Kim Stanley

Kim Stanley (born Patricia Kimberley Reid; February 11, 1925 – August 20, 2001) was an American actress, primarily in television and theatre, but with occasional film performances.

Kim Stanley
Photograph by Carl Van Vechten, 1961
Born
Patricia Kimberley Reid

(1925-02-11)February 11, 1925
DiedAugust 20, 2001(2001-08-20) (aged 76)
Alma materActors Studio
University of New Mexico
OccupationActress
Years active1950–1985
Spouse(s)
Bruce Hall
(m. 1945; div. 1946)

(m. 1949; div. 1956)

(m. 1958; div. 1964)

Joseph Siegel
(m. 1964; div. 1967)
Children3

She began her acting career in theatre, and subsequently attended the Actors Studio in New York City, New York. She received the 1952 Theatre World Award for her role in The Chase (1952), and starred in the Broadway productions of Picnic (1953) and Bus Stop (1955). Stanley was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for her roles in A Touch of the Poet (1959) and A Far Country (1962).

In the 1950s Stanley was a prolific performer in television; she later progressed to film, with a well-received performance in The Goddess (1959). She was the narrator of To Kill a Mockingbird (1962), and starred in Séance on a Wet Afternoon (1964), for which she won the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress. She was less active during the remainder of her career; two of her later film successes were as the mother of Frances Farmer in Frances (1982), for which she received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, and as Pancho Barnes in The Right Stuff (1983). Stanley received a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress – Miniseries or a Movie for her performance as Big Mama in a television adaptation of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof in 1985. That same year, she was inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame.[1]

Early life

Stanley was born in Tularosa, New Mexico, the daughter of Ann (née Miller), an interior decorator, and J. T. Reid, a professor of philosophy and education at the University of New Mexico, located in Albuquerque.[2] Her father was of Irish or Scottish descent, born and raised in Texas, where he met her mother (who was of German and English ancestry). She had three brothers (Howard Clinton Reid, a psychiatrist; Kenneth Reid, killed in pilot training during World War II; and Justin Truman Reid, a lawyer); and a half-sister (Carol Ann Reid).[2] She was a drama major at the University of New Mexico, and later studied at the Pasadena Playhouse and adopted her maternal grandmother's surname as her stage name.[2]

Career

Theatre

Stanley was a successful Broadway actress with only a few film roles. She was singled out by The New York Times critic Brooks Atkinson for her early work. She eventually attended the Actors Studio, studying under Elia Kazan, Lee Strasberg, and Vivian Nathan.[3] She received the 1952 Theatre World Award for her performance as Anna Reeves in The Chase,[4] and starred in such Broadway hits as Picnic (1953), playing Millie Owens and Bus Stop (1955), playing Cherie.

She was nominated for the 1959 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for A Touch of the Poet and the 1962 Tony for Best Actress in a Play for her portrayal of Elizabeth von Ritter in Henry Denker's A Far Country. Stanley also portrayed Maggie "The Cat" in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof in the original London production of the play.

Television

Stanley was a leading lady of live television drama, which flourished in New York City during the 1950s. Among her many starring roles was Wilma, a star-struck 15-year-old girl from the U.S. Gulf Coast of Texas in Horton Foote's A Young Lady of Property, which aired on The Philco-Goodyear Television Playhouse on April 5, 1953. She played Masha in the London performance of an Actors Studio production of Anton Chekhov's play The Three Sisters

Film

Her first film was The Goddess (1958), playing a tragic movie star. She starred in Séance on a Wet Afternoon (1964), winning both the National Board of Review Award for Best Actress and the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress and the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role.

A filmed version of Strasberg-directed Three Sisters (1966) opened with Stanley reprising the role of Masha, and is the only time one can see her perform in a film alongside Geraldine Page, Sandy Dennis, Shelley Winters and other well-known names of the Actors Studio. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress and a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture for her performance as Frances Farmer's possessive mother in Frances (1982). She also played Pancho Barnes in The Right Stuff (1983). Stanley was the uncredited narrator in the drama film To Kill a Mockingbird (1962). As the narrator, she represents the character Jean Louise Finch ("Scout") as an adult. Mary Badham portrays Scout as a child in the film.

She received an Emmy Award for Outstanding Single Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role for her appearance in the episode, "A Cardinal Act of Mercy" (1963), of the television series, Ben Casey (1961–1966), and an Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or a Special for her appearance in the 1984 television adaptation of Tennessee Williams's Southern melodrama Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, this time as Big Mama.

Last years

Stanley did not act during her later years, preferring the role of teacher, in New York City, Los Angeles, and later Santa Fe, New Mexico, where she died.

