Jessica Tandy
Encyclopedia
Jessie Alice "Jessica" Tandy (June 7, 1909 – September 11, 1994) was an English-American stage and film actress.
She first appeared on the London stage in 1926 at the age of 16, playing, among others, Katherine opposite Laurence Olivier
's Henry V, and Cordelia opposite John Gielgud
's King Lear
. She also worked in British films. Following the end of her marriage to Jack Hawkins
, she moved to New York
, where she met Canadian actor Hume Cronyn
. He became her second husband and frequent partner on stage and screen.
She won the Tony Award
for her performance as Blanche Dubois
in the original Broadway production of A Streetcar Named Desire
in 1948, sharing the prize with Katherine Cornell (who won for Antony and Cleopatra
) and Judith Anderson
(for the latter's portrayal of Medea
). Over the following three decades, her career continued sporadically and included a substantial role in Alfred Hitchcock
's film, The Birds
(1963), and a Tony Award-winning performance in The Gin Game
(playing in the two-character play opposite her husband, Cronyn) in 1977. She, along with Cronyn was a member of the original acting company of The Guthrie Theater.
In the mid 1980s she enjoyed a career revival. She appeared opposite Hume Cronyn in the Broadway production of Foxfire
in 1983 and its television adaptation four years later, winning both a Tony Award and an Emmy Award
for her portrayal of Annie Nations. During these years, she appeared in films such as Cocoon
(1985), also with Cronyn.
She became the oldest actress to receive the Academy Award for Best Actress
for her role in Driving Miss Daisy
(1989), for which she also won a BAFTA
and a Golden Globe
, and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
for Fried Green Tomatoes
(1991). At the height of her success, she was named as one of People's
"50 Most Beautiful People". She was diagnosed with ovarian cancer
in 1990, and continued working until shortly before her death.
. Her mother, Jessie Helen (née
Horspool), was the head of a school for mentally handicapped children, and her father, Harry Tandy, was a travelling salesman for a rope manufacturer. Her father died when Tandy was 12, and her mother subsequently taught evening courses to earn an income. Tandy was educated at Dame Alice Owen's School
in Islington
.
and John Gielgud
. She entered films in England, but after her marriage to the actor Jack Hawkins
failed, she moved to the United States. In 1942, she married Hume Cronyn
and over the following years played supporting roles in several Hollywood films.
She made her American film debut in The Seventh Cross
(1944). She also appeared in The Valley of Decision
(1945), The Green Years
(1946, as Cronyn's daughter), Dragonwyck (1946) starring Gene Tierney
and Forever Amber
(1947). She won a Tony Award
for her performance as Blanche Dubois
in the original Broadway production of A Streetcar Named Desire
in 1948. Over the following three decades, her career continued sporadically that included The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel
(1951) opposite James Mason
, and a substantial role in Alfred Hitchcock
's film, The Birds
(1963), and a Tony Award-winning performance in The Gin Game
in 1977.
After her Tony-winning performance as Blanche DuBois in the original Broadway
production of Tennessee Williams
' A Streetcar Named Desire
, (she lost the film role to actress Vivien Leigh
), she concentrated on the stage. She became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1952. For the next 20 years, she appeared sporadically in films such as The Light in the Forest
(1958) and The Birds
(1963).
The beginning of the 1980s saw a resurgence in her film career, with character roles in The World According to Garp
, Best Friends
, Still of the Night (all 1982) and The Bostonians
(1984), and the hit film Cocoon
(1985), opposite Cronyn, with whom she re-teamed for *batteries not included
(1987) and Cocoon: The Return
(1988). She and Cronyn had been working together more and more, on stage and television, notably in 1987's Foxfire
which won her an Emmy Award
(recreating her Tony winning Broadway role). However, it was her colorful performance in Driving Miss Daisy
(1989), as an aging, stubborn Southern-Jewish matron, that earned her an Oscar
.
