Biography for
Frances Bay More at IMDbPro »

Date of Birth

Mini Biography

Cute, tiny and prolific little old lady character actress Frances Bay has been working constantly in both films and TV shows alike since making her debut at age 60 with a small part in the comedy "Foul Play" in the late 70s. Bay was born on January 1st, 1918 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. She frequently portrays eccentric elderly women and good-hearted grandmothers in all kinds of pictures and television programs. Frances has acted several times for David Lynch: she's Kyle MacLachlan's sweet doddery aunt in "Blue Velvet," a gruff, profane whorehouse madam in "Wild at Heart," and the spooky Mrs. Tremond in the cult TV series "Twin Peaks" and its spin-off feature "Fire Walk With Me." Frances popped up in two movies for director Stuart Gordon: she's a kindly witch in "The Pit and the Pendulum" and a fortune teller in "Edmond." Other notable film roles include a snippy librarian in "The Attic," a mysterious blind nun in the offbeat "Nomads," another librarian in "In the Mouth of Madness," and Adam Sandler's loving grandmother in the hit comedy "Happy Gilmore." Frances has the unique distinction of guesting on the final episodes of the TV shows "Happy Days," "Who's the Boss?," and "Seinfeld." Among the many TV series Bay has had guest spots on are "Charmed," "ER," "Matlock,""The X-Files," "Murder, She Wrote," "The Commish," "L.A. Law," "Hill Street Blues," "Touched By An Angel," "The Golden Girls," and "Amazing Stories." She won a Gemini Award for her performance in the Disney TV program "Road to Avonlea." More recently Frances was in the music video for Jimmy Fallon's "Idiot Boyfriend." In addition to her substantial movie and TV credits, Bay has also acted in both Off-Broadway stage productions and regional theater; these plays include "Finnegan's Wake," "Grease," "Genuis," "The Caucasion Chalk Circle," "Number Our Days," "Uncommon Women," "Sarcophagus," and "The Pleasure of His Company." Frances has won two DramaLogue Awards and was nominated for a Los Angeles Dramatic Critics' Award. In 2002 Bay was the unfortunate victim of an automobile accident which resulted in having part of her right leg amputated. Her husband Charles sadly died in 2002 as well. In real life Frances Bay is a very practical and unassuming woman with an avid love for jazz music.

Spouse

Trivia

Hospitalized as the result of being struck by a car in Glendale California on November 21st, 2002. As a result of the accident, she has had part of her right leg amputated and now walks with a prosthetic right leg.

Has appeared in the final episode of three popular television sitcoms: "Happy Days" (1974) in 1984, "Who's the Boss?" (1984) in 1992, and "Seinfeld" (1990) in 1998.

Sister of Erving Goffman (1922 - 1982), sociologist, the author of The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life.

On June 3, 2008 it was announced that Frances Bay would be inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame.

Browse biographies section by name

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z