Gladys Ormphby

Gladys Ormphby was a frumpy, spinster who originated on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In in 1968, and was one of the few characters to remain on the series for its entire run. The dour, hair-netted Gladys was perpetually found seated on a park bench, where she was generally harassed by dirty old man Tyrone (Arte Johnson). Gladys staunchly defended herself by pounding him with her pocket book. When Johnson left the series, shortly after an aborted wedding between the pair, Gladys developed an increasingly desperate dream life, creating fantasy romances between herself and historical figures. Both Gladys and Tyrone resurfaced as animated characters on the 1977 Saturday morning series Baggy Pants and the Nit-Wits.

In the 1990s, when Ruth Buzzi was a regular on Sesame Street as Ruthie, Gladys made a few guest appearances. In one sketch, seated on her park bench as usual, she is approached by Cookie Monster who begs for Cookies. Gladys insists that she has zero cookies, so Cookie Monster eats her pocket book instead. Gladys also appeared in the celebrity version of "A New Way to Walk."