She earned a Best Supporting Actress nomination for her work in the grassroots hit Fried Green Tomatoes
(1991), and co-starred in The Story Lady (1991 telefilm, with daughter Tandy Cronyn), Used People (1992, as Shirley MacLaine
's mother), To Dance with the White Dog
(1993 telefilm, with husband Hume Cronyn), Nobody's Fool (1994), and Camilla
(also 1994, with Cronyn). Camilla was to be her last performance, at the age of 84.
as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the world in 1990.
actor Jack Hawkins
in 1932, produced one daughter, Susan Hawkins (born 1934). The couple divorced in 1940. Tandy married her next husband, Canadian actor Hume Cronyn
, in 1942. They had two children, daughter Tandy Cronyn (an actress who would co-star with her mother in the NBC
telefilm The Story Lady), and son Christopher.
, she lived with Cronyn for many years in nearby Pound Ridge, New York
and they remained together until her death in 1994. In 1990, she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer
which she battled for four years, during which she continued to work. She had previously been treated for angina and glaucoma
. She died at home on 11 September 1994 in Easton, Connecticut
. Her ashes were given to her family.
She first appeared on the London stage in 1926 at the age of 16, playing, among others, Katherine opposite Laurence Olivier
Laurence Olivier
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, OM was an English actor, director, and producer. He was one of the most famous and revered actors of the 20th century. He married three times, to fellow actors Jill Esmond, Vivien Leigh, and Joan Plowright...
's Henry V, and Cordelia opposite John Gielgud
John Gielgud
Sir Arthur John Gielgud, OM, CH was an English actor, director, and producer. A descendant of the renowned Terry acting family, he achieved early international acclaim for his youthful, emotionally expressive Hamlet which broke box office records on Broadway in 1937...
's King Lear
King Lear
King Lear is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. The title character descends into madness after foolishly disposing of his estate between two of his three daughters based on their flattery, bringing tragic consequences for all. The play is based on the legend of Leir of Britain, a mythological...
. She also worked in British films. Following the end of her marriage to Jack Hawkins
Jack Hawkins
Colonel John Edward "Jack" Hawkins CBE was an English actor of the 1950s, 1960s and early 1970s.-Career:Hawkins was born at Lyndhurst Road, Wood Green, Middlesex, the son of master builder Thomas George Hawkins and his wife, Phoebe née Goodman. The youngest of four children in a close-knit family,...
, she moved to New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, where she met Canadian actor Hume Cronyn
Hume Cronyn
Hume Blake Cronyn, OC was a Canadian actor of stage and screen, who enjoyed a long career, often appearing professionally alongside his second wife, Jessica Tandy.-Early life:...
. He became her second husband and frequent partner on stage and screen.
She won the Tony Award
Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play
This is a list of the winners and nominations of Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play. The award has been presented since 1947, and is for performance in new productions or revivals.-1940s:...
for her performance as Blanche Dubois
Blanche DuBois
Blanche DuBois is a fictional character in Tennessee Williams' 1947 Pulitzer Prize-winning play A Streetcar Named Desire...
in the original Broadway production of A Streetcar Named Desire
A Streetcar Named Desire (play)
A Streetcar Named Desire is a 1947 play written by American playwright Tennessee Williams for which he received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1948. The play opened on Broadway on December 3, 1947, and closed on December 17, 1949, in the Ethel Barrymore Theatre. The Broadway production was...
in 1948, sharing the prize with Katherine Cornell (who won for Antony and Cleopatra
Antony and Cleopatra
Antony and Cleopatra is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written sometime between 1603 and 1607. It was first printed in the First Folio of 1623. The plot is based on Thomas North's translation of Plutarch's Lives and follows the relationship between Cleopatra and Mark Antony...
) and Judith Anderson
Judith Anderson
Dame Judith Anderson, AC, DBE was an Australian-born American-based actress of stage, film and television. She won two Emmy Awards and a Tony Award and was also nominated for a Grammy Award and an Academy Award.-Early life:...
(for the latter's portrayal of Medea
Medea
Medea is a woman in Greek mythology. She was the daughter of King Aeëtes of Colchis, niece of Circe, granddaughter of the sun god Helios, and later wife to the hero Jason, with whom she had two children, Mermeros and Pheres. In Euripides's play Medea, Jason leaves Medea when Creon, king of...
). Over the following three decades, her career continued sporadically and included a substantial role in Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE was a British film director and producer. He pioneered many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres. After a successful career in British cinema in both silent films and early talkies, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood...
