barbara Luddy (May 25, 1908 – April 1, 1979) was an American actress best known for her voiceover work for Walt Disney Studios in the 1950s and 1970s.

Biography[]

Born in Great Falls, Montana, Luddy was the daughter of Will[1] and Molly Luddy[2] of Helena, Montana.[1] She sang in vaudeville as a child.[3] She attended Ursuline Convent in Great Falls, Montana.[4]

Career[]

Stage[]

In 1929, Luddy toured with Leo Carrillo in Australia as part of a touring company that presented the play Lombardi, Ltd. A review in the Sydney Morning Herald cited Luddy's work portraying a mannequin as "a role in which Miss Barbara Luddy made a great hit by her pert audacity and vivaciousness."[5]

Radio[]

Luddy was a member of the dramatic cast of the Chicago Theater of the Air.[6] One of Luddy's better known roles on radio was being a regular performer on The First Nighter Program from 1936 until the series ended in 1953.[6]:118​ In 1937, she and fellow First Nighter actor Les Tremayne set what a contemporary newspaper article called "a precedent ... when these signed long term contracts calling for their exclusive services" on the program."[7]

She also played Veronica Gunn in the comedy Great Gunns.[6]:138​ In soap operas, she played Judith Clark in Lonely Women[6]:205-206​ Carol Evans Martin in The Road of Life,[6]:285​ and Janet Munson in Woman in White.[4]

Film[]

Luddy's film career began with silent pictures in the late 1920s. She is perhaps best remembered for her voice work in Disney animated films such as Lady and the Tramp (in which she played the titular Lady), Sleeping Beauty, One Hundred and One Dalmatians, Robin Hood and the Winnie-the-Pooh featurettes including Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree, Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day, and Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too,[8] all of which were edited into the composite feature The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. Her other film credits include Terrified (1962) and the TV film Lost Flight (1969).

Television[]

Luddy guest starred in episodes of such television programs as Hazel, Dragnet, Adam-12, and Kolchak: The Night Stalker.

Personal life[]

Luddy married R. Ned LeFevre, an actor and announcer, on September 18, 1942.[9] The couple had one daughter, Barbara (1949-2013) and a son, Chris LeFevre, who preceded Barbara in death.

Luddy died of lung cancer in Los Angeles, California, in 1979, at age 70.

Filmography[]

Year Title Role Notes
1925 An Enemy of Men Janet
1925 Sealed Lips Alice Howard
1925 Rose of the World Cecilia Kirby
1927 Born to Battle Barbara Barstow
1927 Wilful Youth
1928 See You Later
1930 Headin' North Mary Jackson
1933 Her Secret Mae
1955 Lady and the Tramp Lady Voice
1959 Sleeping Beauty Merryweather Voice
1961 One Hundred and One Dalmatians Rover Voice
1963 Terrified Mrs. Hawley
1964 Dear Heart Miss Carmichael Uncredited
1966 Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree Kanga Voice
1968 The Shakiest Gun in the West Screaming Woman Uncredited
1968 Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day Kanga Voice
1973 Robin Hood Mother Sexton (church mouse), Mother Rabbit Voice, Uncredited
1974 Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too! Kanga Voice
1977 The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh Voice, Archive footage

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b "Helena Girl Gains Success on Stage". The Independent Record. Montana, Helena. January 6, 1930. p. 2. Retrieved July 17, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  2. ^ "Barbara Luddy Vacations in Filmdom". Long Beach Independent. California, Long Beach. October 7, 1943. p. 12. Retrieved July 17, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  3. ^ DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960. McFarland & Company, Inc. ISBN 978-0-7864-2834-2. P. 170.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b "Joins "Woman in White"". Harrisburg Telegraph. Pennsylvania, Harrisburg. May 31, 1941. p. 24. Retrieved July 17, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  5. ^ "Lombardi, Ltd". The Sydney Morning Herald. Australia, Sydney. September 2, 1929. p. 8. Retrieved July 17, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e Terrace, Vincent (1999). Radio Programs, 1924-1984: A Catalog of More Than 1800 Shows. McFarland & Company, Inc. ISBN 978-0-7864-4513-4. P. 74.
  7. ^ "Signed for Fifty-Two Weeks". Pennsylvania, Harrisburg. The Evening News. June 1, 1937. p. 16. Retrieved July 17, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  8. ^ Mazurki, Jeannette (January 5, 1972). "Barbara Luddy voice of Disney cartoon characters". The Lowell Sun. Massachusetts, Lowell. Copley News Service. p. 50. Retrieved July 17, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  9. ^ "Co-Star with Tremayne in "First Nighter"". The Ironwood Times. Michigan, Ironwood. October 14, 1942. p. 11. Retrieved July 17, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.open access

External links[]

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