Teri Garr is on the move Friends it was short, but it still left a big impression.
The late actress, who died on Tuesday, October 29 at the age of 79, appeared in three episodes of the hit NBC sitcom as the biological mother of Phoebe and Ursula Buffay, both played by Lisa Kudrow.
Kudrow remembered her on-screen mother in a statement she shared with PEOPLE on Tuesday. “Teri Garr was a genius comedic act who had and still has a huge influence on me and I know I’m not alone in that. I feel so lucky and grateful to have been able to work with Teri Garr.”
Garr first appeared in Friends in the season 3 finale titled “The One on the Beach”. Phoebe escapes her friend’s trip to connect with someone who knew her parents. However, Phoebe later discovers that the woman in question, named Phoebe Abbott (Garr), is not only a friend of her parents, but also her biological mother.
Terry Garr, Tootsie and Young Frankenstein Old, died at 79
As Buffay realizes this, laughter begins as Abbott shares the same odd mannerisms as her daughter.
Garr’s last two episodes appeared in season 4, with “The One with the Jellyfish” and “The One with Phoebe’s Uterus” airing in 1998.
“She with the Jellyfish” was the Season 4 premiere, which returned with Buffay in shock after learning her mother’s true identity. The masseuse/singer then told Abbott she never wanted to see her again.
Later, Abbott found his daughter at the “Smelly Cat” singer’s favorite New York hangout, Central Perk, where the couple officially reconciled.
In Garro’s finale Friends episode “She With Phoebe’s Womb,” her character offered some motherly advice to her daughter when Buffay was considering whether or not to be a surrogate for her brother Frank (Giovanni Ribisi) and sister-in-law Alice (Debra Jo Rupp).
Abbott gave Buffay the puppy to take care of for three days to see how she would feel when she had to give him up. Striker? Buffay wanted to keep the puppy, which eventually became Abbott’s pet.
(L-R) Lisa Kudrow as Phoebe Buffay and Teri Garr as Phoebe Abbott Sr. in ‘Friends’.
NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty
Teri Garr’s life in photos
Garr was known for many comedic roles in films such as Tootsie and Young Frankenstein. She also appeared in shows like McCloud, MASH, The Bob Newhart Show, An odd couple, Maude and Barnaby Jones. She hosted Saturday night live 1980, 1983 and 1985.
In 2002, Garr announced that she had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Her publicist Heidi Schaeffer told PEOPLE on Oct. 29 that the actress-publicist died of the disease while “surrounded by family and friends.”
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Garr was married to John O’Neil from 1993 to 1996. She is survived by daughter Molly O’Neil, 30, and grandson Tyryn, 6.
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Source: HIS Education