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Leah MacGrady

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Leah MacGrady
Leah s2
Age At least 68[1]
Gender Female
Animal Bear
Hair color Grayish-white
Complexion Light brown
Favorite color Gray[2]
Residence Leah MacGrady's house, Elwood City
Family Martha (sister)
Skip Bitterman (nephew)
Justin (grandson)
Chester (first husband)
Unnamed second husband (implied)
Job School lunch lady
Cartoon debut "Arthur and the Real Mr. Ratburn"
Voiced by Bronwen Mantel

Mrs. Leah MacGrady is Lakewood Elementary School's lunch lady. She enjoys bingo and is friends with Grandma Thora. She is a wise, kind, and supportive friend to everyone, and a good cook, to boot.

Etymology[]

Her first name was Sara[3] until season 13. In some books, her last name is spelled McGrady.

In Brain's Chess Mess she says her nickname in high school was Checkmate MacGrady. This indicates that MacGrady was her birth surname, not that of her husbands.

In Arthur Takes a Stand, it is revealed that she has a nickname, "Molasses MacGrady", as that is how John Lewis referred to her.

Personality[]

MacGrady is usually humble but cheerful as well as a nice lunch lady, a point where even the kids seem to really like and respect her, getting really worried and concerned about her when she got cancer. She also seems to be wise and supportive as the kids would even come to her for advice on multiple occasions.

Biography[]

During the episode "Draw!" Mrs. MacGrady listens to Francine and how her feelings are hurt. In order to let the other classmates know how she feels, she sets up a plan at the school carnival. She tells the others that when she gives them the cue they need to pull a rope, which will dump gloop on Francine. In the end the students don't follow through with their plan, as they realize that Francine is really hurt inside. Mrs. MacGrady had really set up balloons to fall on her instead.  In the episode "Binky Goes Nuts," she appears in Binky's dream where she puts Binky at an allergy-free table with Ron and Don and Adam and tells Binky he will only eat Brussels sprouts for the rest of his life, causing Binky to wake up after screaming "NO."

In the episode "The Great MacGrady," she has cancer and loses her hair from the chemotherapy. Her hair grew back by the episode "Prunella and the Haunted Locker." Her nephew, Skip Bitterman fills in for her during "The Great MacGrady". When she returns in that episode, Skip calls her Aunt Leah, instead of Sara. This continues on throughout the series. "Leah" could be referencing one of the writers of the episode, Leah Ryan, whom the episode was dedicated to. Also revealed in "The Great MacGrady," Mrs. MacGrady has a sister, Martha, who stayed with her after she was diagnosed with cancer.

In Arthur, It's Only Rock and Roll, she is the keyboardist for U Stink.

Friends[]

Leah MacGrady could be considered a friend to everyone in the series. She is kind and listens to everyone and helps them with their problems. She is effectively a guidance counselor, and helped people for many decades.

Grandma Thora: Leah MacGrady and Grandma Thora are alike in personality. They are rarely the antagonist of a dream or imagination, unlike Paige Turner. Instead, Thora was depicted favorably in Arthur and D.W.'s fantasies about Thora going to their surprise party. MacGrady gently told the truth about Thora's cooking. The two are seen together in many occasions.

She worked at Grace's bake sale.

As a background character, she is often seen with Ms. Sweetwater and Ms. Tingley.

Character development[]

MacGradyFirstAppearance

Mrs. MacGrady's visual design is possibly based on a Chickin Lickin' employee from the 1994 book Arthur's Chicken Pox.

Trivia[]

  • In "Brain's Chess Mess," it is mentioned that, when Leah MacGrady was in high school, she was known as Checkmate MacGrady.
  • In the episode "Arthur Takes a Stand," it is mentioned that she participated in the March On Washington in 1963.
  • From Seasons 1-12, Mrs. MacGrady's first name was "Sarah." However, she is renamed "Leah" in "The Great MacGrady" as a tribute to episode co-writer Leah Ryan, who based the story on her own experiences with cancer and passed away before its airing.
  • "Arthur Accused!" implies that Mrs. MacGrady's been married at least twice, because she mentioned in said episode that her first husband was a man named Chester.

Appearances[]

Gallery[]

Mrs. MacGrady 2
The full image gallery for Leah MacGrady may be viewed at Leah MacGrady/Gallery.

References[]

  1. ↑ In "Room to Ride", Mrs. MacGrady says she has not missed an election in 50 years. In the same episode, Brain says that a person must be at least 18 years old to vote.
  2. ↑ Trading Cards (see card #50 of 54)
  3. ↑ "The Half-Baked Sale" (see transcript for proof of spelling).



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