Patty Maloney
Encyclopedia
Patricia Anne "Patty" Maloney (born March 17, 1936) is an American
actress with dwarfism
.
. She stands 3 feet 11 inches (119 cm) and weighs 60 pounds (27 kg). Maloney is best known as Honk from Far Out Space Nuts
, as Lumpy from The Star Wars Holiday Special
, and as Darla Hood
from the animated TV series version of The Little Rascals
.
Maloney began her show business career at age 3, performing on Broadway
. At the age of 7, she moved with her family to Winter Park, a suburb of Orlando, Florida
. When Edith Royal first opened her studio in Winter Park, Maloney became a featured dancer. She attended Park Avenue High School and graduated from St. James High School. While in high school
she spent one summer traveling with a carnival and, later, one year with Ringling Brothers Circus
. It was not until she joined the Nate Eagle Troupe that she became aware that she could indeed lead a truly cosmopolitan life — and her family suddenly realized she was an adult. Here she grasped the many nuances of entertaining, learning to use make-up, to dress and to hobnob with high society and government officials. Maloney met the president of Honduras
, and she has been photographed with numerous dignitaries. Her mother insisted that even if she became successful, she should have another profession. So Patty attended the University of Florida
and became a keypunch operator.
Maloney returned to New York and obtained a position with National Airlines
, where she met her future husband: Joseph Vitek, a printer from Chicago
who was 4 feet 8 inches tall. After several years of correspondence they were married at the Actor's Chapel in New York
. During her pre-marriage days she traveled to Europe
, Cuba
and South America
. Back in North America
, she married and moved to Chicago, residing happily with her husband until his untimely death. Her sorrow was deep as she also lost her premature baby at the same time.
Maloney's friends forced her back into the world she loved, show business, and for this she was very grateful. She met Sid and Marty Krofft
, who were putting together a new puppet show, Far Out Space Nuts, and they promptly hired her. Maloney moved to Los Angeles
and she has been working ever since, as she is much sought after for entertaining skills. She was often a guest on the 1970s variety series Donny & Marie
, and portrayed the robot waitress Tina in the Buck Rogers in the 25th Century
episode "Cruise Ship to the Stars". She has always maintained that little people must live in a big people's world, and she really does — her home is furnished with normal-sized furniture.
Maloney is a model fashion
plate, always dressed in high fashion, whether it be boots and slacks or beautiful evening dress. She has appeared in all media, from nightclub
s to feature films, and she really loves people, parties and life in general. Her most frequent co-star was Billy Barty
, founder of the Little People of America
. Since 1982, she has also been an animation
voice actor
, worked on the Monopoly
game show
pilot, and even operated the Crypt Keeper
puppet on Tales from the Crypt
. In 2005, she had a cameo role in an episode of My Name Is Earl
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actress with dwarfism
Dwarfism
Dwarfism is short stature resulting from a medical condition. It is sometimes defined as an adult height of less than 4 feet 10 inches , although this definition is problematic because short stature in itself is not a disorder....
.
Biography
She was born in Perkinsville, New YorkPerkinsville, New York
Perkinsville is a locale in Steuben County in the U.S. state of New York. It is the birthplace of Patty Maloney. It is located at . As of the 2000 U.S...
. She stands 3 feet 11 inches (119 cm) and weighs 60 pounds (27 kg). Maloney is best known as Honk from Far Out Space Nuts
Far Out Space Nuts
Far Out Space Nuts is a Sid and Marty Krofft children's television series starring Bob Denver as Junior, a seemingly dim-witted but uniquely clever maintenance worker employed by NASA, and Chuck McCann as Barney, his grumpy, short-tempered co-worker. Patty Maloney played Honk, their furry friend...
, as Lumpy from The Star Wars Holiday Special
The Star Wars Holiday Special
The Star Wars Holiday Special is a 1978 American television special set in the Star Wars galaxy. It was one of the first official Star Wars spin-offs, and was directed by Steve Binder. The show was broadcast in its entirety only once, in the United States and Canada, November 17, 1978, on the U.S...
, and as Darla Hood
Darla Hood
Darla Jean Hood was an American child actress, best known as the leading lady in the Our Gang series from 1935 to 1941. She was born in Leedey, Oklahoma, the only child of James Claude Hood and Elizabeth Davner...
from the animated TV series version of The Little Rascals
The Little Rascals (animated TV series)
The Little Rascals was a 1982-1984 Saturday morning cartoon series produced jointly by Hanna-Barbera Productions and King World, and broadcast on ABC...
.
