Doris May Roberts was born on November 4, 1929, in St. Louis, Missouri. She has never revealed the identity of her father who abandoned the family when she was a very young child and has distanced herself from him and that part of her life. Her mother, Ann Meltzer, raised Doris on her own. Of Russian-Jewish decent, this Emmy Award-winning actress grew up in the Bronx, New York. Her acting career began in 1952 with a guest appearance on the television series, “Studio One.” She appeared on four other series as well, including “The Naked City”, “Ben Casey”, “The Defenders” and “Remington Steele.”
Her film debut occurred in “Something Wild” (1961), followed by “A Lovely Way To Die” and “No Way To Treat A Lady” (1968) opposite Rod Steiger and George Segal. Throughout the 1970s she worked in film, but is best known as the nosy, insufferable mother-in-law from hell, Marie Barone, on the hit comedy series, “Everybody Loves Raymond.” She beat out 100 other actresses for the role has been nominated for nine Emmy Awards, winning “Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series” every year consecutively from 2001 to 2005.
Doris Roberts has been married twice, and her son from her first marriage, Michael Cannata, Jr., is her manager and the father of her three grandchildren, Kelsey, Andrew and Devon. Her second husband was William Goyen, a novelist, short story writer and dramatist who taught writing and literature at the New School For Social Research and Columbia University. They married in 1963 and were together until his death from leukemia in August of 1983.
Doris Roberts is also an activist who cares about the world around her. An animal lover and advocate, she has been a part of a group called “Puppies Behind Bars”, which works with inmates in training guide dogs, and she has also served as the chairperson for the Children With Aids Foundation. She currently lives alone in Los Angeles in a house once owned by screen idol, James Dean.
“Hey Marie, I guess you’re not so bad (good) after all!”