Liz Torres

Liz Torres is an American actress, singer, and comedian who started out on the New York night club circuit, performing with her friend Bette Midler. Born in The Bronx, she was spotted in 1971 by a producer of The Tonight Show and asked to perform a stand-up comedy skit, after making her film debut in 1969 in the low-budget Utterly Without Redeeming Social Value. She played Morticia in the 1973 musical The Addams Family Fun House and spent 1975 to 1976 as a regular on the CBS sitcom Phyllis, with a recurring turn on All in the Family as the nurse Teresa Betancourt. Her best known role came as Mahalia Sanchez on The John Larroquette Show from 1993 to 1996, earning two Emmy and Golden Globe nominations. She also played dance teacher Miss Patty LaCosta on Gilmore Girls from 2000 to 2007 and appeared in A Million to Juan (1994).