Shirley Knight | |
|---|---|
 Knight in 1963 | |
| Born | (1936-07-05)July 5, 1936 Goessel, Kansas, U.S. |
| Died | April 22, 2020(2020-04-22) (aged 83) San Marcos, Texas, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Wichita State University |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1955–2018 |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 2, includingKaitlin Hopkins |
Shirley Knight Hopkins (July 5, 1936 – April 22, 2020) was an American actress who appeared in more than 50 feature films, television films, television series, andBroadway andOff-Broadway productions in her career, playing leading and character roles. She was a member of theActors Studio.
Knight was nominated twice for theAcademy Award for Best Supporting Actress: forThe Dark at the Top of the Stairs (1960) andSweet Bird of Youth (1962).[1] In the 1960s, she had leading roles in a number of Hollywood films such asThe Couch (1962),House of Women (1962),The Group (1966),The Counterfeit Killer (1968), andThe Rain People (1969). She received theVolpi Cup for Best Actress for her role in the British filmDutchman (1966).
In 1976, Knight won aTony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for her performance inKennedy's Children, a play byRobert Patrick. In later years, she played supporting roles in many films, includingEndless Love (1981),As Good as It Gets (1997),Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood (2002), andGrandma's Boy (2006). For her performances on television, Knight was nominated eight times for aPrimetime Emmy Award (winning three), and she received aGolden Globe Award.
Knight was born inGoessel, Kansas, the daughter of Virginia (née Webster; 1916-1977) and Noel Johnson Knight (1913-1985), an oil company executive.[citation needed] She had a brother and a sister. She spent her young life inMitchell, Kansas, and later lived inLyons, Kansas, where she graduated from high school. She began studying to be an opera singer at age 11.[citation needed]
At the age of 14, she wrote a short story that was published in a national magazine. Knight later attendedPhillips University andWichita State University. After studying at the Pasadena Theatre School she began her film career in 1959. She then went to New York and began her theatre career. She trained in acting withJeff Corey,Erwin Piscator,Lee Strasberg, andUta Hagen atHB Studio.[2][3][4]
Knight's feature films includeThe Group (1966),The Dutchman (1967),Petulia (1968),The Rain People (1969),Secrets (1971),Juggernaut (1974),Beyond the Poseidon Adventure (1979),Endless Love (1981),Angel Eyes (2001),Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood (2002),Paul Blart: Mall Cop (2009),Our Idiot Brother (2011) andElevator (2011), in which she plays one of several people trapped in a Wall Street elevator with a bomber.
Knight was cast in 1958 and 1959 as Mrs. Newcomb in 20 of the 29 episodes of the television seriesBuckskin, with Tom Nolan,Sally Brophy, andMike Road. She became aWarner Brothers Television contract star who while on breaks from filming feature films appeared in television series such asMaverick,Bourbon Street Beat,Sugarfoot,Cheyenne, andThe Roaring 20s.[5]
A life member ofThe Actors Studio,[6] Knight's stage credits includeThree Sisters (1964),We Have Always Lived in the Castle (1966),Kennedy's Children (1975), which earned her theTony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play,[7] andA Lovely Sunday for Creve Coeur (1979).
She was nominated for theDrama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play twice, forLandscape of the Body andThe Young Man from Atlanta, for which she received another Tony nomination.[7] She also appeared inCome Back, Come Back, Wherever You Are (2009), an original play byArthur Laurents.
Her television credits includeTarget: The Corruptors!,The Eleventh Hour,The Outer Limits ("The Man Who Was Never Born"),The Reporter,The Fugitive,The Invaders,The Virginian,Murder, She Wrote,Thirtysomething,Law & Order,L.A. Law,Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,Maggie Winters,ER,House M.D.,Crossing Jordan,Cold Case, andHot in Cleveland, among others.[citation needed]
She appeared in various television films, includingPlaying For Time andIndictment: The McMartin Trial. For the latter, she won both theEmmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie and theGolden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television. Her guest performance inthirtysomething earned her a 1988 Emmy for Best Guest Performer in a Drama Series. She won an Emmy in 1995 for her guest performance in theNYPD Blue episode "Large Mouth Bass".[8]
She appeared in the first segment ofIf These Walls Could Talk. She also had a recurring role onDesperate Housewives.[9]
Knight was married to American actor and producerGene Persson from 1959 until their divorce in 1969. They had one child, actressKaitlin Hopkins (born February 1, 1964).[10]
Her second marriage was to English writerJohn Hopkins from 1969 until his death in 1998. They had one child, elementary school teacher Sophie C. Hopkins.