She was inducted into the New Mexico Entertainment Hall of Fame in 2012.

Personal life

Stanley was married four times: to Bruce Hall (1945–1946), Curt Conway (1949–1956), Alfred Ryder (1958–1964), and Joseph Siegel (1964–1967). All four marriages ended in divorce.

She had three children: one by Curt Conway; one by Brooks Clift (brother of Montgomery Clift), while she was married to Conway; and one by Alfred Ryder (Laurie). During her marriage to Ryder, Stanley converted to Judaism.[5]

Death

Stanley died of uterine cancer at a nursing home in Santa Fe at the age of 76.[6] She was survived by her brother Justin, her three children, and several nephews and nieces. A biography, Female Brando: the Legend of Kim Stanley (2006), by Jon Krampner, was published by Back Stage Books, a division of Watson-Guptill.[7][8][9]

Stage work

Partial listing of stage work:[10]

Opening date Closing date Title Role Playwright Theatre Notes
Oct 29, 1949Dec 24, 1949Montserrat[11]Replacement for Julie Harris as FelisaLillian Hellman adaptation
original Emmanuel Roblès
Fulton
Jan 7, 1951Jan 20, 1951The House of Bernarda Alba[12]AdelaFederico García Lorca
Translation James Graham Lujan and Richard L. O'Connell
ANTA
Apr 15, 1952May 10, 1952The Chase[13]Anna ReevesHorton FootePlayhouse1952 Theatre World Award[14] for Kim Stanley
Feb 19, 1953Apr 10, 1954Picnic[15]Millie OwensWilliam IngeMusic Box
Oct 27, 1954Nov 20, 1954The Traveling Lady[16]Georgette ThomasHorton FootePlayhouse
Mar 2, 1955Apr 21, 1956Bus Stop[17]CherieWilliam IngeMusic Box
Winter Garden
Jan 10, 1957Feb 9, 1957A Clearing in the Woods[18]VirginiaArthur LaurentsBelasco
Oct 2, 1958Jun 13, 1959A Touch of the Poet[19]Sara MelodyEugene O'NeillHelen HayesTony Award nomination, Best Actress
Oct 12, 1959Nov 28, 1959Chéri[20]Léa de LonvalAnita Loos
Colette
Morosco
Apr 4, 1961Nov 25, 1961A Far Country[21]Elizabeth von RitterHenry DenkerMusic BoxTony Award nomination, Best Actress
Jan 31, 1963Mar 02, 1963Natural Affection[22]Sue BarkerWilliam IngeBooth
Jun 22, 1964Oct 03, 1964The Three Sisters[23]MashaAnton Chekhov
Randall Jarrell English version
Morosco

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
1958The GoddessEmily Ann Faulkner
1962To Kill a MockingbirdScout as an Adult – NarratorVoice, Uncredited
1964Séance on a Wet AfternoonMyra Savage Laurel Award for Top Dramatic Performance, Female (3rd place)
National Board of Review Award for Best Actress
New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress
Nominated-Academy Award for Best Actress
Nominated-BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role[24]
1966The Three SistersMasha
1982FrancesLillian FarmerNominated-Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
Nominated-Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture[25]
1983The Right StuffPancho Barnes

