Fannie Flagg

Fannie Flagg
Flagg in 1972
Born	Patricia Neal (1944-09-21) September 21, 1944 Birmingham, Alabama, U.S.
Occupation	Actress Author
Years active	1966–present
Known for	Match Game Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe (book) Fried Green Tomatoes (film)
Parent(s)	Marion Leona (née LeGore) and William Hurbert Neal, Jr.

Patricia Neal (born September 21, 1944), known professionally as Fannie Flagg, is an American actress, comedian and author. She is best known as a semi-regular panelist on the 1973–82 versions of the game show Match Game and for the 1987 novel Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe, which was adapted into the 1991 movie Fried Green Tomatoes. Flagg was nominated for an Academy Award for the screenplay adaptation.

Early life

Flagg, born in Birmingham, Alabama, is the daughter of Marion Leona (née LeGore) and William Hurbert Neal, Jr., a small-business owner and projectionist. She grew up in the suburb of Irondale.

As her acting career began, Flagg could not use her birth name professionally, as there was already a well-known Oscar-winning actress named Patricia Neal. As a result, she selected the first name "Fannie" at the suggestion of her father, who recalled its being used by vaudeville stars who played on stage in Birmingham, and "Flagg" at the suggestion of a friend who attempted to come up with a surname that would sound memorable when paired with the new first name.

Career

Writing

During the 1960s, Flagg co-hosted the locally produced "Morning Show" on WBRC-TV in Birmingham, Alabama. Following this, she was hired as a staff writer for Allen Funt's Candid Camera, and she later became Funt's co-host on the syndicated 1970s weekly version of the show.

In 1978, Flagg won first place in fiction for a short story that she had written at the Santa Barbara Writer's Conference. The work became the basis for the novel Coming Attractions. In 1980, after the deaths of her parents, she decided to pursue writing full time. Flagg's first novel, Coming Attractions: A Wonderful Novel, was published in 1981. The book was reissued as Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man - the title Flagg originally wanted to use - in 1992. The autobiographical coming-of-age novel is written as a diary that starts in 1952 with an 11-year-old protagonist, Daisy Fay Harper. Daisy uses diary entries to tell the story of her alcoholic father's get-rich-quick schemes and her well-mannered mother. The book stayed on the New York Times bestseller list for 10 weeks.

Perhaps her best-known novel, Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe, was published in 1987 and remained on the New York Times bestseller list for 36 weeks. It was praised by both Harper Lee and Eudora Welty. The novel is told in both past and present tense by the characters Ninnie Threadgoode (past) and Evelyn Crouch (present) and focuses on the town of Whistle Stop, Alabama, circa the 1920s and 1930s. It is about the unlikely bonds forged between women who seemingly have nothing in common except restlessness. Flagg subsequently wrote the screenplay based on that book, which became the 1991 film Fried Green Tomatoes. The movie garnered her a nomination for an Academy Award. Fried Green Tomatoes starred Jessica Tandy, Kathy Bates, Mary Stuart Masterson, Mary-Louise Parker and Cicely Tyson.

She has also written Fannie Flagg's Original Whistle-Stop Café Cookbook (1993), Welcome to the World, Baby Girl! (1998), Standing in the Rainbow (2002), A Redbird Christmas, (2004), Can't Wait to Get to Heaven (2006), and I Still Dream About You: A Novel (2010). Her most recent book, The All-Girl Filling Station's Last Reunion, was published on November 5, 2013, by Random House.

Acting

During the 1970s, Flagg was a fixture on game show panels. She is best known for her appearances on the game show Match Game (normally occupying the lower right-hand seat next to regular panelist Richard Dawson). Her acting credits include the Broadway production of The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, the films Some of My Best Friends Are..., Five Easy Pieces, Stay Hungry, Grease and Crazy in Alabama, as well as minor roles in various television shows. In 1975 she appeared as the Amazon Doctor in the pilot for The New Adventures of Wonder Woman. She is also known for being a regular on The New Dick Van Dyke Show, where for two seasons she played Mike Preston, sister to Van Dyke's character Dick Preston, and for her role as Cassie Bowman in all 30 episodes of the 1980-81 sitcom version of Harper Valley PTA, starring Barbara Eden. She also appeared several times as a victim of alien abduction on the talk show parody Fernwood 2 Night in 1977.