One month after suffering a fall at an assisted living facility, Knight died on April 22, 2020, at age 83, at her daughter Kaitlin Hopkins's home inSan Marcos, Texas.[11]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1958–1959 | Buckskin | Mrs. Newcomb | 20 episodes |
| 1959 | The Restless Gun | Episode: "Better Than a Cannon" | |
| 1960 | 77 Sunset Strip | Mari Ellen Taylor | Episode: "Fraternity of Fear" |
| 1961 | Lawman | Episode: "The Trial" | |
| 1961 | Maverick | Nancy Powers | Episode: "The Ice Man" |
| 1961 | The Roaring 20s | Ellie Hollis | Episode: "Big Town Blues" |
| 1962 | Naked City | Kathy Meigs | Episode: "Five Cranks for Winter... Ten Cranks for Spring" |
| 1962, 1965 | The Virginian | Susan Morrow / Clara Malone | 2 episodes |
| 1963 | The Outer Limits | Noel Anderson | Episode: "The Man Who Was Never Born" |
| 1964 | The Fugitive | Janice Pruitt | Episode: "The Homecoming" |
| 1965 | The Fugitive | Mona Ross | Episode: "A.P.B." |
| 1966 | The Fugitive | Jane Washburn | Episode: "Echo of a Nightmare" |
| 1967 | The Invaders | Margaret Cook | Episode: "The Watchers" |
| 1967 | The Outsider | Peggy Leydon | TV film |
| 1968 | Shadow Over Elveron | Joanne Tregaskis | TV film |
| 1973 | The Streets of San Francisco | Mary Rae Dortmunter | Episode: "A Room With a View" |
| 1973 | Circle of Fear | Beth | Episode: "Legion of Demons" |
| 1973 | The Lie | Anna | TV film |
| 1973 | Orson Welles Great Mysteries | Margot Brenner | Episode: "The Power of Fear" |
| 1974 | The Country Girl | Georgie Elgin | TV film |
| 1974 | Nakia | Faye Arnold | Episode: "Pete" |
| 1975 | Barnaby Jones | Kay Lewiston | Episode: "Fantasy of Fear" |
| 1975 | Friendly Persuasion | Eliza Birdwell | TV film |
| 1975 | Medical Story | Phyllis Lenahan | TV film |
| 1976 | Return to Earth | Joan Aldrin | TV film |
| 1976 | 21 Hours at Munich | Anneliese Graes | TV film |
| 1978 | The Defection of Simas Kudirka | Genna Kudirka | TV film |
| 1979 | Champions: A Love Story | Barbara Harlich | TV film |
| 1979 | A Last Cry for Help | Joan Muir | TV film |
| 1980 | Playing for Time | Frau Lagerfuhrerin Maria Mandel | TV film Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or a Special(1981) |
| 1982 | Kennedy's Children | Carla | TV film |
| 1982 | Nurse | Sylvia Dennis | Episode: "Euthanasia" |
| 1982 | Tales of the Unexpected | Elizabeth Bourdon | Episode: "A Woman's Help" |
| 1984 | Hammer House of Mystery and Suspense | Ann Fairfax Denver | Episode: "The Sweet Scent of Death" |
| 1984 | With Intent to Kill | Edna Reinecker | TV film |
| 1985–1987 | Spenser: For Hire | Katie Quirk | 2 episodes |
| 1987–1990 | Thirtysomething | Ruth Murdoch | 2 episodes Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Performer in a Drama Series(1988) Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series(1990) |
| 1989 | Murder, She Wrote | Grace Fenton | Episode: "Smooth Operators" |
| 1989 | The Equalizer | Kay | Episode: "Time Present, Time Past" Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series(1989) |
| 1990 | Murder, She Wrote | Grace Lambert | Episode: "Always a Thief" |
| 1990 | Matlock | Phyllis Todd | Episode: "The Mother" |
| 1991 | Bump in the Night | Katie | TV film |
| 1991 | Shadow of a Doubt | Mrs. Potter | TV film |
| 1991 | To Save a Child | Rinda Larson | TV film |
| 1991 | Law & Order | Melanie Cullen | Episode: "The Wages of Love" Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series(1992) |