's film, The Birds
The Birds (film)
The Birds is a 1963 horror film directed by Alfred Hitchcock based on the 1952 short story "The Birds" by Daphne du Maurier. It depicts Bodega Bay, California which is, suddenly and for unexplained reasons, the subject of a series of widespread and violent bird attacks over the course of a few...
(1963), and a Tony Award-winning performance in The Gin Game
The Gin Game
The Gin Game is a two-person, two-act play by D.L. Coburn that premiered at American Theater Arts in Hollywood in September 1976, directed by Kip Niven. It was Coburn's first play, and the theater's first production.-Plot:...
(playing in the two-character play opposite her husband, Cronyn) in 1977. She, along with Cronyn was a member of the original acting company of The Guthrie Theater.
In the mid 1980s she enjoyed a career revival. She appeared opposite Hume Cronyn in the Broadway production of Foxfire
Foxfire (play)
Foxfire is a play by Susan Cooper and Hume Cronyn based on the Foxfire books, about Appalachian culture and traditions in north Georgia. The 1982 Broadway production starred Jessica Tandy, who won the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play and the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play...
in 1983 and its television adaptation four years later, winning both a Tony Award and an Emmy Award
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress - Miniseries or a Movie
This is a list of winners of the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie.From 1973 to 1978, the category was divided into two separate categories .Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, guest performances in regular television series were...
for her portrayal of Annie Nations. During these years, she appeared in films such as Cocoon
Cocoon (film)
The score for Cocoon was composed and conducted by James Horner. The soundtrack was released twice, through Polydor Records in 1985 and a reprint through P.E.G. in 1997 and features eleven tracks of score and a vocal track performed by Michael Sembello...
(1985), also with Cronyn.
She became the oldest actress to receive the Academy Award for Best Actress
Academy Award for Best Actress
Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
for her role in Driving Miss Daisy
Driving Miss Daisy
Driving Miss Daisy is a 1989 American comedy-drama film adapted from the Alfred Uhry play of the same name. The film was directed by Bruce Beresford, with Morgan Freeman reprising his role as Hoke Colburn and Jessica Tandy playing Miss Daisy...
(1989), for which she also won a BAFTA
British Academy Film Awards
The British Academy Film Awards are presented in an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts . It is the British counterpart of the Oscars. As of 2008, it has taken place in the Royal Opera House, having taken over from the flagship Odeon cinema on Leicester Square...
and a Golden Globe
Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
The Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy was first awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association as a separate category in 1950...
, and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
for Fried Green Tomatoes
Fried Green Tomatoes (film)
Fried Green Tomatoes is a 1991 comedy-drama film based on the novel Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg. It was released in the UK under the novel's full title. Directed by Jon Avnet and written by Fannie Flagg and Carol Sobieski, it stars Kathy Bates, Jessica Tandy,...
(1991). At the height of her success, she was named as one of People's
People (magazine)
In 1998, the magazine introduced a version targeted at teens called Teen People. However, on July 27, 2006, the company announced it would shut down publication of Teen People immediately. The last issue to be released was scheduled for September 2006. Subscribers to this magazine received...
"50 Most Beautiful People". She was diagnosed with ovarian cancer
Ovarian cancer
Ovarian cancer is a cancerous growth arising from the ovary. Symptoms are frequently very subtle early on and may include: bloating, pelvic pain, difficulty eating and frequent urination, and are easily confused with other illnesses....
in 1990, and continued working until shortly before her death.
Early life
The youngest of three siblings, Tandy was born in Geldeston Road in HackneyMetropolitan Borough of Hackney
The Metropolitan Borough of Hackney was a Metropolitan borough of the County of London from 1900 to 1965. Its area became part of the London Borough of Hackney.-Formation and boundaries:...
. Her mother, Jessie Helen (née
Married and maiden names
A married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....
Horspool), was the head of a school for mentally handicapped children, and her father, Harry Tandy, was a travelling salesman for a rope manufacturer. Her father died when Tandy was 12, and her mother subsequently taught evening courses to earn an income. Tandy was educated at Dame Alice Owen's School
Dame Alice Owen's School
Dame Alice Owen's School is a mixed voluntary aided secondary school in Potters Bar, Hertfordshire, England, founded in the London Borough of Islington.-Admissions:...
in Islington
London Borough of Islington
The London Borough of Islington is a London borough in Inner London. It was formed in 1965 by merging the former metropolitan boroughs of Islington and Finsbury. The borough contains two Westminster parliamentary constituencies, Islington North and Islington South & Finsbury...