During the 1960s and '70s, Flagg recorded two comedy albums with various skits that included many parodies of Lady Bird Johnson and Martha Mitchell.

Other TV appearances

Flagg has appeared on multiple talk shows. Some of them are The Joey Bishop Show (1968), The Dick Cavett Show (1968),The Merv Griffin Show (1966; 1969; 1973), The Mike Douglas Show (1968; 1969),The Johnny Cash Show (1969), Dinah! (1974; 1975), Pebble Mill at One (1992), and The Rosie O'Donnell Show (1999). Flagg also appeared on Good Morning America in 1981.

Personal life

Flagg has spoken publicly about being dyslexic. She has said she was greatly challenged as a writer because she "was severely dyslexic and couldn't spell, still can't spell. So I was discouraged from writing and embarrassed." Her burgeoning writing career was put on hold for much of the 1970s, but Flagg overcame her fear and completed several novels and screenplays.

At one time, Flagg was reported to have been the partner of author Rita Mae Brown but Flagg has never acknowledged any conjecture about her private life.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1970	Five Easy Pieces	Stoney
1971	Some of My Best Friends Are...	Helen
1976	Stay Hungry	Amy	Adaptation of the novel of the same name.
1978	Rabbit Test	The President's Wife	Directed by Joan Rivers.
1978	Grease	Nurse Wilkins
1987	My Best Friend Is a Vampire	Mrs. Capello	Also known as I Was a Teenage Vampire.
1991	Fried Green Tomatoes	Screenwriter	Academy Award nomination.
1998	'Fried Green Tomatoes': The Moments of Discovery		Documentary
1999	Crazy in Alabama	Sally

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1967	Match Game	Herself	Semi-Regular Panelist: 1967–1968; 1973–1982
1972	Love, American Style	Sally	Episode: "Love and the Bachelor Party" (S 3:Ep 78)
1971–1973	The New Dick Van Dyke Show	Michelle "Mike" Preston	Main cast
1973–1974	$10,000 Pyramid	Herself	Fannie Flagg & Bill Cullen guest star (S 1:Ep 22) Fannie Flagg & Wayne Rogers guest star (S 2:Ep 47)
1974	Hollywood Squares	Herself	Recurring panelist
1975	Tattletales	Herself	(S 2:Ep 22)
1975	The New Adventures of Wonder Woman	Amazon Doctor	Episode: "The New Original Wonder Woman" (Pilot)
1975	Home Cookin	Adelle	TV movie
1975	Match Game PM	Herself	Semi-Regular Panelist
1976	Word Grabbers	Herself	TV Movie 2nd pilot
1977	Sex and the Married Woman	Virginia Ladysmith	TV movie
1977	Fernwood 2 Night	Sylvia Miller	Recurring
1979	The Love Boat	Alicia Finch	Episode: "The Decision/Poor Little Rich Girl/Love Me, Love My Dog" (S 2:Ep 22)
1980	Battlestars	Herself	Guest star
1980	To Tell the Truth	Herself	Panelist
1981–1982	Harper Valley PTA	Cassie Bowman	Main Cast
1983	The Love Boat	Liz Merritt	Episode: "The Zinging Valentine/The Very Temporary Secretary/Final Score" (S 6:Ep 20)
1986	The Love Boat	Laurie Ryan	Episode: "Father of the Bride/The Best Man/Members of the Wedding" (S 9:Ep 10)
1987	Dolly	Screenwriter (S 1:Ep 1–5, 8, 10)	Variety show

Books (Author)

Year	Title	Notes
1981	Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man	Originally titled Coming Attractions, the title was changed when the book was reissued in 1992
1987	Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe	Wrote the screenplay for the film Fried Green Tomatoes
1998	Welcome to the World, Baby Girl!
2002	Standing in the Rainbow
2004	A Redbird Christmas
2006	Can't Wait to Get to Heaven
2010	I Still Dream About You: A Novel
2013	The All-Girl Filling Station's Last Reunion

Accolades

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Nominee	Result	Ref
1992	Academy Award	Best Adapted Screenplay	Fried Green Tomatoes	Nominated

External links

• Fannie Flagg at the Internet Movie Database
• Fannie Flagg at TV Guide
• Fannie Flagg on TV.com
• Fannie Flagg (Actor/Director) on Facebook