| 1993 | L.A. Law | Belinda Collins | Episode: "Hello and Goodbye" |
| 1993 | When Love Kills: The Seduction of John Hearn | Edna Larson | TV film |
| 1993 | Angel Falls | Edie Wren Cox | Television series |
| 1993 | A Mother's Revenge | Bess Warden | TV film |
| 1994 | Baby Brokers | Sylvia | TV film |
| 1995 | Children of the Dust | Aunt Bertha | TV film |
| 1995 | Fudge | Mrs. A | Episode: "Fudge-a-mania" |
| 1995 | NYPD Blue | Agnes Cantwell | Episode: "Large Mouth Bass" Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series(1995) |
| 1995 | Indictment: The McMartin Trial | Peggy Buckey | TV film Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film(1995) Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Special(1995) |
| 1996 | Stolen Memories: Secrets from the Rose Garden | Sally Ann | TV film |
| 1996 | A Promise to Carolyn | Jolene Maggart | TV film |
| 1996 | Cybill | Loretta | Episode: "Romancing the Crone" |
| 1996 | If These Walls Could Talk | Mary Donnelly | TV film |
| 1998–1999 | Maggie Winters | Estelle Winters | 16 episodes |
| 1998 | The Wedding | Caroline "Gram" Shelby | Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film(1998) |
| 1998 | Significant Others | Mrs. Callaway | 2 episodes |
| 1998 | A Father for Brittany | Donna Minkowitz | TV film |
| 2001 | The Fugitive | Delores Dalkowski | Episode: "Past Perfect" |
| 2001 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Dr. Wharton | Episode: "Repression" |
| 2001 | My Louisiana Sky | Jewel Ramsey | TV film |
| 2002 | Ally McBeal | Helen Apple | Episode: "Homecoming" |
| 2002 | ER | Mrs. Burke | Episode: "Insurrection" |
| 2003 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Rose Granville | Episode: '"Tragedy" |
| 2004 | Crossing Jordan | Frances Littleton | Episode: "Most Likely" |
| 2004 | Cold Case | Dottie | Episode: "Factory Girls" |
| 2005 | House | Georgia Adams | Episode: "Poison" |
| 2005, 2007 | Desperate Housewives | Phyllis Van de Kamp | 5 episodes Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series(2006) |
| 2009 | Drop Dead Diva | Millie Carlson | Episode: "Dead Model Walking" |
| 2010 | Hot in Cleveland | Loretta | Episode: "Meet the Parents" |
| 2012 | The Mob Doctor | Ann Wilson | Episode: "Turf War" |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | Journey to the Day | Katherine | |
| 1964 | Three Sisters | Irina Sergeyevna Prozorova | |
| 1966 | Rooms | Jenny Zubitsky | |
| 1966 | We Have Always Lived in the Castle | Constance Blackwood | |
| 1969 | The Watering Place | Janet | |
| 1975–1976 | Kennedy's Children | Carla | Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play |
| 1977 | Happy End | Lt. Lillian Holiday | |
| 1977 | Landscape of the Body | Betty | Nominated—Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play |
| 1979 | A Lovely Sunday for Creve Coeur | Dorothea | |
| 1979 | Losing Time | Ruth | |
| 1984 | Come Back, Little Sheba | Lola Delaney | |
| 1997 | The Young Man from Atlanta | Lily Dale Kidder | Nominated—Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play Nominated—Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play |
| 1999 | The Vagina Monologues | — | |
| 2002 | Necessary Targets | J.S. | |
| 2005 | Cycling Past the Matterhorn | Esther | |
| 2009 | Love, Loss, and What I Wore | — | |
| 2012 | In Masks Outrageous and Austere | Babe Foxworth |
