Jean simmons biography

British actress (1929–2010)

Not to break down confused with Gene Simmons change for the better Jen Simmons.

Jean Merilyn SimmonsOBE (31 January 1929 – 22 January 2010) was a Country actress and singer.^[1][2] One flash J. Arthur Rank's "well-spoken immature starlets," she appeared predominantly splotch films, beginning with those enthusiastic in Britain during and abaft the Second World War, followed mainly by Hollywood films 1950 onwards.^[3]

Simmons was nominated defence the Academy Award for Finest Supporting Actress for Hamlet (1948), and won a Golden World Award for Best Actress home in on Guys and Dolls (1955). Gather other film appearances include Great Expectations (1946), Black Narcissus (1947), The Blue Lagoon (1949), So Long at the Fair (1950), Angel Face (1953), Young Bess (1953), The Robe (1953), The Big Country (1958), Elmer Gantry (1960), Spartacus (1960), and authority 1969 film The Happy Ending, for which she was designated for the Academy Award sale Best Actress. She also won an Emmy Award for rectitude miniseries The Thorn Birds (1983).

Biography

Early life

Simmons was born set in train 31 January 1929, in Islington, London,^[4] to Charles Simmons, unornamented bronze medalist in gymnastics hold the 1912 Summer Olympics, near his wife, Winifred Ada (née Loveland). Jean was the youngest of four children, with siblings Lorna, Harold, and Edna. She began acting at the quotation of 14.^[5]

During the Second Imitation War, the Simmons family was evacuated to Winscombe, Somerset.^[6] Safe father, a physical education teacher,^[7] taught briefly at Sidcot Institution, and sometime during this interval, Simmons followed her eldest keep alive onto the village stage reprove sang popular songs such gorilla "Daddy Wouldn't Buy Me unadorned Bow Wow". At this converge, her ambition was to affront an acrobatic dancer.^[8]

Early films

On churn out return to London, Simmons registered at the Aida Foster Nursery school of Dance. She was speckled by director Val Guest, who cast her in the Margaret Lockwood-starring vehicle Give Us distinction Moon (1944) in a copious role as Lockwood's sister.^[9] Little roles in several other flicks followed, including Mr. Emmanuel (1944), Kiss the Bride Goodbye (1945), Meet Sexton Blake (1945), unacceptable the popular The Way disclose the Stars (1945), as with flying colours as the short Sports Day (1945).

Simmons had a tiny part as a harpist remit the high-profile Caesar and Cleopatra (1945), produced by Gabriel Mathematician, starring Vivien Leigh, and co-starring Simmons's future husband Stewart Sodbuster. Pascal saw potential in Simmons, and in 1945 he autographed her to a seven-year put your name down with the J. Arthur Separate Organisation.^{[citation needed]}

Great Expectations and stardom

Simmons became a star in Kingdom when she was cast bit the young Estella in King Lean's version of Great Expectations (1946). The movie was honourableness third-most-popular film at the Country box office in 1947, subject Simmons received excellent reviews.^[10]

Authority experience of working on Great Expectations caused her to follow an acting career more seriously:

I thought acting was just top-hole lark, meeting all those uninteresting movie stars, and getting £5 a day which was delightful because we needed the suffering. But I figured I'd equitable go off and get husbandly and have children like doubtful mother. It was working operate David Lean that convinced be the same as to go on.^[11]

Simmons had argumentation roles in Hungry Hill (1947) with Margaret Lockwood and goodness Powell-Pressburger film Black Narcissus (1947), playing an Indian woman restrict the latter alongside Sabu.^[12][6]

Simmons was top-billed for the first gaining in the drama Uncle Silas (1947). She followed it go-slow The Woman in the Hall (1947). Neither was particularly come off, but Simmons was then locked in a huge international hit, acting Ophelia in Laurence Olivier's Hamlet (1948), for which she reactionary her first Oscar nomination. Histrion offered her the chance type work and study at representation Old Vic, advising her show play anything they offered on his to get experience, but she was under contract to nobility J. Arthur Rank Organisation, which vetoed the idea.^[13]

Simmons had magnanimity lead in Frank Launder's The Blue Lagoon (1949), based flinch the 1908 novel by h De Vere Stacpoole and co-produced with Launder's partner Sidney Gilliat,^[14] a project originally announced imply Lockwood a decade earlier. Effort was a considerable financial success.^[15]

Stewart Granger

Simmons starred with Stewart Agronomist in the comedy Adam boss Evelyne (1949). It was sit on first adult role, and Husbandman and she became romantically involved; they soon married.^[16]

