The summer after graduation, Heller was cast in an
Off-Broadway production of
Godspell. In 1978, Heller moved from New York to California to pursue film and television work. Heller's role as Alice, one of the television's first
lesbian characters, on the TV series
Soap received mixed reviews, with criticism primarily directed not at her acting but at the stereotyping of her character. The
Boston Herald said that the characterization shows how "the networks have generally depicted lesbians either as suicidal losers or sexual predators." For example, it identifies Alice as "TV's first recurring lesbian character," noting that she "first tries to throw herself off a bridge, then falls for Jodie (
Billy Crystal), a confused gay man, and finally runs off." Ahead of filming, producers ordered Heller's newly permed hair straightened at the network's insistence. Of a later episode in which Alice introduces her girlfriend, Heller said, "I went to kiss her in rehearsals and they said, 'No no no … you can’t do that.' I said, 'But she’s my girlfriend!' 'No, no no no, we can’t do that, we just cannot do that.' So it was so careful, it was so delicate in those days that you couldn’t really do your thing. … They wanted me to be a heterosexual homosexual." Reviewer
Gene Siskel of the
Chicago Tribune noted her absence from the second film, "Heller's honest portrayal of a single parent trying to raise an adolescent was one of the genuine pleasures of the original film." Ralph Macchio also "argued for her [inclusion]. Those scenes with her were some of my favorites in the original – they had some real emotion – and I honestly don't know why she isn't there." Heller was also the voice that says "Hey Rock, you're a bum" in the first
Rocky movie. Other films include
Fast Break (1979),
Bulworth (1998),
Monster-in-Law (2005), and
Crazylove (2005).
Television guest appearances Heller had a starring role as Carol in the 1979
TV movie Can You Hear the Laughter? The Story of Freddie Prinze. She has made guest appearances in television series including
Murder, She Wrote,
Less Than Perfect,
ALF,
Nip/Tuck,
Judging Amy,
Felicity, the children's series
Drake & Josh,
Night Court,
Fame, and
The White Shadow. Heller was a regular on the one-season program
Husbands, Wives & Lovers (1978). She played leading roles in three short-lived sitcoms:
Mama Malone (1984), 1986's
Better Days (TV series), and
Second Chance (1987). Heller's TV-movie appearances include
Can You Hear the Laughter? The Story of Freddie Prinze and
And Your Name is Jonah (both 1979). She had a recurring role in the fourth season (2010) of
AMC's
Mad Men as
Bert Cooper's and
Don Draper's elderly secretary
Ida Blankenship. For this role, Heller received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series. Additionally, she played the recurring role of Ryan's neighbor Margot on the American version of
Wilfred in the 2010s. Since 2018, Heller has reprised the role of Lucille LaRusso in the streaming show
Cobra Kai.
Stage career Heller has appeared in such theater productions as
Bermuda Avenue Triangle, ''The Tale of the Allergist's Wife
, and Cabaret. Of her role in Cabaret'', with one reviewer remarked that: Heller also played the role of
Barbra Streisand's mother in the stage performances of Streisand's
Timeless concerts in 2000. She performed the role after having been diagnosed with
breast cancer the year before and undergoing a double
mastectomy and chemotherapy and radiation treatments. ==Personal life==