Lucy Roucis(1959-2021)
- Actress
- Writer
- Production Department
Lucy Roucis was an example of "turning something adverse around and making it work." Her early-onset Parkinson's disease actually helped get her a part in Love & Other Drugs (2010). Director and screenwriter Edward Zwick, after reading over 40 actors for the role, was so impressed with her audition that he asked her to write for the scene and add her own dialogue. She portrayed a woman doing a stand-up routine, poking fun at having Parkinson's, and helps Anne Hathaway's character ("Maggie") begin accepting her own diagnosis.
A native of Denver, Colorado, Lucy is the daughter of a dentist and a homemaker. She and her five siblings all received a private education. She attended Loretto Heights College in Denver, receiving a B.A. in theatre, Magna cum Laude. She immediately moved to Los Angeles to start her career, where she became a long-time student of Roy London. She began getting work in the film, television, and modeling world as well, being tall and slender. She had roles in the films The Party Animal (1984) and (uncredited) Better Off Dead (1985). Onstage, she was a member of the Los Angeles-based Radio City Music Hall Rockettes Christmas Spectacular and the Colony Theatre's production of the musical 'The Robber Bridegroom'. She co-starred and produced the Celtic Arts Center's 'A Tragedy You Can Dance To', by Ric Matheson. Several television commercials and print ads later, she broke ground as an actor when her Parkinson's reared its head.
Lucy had a double diagnosis of Parkinson's disease and thyroid cancer, undergoing thyroid removal and the cancer being eradicated. But Parkinson's is incurable. Defeated, she returned home to Denver, giving up on Hollywood. She reinvented herself as an actress with a disability and found work. Denver Audiences knew Lucy well and her Parkinson's was just part of her package. She was a long-time member of the world renowned PHAMALY (Physically Handicapped Actors and Musical Artists League, Inc.), alongside her fellow cast members who all had disabilities of their own. The award-winning company produces quality plays at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts.
Roucis starred in 20 productions, winning best Supporting Actress in a Musical from WestWord Magazine for her "Miss Adelaide" in 'Guys and Dolls'. She was cast in the pilot, 'One Step Ahead', of a Washington, DC-based weekly disability news program, as its Cultural Correspondent. In 2008, she received the Mayor's Award for being an Unsung Hero. In 2008, she underwent deep brain stimulation at the Cleveland Clinic. The procedure, although temporary, lessened the symptoms of her advanced Parkinson's disease. Lucy found her voice as an advocate for Parkinson's and disability awareness. She found an outlet for her wit as a stand-up (or sit-down) comic, working fund raisers with comedian Josh Blue, and also did outreach work in schools and taught/coached acting in Denver and also was a writer.
A native of Denver, Colorado, Lucy is the daughter of a dentist and a homemaker. She and her five siblings all received a private education. She attended Loretto Heights College in Denver, receiving a B.A. in theatre, Magna cum Laude. She immediately moved to Los Angeles to start her career, where she became a long-time student of Roy London. She began getting work in the film, television, and modeling world as well, being tall and slender. She had roles in the films The Party Animal (1984) and (uncredited) Better Off Dead (1985). Onstage, she was a member of the Los Angeles-based Radio City Music Hall Rockettes Christmas Spectacular and the Colony Theatre's production of the musical 'The Robber Bridegroom'. She co-starred and produced the Celtic Arts Center's 'A Tragedy You Can Dance To', by Ric Matheson. Several television commercials and print ads later, she broke ground as an actor when her Parkinson's reared its head.
Lucy had a double diagnosis of Parkinson's disease and thyroid cancer, undergoing thyroid removal and the cancer being eradicated. But Parkinson's is incurable. Defeated, she returned home to Denver, giving up on Hollywood. She reinvented herself as an actress with a disability and found work. Denver Audiences knew Lucy well and her Parkinson's was just part of her package. She was a long-time member of the world renowned PHAMALY (Physically Handicapped Actors and Musical Artists League, Inc.), alongside her fellow cast members who all had disabilities of their own. The award-winning company produces quality plays at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts.
Roucis starred in 20 productions, winning best Supporting Actress in a Musical from WestWord Magazine for her "Miss Adelaide" in 'Guys and Dolls'. She was cast in the pilot, 'One Step Ahead', of a Washington, DC-based weekly disability news program, as its Cultural Correspondent. In 2008, she received the Mayor's Award for being an Unsung Hero. In 2008, she underwent deep brain stimulation at the Cleveland Clinic. The procedure, although temporary, lessened the symptoms of her advanced Parkinson's disease. Lucy found her voice as an advocate for Parkinson's and disability awareness. She found an outlet for her wit as a stand-up (or sit-down) comic, working fund raisers with comedian Josh Blue, and also did outreach work in schools and taught/coached acting in Denver and also was a writer.
