# Eddie Mekka (Laverne and Shirley) dies at 69 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 3, 2021, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eddie-mekka-laverne-and-shirley-dies-at-69/955404 "2021-12-03T00:30:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 1\ **Showing post:** 4
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2021, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eddie-mekka-laverne-and-shirley-dies-at-69/955404/4 "2021-12-03T02:53:24Z")
Old thread about Betty Garrett and Eddie Mekka. I checked the linked news article and it’s still valid. > [@RIP Betty Garrett (aka Irene Lorenzo, aka Edna Babish-DeFazio)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-betty-garrett-aka-irene-lorenzo-aka-edna-babish-defazio/571258): > > She [made it to 91](http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/betty-garrett-blacklisted-musical-actress-dies-91/story?id=12906366)and taught an acting class just last week, but still sad to see her go as she was always a blast on interview programs. Very interesting life: young starlet (who never quite became a star), married to a star (Larry Parks), survivor of the Blacklist, rebuilt her life a couple of times (once from the financial damage done by McCarthyism, then rebuilt her career in her 50s), and a very fit and vital senior. Best remembered for her early work in On the Town and her later TV work … --- _[View the full topic](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eddie-mekka-laverne-and-shirley-dies-at-69/955404)._