Barbara Luddy (May 25, 1908 – April 1, 1979) was an American actress best known for her voiceover work for Walt Disney Studios in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s.
Early life Born in Great Falls, Montana on May 25, 1908, Luddy was the daughter of Will and Molly Luddy of Helena, Montana. She sang in Vaudeville as a child.DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 170. She attended Ursuline Convent in Great Falls, Montana.
Career
Stage In 1929, Luddy toured with Leo Carrillo in Australia as part of a touring company that presented the play Lombardi, Ltd. A review in the Sydney Morning Herald cited Luddy's work portraying a mannequin as "a role in which Miss Barbara Luddy made a great hit by her pert audacity and vivaciousness."
Radio Luddy was a member of the dramatic cast of the Chicago Theater of the Air.Terrace, Vincent (1999). Radio Programs, 1924-1984: A Catalog of More Than 1800 Shows. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 74. One of Luddy's better known roles on radio was being a regular performer on The First Nighter Program from 1936 until the series ended in 1953. In 1937, she and fellow First Nighter actor Les Tremayne set what a contemporary newspaper article called "a precedent ... when these signed long term contracts calling for their exclusive services" on the program."
She also played Veronica Gunn in the comedy Great Gunns. In soap operas, she played Judith Clark in Lonely Women Carol Evans Martin in The Road of Life, and Janet Munson in Woman in White.
Film Luddy's film career began with silent pictures in the late 1920s. She is perhaps best remembered for her voice work in Disney animated films such as Lady and the Tramp (in which she played the titular Lady), Sleeping Beauty, One Hundred and One Dalmatians, Robin Hood and the Winnie-the-Pooh featurettes including Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree, Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day, and Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too, all of which were edited into the composite feature The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. Her other film credits include Terrified (1962) and the TV film Lost Flight (1969).
Television Luddy guest starred in episodes of such television programs as Hazel, Dragnet, Adam-12, and Kolchak: The Night Stalker.
Personal life Luddy married R. Ned LeFevre, an actor and announcer, on September 18, 1942. They had two children.
On April 1, 1979, Luddy succumbed to lung cancer. She was 70-years-old at the time of her death, dying just one month before her 71st birthday.
Filmography Year Title Role Notes 1925 An Enemy of Men Janet Sealed Lips Alice Howard Rose of the World Cecilia Kirby 1927 Born to Battle Barbara Barstow Wilful Youth 1928 See You Later 1930 Headin' North Mary Jackson 1933 Her Secret Mae 1955 Lady and the Tramp Lady Voice 1959 Sleeping Beauty Merryweather1961 One Hundred and One Dalmatians Rover 1963 Terrified Mrs. Hawley 1964 Dear Heart Miss Carmichael Uncredited 1966 Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree Kanga Voice 1968 The Shakiest Gun in the West Screaming Woman Uncredited Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day Kanga Voice 1973 Robin Hood Mother Sexton (church mouse), Mother Rabbit Voice, Uncredited 1974 Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too! Kanga Voice 1977 The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh Voice, Archive footage
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