---
name: "Theresa Merritt"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/theresa-merritt"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "24 September 1922"
died: "12 June 1998"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 1
average_as: "actor"
average_over: 1
updated: "2026-09-20T06:01:08.716989+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Theresa Merritt

Actor. Born 24 September 1922 in Emporia, Virginia, USA. Died 12 June 1998.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 24 September 1922, Emporia, Virginia, USA
- **Died:** 12 June 1998
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theresa_Merritt, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q3523800, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0581449/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/77226

## Streaming the US now

- **Tubi:** [*The Goodbye Girl*](https://film.one/film/the-goodbye-girl.md) (68)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Biography

Theresa Merritt was an American actress and singer. Born in Emporia, Virginia, she began her career on stage in the 1940s and appeared in numerous Broadway productions, including the original *Carmen Jones* and later replacements in *The Wiz* as Evillene.

She gained wider recognition for her television role in the sitcom *That's My Mama* (1974–1975) and for film performances including Mrs. Crosby in *The Goodbye Girl* (1977), Aunt Em in *The Wiz* (1978) and Juanita in *Billy Madison* (1995). On stage she originated the title role in August Wilson's *Ma Rainey's Black Bottom* (1984), earning a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Play. She died in 1998.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, nytimes.com, imdb.com.*

## On Fi1m (1)

- *The Goodbye Girl* (1977), Fi1m 68, as Mrs. Crosby — [page](https://film.one/film/the-goodbye-girl.md)

## Complete filmography (21)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Home Fries* (1998), as Mrs. Vaughan
- *Dangerous Proposition* (1998), as Grace
- *Cosby* (1996), series, Actor
- *Billy Madison* (1995), as Juanita
- *Voodoo Dawn* (1990), as Madame Daslay
- *Law & Order* (1990), series, as Ruth Titus — Fi1m 72, [page](https://film.one/tv/law-and-order.md)
- *Silence Like Glass* (1989), Actor
- *Miracle at Beekman's Place* (1988), as Sarah Coleman
- *The Serpent and the Rainbow* (1988), as Simone
- *Astonished* (1988), as Ida
- *The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas* (1982), as Jewel
- *All That Jazz* (1979), as Cast of NY/LA — Fi1m 84, [page](https://film.one/film/all-that-jazz.md)
- *The Great Santini* (1979), as Arrabella Smalls
- *The Wiz* (1978), as Aunt Em
- *The Goodbye Girl* (1977), as Mrs. Crosby — Fi1m 68, [page](https://film.one/film/the-goodbye-girl.md)
- *Proof of the Man* (1977), as Mario
- *The Love Boat* (1977), series, as Faye Phillips
- *That's My Mama* (1974), series, as Eloise 'Mama' Curtis
- *Police Story* (1973), series, Actor
- *J.T.* (1971), as Mama Meley
- *They Might Be Giants* (1971), as Peggy

## Awards

### Other awards — 0 won, 1 nominated

- Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play 1985: Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play (nominated)

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/theresa-merritt