Annie Potts is an American film, television and stage actress. She is known for her roles in popular 1980s films such as
Ghostbusters (1984) and
Pretty in Pink (1986). She made her debut on the big screen in 1978 in the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer comedy film
Corvette Summer (1978), with
Mark Hamill, for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe. In 2017 she was cast to portray Meemaw in
Young Sheldon (2017), a spin-off of the CBS sitcom
The Big Bang Theory (2007). Potts also voiced voiced Bo Peep in the animated films
Toy Story (1995),
Toy Story 2 (1999) and
Toy Story 4 (2019).
Interested in stage and film at an early age, Annie Potts attended Stephens College in Missouri, enrolling in the theater studies course, followed by graduate work in California. At the age of 20, she married her college sweetheart, Steven Hartley. Only a short time later, she and her husband were in serious automobile accident in Sumner, Washington -- their Volkswagen bus was demolished by two drivers who were drag racing. Steve lost a leg, and Annie had multiple fractures (resulting in a traumatic arthritis that still persists). Early roles were primarily in television, such as
Black Market Baby (1977), but her presence moved up with an appearance in the mega-hit
Ghostbusters (1984), and then she hit the big time with a seven-year stint as one of the stars of
Designing Women (1986). A brief period in
Love & War (1992) ended with the cancellation of the show, about which she remains resentful.