Gena Rowlands

Virginia Cathryn "Gena" Rowlands (born June 19, 1930) is a retired American actress, whose career in film, stage, and television has spanned over six decades. A four-time Emmy and two-time Golden Globe winner, she is known for her collaborations with her late actor-director husband John Cassavetes in ten films, including A Woman Under the Influence (1974) and Gloria (1980), which earned her nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actress. She also won the Silver Bear for Best Actress for Opening Night (1977). She is also known for her performances in Woody Allen's Another Woman (1988), and her son, Nick Cassavetes' film, The Notebook (2004). In November 2015, Rowlands received an Honorary Academy Award in recognition of her unique screen performances.[1]

Gena Rowlands
Rowlands in 1968
Born
Virginia Cathryn Rowlands

(1930-06-19) June 19, 1930
Alma materAmerican Academy of Dramatic Arts
OccupationActress
Years active1952–2014
Spouse(s)
(m. 1954; died 1989)

Robert Forrest
(m. 2012)
Children
Parent(s)Edwin Myrwyn Rowlands
Lady Rowlands

Early years

Rowlands was born on June 19, 1930, in Cambria, Wisconsin.[2] Her mother, Mary Allen (Neal), was a housewife who later worked as an actress under the stage name Lady Rowlands.[3][4] Her father, Edwin Myrwyn Rowlands, was a banker and state legislator.[5] He was a member of the Wisconsin Progressive Party, and was of Welsh descent.[6] She had a brother, David Rowlands.

Her family moved to Washington, D.C., in 1939, when Edwin was appointed to a position in the United States Department of Agriculture; moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1942, when he was appointed as branch manager of the Office of Price Administration;[7] and later moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota. From 1947–50, she attended the University of Wisconsin,[8] where she was a popular student already renowned for her beauty.[9] While in college, she was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma.[10] She left for New York City to study drama at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts.

Career

Early roles (1952–1967)

Publicity photo, 1955

In the early 1950s, Rowlands performed with repertory theatre companies and at the Provincetown Playhouse. She made her Broadway debut in The Seven Year Itch and toured in a national production of the play. In 1956, she starred in the Broadway play Middle of the Night opposite Edward G. Robinson.

Rowlands costarred with Paul Stewart in the 26-episode syndicated TV series Top Secret (1954–55).[11] She guest-starred on such anthology television series as Robert Montgomery Presents, Armstrong Circle Theatre, Studio One, Appointment with Adventure, The United States Steel Hour and Goodyear Television Playhouse, all in 1955. In 1959, Rowlands appeared in the western series Laramie, alongside her husband John Cassavetes in the detective series Johnny Staccato, and in the western series Riverboat, starring Darren McGavin. In 1961, she appeared in the adventure series The Islanders, set in the South Pacific, and in Target: The Corruptors!, starring Stephen McNally. She guest-starred in The Lloyd Bridges Show, the detective series 77 Sunset Strip, the westerns Bonanza and The Virginian, and Breaking Point, all in 1963. In 1964, she guest-starred in the medical drama Dr. Kildare and in two episodes of Burke's Law. She appeared in four episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents, three of which were after the series had been renamed The Alfred Hitchcock Hour. In 1967, she was cast as socialite Adrienne Van Leyden in the prime-time ABC soap opera Peyton Place.

Rowlands made her film debut in The High Cost of Loving in 1958. In 1962, she starred in director David Miller's Lonely Are the Brave, with Kirk Douglas and Walter Matthau. She played the former lover of the Kirk Douglas character, now the wife of the Douglas character's best friend.

Cassavetes era (1963–1984)

Rowlands and Cassavetes made ten films together: A Child Is Waiting (1963), Faces (1968), Machine Gun McCain (1969), Minnie and Moskowitz (1971), A Woman Under the Influence (1974; nomination for Academy Award for Best Actress), Two-Minute Warning (1976), Opening Night (1977), Gloria (1980; nomination for Academy Award for Best Actress), Tempest (1982), and Love Streams (1984).[12]

