Louise Lasser Louise Lasser Louise Lasser (born April 11, 1939) is an American actress and television writer. She is known for her portrayal of the title character on the soap opera satire "Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman". She was married to Woody Allen and appeared in several of his early films. Lasser was born in New York City, the daughter of Paula and S. Jay Lasser, a tax expert. Her family is Jewish. She studied political science at Brandeis University. Lasser was the understudy for Barbra Streisand in the Broadway musical "I Can Get It for You Wholesale". She also appeared on the
David Lasser Socialists and Lasser was elected president of the Workers Alliance. Herbert Benjamin, head of the Communist Unemployed Councils, became Vice President of the Alliance. In 1939 Lasser resigned from the Workers Alliance, claiming that it was Communist dominated. Even so, the U.S. Congress passed legislation specifically banning Lasser by name from employment by the federal government. He then served as economics and research director of the International Union of Electrical Radio and Machine Workers until his retirement in 1969. Lasser's leadership of the Workers Alliance brought him under investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation as a possible subversive. His