Alice Drummond, Character Actress Known for ‘Awakenings’ and ‘Ghostbusters,’ Dies at 88
Alice Drummond, a veteran stage actress who appeared in films including “Awakenings” and the original 1984 “Ghostbusters,” has died. She was 88.
She died on Wednesday at her home in the Bronx due to complications following a fall that she survived two months ago, according to the New York Times.
A native of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, Drummond graduated from Pembroke College in 1950, which has since merged with Brown University. Her first break into Hollywood came in 1967 when she landed a role on the ABC soap opera “Dark Shadows.” Later Drummond would appear on other soaps including CBS’ “Where the Heart Is” and a short stint on “As the World Turns.” She would go on to enjoy a healthy film and television career spanning more than four decades.
On stage, Drummond had her turn in about a dozen Broadway shows including “The Chinese and Dr. Fish,” which earned her a Tony nomination for featured actress in a play in 1970. In 1976 she was nominated for a drama desk award for her performance in “A Memory of Two Mondays / 27 Wagons Full of Cotton.”
Although it is brief, perhaps her most famous role is in “Ghostbusters” playing the librarian who is terrified when books and pages begin to fly off the shelves. Later in the film she is comically interrogated by Bill Murray’s character. Notably, she also played a patient in the 1990 Oliver Sacks biopic “Awakenings” and a nun in 2008’s “Doubt.”
Drummond is not survived by any immediate family members.
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