Ruth Buzzi Trivia Quiz

Answer: Rhode Island

Ruth Ann Buzzi was born on July 24, 1936, in Westerly, Rhode Island. Her father, Angelo Peter Buzzi, was a famous sculptor. Although born in Rhode Island, she grew up in Wequetequock, Stonington, Connecticut.

In high school, she was a head cheerleader. She went to Stonington High School. After high school, she went to Pasadena Playhouse College of Theatre Arts in California. In 1957, she graduated with honors.

Answer: She toured with him in a musical/comedy act.

While in college, at the age of 19, she got her first job in the business. She toured with Rudy Vallee during summer break in a musical/comedy act. This allowed her to get her Actors' Equity Association union card.

Equity is the union for live theatre performers. This includes Broadway, national tours, vaudeville, cabarets, and circus performers. The Actors' Equity Association (AEA) is there to make sure performers have good working conditions, as well as good living conditions when working on a production. Stage managers can also be part of AEA.

For Buzzi and other performers, this is important. You cannot work professionally without this card, but you also need to have done a non-union theatre job. AEA has been around since 1913, and its headquarters is located in New York City.

Answer: Shakundala the Silent

In 1964, on "The Garry Moore Show," she played the magician's assistant, Shakundala the Silent, to Dom DeLuise's magician, Dominic the Great. While never saying a word, she showed her comedic skills as she bumbled around the stage. It appears this was a non-credited role for Buzzi, as it does not show up on her IMDB page.

Answer: painting

Ruth Buzzi was an oil painter. However, she did not sell her work to the general public. Instead, she donated her work and raised over $6,000 for charity. She supported many charities. These include the Make-A-Wish Foundation, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, and Big Brothers Big Sisters of America.

Answer: Rowan & Martin's Laugh In

The 1960s had, as Dan Rowan put it, "a lot of ins." There were sit-ins, sleep-ins, and other ins, so what better for a comedy sketch than to be a "laugh-in." That was how the show got its name; "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In" was hosted by Dan Rowan and Dick Martin. The show aired from 1967 until 1973. Ruth Buzzi was there for every season. Aside from the two hosts and announcer Gary Owen, she's the only one who was there for all the episodes.

One of her most notable characters was named Gladys Ormphby. Gladys was an old lady who carried a purse everywhere she went. Usually, she was at the park where Tyrone F. Horneigh (played by Arte Johnston) would always hit on her. Eventually, he would go too far, and she would smack him with her purse.

Answer: automobiles

Buzzi and her husband Perkins primarily collected post-war English cars. They had Bentleys, Rolls-Royces, and Jaguars, for example. They donated some cars to the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, California. One such car was a 1957 red, fuel-injected 1957 Chevy convertible. It was part of an exhibit of cars paying tribute to Steve McQueen from 1993 to 2011.

Answer: Nose Marie

"Pound Puppies" aired from 1986 to 1987. The series featured five main dogs in the pound who tried to help other dogs (and occasionally each other) get adopted. The pound was run by Holly, a child who loved dogs. Her Aunty Katrina hated anything cute, as did Katrina's daughter Battina.

Nose Marie (voiced by Ruth Buzzi) was a brown dog originally dressed in a pink dress with a pink flower on her right ear. She was the oldest of the main dogs. In the first season, she was Cooler's girlfriend. In the second season, she and Cooler (voiced by Dan Gilvezan) were more like siblings. She spoke with a Southern accent.

Answer: art

Through the Dallas Museum of Biblical Art, she sponsored children so they could attend art camp during the summer. The museum has Biblical art, Jewish art, and Holocaust art; it says it's the first museum to teach about the Holocaust through art.

Ruth Buzzi and her husband were living on a ranch near Stephenville, Texas, at the time of her death. They were both Christians who attended the White's Chapel Methodist Church in Southlake, Texas. His parents also had attended church there.

Buzzi never had any children of her own, but she loved kids. Many of the charities she supported were to help children.

Answer: Sesame Street

Ruth Buzzi played Ruthie, a shopkeeper, on "Sesame Street" from 1993 until 1999. This was part of an expansion the show tried called "Around the Corner." The set was removed in 1999; she still appeared on the show as other characters until 2008. In 2008, she reprised Ruthie in the movie "The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland."

Answer: Alzheimer's

In 2012, Buzzi was diagnosed with Alzheimer's. However, she continued to work until 2021. Her last acting credit was Agnes in the movie "One Month Out." Ironically, it was about a man with dementia.

In 2022, Buzzi suffered multiple strokes, but reports said she was improving. She posted a picture of herself in August 2022 saying, "Some people have strokes of luck; I had the other kind...." Then she said, "And although my final arrangements include cremation, I'm not quite ready to make an ash out of myself."

On May 1, 2025, Ruth Buzzi passed away at her home in Texas from complications of Alzheimer's disease. She was 88 years old. She was posting on Twitter, making jokes right up until her last post on April 9, 2025. Her final post that she posted said, "You know you're old when your walker comes with curb feelers and an airbag." She made us laugh right until the end.