Penny Marshall (1943-2018) was an actress and director perhaps best known as Laverne on the Happy Days spin-off Laverne & Shirley. Her directing career included Jumpin’ Jack Flash (with Whoopi Goldberg), Big (with Tom Hanks), Awakenings (with Robin Williams), A League of Their Own (with Geena Davis), Renaissance Man (with Danny DeVito), The Preacher’s Wife (with Denzel Washington), and Riding in Cars with Boys (with Drew Barrymore).
Marshall was attached to direct a film adaptation of Into the Woods for Jim Henson Productions in 1994, holding an all-star script reading in her home.
In 1997, she appeared in a series of commercials and promotions for Kmart with Rosie O'Donnell and the Sesame Street Muppets. One appearance at the Fashion Cafe ended in a "puppet malfunction" reported by local newspapers. Matt Vogel, who was playing Big Bird at the time, recalled the incident to Tough Pigs: