# Megan Cavanagh
**Megan Cavanagh** (born 1960) is an American actress from Chicago, Illinois, best known for playing second baseman Marla Hooch in [Penny Marshall](https://www.edgepedia.org/penny-marshall)'s 1992 film *A League of Their Own* and for voicing Judy Neutron, Jimmy Neutron's mother, in the animated feature *Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius* and its [Nickelodeon](https://www.edgepedia.org/nickelodeon) television series.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0146903/bio/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1960, Chicago, Illinois, USA[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0146903/bio/) |
| Signature role | Marla Hooch, second base, in *A League of Their Own* (1992), her first major motion picture[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0146903/bio/) • [2](https://tv.apple.com/us/person/megan-cavanagh/umc.cpc.3hhgqxlb7we405n0zhgandjob) |
| Mel Brooks films | Broomhilde in *Robin Hood: Men in Tights* (1993) and Essie in *Dracula: Dead and Loving It* (1995)[3](https://menopausethemusical.com/castmember/megan-cavanagh/) |
| Voice work | Judy Neutron in the Academy Award-nominated *Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius* (2001) and the Nickelodeon series[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0146903/bio/) |
| Television | Recurring Trudy on *Home Improvement*, who married Al Borland in the series finale; series regular Chris on *BOB* with Bob Newhart and Betty White[3](https://menopausethemusical.com/castmember/megan-cavanagh/) |
| Stage | Earth Mother in *Menopause The Musical* since 2004[3](https://menopausethemusical.com/castmember/megan-cavanagh/) |
| Union membership | Actors' Equity Association since 1987; SAG-AFTRA since 1988[3](https://menopausethemusical.com/castmember/megan-cavanagh/) |
## Early life and theater
Cavanagh was born in Chicago and graduated from Rosary College in River Forest, Illinois, now Dominican University, in 1982.[4](https://elcinema.com/en/person/2090445/) She began her career as a live performer and was one of the original members of New Age Vaudeville, an Actors' Equity Theater troupe that staged plays in Chicago and in Fish Creek, Wisconsin; her roles in *An Evening with Elmore & Gwendolyn Putts: The Neighbors Next Door* and *the TV Dinner Hour* became cult favorites.[2](https://tv.apple.com/us/person/megan-cavanagh/umc.cpc.3hhgqxlb7we405n0zhgandjob) She later described theater as her first love, returning to Door County, Wisconsin, where she had interned in college at the oldest resident summer stock company in the United States.[5](https://www.theaterdogs.net/reviews/2008/06/05/megan-cavanagh-is-into-out-of-this-world%E2%80%99)
When she moved to Hollywood in 1988, casting agents told her she did not fit any mold they had. Penny Marshall then cast her as Marla Hooch, a homely, shy but talented second-base player in *A League of Their Own*.[6](https://www.sfgate.com/performance/article/Stage-work-a-refreshing-role-for-Megan-Cavanagh-3247924.php)
## Film and television
The success of *A League of Their Own*, in which she appeared alongside [Tom Hanks](https://www.edgepedia.org/tom-hanks), Geena Davis, Madonna, Rosie O'Donnell, and [Lori Petty](https://www.edgepedia.org/lori-petty), led to large parts in other big-budget pictures, including the [Mel Brooks](https://www.edgepedia.org/mel-brooks) satires *Robin Hood: Men in Tights* (Broomhilde) and *Dracula: Dead and Loving It* (Essie).[2](https://tv.apple.com/us/person/megan-cavanagh/umc.cpc.3hhgqxlb7we405n0zhgandjob) • [3](https://menopausethemusical.com/castmember/megan-cavanagh/) She starred with Tim Allen and Kirstie Alley in *For Richer or Poorer* as Levinia Yoder, and appeared in *That Darn Cat* (1997).[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0146903/bio/)
**Television and voice work.** On *Home Improvement* she played the recurring character Trudy, who married Al Borland on the last episode.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0146903/bio/) She was a series regular as Chris on the [Bob Newhart](https://www.edgepedia.org/bob-newhart) and [Betty White](https://www.edgepedia.org/betty-white) sitcom *BOB*, and later on the Logo network lesbian sitcom *Exes & Ohs* from 2007 to 2011.[3](https://menopausethemusical.com/castmember/megan-cavanagh/) • [5](https://www.theaterdogs.net/reviews/2008/06/05/megan-cavanagh-is-into-out-of-this-world%E2%80%99) Guest-star roles include *Friends*, *Will & Grace*, *Just Shoot Me*, *The West Wing*, *ER*, and *Roseanne*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0146903/bio/)
As a voice actress she has been most prominent as Judy Neutron, the title character's mother, in the Academy Award-nominated animated feature *Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius* and in the Nickelodeon series.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0146903/bio/) Her video-game work includes additional voices in *Hitman: Absolution* (2012).[7](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0146903/)
