Let us take a few moments from our hectic day to ponder the phenomenon that was Nancy Walker. Yes, she died in 1992, succumbing to lung cancer, but her divahood was established long before. Born on May 10, 1921, in Philadelphia, the former Ann Myrtle Swoyer first rose to fame on the Broadway stage, eventually appearing on television in the 1950s. But it wasn't until the 6th episode of "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" that her star truly started to ascend. This brief part led to her most famous role as Ida Morgenstern, overbearing mother of two other ForgottenDivas, Rhoda and Brenda. Then there was her ground-breaking work as Rosie, the waitress with the paper-towel obsession. Soon the phrase "the quicker picker-upper" was on everyone's lips, and for good reason: Nancy Walker had deemed it so. Countless other TV spots followed, including a role on "McMillan and Wife", and two short-lived series of her own. Perhaps the apex of her career, however, was appearing on the cinema classic "Can't Stop the Music". That sort of chance comes but once in a lifetime, and Nancy made it work in the way that only she could! She may have been less than five feet tall, but this diminutive diva was an entertainment powerhouse!
