Alice Drummond

Alice Elizabeth Drummond (née Ruyter; May 21, 1928 – November 30, 2016) was an American actress. A veteran Off-Broadway performer, she was nominated in 1970 for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for her performance as Mrs. Lee in The Chinese by Murray Schisgal. She may be best known as Alice, the librarian, in the opening scenes of the 1984 horror-comedy Ghostbusters.

Alice Drummond
Drummond in Ghostbusters (1984)
Born	Alice Elizabeth Ruyter (1928-05-21)May 21, 1928 Pawtucket, Rhode Island, U.S.
Died	November 30, 2016(2016-11-30) (aged 88) New York City, New York, U.S.
Alma mater	Pembroke College
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1967–2011
Spouse	Paul Drummond ​ ​ (m. 1951; div. 1976)​

Early life

Alice Elizabeth Ruyter was born in Pawtucket, Rhode Island in 1928,^[1] the daughter of Sarah Irene (née Alker), a secretary, and Arthur Ruyter, an auto mechanic.^[2] She graduated from Pembroke College (the women's college of Brown University) in 1950.^[3]

Career

Drummond played Nurse Jackson on the TV series Dark Shadows in 1967^[3] and was a regular on the CBS soap opera, Where the Heart Is, on which she originated the role of Loretta Jardin, which she played until the series ended in 1973. She also appeared in a short-term role on another CBS soap opera, As the World Turns.^[3] She appeared in guest roles on television series including Kate & Allie, Law & Order, Boston Legal and Yes, Dear.

One of Drummond's notable movie roles is a librarian haunted and frightened by a poltergeist at the beginning of the feature film Ghostbusters.^[4] She portrayed a catatonic patient named Lucy in 1990's Awakenings. She also played a senior citizen in the movie Furry Vengeance. Other notable appearances include Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar and Pieces of April.^[5]

Personal life and death

Alice Ruyter married Paul Drummond in 1951. They resided in Manhattan, New York City, New York. They separated in 1975^[6] and divorced in 1976.^[7]

She died on November 30, 2016, from complications of a fall at her home in The Bronx, New York City, at age 88.^[8]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1970	Where's Poppa?	Woman in Elevator
1974	Man on a Swing	Mrs. Dawson
1977	Thieves	Mrs. Ramsey
1978	King of the Gypsies	Zharko's Nurse
1980	Hide in Plain Sight	Mrs. Novack
1981	Eyewitness	Mrs. Eunice Deever
1982	The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas	Governor's Secretary
1984	Ghostbusters	Librarian
1988	The House on Carroll Street	Woman at Hearing
1988	The Suicide Club
1988	Funny Farm	Mrs. Ethel Dinges
1988	Running on Empty	Mrs. Powell
1989	Animal Behavior	Site Committee #1
1990	Tales from the Darkside: The Movie	Carolyn	Segment: "Cat From Hell"
1990	Awakenings	Lucy
1993	Money for Nothing	Mrs. Breen
1994	Ace Ventura: Pet Detective	Mrs. Finkle
1994	Nobody's Fool	Hattie
1994	I.Q.	Dinner Guest
1995	Jeffrey	Grandma Rose
1995	To Wong Foo Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar	Clara
1996	Walking and Talking	Betsy
1996	Just in Time	Edith	Short film
1997	Commandments	Mrs. Mann
1997	'Til There Was You	Harriet
1997	Office Killer	Carlotta Douglas
1997	In & Out	Aunt Susan
1999	Just the Ticket	Lady with Cash
1999	The Love Letter	Postal Clerk
1999	I'll Take You There	Stella
1999	Advice from a Caterpillar	Diner Grandmother
2000	Joe Gould's Secret	Helen
2001	The Rising Place	Aunt Millie
2003	Pieces of April	Grandma Dottie
2004	House of D	Mrs. Brevoort
2005	The Honeymooners	Miss Benvenuti
2008	Chronic Town	Elizabeth
2008	Synecdoche, New York	Actress Playing Frances
2008	Doubt	Sister Veronica
2009	Motherhood	Edith
2009	After.Life	Mrs. Hutton
2010	Furry Vengeance	Mrs. Martin
2011	Open House	Ruthie	Short film
2019	Cleanin' Up the Town: Remembering Ghostbusters	Herself	Documentary film; posthumous release

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1967	Dark Shadows	Nurse Jackson	5 episodes
1970	New York Television Theatre		Episode: "The Sandbox"
1971-1973	Where the Heart Is	Loretta Jardin	3 episodes
1972	Particular Men	Mrs. Ewing	TV movie
1977	The Best of Families	Mabel Baldwin	TV miniseries
1977	Great Performances	Mrs. Varney	Episode: "Secret Service"
1978	Ryan's Hope	Susie Simpson	Episodes: "1.714", "1.719", "1.720"
1979	Sanctuary of Fear	Grace Barringer	TV movie
1981	Park Place	Frances Heine	4 episodes
1981	Love, Sidney	Tina	Episode: "Hello, Yetta"
1984	American Playhouse	Hiss' Secretary	Episode: "Concealed Enemies, Part I: Suspicion"
1984	Night Court	Mavis Tuttle	Episode: "Harry and the Rock Star"
1984	Great Performances	Gay Wellington	Episode: "You Can't Take It with You"
1986	The Equalizer	Kind Woman	Episode: "Nocturne"
1987	Night Court	Alice Beeker	Episode: "Murder"
1988	Kate & Allie	Mrs. Rinde	Episode: "The Band Singer"
1989	Nikki and Alexander	Mrs. Klein	TV pilot
1989	The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd	Juror	Episode: "Here's a Major Organ Interlude"
1989	Money, Power, Murder.	Helen	TV movie
1990-1991	Lenny	Mary Callahan	16 episodes
1992	Frannie's Turn	Rosa Escobar	6 episodes
1993	Daybreak	Anna	TV movie
1994	Grace Under Fire	Nana Lil	Episode: "With This Ring"
1994	Friends	Althea	Episode: "The One Where Nana Dies Twice"
1994	Law & Order	Zelda	Episode: "Mayhem"
1995	New York News		Episode: "Thin Line"
1996	Cosby	Mrs. Bagley	Episode: "Neighborhood Watch"
1998	Trinity	Mrs. Bingham	Episode: "Pilot"
1999	Earthly Possessions	Old Woman In Jalopy	TV movie
2000	Spin City	Sondra Spencer	Episode: "Suffragette City"
2002	Ed	Mrs. Shroeder	Episode: "Memory Lane"
2004	The Jury	Hannah Francis	Episode: "The Honeymoon Suite"
2005	Boston Legal	Lydia Tuffalo	Episode: "The Ass Fat Jungle"
2007	Oprah Winfrey Presents: Mitch Albom's For One More Day	Rose	TV movie