Jo Van Fleet | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Jo Van Fleetc.1955 | |
| Born | Catherine Josephine Van Fleet[1] (1915-12-29)December 29, 1915 Oakland, California, U.S. |
| Died | June 10, 1996(1996-06-10) (aged 80) Jamaica, New York, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1944–1986 |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 1 |
Jo Van Fleet (December 29, 1915[1] – June 10, 1996) was an American stage, film, and television actress. During her long career, which spanned over four decades, she often played characters much older than her actual age. Van Fleet won aTony Award in 1954 for her performance in theBroadway productionThe Trip to Bountiful, and the next year she won anAcademy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role inEast of Eden.[2]
Josephine Kay Van Fleet/Catherin J VanFleet was born in 1915 inOakland, California, the younger of two daughters ofMichigan native Roy H. Van Fleet andIndiana native Elizabeth "Bessie" Catherine (née Gardner).[3][4] Her father Roy worked for the railroads, but died in 1919 of a streptococcus throat infection which was lanced, inadvertently spreading the disease throughout his body. Federal census records show that by age five Josephine, her 18-year-old sister Corinne, and their widowed mother were living in Oakland with Bessie's parents, Ralph and Mary Gardner.[5] To help support herself and her two daughters at her parents' home, Bessie worked as a "sales lady" in an Oaklanddry goods store.[5]
While she had an early interest in stage productions, "Jo" graduated from the University of California, Berkeley in 1936, focusing on a variety of subjects, and then spent several years as a high school teacher in Morro Bay, California. She continued her theatrical training in a graduate program at theCollege of the Pacific inStockton, California.[6] She moved after her graduation from her masters program to New York City, where she continued her training withSanford Meisner at theNeighborhood Playhouse.[6][7]
In 1944, Van Fleet began her professional stage career and immediately distinguished herself in the role of Miss Phipps in the production ofUncle Harry at theNational Theatre in Washington, D.C.[8][9] Two years later, in New York, she distinguished herself as well onBroadway by her performances as Dorcas inShakespeare'sThe Winter's Tale; and yet again, in 1950, as Regan oppositeLouis Calhern inKing Lear.[2] She won theTony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play in 1954 for her portrayal of Jessie Mae Watts inHorton Foote'sThe Trip to Bountiful, costarringLillian Gish andEva Marie Saint.
Despite her early successes on the stage, Van Fleet continued to refine her skills in the late 1940s and early 1950s by studying withElia Kazan andLee Strasberg at theActors Studio in New York.[8] Kazan in 1952 directed her in the playFlight to Egypt and the following year inCamino Real. In 1954 he encouraged her to work in films in Hollywood. There Kazan cast her in his screen adaptation ofJohn Steinbeck'sEast of Eden (1955) forWarner Bros. In that production—her film debut—Van Fleet portraysCathy Ames, the mother ofJames Dean's character.[2] Her performance, which was widely praised by critics, won her anAcademy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Her subsequent film work was steady through 1960 and included films such asThe Rose Tattoo (1955),I'll Cry Tomorrow (1955),The King and Four Queens (1956), andGunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957). Her career, however, did not progress as she had hoped. Her friend and mentor, Kazan, personally experienced her frustrations: "'Jo stagnated, and, since she knew it, was bitter. And as she became bitter, she became more difficult.'"[2] In an interview for theLos Angeles Times after her Oscar-winning performance inEast of Eden, Van Fleet openly expressed her concerns "about beingtypecast in tragic roles".[8]
In 1958, Van Fleet was nominated for aTony Award for Best Actress in a Play for her performance inLook Homeward, Angel, in which she played the acquisitive mother ofAnthony Perkins' character. Her later films includedWild River (1960), one of the productions in which she played a character far older than her actual age. Only age 44 at the time ofWild River, Van Fleet spent five hours every morning getting into make-up for her role as Ella, the 89-year-old matriarch of the Garth family.[2] Some of her other notable roles include the Wicked Stepmother inRodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella (1965),Paul Newman's mother inCool Hand Luke (1967), andPeter Sellers's mother inI Love You, Alice B. Toklas (1968).