.
Acting career
Tandy began her career at the age of 16 in London, establishing herself with performances opposite such actors as Laurence OlivierLaurence Olivier
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, OM was an English actor, director, and producer. He was one of the most famous and revered actors of the 20th century. He married three times, to fellow actors Jill Esmond, Vivien Leigh, and Joan Plowright...
and John Gielgud
John Gielgud
Sir Arthur John Gielgud, OM, CH was an English actor, director, and producer. A descendant of the renowned Terry acting family, he achieved early international acclaim for his youthful, emotionally expressive Hamlet which broke box office records on Broadway in 1937...
. She entered films in England, but after her marriage to the actor Jack Hawkins
Jack Hawkins
Colonel John Edward "Jack" Hawkins CBE was an English actor of the 1950s, 1960s and early 1970s.-Career:Hawkins was born at Lyndhurst Road, Wood Green, Middlesex, the son of master builder Thomas George Hawkins and his wife, Phoebe née Goodman. The youngest of four children in a close-knit family,...
failed, she moved to the United States. In 1942, she married Hume Cronyn
Hume Cronyn
Hume Blake Cronyn, OC was a Canadian actor of stage and screen, who enjoyed a long career, often appearing professionally alongside his second wife, Jessica Tandy.-Early life:...
and over the following years played supporting roles in several Hollywood films.
She made her American film debut in The Seventh Cross
The Seventh Cross
Anna Seghers' novel The Seventh Cross , is one of the better-known examples of German literature circa World War II. It was published first in America, in an abridged version, in September 1942 by Little, Brown and Company...
(1944). She also appeared in The Valley of Decision
The Valley of Decision
The Valley of Decision is a film set in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA in the late 19th century. It tells the story of a young Irish house maid who falls in love with the son of her employer, a local steel mill owner...
(1945), The Green Years
The Green Years (film)
The Green Years is a 1946 American comedy-drama film featuring Charles Coburn, Tom Drake, Hume Cronyn, Gladys Cooper, Dean Stockwell, and Jessica Tandy, based on A. J. Cronin's novel of the same title...
(1946, as Cronyn's daughter), Dragonwyck (1946) starring Gene Tierney
Gene Tierney
Gene Eliza Tierney was an American film and stage actress. Acclaimed as one of the great beauties of her day, she is best remembered for her performance in the title role of Laura and her Academy Award-nominated performance for Best Actress in Leave Her to Heaven .Other notable roles include...
and Forever Amber
Forever Amber (film)
Forever Amber is a 1947 film directed by Otto Preminger and starring Linda Darnell and Cornel Wilde. It was based on the book of the same name. It also starred Richard Greene, George Sanders, Glenn Langan, Richard Haydn, Dolores Hart, and Jessica Tandy...
(1947). She won a Tony Award
Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play
This is a list of the winners and nominations of Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play. The award has been presented since 1947, and is for performance in new productions or revivals.-1940s:...
for her performance as Blanche Dubois
Blanche DuBois
Blanche DuBois is a fictional character in Tennessee Williams' 1947 Pulitzer Prize-winning play A Streetcar Named Desire...
in the original Broadway production of A Streetcar Named Desire
A Streetcar Named Desire (play)
A Streetcar Named Desire is a 1947 play written by American playwright Tennessee Williams for which he received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1948. The play opened on Broadway on December 3, 1947, and closed on December 17, 1949, in the Ethel Barrymore Theatre. The Broadway production was...
in 1948. Over the following three decades, her career continued sporadically that included The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel
The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel
The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel is a 1951 biographical film about Field Marshal Erwin Rommel in the later stages of World War II. It stars James Mason in the title role, was directed by Henry Hathaway, and was based on the book Rommel by Brigadier Desmond Young, who served in the Indian Army in...
