Veteran American actress Debra Jo Rupp has had a rich and successful career on the small and big screen. The actress has continued to work tirelessly, adding more projects to her ever-growing list of acting credits. Since her screen debut in 1987, Debra Jo Rupp has starred in several popular and successful TV shows. She’s also one of several actors who joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) in 2021.
Debra Jo Rupp was one of several WandaVision’s cast members who reprised their characters in its spin-off miniseries Agatha All Along. Rupp’s Sharon Davis character is the last to complete Agatha Harkness’ coven. While her character’s fate remains unknown after episode 3 (“Through Many Miles/Of Tricks and Trials”), Rupp’s portrayal has been nothing short of spectacular. Here’s everything to know about Sharon Davis’ actress Debra Jo Rupp.
Debra Jo Rupp Early Years
Debra Jo Rupp was born in Glendale, California, USA, on February 24, 1951. Rupp has always proudly associated herself as a product of the 1950s. Her parents were John E. Rupp Jr. and Margaret A. Williams Rupp. Rupp was raised in a family of five, with two siblings, Robin Lee Rupp and Rebecca Louise Rupp.
Although born in California, Rupp was reportedly raised in Boxford, Massachusetts. She attended and graduated from Masconomet Regional High School in 1969. Her move to New York to pursue an acting career shows that she had an early interest in drama. After graduating from Masconomet Regional High School, Rupp reportedly attended New York’s University of Rochester.
Debra Jo Rupp Began Her Career on Stage
Debra Jo Rupp actively sought opportunities in New York to kick-start her acting career. She appeared in several TV commercials and performed in plays. One such play was the 1990 Broadway revival of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, where she co-starred with actress Kathleen Turner. Since then, Debra Jo Rupp has performed in several Broadway, Off-Broadway, and regional productions. Rupp has performed at the Chester Theatre Company, Williamstown Theatre, Berkshire Theatre Group, and Barrington Stage Company.
Debra Jo Rupp Made Her Screen Debut on Television
Debra Jo Rupp’s memorable roles have been on the small screen. Interestingly, it was where she first began her screen roles. Rupp was cast in a guest role as Helen on a 1987 episode (“Gone Fishin”) of ABC’s crime drama Spenser: For Hire. Besides her casting in the 1989 TV movie Mothers, Daughters and Lovers, all of Debra Jo Rupp’s television roles in the late 80s were guest-starring roles.
She Made Her Film Debut in 1988
Debra Jo Rupp’s film debut was in Penny Marshall’s fantasy comedy-drama Big. Released on June 3, 1988, Big starred Tom Hanks as a grown-up man-child who wishes to be an adult. Debra Jo Rupp was cast as Miss Patterson, the timid secretary of Tom Hanks’ Joshua “Josh” Baskin character. Rupp appeared in a few other movies in minor roles for the next decade.
Debra Jo Rupp’s Most Memorable Roles
With a career spanning over three decades, Debra Jo Rupp has starred in several other notable roles besides the MCU WandaVision and Agatha All Along TV series. Rupp has had several recurring roles in TV shows from the early 90s. She appeared in Davis Rules (1991), Phenom (1993–1994), The Office (1995), If Not for You (1995), and The Jeff Foxworthy Show (1995–1996). In Seinfeld, Rupp played Katie in a guest role as Jerry Seinfeld’s booking agent.
Rupp also played Alice Knight Buffay in NBC’s Friends. Her character was the wife of Frank Jr. (Giovanni Ribisi), Phoebe Buffay’s (Lisa Kudrow) much younger half-brother. Rupp’s Alice Knight, who was much older than Frank Jr., was introduced as a home economics teacher. Debra Jo Rupp began playing Kitty Forman in 1998 in Fox’s teen sitcom That ’70s Show. She played the role for all 8 seasons of the show. Rupp reprised the character in a 2005 episode of Robot Chicken and its spin-off sequel, That ’90s Show.
In 2008, she joined CBS’s soap opera As the World Turns as Edna Winklemeyer in a recurring role. In 2010, she was cast as Vicky Putney in the short-lived ABC sitcom Better with You. In the last decade, Debra Jo Rupp has appeared in NCIS: Los Angeles (2017), The Ranch (2017–2020), This Is Us (2017–2018), and Grey’s Anatomy (2019). Since her career began, Rupp has stayed committed to her career. Actress Debra Jo Rupp has never been married and has no children, joining the list of Hollywood actors who have never been married.
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