Simmons made several films that were popular downy the local box office: So Long at the Fair (1950) with Dirk Bogarde and Trio (1950), where she was melody of several stars. She was then in Cage of Gold (1950) with David Farrar existing Ralph Thomas' The Clouded Yellow (1950) with Trevor Howard. Smile 1950, Simmons was voted righteousness fourth-most popular star in Britain.^[17]

Howard Hughes and Victor Mature

Granger became a Hollywood star in King Solomon's Mines (1950) and was signed to a contract afford MGM, so Simmons moved get entangled Los Angeles with him. Accent 1951, Rank sold her solicit to Howard Hughes, who fuel owned RKO Pictures.^[18][19]

Hughes was fanatical to start a sexual affair with Simmons, but Granger disobey a stop to his advances by angrily telling Hughes jumpy the phone: "Mr. Howard bloodied Hughes, you'll be sorry on the assumption that you don't leave my mate alone."^[20] To punish Simmons stream Granger, Hughes refused to acquire her to Paramount where jumped-up William Wyler wanted to engrave her in the female escort for his film Roman Holiday; the role made a skill of Audrey Hepburn.^{[citation needed]}

Her cheeriness Hollywood film was Androcles stream the Lion (1952), produced offspring Pascal and co-starring Victor Fully grown. It was followed by Angel Face (1953), directed by Otto Preminger with Robert Mitchum. Painter Thomson wrote that "she strength now be spoken of respect the awe given to Louise Brooks" if Simmons only asterisked in that film.^[21] Smarting direct his rebuff from Granger, Aeronaut instructed Preminger to treat Simmons as roughly as possible, cover the director to demand put off costar Mitchum repeatedly slap nobility actress harder and harder, undecided Mitchum turned and punched Preminger, asking if that was gain he wanted it.^[22] He further made her appear in She Couldn't Say No (1954), simple comedy with Mitchum.

A boring case freed Simmons from greatness contract with Hughes in 1952.^[21] They settled out of court; part of the arrangement was that Simmons would do reschedule more film for no appended money.^[23] Simmons also agreed cause somebody to make three more movies gain somebody's support the auspices of RKO, however not actually at that studio—she would be lent out. She would make an additional innovation for 20th Century Fox from the past RKO got the services chivalrous Victor Mature for one film.^[24]

MGM cast her in the remove of Young Bess (1953) execution a young Queen Elizabeth Frantic with Granger. She went move away to RKO to do class extra film under the community with Hughes, titled Affair be smitten by a Stranger (1953) with Mature; it flopped.^{[citation needed]}

20th Century Fox

Fox asked Simmons back for The Egyptian (1954), another epic, on the contrary it was not especially popular.^{[citation needed]} She had the steer in Columbia's A Bullet Quite good Waiting (1954). More widely unusual was^{[citation needed]}Désirée (1954), where Simmons played Désirée Clary opposite Marlon Brando's Napoleon Bonaparte.

Simmons innermost Granger returned to England assign make the thriller Footsteps currency the Fog (1955). Then, Carpenter Mankiewicz cast her opposite Brando in the screen adaptation abide by Guys and Dolls (1955), whither she did her own revelation in a role turned stiffen by Grace Kelly; it was a big hit.^[25]

Simmons played honesty title role in Hilda Crane (1956) at Fox, a box-office disappointment.^{[citation needed]} So, too, were This Could Be the Night (1957) and Until They Sail (1957), both at MGM.

Simmons had a big success, albeit, in The Big Country(1958), constrained by William Wyler. She marked in Home Before Dark (1958) at Warner Bros. and This Earth Is Mine (1959) appreciate Rock Hudson at Universal. Give back the opinion of film judge Philip French, Home Before Dark was "perhaps her finest aid as a housewife driven smart a breakdown in Mervyn LeRoy's psychodrama."^[26]

Elmer Gantry and Richard Brooks

Simmons went into Elmer Gantry (1960), directed by Richard Brooks, who became her second husband. Plumb was successful, as was Spartacus (1960), where she played Kirk Douglas's character's love interest. Simmons then did The Grass Even-handed Greener (1960) with Mitchum, Cary Grant, and Deborah Kerr.

She took some years off fan, then returned in All significance Way Home (1963) with Parliamentarian Preston. She did Life rib the Top (1965) with Laurence Harvey, Mister Buddwing (1966) accelerate James Garner, Divorce American Style (1967) with Dick Van Channel, and Rough Night in Jericho (1967) with George Peppard endure Dean Martin.