(1951) opposite James Mason
James Mason
James Neville Mason was an English actor who attained stardom in both British and American films. Mason remained a powerful figure in the industry throughout his career and was nominated for three Academy Awards as well as three Golden Globes .- Early life :Mason was born in Huddersfield, in the...
, and a substantial role in Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE was a British film director and producer. He pioneered many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres. After a successful career in British cinema in both silent films and early talkies, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood...
's film, The Birds
The Birds (film)
The Birds is a 1963 horror film directed by Alfred Hitchcock based on the 1952 short story "The Birds" by Daphne du Maurier. It depicts Bodega Bay, California which is, suddenly and for unexplained reasons, the subject of a series of widespread and violent bird attacks over the course of a few...
(1963), and a Tony Award-winning performance in The Gin Game
The Gin Game
The Gin Game is a two-person, two-act play by D.L. Coburn that premiered at American Theater Arts in Hollywood in September 1976, directed by Kip Niven. It was Coburn's first play, and the theater's first production.-Plot:...
in 1977.
After her Tony-winning performance as Blanche DuBois in the original Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
production of Tennessee Williams
Tennessee Williams
Thomas Lanier "Tennessee" Williams III was an American writer who worked principally as a playwright in the American theater. He also wrote short stories, novels, poetry, essays, screenplays and a volume of memoirs...
' A Streetcar Named Desire
A Streetcar Named Desire (play)
A Streetcar Named Desire is a 1947 play written by American playwright Tennessee Williams for which he received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1948. The play opened on Broadway on December 3, 1947, and closed on December 17, 1949, in the Ethel Barrymore Theatre. The Broadway production was...
, (she lost the film role to actress Vivien Leigh
Vivien Leigh
Vivien Leigh, Lady Olivier was an English actress. She won the Best Actress Academy Award for her portrayal of Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire , a role she also played on stage in London's West End, as well as for her portrayal of the southern belle Scarlett O'Hara, alongside Clark...
), she concentrated on the stage. She became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1952. For the next 20 years, she appeared sporadically in films such as The Light in the Forest
The Light in the Forest (film)
The Light in the Forest is a 1958 film based on a novel of the same name first published in 1953 by U.S. author Conrad Richter. The film was produced by Walt Disney Productions and starred Fess Parker, Joanne Dru, James MacArthur and Wendell Corey. Though it is a work of fiction and primarily...
(1958) and The Birds
The Birds (film)
The Birds is a 1963 horror film directed by Alfred Hitchcock based on the 1952 short story "The Birds" by Daphne du Maurier. It depicts Bodega Bay, California which is, suddenly and for unexplained reasons, the subject of a series of widespread and violent bird attacks over the course of a few...
(1963).
The beginning of the 1980s saw a resurgence in her film career, with character roles in The World According to Garp
The World According to Garp (film)
The World According to Garp is 1982 American comedy drama film directed by George Roy Hill, based on the novel of the same title by John Irving, who also wrote the script together with Steve Tesich...
, Best Friends
Best Friends (film)
Best Friends is a 1982 feature film starring Burt Reynolds and Goldie Hawn. It is loosely based on the true story of the relationship between its writers, Barry Levinson and Valerie Curtin. The film is a drama as well as a romantic comedy.-Plot:...
, Still of the Night (all 1982) and The Bostonians
The Bostonians (film)
The Bostonians is a 1984 Merchant Ivory film based on Henry James's novel of the same name. The film stars Vanessa Redgrave, Christopher Reeve, Madeleine Potter and Jessica Tandy. The movie received respectable reviews and showings at arthouse theaters in New York, London and other cities...
(1984), and the hit film Cocoon
Cocoon (film)
The score for Cocoon was composed and conducted by James Horner. The soundtrack was released twice, through Polydor Records in 1985 and a reprint through P.E.G. in 1997 and features eleven tracks of score and a vocal track performed by Michael Sembello...
(1985), opposite Cronyn, with whom she re-teamed for *batteries not included
*batteries not included
*batteries not included is a 1987 family-science fiction film directed by Matthew Robbins about small extraterrestrial living machines that save an apartment block under threat from property development....
(1987) and Cocoon: The Return
Cocoon: The Return
Cocoon: The Return is a 1988 science fiction film that is the sequel to the 1985 film Cocoon. All of the starring actors from the first film reprised their roles in this film, although Brian Dennehy only appears in one scene at the end of the film...
