Judith Lowry

Lowry as Mother Dexter in "Mother Dexter's Wedding".

Judith Lowry (July 27, 1890 – November 29, 1976) was an American actress, best known for her television work.

Born as Judith Ives in Fort Sill, Oklahoma, Lowry labored in occasional bit parts in film and television from the 1940s until she began to get more substantial roles in her eighties. Lowry had an uncredited role in Valley of the Dolls (1967) as Aunt Amy. She had character parts in such films as The Anderson Tapes opposite Sean Connery, and Cold Turkey alongside Dick Van Dyke.

Her best-remembered role is that of the acid-tongued, no nonsense Mother Dexter on the 1970s sitcom Phyllis, which starred Cloris Leachman. This was Lowry's last major acting role because she died of a heart attack during the series' final season. One of the last episodes she filmed before her death, "Mother Dexter's Wedding", marked the final appearance of veteran actor Burt Mustin, who played her equally superannuated bridegroom, Arthur Lanson. By the time the episode aired in December 1976, Lowry had died at age 86, and the 92-year-old Mustin, who died in January 1977, was too ill to see it. After the airing of "Mother Dexter's Wedding", five more episodes of Phyllis followed in which Lowry appeared. ^{[citation needed]}

She also appeared on stage, most notably off Broadway in The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds, and on Broadway in a small role in Archibald MacLeish's drama J.B.

Family

She was married to actor Rudd Lowry and had six sons and three daughters.

Filmography

Selected films

Television

External links

• Judith Lowry at the Internet Movie Database
• Judith Lowry at the Internet Broadway Database
• Judith Lowry at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
• YouTube Video: clip from episode of Phyllis - "Mother Dexter's Wedding"