What role you remember first when you think of Angela Lansbury speaks to how old you are — with an extraordinary career spanning more than 80 years, Lansbury brought indelible performances to generations of filmgoers, stage fans, and TV watchers.
Perhaps your go-to is Jessica Fletcher, the TV sleuth she played from 1984-1996. Or maybe you get a shiver of delight thinking of her Broadway turns as the madcap Mame Dennis of “Mame” or the duplicitous Mrs. Lovett of “Sweeney Todd.” Some fans embrace her as the loving mother-turned-teapot in the animated “Beauty and the Beast” while others get a cold sweat recalling her ruthless mommy in the original “The Manchurian Candidate.”