According to Boston University film scholar Ray Carney, Rowlands sought to suppress an early version of Cassavetes' first film, Shadows, that Carney says he rediscovered after decades of searching.[13] Rowlands also became involved in the screenings of Husbands and Love Streams, according to Carney. The UCLA Film and Television Archive mounted a restoration of Husbands, as it was pruned down (without Cassavetes' consent, and in violation of his contract) by Columbia Pictures several months after its release, in an attempt to restore as much of the removed content as possible. At Rowlands' request, UCLA created an alternative print with almost ten minutes of content edited out, as Rowlands felt that these scenes were in poor taste. The alternative print is the only one that has been made available for rental.[14]

Late career (1985–present)

In 1985, Rowlands played the mother in the critically acclaimed made-for-TV movie An Early Frost. She won an Emmy for her portrayal of former First Lady of the United States Betty Ford in the 1987 made-for-TV movie The Betty Ford Story.

In 1988, Rowlands starred in Woody Allen's dramatic film Another Woman. She played Marion Post, a middle-aged professor who is prompted to a journey of self-discovery when she overhears the therapy sessions of another woman (Mia Farrow). The review in Time Out described the character's trajectory: "Marion gets to thinking, and is appalled to realise that so many assumptions about her own life and marriage are largely unfounded: in her desire for a controlled existence, she has evaded the emotional truth about relationships with her best friend (Sandy Dennis), brother (Harris Yulin) and husband (Ian Holm)." Time Out praised the "marvellous" performances in the film, adding, "Rowlands' perfectly pitched approach to a demanding role is particularly stunning."[15] Film4 called her performance "sublime",[16] while Roger Ebert noted that it marked a considerable change in tone from her work with Cassavetes, thus showing "how good an actress Rowlands has been all along."[17]

In 2002, Rowlands appeared in Mira Nair's HBO movie Hysterical Blindness, for which she won her third Emmy. Next year she appeared as Mrs. Hellman an episode from the third season of Numb3rs. She played a Nazi survivor whose whole family was killed. The family owned a painting that the Nazis confiscated. Later on the painting reappeared. The new owner lent the painting to an art gallery in Los Angeles but while on display it was stolen. F.B.I. agent Don Eppes, played by Rob Morrow, tries to figure out what really happened. Rowlands received rave reviews for this role. She has been a spokesperson for people who were persecuted by the Nazis so this role was a perfect match for her.

She was later seen in The Notebook (2004), which was directed by her son Nick Cassavetes. The same year, she won her first Daytime Emmy for her role as Mrs. Evelyn Ritchie in The Incredible Mrs. Ritchie. In 2005, she appeared opposite Kate Hudson, Peter Sarsgaard, and John Hurt in the gothic thriller The Skeleton Key.

In 2007, she played a supporting role opposite Parker Posey and Melvil Poupaud in Broken English, an independent American feature written and directed by her daughter Zoe Cassavetes. In 2009, she appeared on an episode of Monk ("Mr. Monk and the Lady Next Door"). On March 2, 2010, she appeared on an episode of NCIS as lead character Leroy Jethro Gibbs's former mother-in-law, who is embroiled in a murder investigation.[18] In 2014, she starred in the film adaptation of Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks.[19]

Personal life

Rowlands was married to John Cassavetes from April 9, 1954, until his death on February 3, 1989. They met at the American Academy at Carnegie Hall where they were both students. They had three children, all actor-directors: Nick, Alexandra, and Zoe. Rowlands married retired businessman Robert Forrest in 2012.