Maloney began her show business career at age 3, performing on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
. At the age of 7, she moved with her family to Winter Park, a suburb of Orlando, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
. When Edith Royal first opened her studio in Winter Park, Maloney became a featured dancer. She attended Park Avenue High School and graduated from St. James High School. While in high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
she spent one summer traveling with a carnival and, later, one year with Ringling Brothers Circus
Ringling Brothers Circus
The Ringling Brothers Circus was a circus founded in the United States in 1884 by five of the seven Ringling Brothers: Albert , August , Otto , Alfred T. , Charles , John , and Henry...
. It was not until she joined the Nate Eagle Troupe that she became aware that she could indeed lead a truly cosmopolitan life — and her family suddenly realized she was an adult. Here she grasped the many nuances of entertaining, learning to use make-up, to dress and to hobnob with high society and government officials. Maloney met the president of Honduras
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
, and she has been photographed with numerous dignitaries. Her mother insisted that even if she became successful, she should have another profession. So Patty attended the University of Florida
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
and became a keypunch operator.
Maloney returned to New York and obtained a position with National Airlines
National Airlines (NA)
National Airlines was an airline founded in 1934 and was headquartered on the grounds of Miami International Airport in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States near Miami.- History :...
, where she met her future husband: Joseph Vitek, a printer from Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
who was 4 feet 8 inches tall. After several years of correspondence they were married at the Actor's Chapel in New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. During her pre-marriage days she traveled to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
and South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
. Back in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, she married and moved to Chicago, residing happily with her husband until his untimely death. Her sorrow was deep as she also lost her premature baby at the same time.
Maloney's friends forced her back into the world she loved, show business, and for this she was very grateful. She met Sid and Marty Krofft
Sid and Marty Krofft
Sid Krofft and Marty Krofft , are a sibling team of television producers who were influential in children's television and variety show programs in the USA, particularly throughout the 1970s and early 1980s....
, who were putting together a new puppet show, Far Out Space Nuts, and they promptly hired her. Maloney moved to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
and she has been working ever since, as she is much sought after for entertaining skills. She was often a guest on the 1970s variety series Donny & Marie
Donny & Marie (1976 TV series)
Donny & Marie was an American variety show which aired on ABC from January 1976 to January 1979. The show stars brother and sister pop duo Donny Osmond and Marie Osmond...
, and portrayed the robot waitress Tina in the Buck Rogers in the 25th Century
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (TV series)
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century is an American science fiction adventure television series produced by Universal Studios. The series ran for two seasons between 1979–1981, and the feature-length pilot episode for the series was released as a theatrical film several months before the series aired....
episode "Cruise Ship to the Stars". She has always maintained that little people must live in a big people's world, and she really does — her home is furnished with normal-sized furniture.
Maloney is a model fashion
Fashion
Fashion, a general term for a currently popular style or practice, especially in clothing, foot wear, or accessories. Fashion references to anything that is the current trend in look and dress up of a person...
plate, always dressed in high fashion, whether it be boots and slacks or beautiful evening dress. She has appeared in all media, from nightclub
Nightclub
A nightclub is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night...
s to feature films, and she really loves people, parties and life in general. Her most frequent co-star was Billy Barty
Billy Barty
Billy Barty was an American film actor.-Biography:Barty, an Italian American, was born William John Bertanzetti in Millsboro, Pennsylvania...
, founder of the Little People of America
Little People of America
Little People of America is a non-profit organization which provides support, resources and information to individuals with dwarfism and their families...
. Since 1982, she has also been an animation
Animation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
voice actor
Voice acting
Voice acting is the art of providing voices for animated characters and radio and audio dramas and comedy, as well as doing voice-overs in radio and television commercials, audio dramas, dubbed foreign language films, video games, puppet shows, and amusement rides.Performers are called...
, worked on the Monopoly
Monopoly (game show)
Monopoly is an American television game show based on the board game of the same name. It aired on ABC from June 16 to September 1, 1990. Mike Reilly, a former Jeopardy! contestant, hosted while Charlie O'Donnell announced....
game show
Game show
A game show is a type of radio or television program in which members of the public, television personalities or celebrities, sometimes as part of a team, play a game which involves answering questions or solving puzzles usually for money and/or prizes...
pilot, and even operated the Crypt Keeper
Tales from the Crypt (comic)
Tales from the Crypt, The Haunt of Fear and The Vault of Horror are three bi-monthly horror comic anthology series published by EC Comics in the early 1950s...
puppet on Tales from the Crypt
Tales from the Crypt (TV series)
Tales from the Crypt, sometimes titled HBO's Tales from the Crypt, is an American horror anthology television series that ran from 1989 to 1996 on the premium cable channel HBO...
. In 2005, she had a cameo role in an episode of My Name Is Earl
My Name Is Earl
My Name Is Earl is an American television comedy series created by Greg Garcia that was originally broadcast on the NBC television network from September 20, 2005, to May 14, 2009, in the United States...
.