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1950The Magnavox TheatreUnknownFather, Dear Father
1950Cavalcade of StarsSelfEpisode #1.53
1950Sure As FateUnknownThe Vanishing Lady
1950The TrapUnknownSentence of Death
1950EscapeUnknownThe Covenant
1951DangerUnknownThe Anniversary
1951Out ThereUnknownThe Bus to Nowhere
1952DangerHelenThe System
1954DangerUnknownThe Bet
1953You Are ThereCleopatraThe Death of Cleopatra (30 B.C.)
1953You Are ThereJoan of ArcThe Final Hours of Joan of Arc (May 30, 1431)
1953The Gulf PlayhouseUnknownThe Tears of My Sister
1953The Ed Sullivan ShowSelfEpisode #6.36
1952Goodyear Television PlayhouseUnknownThe Witness
1954Goodyear Television PlayhouseUnknownThe Brownstone
1956Goodyear Television PlayhouseKayJoey
1956Goodyear Television PlayhouseUnknownIn the Days of Our Youth
1956Goodyear Television PlayhouseUnknownConspiracy of Hearts
1953 The Philco Television PlayhouseUnknownA Young Lady of Property
1953The Philco Television PlayhouseUnknownThe Strong Women
1953The Philco Television PlayhouseUnknownThe Sixth Sense
1954The Philco Television PlayhouseUnknownSomebody Special
1954Armstrong Circle TheatreUnknownH Is for Hurricane
1954Inner Sanctum MysteryMaggieThe Hands
1954Kraft Television TheatreUnknownThe Scarlet Letter
1956Kraft Television TheatreUnknownDeath Is a Spanish Dancer
1957Kraft Television TheatreUnknownThe Glass Wall
1955A.N.T.A. Album of 1955HerselfProduction of American National Theater and Academy
1955Playwrights 56AbbyThe Waiting Place
1955Playwrights 56Martha AndersonFlight
1955The Elgin HourLiliThe Bridge
1957Westinghouse Studio OneGeorgette ThomasThe Traveling Lady
1957Playhouse 90Mae D'AmatoClash by Night
1960Playhouse 90Sarah EubanksTomorrow
1958Armchair TheatreGeorgette ThomasThe Travelling Lady
1960Armchair TheatreUnknownThe Cake Baker
1960DuPont Show of the MonthSarah Anne HoweEthan Frome
1962Westinghouse Presents: That's Where the Town Is GoingWilma SillsTV Movie
1963Ben CaseyFaith ParsonsA Cardinal Act of Mercy:, Parts 1 and 2
Primetime Emmy Award Outstanding Single Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role[26]
1964The Eleventh HourUnknownDoes My Mother Have to Know?:, Parts 1 and 2
1968Flesh and BloodDellaTV movie
1969U.M.C.Joanna HansonTV Movie, Pilot for Medical Center
1970NET Playhouse: Dragon CountryUnknownTV Movie
1971Night GalleryElizabeth CroftA Fear of Spiders/Junior/Marmalade Wine/The Academy
1971The Name of the GameVeta Marie GossThe Man Who Killed a Ghost
1982It Takes TwoMrs. TandyDeath Penalty
198355th Academy AwardsSelf
1983Quincy, M.E.Mrs. Edith JordanBeyond the Open Door
1984Cat on a Hot Tin RoofBig MamaTV Movie
Primetime Emmy Award Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or a Special[27]
(final film role)
2005The Needs of Kim StanleySelfDocumentary

See also

References

  1. "Broadway's Best". The New York Times.
  2. Biodata
  3. Barnes, Mike (2015-04-10). "Vivian Nathan, Original Member of The Actors Studio, Dies at 98". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2015-04-25.
  4. Internet Broadway Database: The Chase Production Credits
  5. Bloom, Nate. "Interfaith Celebrities". InterfaithFamily.com. Retrieved 2013-01-10.
  6. Lentz III, Harris M. (2008-10-24). Obituaries in the Performing Arts, 2001: Film, Television, Radio, Theatre, Dance, Music, Cartoons and Pop Culture. McFarland. p. 278. ISBN 9780786452064. Retrieved 1 December 2018.
  7. Female Brando: The Legend of Kim Stanley Hardcover – June 1, 2006. Amaxon. 2006. ISBN 978-0823088478.
  8. Krampner, Jon (2006). Female Brando: The Legend of Kim Stanley. ISBN 9780823088478. Retrieved 1 December 2018.
  9. "Female Brando: The Legend of Kim Stanley". goodreads.com. Goodreads. Retrieved 1 December 2018.
  10. "Kim Stanley". IBDB. Retrieved 10 January 2013.
  11. "Montserrat". IBDB. Retrieved 10 January 2013.
  12. "The House of Bernarda Alba". IBDB. Retrieved 10 January 2013.
  13. "The Chase". IBDB. Retrieved 10 January 2013.
  14. Hodges, Ben (2009). Theatre World, Volume 65: 2008–2009. Applause. p. 364. ISBN 978-1-4234-7369-5.
  15. "Picnic". IBDB. Retrieved 10 January 2013.
  16. "The Traveling Lady". IBDB. Retrieved 10 January 2013.
  17. "Bus Stop". IBDB. Retrieved 10 January 2013.
  18. "A Clearing in the Woods". IBDB. Retrieved 10 January 2013.
  19. "A Touch of the Poet". IBDB. Retrieved 10 January 2013.
  20. "Chéri". IBDB. Retrieved 10 January 2013.
  21. "A Far Country". IBDB. Retrieved 10 January 2013.
  22. "Natural Affection". IBDB. Retrieved 10 January 2013.
  23. "The Three Sisters". IBDB. Retrieved 10 January 2013.
  24. August 2013
  25. "Kim Stanley nomination". Golden Globes. Archived from the original on 14 April 2013. Retrieved 11 January 2013.
  26. "1963 Award". Primetime Emmy Awards. Retrieved 11 January 2013.
  27. "1985 Emmy Award". Primetime Emmys. Retrieved 11 January 2013.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.