(1988). She and Cronyn had been working together more and more, on stage and television, notably in 1987's Foxfire
Foxfire (1987 film)
Foxfire is a 1987 Hallmark Hall of Fame TV movie starring Jessica Tandy, Hume Cronyn, and John Denver, based on the play of the same name. The movie aired on CBS on December 13, 1987. Tandy won an Emmy Award for her performance.-External links:*...
which won her an Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
(recreating her Tony winning Broadway role). However, it was her colorful performance in Driving Miss Daisy
Driving Miss Daisy
Driving Miss Daisy is a 1989 American comedy-drama film adapted from the Alfred Uhry play of the same name. The film was directed by Bruce Beresford, with Morgan Freeman reprising his role as Hoke Colburn and Jessica Tandy playing Miss Daisy...
(1989), as an aging, stubborn Southern-Jewish matron, that earned her an Oscar
Academy Award for Best Actress
Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
.
She earned a Best Supporting Actress nomination for her work in the grassroots hit Fried Green Tomatoes
Fried Green Tomatoes (film)
Fried Green Tomatoes is a 1991 comedy-drama film based on the novel Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg. It was released in the UK under the novel's full title. Directed by Jon Avnet and written by Fannie Flagg and Carol Sobieski, it stars Kathy Bates, Jessica Tandy,...
(1991), and co-starred in The Story Lady (1991 telefilm, with daughter Tandy Cronyn), Used People (1992, as Shirley MacLaine
Shirley MacLaine
Shirley MacLaine is an American film and theater actress, singer, dancer, activist and author, well-known for her beliefs in new age spirituality and reincarnation. She has written a large number of autobiographical works, many dealing with her spiritual beliefs as well as her Hollywood career...
's mother), To Dance with the White Dog
To Dance with the White Dog
To Dance with the White Dog is a 1990 novel by Georgia author Terry Kay, based on the experiences of his father.-Plot summary:Sam Peek happily resides in Hart County, Georgia as a pecan farmer and local celebrity featured in many gardening/horticultural magazines. He and his wife Cora are both in...
(1993 telefilm, with husband Hume Cronyn), Nobody's Fool (1994), and Camilla
Camilla (film)
Camilla is a 1994 film directed by Deepa Mehta and Jessica Tandy's last movie appearance.-Critical reception:Several reviewers wrote that Tandy's performance was the best aspect of the film...
(also 1994, with Cronyn). Camilla was to be her last performance, at the age of 84.
Other awards
Tandy was chosen by People magazinePeople (magazine)
In 1998, the magazine introduced a version targeted at teens called Teen People. However, on July 27, 2006, the company announced it would shut down publication of Teen People immediately. The last issue to be released was scheduled for September 2006. Subscribers to this magazine received...
as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the world in 1990.
- 1979 - Sarah Siddons AwardSarah Siddons AwardThe Sarah Siddons Society is an American non-profit organization founded in 1952 by prominent Chicago theatre patrons with the goal of promoting excellence in the theatre. The Society presents the Sarah Siddons Award annually to an actor for an outstanding performance in a Chicago theatre production...
Chicago theatreChicago theatreChicago theatre refers not only to theatre performed in Chicago, Illinois but also to the movement in that town that saw a number of small, meagerly-funded companies grow to institutions of national and international significance. Chicago had long been a popular destination for tours sent out from... - 1986 - Drama Desk Special AwardDrama Desk Special AwardThe Drama Desk Special Award is presented by the Drama Desk, a committee comprising New York City theatre critics, writers, and editors. It is a non-competitive award that honors an individual or an organization that has made a significant contribution to Broadway, off-Broadway, off-off-Broadway,...
- 1990 - National Medal of ArtsNational Medal of ArtsThe National Medal of Arts is an award and title created by the United States Congress in 1984, for the purpose of honoring artists and patrons of the arts. It is the highest honor conferred to an individual artist on behalf of the people. Honorees are selected by the National Endowment for the...
