Happy birthday, Renée Taylor! The veteran actress and writer, most beloved for playing Sylvia Fine in The Nanny, may have turned 93 today, but she's still going strong as a performer.
Decades into her career, the star continues to stage her touring production of her hilarious show My Life on a Diet around the country, first kicking things Off-Broadway back in 2018.
"Hey it's me, Renée Taylor," she last shared on social media just a few days before her big birthday. "A lot of people confuse me with Shakira, but I am performing at the new Plaza Theatre in Palm Springs, CA on March 18th at 7pm."
As the performer marks her big day today, we're taking a look back at her storied life and career, from her long and prolific marriage to her closest collaborator, to her acclaimed work…
© Getty ImagesHer early years
Renée made her screen debut in 1958 with a bit part in the movie The Mugger. By the 1960s, she was performing comedy shows in New York City clubs, with her opening act being a then-unknown Barbra Streisand (the Fines would die!).
Her first notable screen credit came a decade later, for her role as an actress who plays Eva Braun in Mel Brooks' version of The Producers in 1967, which eventually won an Oscar for its Screenplay.
© Getty ImagesComedic legend status
The '70s quickly proved to be a notable decade of critical and commercial prosperity for Renée, who broke into the mainstream as the co-writer of the hit Broadway comedy Lovers and Other Strangers, and earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay for its 1970 film adaptation. All done with her husband and collaborator Joseph Bologna.
Together the pair co-wrote and starred in the 1971 film Made for Each Other, earning a WGA nod for their work, and earned two Primetime Emmy nominations for their writing work on TV variety specials, winning in 1973 for Acts of Love and Other Comedies.
© Getty ImagesSitcom work
Renée continued actively working both in front of and behind the cameras, but experienced a major career resurgence in the '90s. She was cast in the HBO sitcom Dream On in a recurring capacity in 1992, and just a year later, she was cast as Sylvia Fine in The Nanny.
She earned particular acclaim for the latter, for playing the overbearing and brash but lovable and warm Jewish mother to Fran Drescher's Fran Fine, a role that continued for six seasons, ending in 1999. It also earned her a Primetime Emmy nomination for Supporting Actress in 1996.
© Getty ImagesHer life now: screen, stage and beyond
Renée continued appearing on screen well into the 21st century, with her last film role being in the film Tango Shalom (filmed in 2017 but eventually released in 2021). Some of her most notable credits since then include shows like Bob's Burgers, How I Met Your Mother, and Shake It Up.
She has also appeared in films like Alfie (2004), Ice Age 2: The Meltdown (2006), The Do-Over (2016), and How to Be a Latin Lover (2017). She has since devoted most of her time to her stage show My Life on a Diet.
© Getty ImagesHer marriage to Joseph Bologna and their family
In 1965, shortly after her divorce from first husband Frank Baxter, Renée married actor and writer Joseph Bologna. The pair found most of their success as collaborators and professional partners, with Joseph even making his film debut in 1971's Made for Each Other with Renée.
The pair had a son together, Gabriel Bologna, now 56, and became grandparents through him. Gabriel is also an actor and director, even serving as the director for his parents in Tango Shalom. That project ended up being his father's last, with Joseph passing away in 2017 at the age of 82.
