R.I.P.: Ruth Buzzi, Comic Star For Laugh-In

Ruth Buzzi (1937-2025)

Actress and comedian Ruth Buzzi, best known for her role on NBC’s Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In (1968-1973), passed away on May 1, 2025, at age 88.

Her family shared on Facebook: “Ruthie left us peacefully yesterday evening at home, sleeping. She’d been in hospice care, disabled by a 2022 stroke, after an Alzheimer’s diagnosis a decade earlier.”

Born July 24, 1936, in Westerly, Rhode Island, Buzzi began her career at 19, touring with singer Rudy Vallee in a musical-comedy act during college summer break. After graduating, she moved to New York City, landing a lead in an off-Broadway musical revue, the first of 19 she performed on the East Coast.

Buzzi debuted on TV in 1964 on The Garry Moore Show, joined the ensemble of The Entertainers in 1965, and appeared on The Monkees in 1967. She played Margie “Pete” Peterson on That Girl and guested on Night Gallery, Here’s Lucy, and Love, American Style before her breakout on Laugh-In.
Reflecting on Laugh-In at a 2011 Television Critics Winter Press Tour, Buzzi said, “We laughed, and laughed, and laughed. It never felt like work. It was pure spontaneous fun.”

One of only four cast members to stay for all six seasons, Buzzi’s memorable Laugh-In characters included spinster Gladys Ormphby, gossip columnist Busy-Buzzi, boozy Doris Swizzler, a Burbank Airlines Stewardess, and Flicker Farkle.