Early life
Runyon was born on April 1, 1960, in Chicago, Illinois, to Jim Runyon, a radio announcer and disc jockey, and Jane Roberts, an actress.3 She had a half-brother, Scott, from her father's first marriage. The family relocated frequently due to her father's broadcasting career, and Runyon spent her childhood between Chicago, Cleveland, and Boston.
Career
Runyon made her feature film debut in the slasher film To All a Good Night (1980).4 She moved into television soon after, earning a recurring role as Sally Frame on the long-running NBC daytime soap opera Another World from 1981 to 1983.3
In 1984 two prominent roles arrived nearly simultaneously. She played Heather Merriweather in the campus comedy Up the Creek opposite Tim Matheson,4 and landed the lead role of Gwendolyn Pierce in the CBS sitcom Charles in Charge for its first season.3 That same year she filmed her appearance in Ghostbusters.
Through the mid-to-late 1980s and into the 1990s Runyon appeared regularly in both film and television. Guest credits included The Fall Guy, Boone, The Master, Magnum, P.I., the pilot episode of Quantum Leap, Murder, She Wrote, and Beverly Hills, 90210.4 On the film side she appeared in The In Crowd (1988), 18 Again! (1988), and the television film A Very Brady Christmas (1988), in which she stepped into Susan Olsen's role as the youngest Brady sibling, Cindy Brady.2 Further credits included A Man Called Sarge (1990) and Carnosaur (1993).4
Late in her career she returned to film with Bloodsucka Jones vs. The Creeping Death (2017) and appeared as herself in the fan documentary Ghostheads (2016).4 By around 2014 she had largely stepped back from acting, working as a teacher and co-hosting a cooking podcast.3
Ghostbusters
Ghostbusters (1984)
Runyon appears in the opening sequence of Ghostbusters as Jennifer, a female college student serving as a test subject in Peter Venkman's ESP card experiment at Columbia University. The scene falls in Chapter 2 of the film, commonly known as "Shock the Nerd," and serves as the audience's introduction to Venkman's character: he favors Jennifer with correct answers regardless of her actual guesses, while delivering electric shocks to his other, male, subject for every wrong answer. Her character is listed in the credits simply as "Jennifer."
Runyon later recalled that on the day of filming the hair and makeup department decided she required no wardrobe changes, no makeup, and no additional hair work. She remarked that had she known her natural appearance would be the finished look, she would have taken more care blow-drying her hair that morning.
Ghostheads (2016)
Runyon appeared as herself in Ghostheads, the 2016 fan documentary directed by Brendan Mertens5 exploring the worldwide Ghostbusters fan community. Her participation marked one of the more visible connections between the original film's cast and the organized fan base.
Personal life
Runyon married Todd Corman, a collegiate basketball coach, assistant director, and nephew of producer Roger Corman,6 on March 9, 1991.3 The couple had two children: a son, Wyatt, and a daughter, Bayley. Bayley Corman followed her mother into acting, with credits including 9-1-1 and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.2
Death
Jennifer Runyon died on March 6, 2026, in New York City, following a brief battle with cancer. She was 65 years old.12 Her friend Erin Murphy wrote: "Some people you just know you'll be friends with before you even meet. She was a special lady. I'll miss you Jenn."1 Her daughter Bayley wrote: "all of the best parts of me came from you."2
Within the GBFans.com community Runyon's small but iconic role has earned lasting recognition. She engaged directly with fans through her appearance in the Ghostheads documentary. Her character and likeness have been honored in IDW's comics continuity: Oscar's teacher in Ghostbusters Volume 2 #13 is named "Mrs. Runyon" as a deliberate nod to the actress,7 and in Ghostbusters: Year One #2 the outfit worn by Jennifer on page 1 is modeled on the costume Runyon wore as Heather Merriweather in Up the Creek (1984).8 Runyon also wrote the introduction for the IDW trade paperback collection Ghostbusters Volume 9.
References
Some content on this page was researched using the Ghostbusters Wiki on Fandom.
