Barbara Luddy

Barbara Luddy (May 25, 1908 – April 1, 1979) was an American motion picture and radio actress best known for her voiceover work for Walt Disney Studios in the 1950s and '60s.

Barbara Luddy
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)

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 no children.

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

Filmography
YearTitleRoleNotes
1925An Enemy of MenJanet
1925Sealed LipsAlice Howard
1925Rose of the WorldCecilia Kirby
1927Born to BattleBarbara Barstow
1927Wilful Youth
1928See You Later
1930Headin' NorthMary Jackson
1933Her SecretMae
1955Lady and the TrampLadyVoice
1959Sleeping BeautyMerryweatherVoice
1961One Hundred and One DalmatiansRoverVoice
1963TerrifiedMrs. Hawley
1964Dear HeartMiss CarmichaelUncredited
1966Winnie the Pooh and the Honey TreeKangaVoice
1968The Shakiest Gun in the WestScreaming WomanUncredited
1968Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery DayKangaVoice
1973Robin HoodMother Sexton (church mouse), Mother RabbitVoice, Uncredited
1974Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too!KangaVoice
1977The Many Adventures of Winnie the PoohVoice, Archive footage
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References
  1. "Helena Girl Gains Success on Stage". The Independent Record. Montana, Helena. January 6, 1930. p. 2. Retrieved July 17, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. "Barbara Luddy Vacations in Filmdom". Long Beach Independent. California, Long Beach. October 7, 1943. p. 12. Retrieved July 17, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
  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. "Joins "Woman in White"". Harrisburg Telegraph. Pennsylvania, Harrisburg. May 31, 1941. p. 24. Retrieved July 17, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ""Lombardi, Ltd."". The Sydney Morning Herald. Australia, Sydney. September 2, 1929. p. 8. Retrieved July 17, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. 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.
  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.
  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.
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