LOS ANGELES, Oct. 24 -- Character actress Mary Wickes, veteran of scores of movies, Broadway productions and TV shows, has died following surgery complications, Walt Disney Pictures announced Tuesday. She was 79. Wickes died Sunday at UCLA Medical Center, where she had been a member of the auxiliary's board of directors and put in over 3,000 hours of volunteer work. The tall brunette comedian with angular features and a blunt, quick delivery usually played hard-edged women. She was born Mary Isabelle Wickenhausen on June 13, 1916, in St. Louis, and she graduated from that city's Washington University. Wickes made her Broadway debut in George S. Kaufman's 'The Man Who Came to Dinner' and reprised her role in the 1941 film version. She appeared in 26 other Broadway productions, the last being the 1979 revival of 'Oklahoma.' Her other film credits included 'Now Voyager,' 'White Christmas,' 'Cimarron,' 'The Music Man,' 'Postcards From the Edge,' 'Sister Act' and its sequel, 'Sister Act II: Back in the Habit,' and the 1994 remake of 'Little Women.' Wickes was the live-action model for Disney animators drawing villainess Cruella De Vil during the creation of '101 Dalmatians.' Wickes's final movie role is the singing and speaking voice of a wisecracking gargoyle named Laverne in next year's Disney cartoon version of 'The Hunchback of Notre Dame.' On television, Wickes had regular roles on 'Mrs. G. Goes to College, ' for which she received an Emmy nomination, 'Dennis the Menace,' 'Make Room for Daddy' and 'Father Dowling Mysteries.'
To many viewers she is best known for her wide-ranging guest roles. On TV's 'M*A*S*H,' Wickes played the most decorated nurse in the Korean War, a role that was written for her. On 'I Love Lucy,' she played a gruff, cane-cracking ballet instructor who tried in vain to teach Lucille Ball's character grace and discipline. A memorial service is planned for Saturday at All Saints Episcopal Church in Beverly Hills.
