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Valerie Perrine | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Perrine inAmsterdam, 1975 | |
| Born | Valerie Ritchie Perrine (1943-09-03)September 3, 1943 (age 81) Galveston, Texas, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1971–2016 |
Valerie Ritchie Perrine (born September 3, 1943)[1] is a retired American actress. For her role asHoney Bruce in the 1974 filmLenny, she won theBAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles, theCannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress, and was nominated for theAcademy Award for Best Actress. Her other film appearances includeSuperman (1978),The Electric Horseman (1979), andSuperman II (1980).
Perrine was born inGalveston, Texas, as the daughter of Winifred "Renee" (nee McGinley), a dancer who appeared inEarl Carroll's Vanities, and Kenneth I. Perrine, a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army.[citation needed] Kenneth I. Perrine was the grandson of Alfred Perrine of Wallkill, N.Y., a descendant ofStaten Island HuguenotDaniel Perrin. The Perrine family dates its ancestry to the French family of Perrin, which intermarried with other Normans dating back toWilliam the Conqueror in 1066.[2] Her mother wasScottish (ofIrish descent), fromHelensburgh inDunbartonshire.[3]
Owing to her father's military career, Perrine lived in many locations as the family moved to different posts.
In 1968, Perrine was ashowgirl in "Lido de Paris" atStardust Resort and Casino Las Vegas.[4]
She playedsoft-core pornography actress Montana Wildhack in the film adaptation ofKurt Vonnegut'sSlaughterhouse-Five (1972). Perrine was photographed nude for a pictorial layout in the May 1972 issue ofPlayboy, later appearing on the cover in August 1981. She then became the first actress to appear nude on American network television by intentionally exposing her breasts during the May 4, 1973,PBS broadcast ofBruce Jay Friedman'sSteambath onHollywood Television Theater. Only a few PBS stations nationwide carried the program. Later in 1973, she appeared in the episode "When the Girls Came Out to Play" of the romantic anthology television seriesLove Story (1973).
In 1975, Perrine was nominated for theAcademy Award for Best Actress[5] and theGolden Globe[6] for Best Motion Picture Actress (Drama) and won theBest Actress Award at theCannes Film Festival[7] for her role as comedianLenny Bruce's wife,stripperHoney Bruce, inBob Fosse'sLenny (1974).[8]
She portrayedCarlotta Monti, mistress ofW.C. Fields, in thebiopicW.C. Fields and Me (1976). She played MissEve Teschmacher,moll of criminal mastermindLex Luthor, inSuperman (1978). For this role, she was nominated for the 1979Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress. She reprised her role as Miss Teschmacher inSuperman II (1980).
Perrine played Charlotta Steele, ex-wife of arodeo champion playedRobert Redford, inThe Electric Horseman (1979). Her career grew uneven after an appearance inCan't Stop the Music (1980), for which she was nominated for aRazzie Award forWorst Actress. This film has since become a cult classic. In 1982, she played the role of Marcy, the wife of a corrupt police officer, inThe Border withJack Nicholson. In 1986, she starred in the failedCBS comedy seriesLeo & Liz in Beverly Hills withHarvey Korman.[9]
In the years since then, Perrine has worked in lower-profile projects, although she did have a small supporting role in the 2000Mel Gibson filmWhat Women Want. In 1995, Perrine made a guest appearance on the seriesHomicide: Life on the Street, playing an ex-wife ofRichard Belzer's character, DetectiveJohn Munch.
Stacey Souther directed and producedValerie, a 45-minute documentary about Perrine's career and her experience with Parkinson's disease.[10]Valerie was screened at the Edmonton Film Festival in 2020.[11]
In 1969, Perrine began dating Hollywood hair stylistJay Sebring. He invited her to a dinner party inBenedict Canyon, Los Angeles. She found someone to work for her that night, but at the last minute that person got sick, and Perrine had to show up for work. It turned out that the party she missed was the night when theManson Family murdered six people atSharon Tate's home, including Sebring.[12]
As of April 2023, Perrine lives inBeverly Hills, California.