Van Fleet's work on television included such series asNaked City,Thriller,Bonanza,The Wild Wild West, andPolice Woman. Among her most emotionally charged dramatic performances on television is her portrayal of the bitter, explosive Mrs. Shrike in the 1956 episode "Shopping for Death" onAlfred Hitchcock Presents.[10]
Van Fleet's final performance, a brief but "delicious" supporting turn in the1986 TV adaptation ofSaul Bellow'sSeize the Day,[11] elicited this comment fromWashington Post criticTom Shales:
Jo Van Fleet, who seems even to walk and blink legendarily, has a tiny part and only two small scenes as Mrs. Einhorn, an old woman with two incontinent dachshunds, but what a piquant impression she makes.[12]
In 1946, Van Fleet married William G. Bales, whose career in modern dance included work as a performer,choreographer, professor at Bennington College, and the founding Dean of Dance at the State University of New York at Purchase, N. Y. They remained together until his death in 1990.[6] The couple had one child, Michael Bales.[13]
In February 1960, in recognition of her career in the motion-picture industry, as well as her work on stage and in television, Van Fleet was awarded a star on theHollywood Walk of Fame.[14] It is located at 7010 Hollywood Boulevard.[14] Politically, she was aDemocrat, and in the1952 United States presidential election she supportedAdlai Stevenson.[15]
Van Fleet died at age 80 from undisclosed causes in New York City atJamaica Hospital inQueens. Her body wascremated and her ashes were returned to her family.[16]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | Max Liebman Spectaculars | Aunt Dete | Episode: "Heidi" |
| Star Tonight | Irene Rankin | Episode: "Concerning Death" | |
| East of Eden | Kate | Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated—BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles | |
| The Philco Television Playhouse | Shirley | Episode: "A Business Proposition" | |
| The Rose Tattoo | Bessie | ||
| I'll Cry Tomorrow | Katie Roth | ||
| 1956 | Kraft Theatre | Ma | Episode: "Snapfinger Creek" |
| The King and Four Queens | Ma McDade | ||
| Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Mrs. Shrike | Season 1 Episode 18: "Shopping for Death" | |
| 1957 | Gunfight at the O.K. Corral | Kate Fisher | |
| This Angry Age | Madame Dufresne | ||
| Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Anna Kaminsky | Season 3 Episode 6: "Reward to Finder" | |
| 1958 | Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse | Mrs. Lombe | Episode: "The Crazy Hunter" |
| 1959 | Alcoa Theatre | Mrs. Weiss | Episode: "30 Pieces of Silver" |
| G.E. True Theatre | Miss Wanda Kelsey | Episode: "Disaster" | |
| 1960 | Wild River | Ella Garth | |
| Play of the Week | Canina | Episode: "Volpone" | |
| 1961 | The DuPont Show of the Month | Callie | Episode: "The Night of the Storm" |
| Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Molly Drake | Season 6 Episode 34: "Servant Problem" | |
| Thriller | Mrs. Cissy Hawk | Episode: "The Remarkable Mrs. Hawk" | |
| 1962 | Naked City | Dr. Anna Chaloupka | Episode: "The Night the Saints Lost Their Halos" |
| Frontier Circus | Amelia Curtis | Episode: "The Courtship" | |
| 1963 | Route 66 | Hazel Quine | Episode: "The Stone Guest" |
| 77 Sunset Strip | Jane Patterson | Episode: "Don't Wait for Me" | |
| 1964 | Summer Playhouse | Velma Clarke | Episode: "Satan's Waitin'" |
| Kraft Suspense Theatre | Hildy Hesse | Episode: "The World I Want" | |
| 1965 | Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella | Stepmother | TV movie |
| 1966 | The Virginian | Lee Calder | Episode: "Legacy of Hate" |
| 1967 | Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre | Emily Cooper | Episode: "Verdict for Terror" |
| Cool Hand Luke | Arletta | ||
| 1968 | I Love You, Alice B. Toklas | Mrs. Fine | |
| 1969 | The Wild Wild West | Amelia Bronston | Episode: "The Night of the Tycoons" |
| 80 Steps to Jonah | Nonna | ||
| 1970 | Mannix | Alexandra Pulvarenti | Episode: "One for the Lady" |
| Mod Squad | Annie Crabtree | Episode: "'A' is for Annie" | |
| Bonanza | Amy Wilder | Episode: "The Trouble with Amy" | |
| 1971 | Great Performances | Clara | Episode: "Paradise Lost" |
| Bonanza | Miss Ellen Dobbs | Episode: "The Stillness Within" | |
| The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight | Big Momma | ||
| Medical Center | Margaret | Episode: "Martyr" | |
| 1972 | The Family Rico | Mama Rico | TV movie |
| 1973 | Medical Center | Leah | Episode: "Time of Darkness" |
| Satan's School for Girls | Headmistress | TV movie co-produced byAaron Spelling | |
| 1976 | The Tenant | Madame Dioz | |
| 1977 | Police Woman | Irini Karabetas | Episode: "The Buttercup Killer" |
| 1980 | Power | Mother Vanda | TV movie |
| 1986 | Seize the Day | Mrs. Einhorn | TV movie |
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