Beth Littleford

Elizabeth Littleford (born July 17, 1968)^[1] is an American actress and comedian known as an original correspondent on Comedy Central's The Daily Show from 1996 to 2000. She was among the former correspondents recognized when The Daily Show with Jon Stewart received a 2015 institutional Peabody Award.

Littleford's later television roles include Nancy Blaford on the Fox sitcom Method & Red and Ellen Jennings on the Disney Channel series Dog with a Blog.^[2][3] Her film roles include Claire Riley in the 2011 romantic comedy Crazy, Stupid, Love.^[4]

Early life

Littleford was born in Nashville, Tennessee, the daughter of Jackie, a professor, and Philip O. Littleford, a cardiologist and inventor. She grew up in Winter Park, Florida and attended the Park Maitland School. Her father and brother died when she was sixteen in a pontoon plane accident during an Alaskan fishing trip.^[5][6]

A National Merit Scholarship Program finalist in high school, she attended Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania for three years before taking up acting classes at New York University; she eventually graduated from The New School for Social Research.^[5][7]

Career

Early in her acting career, Littleford worked in improvisational theatre with Chicago City Limits, wrote and performed the one-woman show This Is Where I Get Off at the Circle Repertory Company, and appeared in the romantic comedy film Picture This.^[8]

Littleford was one of the original correspondents on Comedy Central's The Daily Show, appearing during both Craig Kilborn's and Jon Stewart's tenures as host. Her recurring celebrity-interview segments were performed in the style of Barbara Walters.^[9] In 1998, Comedy Central aired The Beth Littleford Interview Special, a compilation of her previously shown interview segments.^[10] In 1999, Entertainment Weekly described The Daily Show as a launching pad for Littleford and other correspondents, noting that she was expanding her recurring role on Spin City and had appeared in the film Mystery, Alaska.^[11] That year, she was also listed among the celebrity participants at Austin's Big Stinkin' International Improv & Sketch Comedy Festival.^[12]

Littleford played Nancy Blaford on the 2004 Fox sitcom Method & Red.^[2] She later appeared in several television comedy and family series, including The Hard Times of RJ Berger, in which she played Suzanne Berger,^[13] and the Disney Channel series Dog with a Blog, in which she played Ellen Jennings.^[3]

Her later screen appearances include the Netflix series Dead to Me, in which she appeared in the 2019 episode "I Can Handle It",^[14] and the 2021 film Senior Moment, in which she played Tess Woodson.^[15]

Personal life

Littleford lives in Los Angeles. She was married to Rob Fox, a director and producer who worked alongside her on The Daily Show, from 1998 to 2015; they had a son (b. 2005) and an adopted daughter (b. 2012).^[7][16] Fox died in 2017.^[17][18]

Filmography

Film

Television

Podcasts

References

1. ^ Willis, John A. (1998). John Willis' Theatre World. Crown Publishers. p. 230. ISBN 9781557833235.
2. ^ "Method & Red - Full Cast & Crew". TV Guide. Retrieved 27 May 2026.
3. ^ Lowry, Brian (9 October 2012). "Dog With a Blog". Variety. Retrieved 27 May 2026.
4. ^ "Crazy, Stupid, Love. - Full Cast & Crew". TV Guide. Retrieved 28 May 2026.
5. ^ Gray, Tyler (January 13, 1998). "Spice girl". Sun-Sentinel. Archived January 24, 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
6. ^ Hayes, Ed (June 18, 1985). "Youngster's spirit still leads the way". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on December 7, 2021. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
7. ^ "WEDDINGS; Ms. Littleford And Mr. Fox". The New York Times. July 5, 1998. Archived May 27, 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
8. ^ Blake, Leslie (21 February 2001). "ON LOCATION With 'Picture This'". Backstage. Retrieved 27 May 2026.
9. ^ Blake, Meredith (22 July 2021). "The true story of the women who made 'The Daily Show' — and were 'erased' from its legacy". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 27 May 2026.
10. ^ "Barbara Walters Becomes Subject On Comedy Central". The Spokesman-Review. 18 March 1998. Retrieved 28 May 2026.
11. ^ Fretts, Bruce (30 April 1999). "Beth Littleford and Stephen Colbert take flight". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 27 May 2026.
12. ^ Barnes, Michael D. (1 April 1999). "BIG STINKIN INTERNATIONAL IMPROV AND SKETCH COMEDY FESTIVAL: TV's Comedy headhunters are following their noses to Austin". Austin American-Statesman. p. xl32. Retrieved 28 May 2026. – via Gale OneFile: News
13. ^ "The Hard Times of RJ Berger - Full Cast & Crew". TV Guide. Retrieved 27 May 2026.
14. ^ "I Can Handle It". TVMaze. 3 May 2019. Retrieved 28 May 2026.
15. ^ "Senior Moment - Full Cast & Crew". TV Guide. Retrieved 27 May 2026.
16. ^ "Beth Littleford Welcomes Daughter Halcyon Juna". People. March 24, 2012. Archived December 7, 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
17. ^ Lentz, Harris M. (2018). Obituaries in the Performing Arts, 2017. McFarland. pp. 143–. ISBN 978-1-4766-3318-3. Archived December 7, 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
18. ^ "Beth Littleford & the mid-life crisis". Taboo Tales. November 3, 2015. Retrieved May 20, 2020.

External links

• Beth Littleford at IMDb