Pat Carroll, a voiceover and onscreen actress, has died at the age of 95.
The industry veteran, who won an Emmy and Grammy across her storied career, died Saturday. A representative for the actress released an official statement to the public after her passing.
“We sadly confirm the passing of Ms. Pat Carroll who died peacefully at home with her best friend by her side in the early morning,” the statement read.
Carroll’s daughter, Kerry Karsian said, “My mother died at home in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, while recovering from pneumonia.”
Born Patricia Ann Carroll on May 5, 1927, in Shreveport, Louisiana, the star moved to Los Angeles at age 5. Years later, she served as a civilian actress technician for the army, a job that entailed writing, producing and directing all-soldier productions.
In the years to follow, she then played characters across various television series, including the Jimmy Durante Show, The Danny Thomas Show, Laverne & Shirley and ER.
However, Carroll was heavily beloved for her voiceover role as the villainous Ursula in the animated The Little Mermaid film, a role which she returned to play many times across sequels, TV series, video games and more.
“It was a lifelong ambition of mine to do a Disney film,” she told author Allan Neuwirth in Makin’ Toons: Inside the Most Popular Animated TV Shows and Movies. “So, I was their hook, line and sinker.”
Carroll claims it was a role she almost didn’t get, as their were so many other actresses of that era who were being considered, before the studio decided to finally cast her.
Carroll insisted all she did was copy composer Alan Ashman’s performance of “Poor Unfortunate Souls” for her audition.
“He gave me that performance! Come on, I’m honest enough to say that,” she said. “I got the whole attitude from him … his shoulders would twitch in a certain way, and his eyes would go a certain way … I got more about that character from Howard singing that song than from anything else.”
Carroll then spent a long career in Hollywood, winning a Primetime Emmy for best supporting actress in Caesar’s Hour, a Drama Desk for her onstage portrayal of Gertrude Stein and a Grammy for the spoken word version of the play.
She was married to Lee Karsian from 1955 to 1976, before they divorced. The couple had three children together: daughters Tara and Kerry, as well as their late son Sean.