- 1991 - Women in Film Crystal Award
- 1994 - Special Tony AwardTony AwardThe Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
for Lifetime Achievement shared with her husband, Hume CronynHume CronynHume Blake Cronyn, OC was a Canadian actor of stage and screen, who enjoyed a long career, often appearing professionally alongside his second wife, Jessica Tandy.-Early life:...
Personal life
Tandy's first marriage to BritishUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
actor Jack Hawkins
Jack Hawkins
Colonel John Edward "Jack" Hawkins CBE was an English actor of the 1950s, 1960s and early 1970s.-Career:Hawkins was born at Lyndhurst Road, Wood Green, Middlesex, the son of master builder Thomas George Hawkins and his wife, Phoebe née Goodman. The youngest of four children in a close-knit family,...
in 1932, produced one daughter, Susan Hawkins (born 1934). The couple divorced in 1940. Tandy married her next husband, Canadian actor Hume Cronyn
Hume Cronyn
Hume Blake Cronyn, OC was a Canadian actor of stage and screen, who enjoyed a long career, often appearing professionally alongside his second wife, Jessica Tandy.-Early life:...
, in 1942. They had two children, daughter Tandy Cronyn (an actress who would co-star with her mother in the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
telefilm The Story Lady), and son Christopher.
Death
Prior to moving to ConnecticutConnecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, she lived with Cronyn for many years in nearby Pound Ridge, New York
Pound Ridge, New York
Pound Ridge is a town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 5,104 at the 2010 census.The town is located in the eastern corner of the county, bordered by New Canaan, Connecticut, to the east, Stamford, Connecticut, to the south, Bedford, New York, to the west and...
and they remained together until her death in 1994. In 1990, she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer
Ovarian cancer
Ovarian cancer is a cancerous growth arising from the ovary. Symptoms are frequently very subtle early on and may include: bloating, pelvic pain, difficulty eating and frequent urination, and are easily confused with other illnesses....
which she battled for four years, during which she continued to work. She had previously been treated for angina and glaucoma
Glaucoma
Glaucoma is an eye disorder in which the optic nerve suffers damage, permanently damaging vision in the affected eye and progressing to complete blindness if untreated. It is often, but not always, associated with increased pressure of the fluid in the eye...
. She died at home on 11 September 1994 in Easton, Connecticut
Easton, Connecticut
Easton is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 7,490 at the 2010 census. Easton contains the historic district of Aspetuck....
. Her ashes were given to her family.
Broadway credits
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1940 | Jupiter Laughs Jupiter Laughs Jupiter Laughs is A. J. Cronin's 1940 play in three acts about a doctor and his love interest, who hopes to become a medical missionary. The play was first staged in Glasgow at the King's Theatre and starred Henry Longhurst, Catherine Lacey and James Mason. In 1940, it opened on Broadway at the... |
Dr. Mary Murray | |
| 1947 | Blanche DuBois | Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play | |
| 1950 | Hilda Crane | Hilda Crane | |
| 1951 | Agnes | ||
| 1959 | Five Finger Exercise Five Finger Exercise Five Finger Exercise is a 1962 drama film made by Columbia Pictures. It was directed by Daniel Mann and produced by Frederick Brisson from a screenplay by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett, based on the play by Peter Shaffer.... |
Louise Harrington | |
| 1966 | Agnes | ||
| 1971 | Home Home (play) Home is a play by David Storey. It is set in a mental asylum, although this fact is only revealed gradually as the story progresses.The five characters include seemingly benign Harry, highly opinionated Jack, cynical Marjorie, and flirtatious Kathleen... |
Marjorie | |
| 1977 | Fonsia Dorsey | Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play The Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play was first awarded at the 1974–1975 Drama Desk Awards and has been awarded every year since... |
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| 1982 | Foxfire Foxfire (play) Foxfire is a play by Susan Cooper and Hume Cronyn based on the Foxfire books, about Appalachian culture and traditions in north Georgia. The 1982 Broadway production starred Jessica Tandy, who won the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play and the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play... |
