Rutanya Alda

Rutanya Alda (born Rūta Skrastiņa; October 13, 1942) is a Latvian-American actress. She began her career in the late 1960s, and went on to have supporting parts in The Deer Hunter (1978), Rocky II (1979), and the cult classic film Mommie Dearest (1981). She also appeared in a lead role in the horror films Amityville II: The Possession and Girls Nite Out (both 1982).

Rutanya Alda
Born	Rūta Skrastiņa October 13, 1942 Riga, Latvia
Other names	Ruth Alda, Ruth Avots, Rutanya Skrastiņa
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1968–2016
Spouse(s)	Richard Bright ​ ​ (m. 1977; died 2006)​
Children	1

Life

Rutanya Alda was born Rutanja Skrastiņa (Rūta Skrastiņa) in Riga, in German-occupied Latvia, the daughter of Vera (née Ozoliņa), a businesswoman, and Jānis Skrastiņš, a poet.[1] Alda, her grandmother, her mother and her brother spent seven years in a displaced persons camp in Allied-occupied Germany after World War II.[2] She then relocated with her family to the United States, briefly living in Chicago before settling in Flagstaff, Arizona.[2]

Career

With a career spanning nearly 50 years in show business and over 100 roles, Alda might be best known for her performances in The Deer Hunter as Steven's wife, Angela, as well as for the cult classic Mommie Dearest, as loyal Crawford housekeeper Carol Ann, and Amityville II: The Possession,[3] having been nominated for the Golden Raspberry Award two years in succession (1982 and 1983) for the latter roles. She has also won a Clio and is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Additionally, Alda has appeared in numerous television programs, such as Cold Case and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, and as a featured character in the Ron Perlman/Linda Hamilton TV series Beauty and the Beast, as well as commercials and stage work.

In 2009, she appeared in Stolen, playing the elder version of Jessica Chastain's character, and had a supporting role in the horror film Late Phases (2014). Between 2014 and 2016, Alda appeared in the web series Old Dogs & New Tricks.

Personal life

She was married to actor Richard Bright from 1977 until his death in 2006, when he was hit by a bus in New York City.[4] They had one son, Jeremy.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1968	Greetings	Linda (Shoplifter)
1970	Hi, Mom!	Member of audience ('Be Black Baby' section)
1970	The People Next Door	Nurse
1971	The Panic in Needle Park	Admitting Nurse
1973	The Long Goodbye	Rutanya Sweet
1973	Scarecrow	Woman in Camper
1973	Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid	Ruthie Lee
1973	Blume in Love	Welfare Client	Uncredited
1974	Can Ellen Be Saved?	Rachael	Television film
1976	Deadly Hero
1976	Next Stop, Greenwich Village	Party Guest	Uncredited
1976	Swashbuckler	Bath Attendant
1978	The Fury	Kristen
1978	The Deer Hunter	Angela
1979	Rocky II	Doctor Cooper
1979	When a Stranger Calls	Mrs. Mandrakis
1980	Christmas Evil	Theresa	Credited as Ratanya Alda
1981	Mommie Dearest	Carol Anne
1982	Girls Nite Out	Barney / Katie Cavanaugh
1982	Amityville II: The Possession	Dolores Montelli
1983	Vigilante	Vickie Marino
1984	Racing with the Moon	Mrs. Nash
1985	Rappin'	Cecilia
1985	The Stuff	Psychologist
1987	Black Widow	Irene
1987	Hotshot	Georgia Kristidis
1988	Apprentice to Murder	Elma Kelly
1988	Winnie	Mrs. Paretti	Television film
1989	Last Exit to Brooklyn	Georgette's Mother
1989	Gross Anatomy	Mama Slovak
1989	Prancer	Aunt Sarah
1990	Rainbow Drive	Marge Crawford	Television film
1992	Article 99	Ann Travis
1992	Leaving Normal	Palmer Hospital Nurse
1993	The Dark Half	Miriam Cowley
1993	Children of the Mist	Sue Madehearst
1994	The Ref	Linda
1994	Safe Passage	Beth
1996	Innocent Victims	Lorraine Taylor	Television film
1996	Double Jeopardy	Gabriel Neuland	Television film
1997	American Perfekt	Gloria
1997	Steel	Mrs. Hunt
1998	The Souler Opposite	Thea's Mom
2001	My First Mister	Woman at Apartment
2001	The Glass House	Vice Principal
2003	Love Comes Softly	Wanda Marshall	Television film
2004	Murder Without Conviction	Virginia McAlpin	Television film
2005	Mystery Woman: Snapshot	Marsha	Television film
2005	Detective	Judge Beatrice Agannis	Television film
2009	Handsome Harry	Mrs. Schroeder
2009	Stolen	Older Sally Ann
2010	You Don't Know Jack	Vendor	Television film
2010	Unring the Bell	Belle	Short film
2011	Return	Mrs. Miller
2011	Too Big to Fail	Admiral Evans	Television film
2014	Late Phases	Gloria Baker
2015	Ovum	Barbara
2016	Split	Melissa

Select television roles

• Cannon (1 episode, 1973) – Mrs. Degnan
• ABC Weekend Specials (1986) – Mrs. Linderman
• Spenser: For Hire (1987) – Estelle
• Beauty and the Beast (1988) – Sarah / Mary
• Santa Barbara (5 episodes, 1990) – Mabel Beaufort
• Tales from the Crypt (1991) – Mildred
• Law & Order (2 episodes, 1992-2008) – Ruth Devon / Sara Cheney
• Silk Stalkings (1995) – Jennifer Atkins
• Gun (1997) – Clara Munday
• To Have & to Hold (1998) – Ms. McDougall
• Judging Amy (2001) – Celia Loomis
• John Doe (2002) – Cassie Barker
• Law & Order: Criminal Intent (episode "In the Dark", 2004) – Rose
• Mystery Woman (2005) – Marsha
• CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2005) – Faye Matthews
• Cold Case (2006) – Jenny

Web

• Old Dogs & New Tricks (2014–16) - Barbara Fiere

References

1. Rutanya Alda Biography
2. "Overcoming Adversity: Actress & Author Rutanya Alda Grew Up In WWII Refugee Camp". HooplaHa. YouTube. March 8, 2016.
3. Rupe, Shade (October 9, 2015). "Exclusive Interview: Rutanya Alda on AMITYVILLE II, Brian De Palma and the Horrors of MOMMIE DEAREST". ComingSoon.net. Retrieved October 20, 2017.
4. Grossberg, Josh (February 21, 2006). ""Godfather" Actor Richard Bright Killed". E! News. Retrieved October 20, 2017.

Further reading

• "The Lady of the House" by Lee Gambin, Fangoria magazine #317, October 2012, pages 56–57, 97. Interview of Rutanya Alda regarding her role in Amityville II: The Possession. Three-page article has four photos of Alda, one recent, with additional images related to the film.
• David Dye. Child and Youth Actors: Filmography of Their Entire Careers, 1914-1985. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co., 1988, p. 4.

External links

• Rutanya Alda at IMDb
• Rutanya Alda at AllMovie