## Stage career
**Menopause The Musical.** Cavanagh has performed in *Menopause The Musical*, a four-woman show built on parodies of hits from the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, since 2004, playing the Earth Mother and, in earlier stints, the Iowa Housewife.[3](https://menopausethemusical.com/castmember/megan-cavanagh/) • [8](https://www.mrt.com/entertainment/arts-theater/article/From-movies-to-Menopause-Cavanaugh-enjoys-9286525.php) She has toured with the show internationally, including Singapore and Malaysia.[9](https://theaterlife.com/megan-cavanagh-from-marla-to-menopause/) In 2015 she appeared on the production's Survivor Tour, whose four cast members had each survived cancer or served as a caregiver; Cavanagh is herself a breast cancer survivor.[10](https://www.broadwayworld.com/los-angeles/article/BWW-Interview-Megan-Cavanagh-Discusses-Her-Role-in-the-Side-Splitting-MENOPAUSE-THE-MUSICAL-Coming-to-Riversides-Fox-Performing-Arts-Center-20150914)
Her regional theater credits include Madame Arcati in *Blithe Spirit* at the [Pasadena Playhouse](https://www.edgepedia.org/pasadena-playhouse) and in the musical version *High Spirits* in San Francisco (2009), Pseudolus in *A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum*, and Queen/Butch in *Jubilee*.[3](https://menopausethemusical.com/castmember/megan-cavanagh/) • [9](https://theaterlife.com/megan-cavanagh-from-marla-to-menopause/) She has said she would like to do more dramatic work but considers comedy her forte.[9](https://theaterlife.com/megan-cavanagh-from-marla-to-menopause/)
## Personal life
Cavanagh married Anne Chamberlain in 2008.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0146903/bio/) She has one son, Brendan.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0146903/bio/) She came out publicly in 1999.[6](https://www.sfgate.com/performance/article/Stage-work-a-refreshing-role-for-Megan-Cavanagh-3247924.php) A baseball fan, she has been honored on the field at Major and Minor League ballparks across the country and calls the [Chicago Cubs](https://www.edgepedia.org/chicago-cubs) "her team".[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0146903/bio/)
## Namesakes
A second actress credited as Megan Cavanagh appears in IMDb as Megan Cavanagh (V), known for the 2019 short films *Undead*, *It's Here*, *Clownmare*, and *Strange Candy*; the two are different people.[11](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm10520020/) The late voice actress [Christine Cavanaugh](https://www.edgepedia.org/christine-cavanaugh) (1963–2014), who voiced the title pig in *Babe* and Dexter in *Dexter's Laboratory*, is also frequently confused with her, but is a separate performer with a distinct filmography.[12](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004815/)
## References
1. [Megan Cavanagh – Biography, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0146903/bio/)
2. [Megan Cavanagh Movies and Shows, Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/us/person/megan-cavanagh/umc.cpc.3hhgqxlb7we405n0zhgandjob)
3. [Megan Cavanagh – Menopause The Musical cast page](https://menopausethemusical.com/castmember/megan-cavanagh/)
4. [Megan Cavanagh – Actor biography, elCinema](https://elcinema.com/en/person/2090445/)
5. [Megan Cavanagh is into 'Out of This World', Chad Jones' TheaterDogs (2008)](https://www.theaterdogs.net/reviews/2008/06/05/megan-cavanagh-is-into-out-of-this-world%E2%80%99)
6. [Stage work a refreshing role for Megan Cavanagh, San Francisco Chronicle (2009)](https://www.sfgate.com/performance/article/Stage-work-a-refreshing-role-for-Megan-Cavanagh-3247924.php)
7. [Megan Cavanagh, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0146903/)
8. [From movies to 'Menopause,' Cavanaugh enjoys it all, Midland Reporter-Telegram (2016)](https://www.mrt.com/entertainment/arts-theater/article/From-movies-to-Menopause-Cavanaugh-enjoys-9286525.php)
9. [Megan Cavanagh: From Marla to Menopause, Theaterlife](https://theaterlife.com/megan-cavanagh-from-marla-to-menopause/)
10. [BWW Interview: Megan Cavanagh on Menopause The Musical, BroadwayWorld (2015)](https://www.broadwayworld.com/los-angeles/article/BWW-Interview-Megan-Cavanagh-Discusses-Her-Role-in-the-Side-Splitting-MENOPAUSE-THE-MUSICAL-Coming-to-Riversides-Fox-Performing-Arts-Center-20150914)
11. [Megan Cavanagh (V), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm10520020/)
12. [Christine Cavanaugh, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004815/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › American actors: 1970s to 1990s › Surnames C to Cl*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 20, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 20, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license