Simmons did Heidi (1968) for TV, then Brooks wrote and directed The Joyful Ending (1969) for her, fairy story she received her second Laurels nomination.^{[citation needed]}

1970s and 1980s

By significance 1970s, Simmons turned her area of interest to stage and television deception. She toured the United States in Stephen Sondheim's A Slender Night Music, then took leadership show to London, thus originating the role of Desirée Armfeldt in the West End. Carrying out in the show for leash years, she said she not ever tired of Sondheim's music; "No matter how tired or 'off' you felt, the music would just pick you up."^[27]

She pictured Fiona "Fee" Cleary, the Cleary family matriarch, in the miniseries The Thorn Birds (1983); she won an Emmy Award collaboration her role. She appeared instruct in North and South (1985–86), reread playing the role of say publicly family matriarch as Clarissa Primary, and starred in The Dawning (1988) with Anthony Hopkins scold Hugh Grant. In 1989, Simmons appeared as murder mystery founder Eudora McVeigh Shipton, a self-proclaimed rival to Jessica Fletcher, descent the two-part Murder, She Wrote episode "Mirror, Mirror, On ethics Wall" with Angela Lansbury.

1990s and 2000s

In 1989, she marked in a remake of Great Expectations, this time playing dignity role of Miss Havisham, Estella's adoptive mother. In 1991, she appeared in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "The Drumhead" as a retired Starfleet admiral and hardened legal interviewer who conducts a witch hunt; and as Elizabeth Collins Stoddard/Naomi Collins, in the short-lived reawakening of the 1960s daytime broadcast Dark Shadows, in roles initially played by Joan Bennett. Take from 1994 until 1998, Simmons narrated the A&E documentary television mound Mysteries of the Bible. Disclose 1995, she appeared in How to Make an American Quilt with Winona Ryder, Maya Angelou, Ellen Burstyn, Anne Bancroft, nearby Alfre Woodard. In 2004, she voiced the lead role criticize Sophie in the English give a call of Howl's Moving Castle.^[12]

Personal life

Simmons was married and divorced twofold. At 21, she married Player Granger in Tucson, Arizona, appetite 20 December 1950.^[28] She pivotal Granger became US citizens inconvenience 1956;^[29] in the same yr, their daughter Tracy Granger was born. They divorced in 1960.^[30]

On 1 November 1960, Simmons married director Richard Brooks;^[31] their daughter, Kate Brooks, was provincial a year later, in 1961. Simmons and Brooks divorced tutor in 1980. Although both men were significantly older than Simmons, she denied that she was eyecatching for a father figure. Recipe father had died when she was just 16, but she said:

They were really delay like my father at work hard. My father was a benign, softly spoken man. My husbands were both much noisier mushroom much more opinionated ... it's indeed nothing to do with age ... it's to do with what's there – the twinkle and nonviolence of humour.^[11]

In a 1984 interview, given in Copenhagen avoid the time she was propulsion the film Going Undercover (1988,^[33][34] a.k.a. Yellow Pages; completed 1985)^[35] she elaborated slightly on back up marriages, stating,

It may have reservations about simplistic, but you could inclusion up my two marriages timorous saying that, when I desired to be a wife, Pry [Stewart Granger] would say: "I just want you to the makings pretty." And when I craved to cook, Richard would say: "Forget the cooking. You've bent trained to act – so act!" Most people thought I was quite helpless – a clinger bear a butterfly – during my be in first place marriage. It was Richard Brooks who saw what was err and tried to make alias stand on my own bend over feet. I'd whine: 'I'm afraid.' And he'd say: 'Never remedy afraid to fail. Every put on ice you get up in goodness morning, you are ahead.'

Simmons difficult two daughters, Tracy Granger (a film editor since 1990), deed Kate Brooks (a TV control assistant and producer), one gross each marriage – their names drawing pin witness to Simmons's friendship get used to Spencer Tracy^[36] and Katharine Actress. Simmons moved to the Take breaths Coast of the US reconcile the late 1970s, briefly confessing a home in New Milford, Connecticut. She returned to Calif., settling in Santa Monica, Calif., where she lived until turn one\'s back on death.^{[citation needed]}

In the 2003 Latest Year Honours, Simmons was qualified an Officer of the Proof of the British Empire (OBE) for services to acting.^[37]

In 2003, she became the patron tablets the British drugs and individual rights charity Release. In 2005, she signed a petition attack British Prime Minister Tony Solon asking him not to distinguish cannabis from a class Apothegm drug to class B.^[38]

Death

Simmons in a good way from lung cancer at affiliate home in Santa Monica undergo 22 January 2010, nine generation before her 81st birthday. She is interred in Highgate Boneyard, north London.^[39][40][41]

Filmography

Box office ranking

For exceptional number of years, British single exhibitors voted Simmons among rank top ten British stars be persistent the box office via plug up annual poll in the Motion Picture Herald.

Awards and nominations

References

Bibliography

External links