"Rosario is one of my all-time favourite characters," Morrison said recently, according to a statement and biography announcing her death. "She reminds me a lot of my own mother, who loved animals and children, but she would not suffer fools. It is very significant to me that we were able to show an older, Hispanic woman who is bright and smart and can hold her own," Before Will and Grace, Morrison was best known for playing Sister Sixto on The Flying Nun alongside Sally Field from 1967 to 1970.
She guest-starred on dozens of television series starting in the early 1960s, including The Fugitive, L.A. Law and Murder, She Wrote. Most recently, she voiced a character, Mrs. Portillo, on the Disney animated series Handy Manny. Born Rachel Mitrani to Jewish parents from Spain in the Bronx, New York, in 1936, Morrison spoke primarily Spanish as a child. She was cast primarily as Latina characters, but she played a range of ethnicities in theatre, television and film.
Her movie roles put her in casts with Hollywood's biggest stars of several eras. She appeared with Dean Martin in 1968's How to Save a Marriage and Ruin Your Life, with Barbra Streisand in Funny Girl the same year, with Gregory Peck in 1969's Mackenna's Gold, with Shelley Long in Troop Beverly Hills in 1989, and with Salma Hayek in Fools Rush In in 1997.
Morrison is survived by her husband of more than 40 years, Walter Dominguez.
Fans and those in the industry are today paying tribute to Morrison, with co-star Sean Hayes leading the way:
- AP
