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Nancy Walker (May 10, 1922 - March 25, 1992) was an American actress.
Born Anna Myrtle Swoyer in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Walker made her Broadway debut in 1941 in Best Foot Forward, the movie version of which would also allow her to make her film debut in 1943.
A diminutive 4 feet and 11 inches (1.50 m) tall and not conventionally pretty, she was difficult to cast; however, she continued acting throughout the 1940s and 1950s and was nominated for a Tony Award in 1955. Nancy co-starred with Phil Silvers in the 1960 musical Do Re Mi.
She achieved her greatest success playing Ida Morgenstern, the mother of Rhoda in The Mary Tyler Moore Show and its spinoff Rhoda. She was a regular on the Rock Hudson detective series McMillan and Wife, portraying Mildred the maid. These two roles would bring her seven Emmy Award nominations.
Her later efforts brought her no success. In 1980, she made her directorial debut directing disco group Village People in Can't Stop The Music. The film was a resounding failure.
She is best known for playing "Rosie", a waitress in a series of commercials for "Bounty" paper towels from the 70's up to the early 90's. She helped make the product's slogan "The Quicker Picker Upper" a common catchphrase.
She received one final Emmy Award nomination for a guest role in the series The Golden Girls before retiring.
She died as a result of lung cancer.
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