Known For
Acting
Born
Apr 22, 1926
Died
Aug 05, 2018
Place of Birth
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
Credits
95 titles
Charlotte Rae
Biography
Charlotte Rae Lubotsky (April 22, 1926 – August 5, 2018) was an American actress and singer. On screen, Rae was best known for her portrayal of Edna Garrett in the sitcoms Diff'rent Strokes and its spin-off, The Facts of Life. She was born to Russian Jewish immigrants Esther (née Ottenstein), who was a childhood friend of Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir, and Meyer Lubotsky, a retail tire business owner. She was one of three sisters, along with Miriam and the late Beverly (December 21, 1921 – June 2, 1998). She graduated from Shorewood High School in 1944. For the first ten years or so of her life, Rae's family lived in Milwaukee, then moved to Shorewood, Wisconsin. She did radio work and was with the Wauwatosa Children's Theatre. At 16, she was an apprentice with the Port Players, a professional theater company that came for the summer to Milwaukee, with several established actors such as Morton DaCosta, who would eventually direct The Music Man on Broadway. Rae attended Northwestern University, although she did not complete her studies, where she met Cloris Leachman, who many years later succeeded Rae on The Facts of Life for the show's last two seasons. At Northwestern she met several unknown stars and producers, including Agnes Nixon, Charlton Heston, Paul Lynde, Gerald Freedman, Claude Akins and songwriter Sheldon Harnick. When a radio personality told her that her last name wouldn't do, she dropped it, to her father's chagrin. She moved to New York City in 1948, where she performed in the theater and nightclubs. During her early years in New York, she worked at the Village Vanguard (alongside up-and-coming talents such as singer Richard Dyer-Bennet) and at the posh Blue Angel, home to budding talents Barbra Streisand, Mike Nichols and Elaine May. She moved to Los Angeles in 1974.
Known For
Filmography
Ricki and the Flash
Oma
She's The Best Thing in It
Self
Girl Meets World
Gammy Hart
Love Sick Love
Edna
Pretty Little Liars
Bead Boutique Owner
The Great Debate
Christmas Cottage
Vesta
You Don't Mess with the Zohan
Mrs. Greenhouse
Life
Mary Ford
The Facts of Life Reunion
Mrs. Edna Garrett
Al Lewis: Forever Grandpa
Self
The Tangerine Bear: Home in Time for Christmas!
Mrs. Caruthers (voice)
Strong Medicine
Maude
Another Woman's Husband
Stella
The Brothers Flub
Tarara Boomdeeyay (voice)
101 Dalmatians Christmas
Nanny
The King of Queens
Betty
The Wonderful World of Disney
101 Dalmatians Series
Nowhere
Fortune Teller
E! True Hollywood Story
Can't Hurry Love
Helen
The Itsy Bitsy Spider
Adrienne
The Secret World of Alex Mack
ER
Roxanne Gaines
Thunder in Paradise
Intimate Portrait
Self
Diagnosis: Murder
Estelle
Thunder in Paradise
Lola Miller
Tom and Jerry: The Movie
Aunt Figg (voice)
Sisters
Baby Talk
Save the Dog!
The Worst Witch
Miss Cackle / Agatha
Noah's Ark
Noah's Wife / Additional Voices (voice)
The NBC All Star Hour: Let's All Be There
227
Night of 100 Stars II
Self
Words by Heart
Mary Tom Chism
WonderWorks
Mary Tom Chism
Murder, She Wrote
Nettie Harper
St. Elsewhere
Proud Mary
The Facts of Life Goes to Paris
Edna Garrett
Night of 100 Stars
Self
The Facts of Life
Edna Garrett
Beane's of Boston
Mae Slocombe
Beane's of Boston
Mae Slocombe
Hair
Lady in Pink
The Triangle Factory Fire Scandal
Bessie
Hello, Larry
Edna Garrett