An iconic 80s actress looked unrecognizable as she stepped out in LA this week.
This actress, now 76, took on a leading role in Mama’s Family, a spin-off of The Carol Burnett Show, from 1986 to 1990.
The comedy series, originating from sketches on Burnett’s variety show, centered on Thelma ‘Mama’ Harper and her family. At one time, the cast included late Hollywood legends Betty White and Rue McClanahan.
Though she is most recognized for her role in Mama’s Family, her extensive career includes various roles, such as portraying Gunny Sgt. Alva Bricker for three years on Major Dad.
In 1999, she took on the role of Shirley Sherwood in The Young and the Restless and contributed her voice talents to several shows like Rugrats, Aaahh!!! Real Monsters, and the Jumanji TV series.
So can you guess who this celebrity is?
An iconic 80s actress looked unrecognizable as she stepped out in LA this week – can you guess who it is?
It’s Beverly Archer! She played Iola Boylen on the classic sitcom Mama’s Family.
The star kept it casual for the spring day in a grey button down and jeans as she stepped out.
The actress played the eponymous Mama’s best friend and neighbor Iola.
A spin-off ‘The Family’ sketches from the Carol Burnett Show, the comedy series focused on Thelma Mae Harper (Mama), played by Vicki Lawrence, and her immediate family.
The show ran from 1983 to 1985 on NBC; after its cancellation from NBC, it was renewed from 1986 to 1990 in first-run syndication.
Archer joined for the syndicated version of the series and was part of the show from 1986 to 1990.
This actress also had a role in the ALF, a show about a centuries-old, wisecracking alien.
It’s Mama’s Family star Beverly Archer! She played Mama’s best friend and neighbor Iola on the show from from 1986 to 1990
The star kept it casual for the spring day in a grey button down and jeans as she stepped out
She kept it casual in a grey button down shirt and jeans
Archer’s last acting credit is a 2002 episode of Rugrats, where she voiced a librarian.
She appears to have done rarely any interviews, until 2012 when she spoke with SitcomsOnline to debunk a rumor that she had died.
‘It doesn’t bother me that much, except I was upset at the possibility that someone would call my mother with condolences and they wouldn’t know what was going on. That would be the only thing that kind of got me worried,’ she told the outlet of the death hoax.
She also opened up about her role on Mama’s Family and how the show was ‘recreated’ into the version she joined when it was brought back for syndication.
This actress also had a role in the ALF, a show about a centuries-old, wisecracking alien
Archer joined for the second incarnation of the series – pictured
White and McClanahan appeared in the first two seasons of the show, however they did not return for the syndicated version, which Archer joined.
Their iconic roles on Golden Girls started shortly after the first installment of Mama’s Family ended.
‘Well, that was a very individual circumstance, because the network version, as you know, was canceled, and it was only because Joe Hamilton was the businessman he was, and he decided to recreate it in syndication.
‘And at at that time, nobody even knew what syndication was. He was really a pioneer in making it syndicated. The cast that I came in with really had nothing to do with the NBC series. They were completely separate entities.
‘It is not as if they thought “oh, Betty and Rue aren’t working right, let’s do something different.” They canceled that show and Betty and Rue moved on to bigger and better things. They basically recreated Mama’s Family for the version that I came in to.
‘I don’t think I can exactly iterate exact moments, but there wasn’t a week that went by that Ken Berry didn’t make me goof off,’ she said of her co-star Ken, who passed in 2018. ‘Ken Berry is like the funniest person on the planet. There was almost always something that ended up on camera, but he is just intrinsically a hilarious guy.’
