She acted in the original cast of Paddy Chayefsky's play Middle of the Night, which first premiered in 1956, and she reprised her role as the Widow for the film adaptation three years later.

While the "Jewish mother" trope gained popularity in newer venues, such as on television, in print, and on comedy albums, notably, she was often personified in these media through her "son's vision" of her.

In the 1960 review of her debut album Love and Laughter, Billboard stated that she is "One of the theater's and the movies' top character actresses" and an "engaging comedienne" before concluding, "much that is funny is here.

"[3] The reception of this album in the historically Jewish city of Newark suggests its popularity within concentrated Jewish communities: in another Billboard article on how radio stations are breaking up traditional news programs with comedy clips, the commentator for Newark's WNTA station noted that record sales in the area for her album greatly benefited from on-air exposure.

Walker was designated one of the "Queens of Comedy" along with Jean Carroll, Totie Fields, and Belle Barth in Corey Kahaney's innovative stand-up showcase The J.A.P.