Rowlands has stated that she was a fan of actress Bette Davis while growing up. She played Davis's daughter in the 1979 made-for-TV film, Strangers.[20]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Director Notees
1958 The High Cost of Loving Jenny Fry José Ferrer
1959 Shadows Woman in Nightclub John Cassavetes Uncredited
1962 Lonely Are the Brave Jerry Bondi David Miller
1962 The Spiral Road Els Robert Mulligan
1963 A Child Is Waiting Sophie Widdicombe John Cassavetes
1967 Tony Rome Rita Kosterman Gordon Douglas
1968 Faces Jeannie Rapp John Cassavetes
1969 Machine Gun McCain Rosemary Scott Giuliano Montaldo
1971 Minnie and Moskowitz Minnie Moore John Cassavetes
1974 A Woman Under the Influence Mabel Longhetti John Cassavetes
1976 Two-Minute Warning Janet Larry Peerce
1977 Opening Night Myrtle Gordon John Cassavetes
1978 The Brink's Job Mary Pino William Friedkin
1980 Gloria Gloria Swenson John Cassavetes
1982 Tempest Antonia Dimitrius Paul Mazursky
1984 Love Streams Sarah Lawson John Cassavetes
1984 I'm Almost Not Crazy:
John Cassavetes, the Man & His Work
Herself Michael Ventura Documentary Short
1987 Light of Day Jeanette Rasnick Paul Schrader
1988 Another Woman Marion Post Woody Allen
1990 Hollywood Mavericks Herself Florence Dauman
Dale Ann Stieber
Documentary
1991 Once Around Marilyn Bella Lasse Hallström
1991 Night on Earth Victoria Snelling Jim Jarmusch
1991 Ted & Venus Mrs. Turner Bud Cort
1995 Something to Talk About Georgia King Lasse Hallström
1995 The Neon Bible Mae Morgan Terence Davies
1996 Unhook the Stars Mildred "Millie" Hawks Nick Cassavetes
1997 She's So Lovely Miss Jane Green Nick Cassavetes
1998 Paulie Ivy John Roberts
1998 Hope Floats Ramona Calvert Forest Whitaker
1998 The Mighty Gram Peter Chelsom
1998 Playing by Heart Hannah Willard Carroll
1999 The Weekend Laura Ponti Brian Skeet
2000Light Keeps Me CompanyHerself – intervieweeCarl-Gustav NykvistDocumentary
2004 Taking Lives Mrs. Asher D. J. Caruso
2004 The Notebook Old Allie Calhoun Nick Cassavetes
2005 The Skeleton Key Violet Devereaux Iain Softley
2006 Paris, je t'aime Gena Gérard Depardieu Segment: Quartier Latin
2007 Broken English Vivien Wilder-Mann Zoe Cassavetes
2007 Persepolis Grandmother Marjane Satrapi
Vincent Paronnaud
Voice; English dubbed version
2011 Olive Tess M Powell
2012 Yellow Mimi Nick Cassavetes
2013 Parts Per Billion Esther Brian Horiuchi
2014 Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks Lily Harrison Arthur Allan Seidelman

