Allyce Beasley
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Allyce Beasley (born Allyce Tannenberg, July 6, 1951, Brooklyn, New York) is an American actress and voice actress best known for playing the rhyming, love-struck receptionist Agnes DiPesto on the ABC drama series Moonlighting (1985-1989), a role that earned her two Emmy nominations and a Golden Globe nomination.1 She later built a second career as a voice actress, most notably voicing Miss Alordayne Grotke on the Disney animated series Recess (1997-2001). In 1997, she appeared as a guest voice actor on Extreme Ghostbusters, contributing to the episode "Witchy Woman."2
Early Life and Education
Beasley was born into a Jewish family in Brooklyn, New York. Her father, Marvin Tannenberg, worked as a magazine cartoonist; her mother, Harriet Tannenberg, was a bookkeeper.1 The family moved frequently during her childhood, living at various times in Philadelphia, Long Island, and New York City.
She initially enrolled at SUNY Brockport to study philosophy, with aspirations of becoming a poet, but left before completing her degree. After dropping out, she took part in local theater productions in New Mexico. She subsequently returned to New York, where she studied acting under legendary coach Lee Strasberg while supporting herself as a waitress.1 In 1982 she relocated to Los Angeles to pursue a professional acting career. She adopted the stage surname "Beasley" from NFL safety Beasley Reece.1