Perrine was diagnosed withParkinson's disease in 2015 and underwent dental surgery in 2017 to restore her teeth after they became damaged due to the medications she had been taking for her illness.[13]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1972 | Slaughterhouse-Five | Montana Wildhack | |
| 1973 | The Last American Hero | Marge | |
| 1974 | Lenny | Honey Bruce | |
| 1976 | W. C. Fields and Me | Carlotta Monti | |
| 1977 | Mr. Billion | Rosie Jones | |
| 1978 | Superman | Eve Teschmacher | |
| 1979 | The Magician of Lublin | Zeftel | |
| 1979 | The Electric Horseman | Charlotta | |
| 1980 | Agency | Brenda Wilcox | |
| 1980 | Can't Stop the Music | Samantha 'Sam' Simpson | |
| 1980 | Superman II | Eve Teschmacher | |
| 1981 | The Cannonball Run | Female Cop Pulling Over Lamborghini Babes (uncredited) | |
| 1982 | The Border | Marcy | |
| 1985 | Water | Pamela Weintraub | |
| 1985 | Mask of Murder | Marianne McLaine | |
| 1987 | Maid to Order | Georgette Starkey | |
| 1990 | Bright Angel | Aileen | |
| 1991 | Reflections in a Dark Sky | Caterina | |
| 1993 | Boiling Point | Mona | |
| 1995 | The Break | Delores Smith | |
| 1995 | Girl in the Cadillac | Tilly Baker | |
| 1998 | Curtain Call | Monica Gilroy | AKA,It All Came True |
| 1998 | Brown's Requiem | Marguerita Hansen | |
| 1998 | A Place Called Truth | Estelle | |
| 1998 | My Girlfriend's Boyfriend | Rita Lindgross | |
| 2000 | What Women Want | Margo | |
| 2001 | Directing Eddie | Gloria Vassick | Short |
| 2002 | The End of the Bar | Mrs. Duncan | |
| 2005 | The Amateurs | V | |
| 2005 | The Californians | Lenora Tripp | |
| 2008 | Redirecting Eddie | Gloria Vassick | |
| 2016 | Silver Skies | Ethel | |
| 2017 | The Fabulous Allan Carr | Herself | Documentary |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1972 | The Couple Takes a Wife | Jennifer Allen | TV film |
| 1973 | Lady Luck | Lady Luck | TV film |
| 1973 | Steambath | Meredith | TV film |
| 1973 | Love Story | Marlene | Episode: "When the Girls Came Out to Play" |
| 1978 | Ziegfeld: The Man and His Women | Lillian Lorraine | TV film |
| 1982 | Marian Rose White | Stella White | TV film |
| 1983 | Malibu | Dee Staufer | TV film |
| 1983 | When Your Lover Leaves | Ronda Thompson | TV film |
| 1985 | Faerie Tale Theatre | Tina | Episode: "The Three Little Pigs" |
| 1986 | Leo & Liz in Beverly Hills | Liz Green | Main role |
| 1987 | CBS Summer Playhouse | Molly | Episode: "Changing Patterns" |
| 1988 | Una casa a Roma | Julie | TV film |
| 1989 | Quattro storie di donne | Rose | Episode: "Rose" |
| 1989 | Sweet Bird of Youth | Lucy | TV film |
| 1991 | Burning Shore | Isabelle | TV film |
| 1992 | Northern Exposure | Jackie Vincoeur | Episode: "The Bad Seed" |
| 1993 | Ghostwriter | April Flowers | Episode: "Who's Who: Part 3" |
| 1993 | The Secrets of Lake Success | Honey Potts Atkins | TV miniseries |
| 1994 | Burke's Law | Suzanne Dubonet | Episode: "Who Killed the Romance?" |
| 1995 | Homicide: Life on the Street | Brigitta Svendsen | Episode: "Law & Disorder" |
| 1995 | ER | Cookie Lewis | Episodes: "Motherhood", "And Baby Makes Two" |
| 1996 | Nash Bridges | Mrs. Nassiter | Episodes: "Key Witness", "Internal Affairs", "The Brothers McMillan" |
| 1997 | The Practice | Jane Elaine | Episode: "Hide and Seek" |
| 1998 | Walker, Texas Ranger | Marge Wyman | Episode: "Eyes of a Ranger" |
| 1998-99 | As the World Turns | Dolores Pierce | TV series |
| 2001 | Just Shoot Me! | Carol | Episode: "Where's Poppa?" |
| 2001 | Family Law | Helen Watson | Episode: "The Gay Divorcee" |
| 2001 | The Beast | Mrs. Silberger | Episode: "The Delivery" |
| 2002 | Grounded for Life | Maureen Bustamante | Episode: "I Fought the In-Laws" |
| 2005 | Third Watch | Merlene | Episode: "Welcome Home" |
| 2011 | Lights Out | Mae | Episodes: "Rainmaker", "Sucker Punch" |
| Year | Association | Category | Nominated work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | New York Film Critics Circle | Best Supporting Actress | Lenny | Won |
| Best Actress | Nominated | |||
| National Board of Review | Best Supporting Actress | Won | ||
| 1975 | Cannes Film Festival | Best Actress | Won | |
| Golden Globe Award | Best Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama | Nominated | ||
| Academy Awards | Best Actress in a Leading Role | Nominated | ||
| 1976 | British Academy Film Awards | Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles | Won | |
| Best Actress | Nominated | |||
| 1979 | Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films | Best Supporting Actress | Superman | Nominated |
| 1980 | Golden Raspberry Awards | Worst Actress | Can't Stop the Music | Nominated |
| 1985 | CableACE Award | Best Actress in a Comedy Series | Faerie Tale Theatre | Nominated |
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