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1954Top SecretPowellEpisode: This Man is Death
1955The Way of the WorldPaula Graves
1955Robert Montgomery PresentsMyrtle WilsonEpisode: The Great Gatsby
1955Ponds TheaterJanetEpisode: The Ways of Courage
1955Armstrong Circle TheatreLugeneEpisode: Time for Love
1955Studio One on HollywoodBettyEpisode: A Chance of Love
1955Appointment with AdventurePerformer2 episodes
1955The United States Steel HourLilyEpisode: Ashton Buys a Horse
1955Goodyear Television PlayhouseBetty/Eve2 episodes
1958General Electric TheaterDorothy DickensonEpisode: The Girl with the Flaxen Hair
1959LaramieLaurel DeWaltEpisode: The Run to Tumavaca
1959Johnny StaccatoNina Van NessEpisode: Fly Baby, Fly
1959MarkhamRita EvansEpisode: The Altar
1959RiverboatRose TraynorEpisode: Guns for Empire
1960Adventures in ParadiseDr. Abigail BrentEpisode: The Death-Divers
1960Alfred Hitchcock PresentsLucille JonesEpisode: The Doubtful Doctor
1960The Tab Hunter ShowBarbara/PenelopeEpisode: Double Trouble
1961The IslandersPepper MintEpisode: Island Witness
1961Target: The Corruptors!Marian PraisewaterEpisode: The Poppy Vendor
1961-6287th PrecinctTeddy Carella4 episodes
1963The Dick Powell TheatreMrs. CanfieldEpisode: Project X
1963The Lloyd Bridges ShowLeslie KaufmanEpisode: A Personal Matter
196377 Sunset StripBarbara AdamsEpisode: Flight 307
1963BonanzaRagan MillerEpisode: She Walks in Beauty
1963The VirginianSavannahEpisode: No Tears for Fears
1963Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler TheatreJuneEpisode: It's Mental Work
1963Breaking PointShelley PetersEpisode: Heart of Marble, Body of Shame
1962-64The Alfred Hitchcock HourPerformer3 episodes
1963-64Kraft Suspense TheatrePerformer2 episodes
1964Dr. KildareHelen ScottEpisode: To Walk in Grace
1964Burke's LawMitzie/Paulette2 episodes
1966Run for Your LifeCharlotte HydeEpisode: The Rediscovery of Charlotte Hyde
1966The Long, Hot SummerKaren RobertsEpisode: From This Day Forward
1967The Road WestKaren CollierEpisode: Beyond the Hill
1967The Girl from U.N.C.L.E.Baroness IngridEpisode: The Fountain of Youth Affair
1967Peyton PlaceAdrienne Van Leyden39 episodes
1968Garrison's GorillasDuchessEpisode: The Frame-Up
1971-73Medical CenterKaren/Frances2 episodes
1972Circle of FearKate LucasEpisode: The Concrete Captain
1974Marcus Welby, M.D.Lorrain DenbyEpisode: The 266 Days
1975ColumboElizabeth Van WyckEpisode: Playback
1978A Question of LoveLinda Ray GuettnerTelevision Movie
1979Strangers:
The Story of a Mother and Daughter
Abigail MasonTelevision Movie
1983Thursday's ChildVictoria AldenTelevision Movie
1983Faerie Tale TheatreWitchEpisode: Rapunzel
1985An Early FrostKatherine PiersonTelevision Movie
1987The Betty Ford StoryBetty FordTelevision Movie
1990MontanaBess GuthrieTelevision Movie
1991Face of a StrangerPat FosterTelevision Movie
1992Crazy in LoveHonora SwiftTelevision Movie
1993Anything for JohnHerselfTelevision Documentary
1994Parallel LivesFrancie PomerantzTelevision Movie
1998Grace & GlorieGrace StilesTelevision Movie
1998Best Friends for LifeMrs. Harriet CahillTelevision Movie
2000The Color of Love: Jacey's StoryGeorgia PorterTelevision Movie
2001Wild IrisMinnie BrinnTelevision Movie
2002Charms for the Easy LifeMs. Charlie KateTelevision Movie
2003Broadway: The Golden AgeHerselfDocumentary series
2003Hysterical BlindnessVirginia MillerTelevision Movie
2004The Incredible Mrs. RitchieEvelyn RitchieTelevision Movie
2006Numb3rsMrs. HellmanEpisode: Provenance
2007What If God Were the Sun?Melissa EisenbloomTelevision Movie
2009MonkMarge JohnsonEpisode: Mr. Monk & the Lady Next Door
2010NCISJoann FieldingEpisode: Mother's Day

Awards and Nominations

Rowlands has been nominated for two Academy Awards, eight Primetime Emmy Awards, one Daytime Emmy Award, eight Golden Globe Awards, three Satellite Awards, and two SAG Awards. Some of her notable wins are a Silver Bear for Best Actress, three Primetime Emmy Awards and one Daytime Emmy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, two National Board of Review Awards, and two Satellite Awards.

In January 2015, Rowlands was presented with a lifetime achievement award by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association.[21] She was also chosen by the Academy Awards board of governors to receive an Honorary Academy Award that same year. At the Governors Awards ceremony, she was honored by Laura Linney and Cate Blanchett who offered up tributes; and Rowland's son Nick Cassavettes presented the award to her. The press release described Rowland as "an original talent" whose "devotion to her craft has earned her worldwide recognition as an independent film icon".[22]

Academy Awards

Year Category Nominated work Result
1974Best ActressA Woman Under the InfluenceNominated
1980GloriaNominated
2015Honorary Academy AwardN/AWon

Primetime Emmy Award

Year Category Nominated work Result
1986Outstanding Actress in a Miniseries or a MovieAn Early FrostNominated
1987The Betty Ford StoryWon
1992Face of a StrangerWon
2000The Color of Love: Jacey's StoryNominated
2002Wild IrisNominated
2003Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or MovieHysterical BlindnessWon
2007Outstanding Actress in a Miniseries or MovieWhat If God Were the Sun?Nominated
2009Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy SeriesMonkNominated

