Anne Pitoniak

Anne Pitoniak (March 30, 1922 – April 22, 2007) was an American actress born in Westfield, Massachusetts, the daughter of Sophie (née Porubovic) and John Pitoniak. She earned her degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and went on to build a career spanning Broadway, film, and television across several decades.

Pitoniak's professional life began in an unusual setting: in the years immediately following World War II, she spent two years as a civilian actress touring Japan, the Philippines, and Korea with the Special Services. It was during a United Service Organizations show in Japan that she met Jerome Milord, then serving as a soldier, who would later become her husband.

Her Broadway career, which ran from 1983 to 2002, brought her two Tony Award nominations. The first came in 1983 for 'night, Mother, in which she played a mother attempting to dissuade her grown daughter from suicide. The production originated at the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge, Massachusetts, before transferring to Broadway, where both Pitoniak and co-star Kathy Bates received Best Actress nominations. That same year she received the Theatre World Award. Her second Tony nomination followed in 1994, recognizing her portrayal of Helen Potts in the Roundabout Theatre Company's revival of William Inge's Picnic, for which she was nominated as Best Featured Actress in a Play. Among her other Broadway appearances were Agnes of God, The Octette Bridge Club, Amy's View, Uncle Vanya, Dance of Death, and Imaginary Friends.

Beyond Broadway, Pitoniak performed regularly at the Actors Theatre of Louisville for five years, taking on roles in productions including Norman's Getting Out, D.L. Coburn's The Gin Game, and Jane Martin's Middle Aged White Guys.

Her screen work included the 1983 comedy film The Survivors, the 1987 films Housekeeping and Hiding Out, and the 2000 crime comedy-drama Where the Money Is. She also appeared in the 1985 film adaptation of Agnes of God, playing the mother of Jane Fonda's character — a role distinct from Mother Miriam Ruth, which she had performed in the Broadway production. On television, she played Mary in the 1987 Cheers episode "Pudd'n Head Boyd," Cornelia in the 1988 film The Wizard of Loneliness, and Mrs. Berry in the Law and Order: SVU episode "Redemption" in 2001.

Pitoniak died of cancer at her Manhattan home on April 22, 2007, at the age of 85.