Patsy Garrett

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Patsy Garrett (b. May 4, 1921, Atlantic City, New Jersey) is an actress best known for her recurring roles as nosey neighbor "Mrs. Fowler" on TV's Nanny and the Professor (1970-71), and as "Mary Gruber" in the Benji series of motion pictures beginning in 1974.

U.S. television audiences of the 1960's and 1970's will remember Garrett for another recurring role in a series of commercial messages as the "Purina Cat Chow Lady." A post-production trick involving the controlled forward motion and reversal of the film had Garrett dancing the "chow-chow-chow" with a cat in a good-humored parody of the cha-cha. In 2000, the TV Land cable television channel aired the original Purina commercials as part of their "Retromercials" series of fondly remembered national television ads of the past.

1940 print ad for Chesterfield Cigarettes

Active on stage, screen and television beginning with a dance recital at age four, Patsy Garrett had her own children's radio show in Richmond, Virginia by age seven. At seventeen, Garrett was a regular on Fred Waring's national radio show as a comic singer. Soon, she was approached by Cole Porter to promote a ballad he had written for a new musical. The song: "Begin the Beguine," made famous in 1938 by Artie Shaw. Garrett also appeared on a classic Chesterfield cigarette print advertisement from 1940 (shown at left).

In the late 1960's, Garrett provided cartoon voiceovers for a number of Hanna-Barbera projects, including The Banana Splits Adventure Hour. A small part as the mayor's wife in the 1969 Elvis Presley vehicle, "The Trouble With Girls," led to a lifelong friendship with the singer. While working on the film, Garrett frequently baked cookies for the cast. Presley's schedule usually meant his arriving late on the set, which in turn meant that he missed out on the treats. Garrett baked him a special batch which he brought with him to Las Vegas where he was scheduled to perform. As she was passing through Las Vegas, Garrett reportedly phoned Presley not for tickets...but for the return of her baking tin.

Patsy Garrett continues to appear in local theater productions in and around the Palm Springs, California area. On November 28, 2004, the area's Desert Theater League awarded Patsy Garrett their lifetime achievement award.