Lorna Thayer (born Lorna Patricia Casey; August 16, 1919 – June 4, 2005) was an American character actress, best known as Jack Nicholson's foil in the famous "chicken salad sandwich scene" in Five Easy Pieces.
Early years
Born on August 16, 1919, in Boston, Massachusetts, Thayer was the daughter of silent screen actress Louise Gibney and George Casey. Her father built sets for Universal Studios. She began taking dance classes by age 5, and she attended Immaculate Heart College in Los Angeles. It appears that, at present, any such body of work remains undocumented by existing online and in-print reference sources. In any event, verification of these claims is made difficult by the fact that neither article names any of the films in question, nor states whether any of these appearances were actually credited, nor, if so, under what name. After that she performed in Berkeley Square at the Geary Theatre in San Francisco.
She is most likely to be remembered for her role in the iconic 1970 film Five Easy Pieces as the waitress who refuses to allow Jack Nicholson's character to order a side of wheat toast. The scene has come to be known as the "chicken salad sandwich scene". Also, Season 5, Episode 36 "Pandora's Box", as Hanna.
Personal life
Thayer was married to actor George N. Neise, and they had two daughters.
Death
After battling Alzheimer's disease for five years, Thayer died at the Motion Picture and Television Fund Retirement Home in Woodland Hills, California, aged 85.
Filmography
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year
! Title
! Role
! Notes
|-
|1952|| Texas City || Aunt Harriet Upton || uncredited
|-
|1952|| Just Across the Street || Girl || uncredited
|-
|1952|| The Lusty Men || Grace Burgess ||
|-
|1953|| Jennifer || Molly, Grocery Clerk ||
|-
|1955|| Women's Prison || Deputy Sheriff Green || uncredited
|-
|1955|| The Beast with a Million Eyes || Carol Kelley ||
|-
|1956|| I've Lived Before || Mrs. Fred Bolan || uncredited
|-
|1956|| The Women of Pitcairn Island || Moa'tua, weeping woman ||
|-
|1958|| I Want to Live! || Corona Guard || uncredited
|-
|1960|| Freckles || Alice Cooper ||
|-
|1963|| Police Nurse || ||
|-
|1966|| Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round || Passenger on Mexico Flight || uncredited
|-
|1968|| The Shakiest Gun in the West || Saloon Girl || uncredited
|-
|1970|| Five Easy Pieces || Waitress ||
|-
|1970|| The Traveling Executioner || Madam || uncredited
|-
|1971|| The Andromeda Strain || Woman || uncredited
|-
|1972|| Glass Houses || ||
|-
|1972|| Cisco Pike || Swimming Lady ||
|-
|1972|| Skyjacked || Weber's Mother ||
|-
|1974|| Rhinoceros || Restaurant Owner ||
|-
|1974|| The Gravy Train || TV Interviewer || uncredited
|-
|1974|| Alice Goodbody || Yvonne ||
|-
|1975|| Smoke in the Wind || Ma Mondier ||
|-
|1976|| Revenge of the Cheerleaders || Lilly Downs ||
|-
|1981|| Buddy Buddy || Lady ||
|-
|1986|| Nothing in Common || Auditioning Grandma ||
|-
|1991|| Frankie and Johnny || Flower Vendor ||
|}