Golden Globe Awards

Year Category Nominated work Result
1974Best Actress - Motion Picture DramaA Woman Under the InfluenceWon
1977Opening NightNominated
1980GloriaNominated
1983Best Actress – Miniseries or Television FilmThursday's ChildNominated
1985An Early FrostNominated
1987The Betty Ford StoryWon
1992Best Supporting Actress - TelevisionCrazy in LoveNominated
2002Hysterical BlindnessNominated

Other Awards

Year Award Category Nominated work Result
1971New York Film Critics CircleBest ActressMinnie and MoskowitzNominated
1974National Board of ReviewBest ActressA Woman Under the InfluenceWon
1974New York Film Critics CircleBest ActressNominated
1974Kansas City Film Critics CircleBest ActressWon
1974San Sebastián International Film FestivalBest ActressWon
1977Berlin International Film FestivalSilver Bear for Best ActressOpening NightWon
1980Boston Society of Film CriticsBest ActressGloriaWon
1994Sundance Film FestivalTribute to Independent Vision AwardN/AWon
1996National Board of ReviewCareer Achievement AwardN/AWon
1996Screen Actors Guild AwardOutstanding Actress - FilmUnhook the StarsNominated
1999Seattle International Film FestivalExcellence for Ensemble CastThe WeekendWon
2000Satellite AwardBest Actress – Mini-Series or Television FilmThe Color of Love: Jacey's StoryNominated
2004Daytime Emmy AwardOutstanding Performer in a Children's SpecialThe Incredible Mrs. RitchieWon
2004Satellite AwardBest Supporting Actress - Motion PictureThe NotebookNominated
2005Saturn AwardBest Supporting ActressThe SkeletonNominated
2008Screen Actors Guild AwardActress in a Miniseries or TV MovieWhat If God Were the SunNominated
2014Los Angeles Film Critics AssociationCareer Achievement AwardN/AWon

References

  1. Tim Gray. "Gena Rowlands, Spike Lee, Debbie Reynolds to Receive Governors Awards Oscars". Variety.
  2. Dane County Register of Deeds, Madison, Wisconsin.
  3. U.S. Census, April 1, 1930, state of Wisconsin, county of Columbia, village of Cambria, enumeration district 3, page 4-B, family 130
  4. "Gena Rowlands Biography (1930?-)".
  5. Assembly, 1927–1935; Senate, 1935–1939. Members of the Wisconsin Legislature 1848–1999, Informational Bulletin 99-1, Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau, 1999.
  6. Lane, Lydia (November 21, 1980). "Beauty".
  7. "OPA Directed by Merwyn [sic] Rowlands," The Sheboygan Press, Sheboygan, Wisconsin, April 2, 1942, p. 4
  8. Registrar's Office, University of Wisconsin–Madison.
  9. "Six U.W. Co-eds 'Badger Beauties", The Sheboygan Press, Sheboygan, Wisconsin, November 14, 1949, p. 2
  10. University of Wisconsin Badger, 1950
  11. "Top Secret". Classic TV Archive. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  12. "Gena Rowlands, a miraculous actress"
  13. "Who Owns an Improvised Work?". The John Cassavetes Pages. Retrieved December 17, 2006.
  14. Carney, Ray "On Your Relationship with Criterion", The John Cassavetes Pages; accessed December 17, 2006
  15. "Another Woman". Time Out. Retrieved April 1, 2013.
  16. "Another Woman". Film4. Retrieved April 1, 2013.
  17. Ebert, Roger (November 18, 1988). "Another Woman". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved April 1, 2013.
  18. Ausiello, Michael (January 16, 2010). "'NCIS' exclusive: Gena Rowlands unlocks Gibbs' past". ew.com. The Meredith Corporation. Retrieved October 13, 2019.
  19. Chang, Justin (December 16, 2014). "Film Review: 'Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks'". Variety. Retrieved September 29, 2016.
  20. "The Hollywood Reporter Interview with Gena Rowlands". March 29, 2015.
  21. "LAFCA Lifetime Achievement Award". March 29, 2015. Archived from the original on December 30, 2014. Retrieved March 29, 2015.
  22. "Spike Lee, Debbie Reynolds And Gena Rowlands To Receive Academy's 2015 Governors Awards". AMPAS. Retrieved November 5, 2015.

Further reading

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