Eileen Brennan

 

"Actors are crazy or we wouldn't be doing this."

Eileen Brennan was born Verla Eileen Regina Brennen in Los Angeles, California on September 3, 1932.  She was the daughter of Regina Menehan, a former silent film actress.  

After graduating high school, Brennan moved to Washington, DC, where she attended Georgetown University.  She later attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City (see Trivia below).

Early stage roles included that of Annie Sullivan in a 1961 off-Broadway production of The Miracle Worker.  She also originated the role of Irene Molloy in the original 1964 Broadway production of Hello, Dolly!.  Hollywood was beginning to notice, and she made her feature film debut three years later in the Bud Yorkin comedy Divorce American Style.

In 1980, Brennan was cast in the role for which she is most famously associated, that of Captain Doreen Lewis in the Goldie Hawn film Private Benjamin.  She was nominated for an Oscar award that year for Best Supporting Actress.  In 1981, she resumed the role on the ABC sit-com adaptation of the film, for which she would ironically win an Emmy award (see Trivia below).  Then in 1985, she appeared in the cult-favorite comedy Clue, taking on then iconic role of Mrs. Peacock.

By 2013, Brennan has been diagnosed with bladder cancer, which ultimately took her life on July 28th.  She was 80 years old.  She was laid to rest with her family at Edge Hill Cemetery in Charles Town, West Virginia.  As of 2024, her grave remained unmarked, but is in the lower right-hand corner of the photo below.

Rest in peace.

Trivia

• When Eileen adopted her stage name, she changed the spelling of her last name from "Brennen" to "Brennan."
  
  
• Brennan was a finalist for the role of Laura Petrie on The Dick Van Dyke Show, the role that famously went to Mary Tyler Moore.
  
  
• Early in her career, Brennan shared an apartment in New York City with future Golden Girls star Rue McClanahan.
  
  
• In 1981, Brennan reprised her role of Captain Lewis in the ABC sit-com adaptation of Private Benjamin.  One year into production, she was involved in a serious car accident in Venice Beach, which resulted in her leaving the show.  She was replaced on the series by former Alice veteran Polly Holliday, but the ratings would never be the same.  The series was canceled after two seasons.
  
  
• Shortly before she passed, YouTuber Larry Hoffman caught up with Brennan at her Toluca Lake home.  The result was this truly awkward interview.  Here's another one in which she discusses selling her Emmy Award when she ran out of money.  These are just sad.
  
  
• Based on the board game of the same name, Clue was released as a novelty film with three different endings.  To quote the commercial, "whodunnit depends on where you see it."  This blogger vividly remembers seeing "Ending A," which appears as the final solution in the home video and streaming editions of the film.