Annie Nations | Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play The Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play was first awarded at the 1974–1975 Drama Desk Awards and has been awarded every year since... |
| 1983 | Amanda Wingfield | ||
| 1986 | Lady Elizabeth Milne | Nominated — Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play |
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1932 | Maid | ||
| 1938 | Murder in the Family | Ann Osborne | |
| 1944 | Liesel Roeder | ||
| 1944 | Blonde Fever | Diner at Inn | uncredited |
| 1945 | Louise Kane | ||
| 1946 | Dragonwyck | Peggy O'Malley | |
| 1946 | Kate Leckie | ||
| 1947 | Forever Amber Forever Amber (film) Forever Amber is a 1947 film directed by Otto Preminger and starring Linda Darnell and Cornel Wilde. It was based on the book of the same name. It also starred Richard Greene, George Sanders, Glenn Langan, Richard Haydn, Dolores Hart, and Jessica Tandy... |
Nan Britton | |
| 1948 | Janet Spence | ||
| 1950 | September Affair September Affair September Affair is a 1950 film, directed by William Dieterle, starring Joan Fontaine, Joseph Cotten and Jessica Tandy. It was produced by Hal B. Wallis.-Plot:... |
Catherine Lawrence | |
| 1951 | Frau Lucie Marie Rommel | ||
| 1957 | Julia Lester | Short film presented in "Alfred Hitchcock Presents Alfred Hitchcock Presents Alfred Hitchcock Presents is an American television anthology series hosted by Alfred Hitchcock. The series featured dramas, thrillers, and mysteries. By the premiere of the show on October 2, 1955, Hitchcock had been directing films for over three decades... " |
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| 1958 | Myra Butler | ||
| 1962 | Hemingway's Adventures of a Young Man Hemingway's Adventures of a Young Man Hemingway's Adventures of a Young Man is a 1962 drama film directed by Martin Ritt based on the Nick Adams stories by Ernest Hemingway, and featuring Richard Beymer as Adams.-Cast:*Richard Beymer as Nick Adams*Diane Baker as Carolyn... |
Helen Adams | Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture |
| 1963 | Lydia Brenner | ||
| 1976 | Butley Butley (film) Butley is a 1973 film directed by Harold Pinter, an adaptation from Simon Gray's 1971 play of same name. The film starred Alan Bates, Jessica Tandy, Richard O'Callaghan, Susan Engel, and Michael Byrne.... |
Edna Shaft | |
| 1981 | Honky Tonk Freeway Honky Tonk Freeway Honky Tonk Freeway is a UK comedy film directed by John Schlesinger. It was released in August 1981 by Universal Studios. The film, conceived and co-produced by Don Boyd, was one of the most expensive box office flops in history, losing its British backers Thorn-EMI an estimated $11,000,000 and... |
Carol | |
| 1982 | Mrs. Fields | ||
| 1982 | Still of the Night | Grace Rice | |
| 1982 | Best Friends Best Friends (film) Best Friends is a 1982 feature film starring Burt Reynolds and Goldie Hawn. It is loosely based on the true story of the relationship between its writers, Barry Levinson and Valerie Curtin. The film is a drama as well as a romantic comedy.-Plot:... |
Eleanor McCullen | |
| 1984 | Miss Birdseye | ||
| 1984 | Terror in the Aisles Terror in the Aisles Terror in the Aisles is a 1984 documentary film about horror films featuring clips from Friday the 13th I and/or II, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Halloween I and II, Jaws 1 and 2, Alien, John Carpenter's The Thing, The Shining and Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho and The Birds. The film is hosted by... |
archival footage | |
| 1985 | Cocoon Cocoon (film) The score for Cocoon was composed and conducted by James Horner. The soundtrack was released twice, through Polydor Records in 1985 and a reprint through P.E.G. in 1997 and features eleven tracks of score and a vocal track performed by Michael Sembello... |
Alma Finley | |
| 1987 | *batteries not included *batteries not included *batteries not included is a 1987 family-science fiction film directed by Matthew Robbins about small extraterrestrial living machines that save an apartment block under threat from property development.... |
Faye Riley | |
| 1987 | Foxfire Foxfire (1987 film) Foxfire is a 1987 Hallmark Hall of Fame TV movie starring Jessica Tandy, Hume Cronyn, and John Denver, based on the play of the same name. The movie aired on CBS on December 13, 1987. Tandy won an Emmy Award for her performance.-External links:*... |
Annie Nations | |
| 1988 | Miss Venable | ||
| 1988 | Cocoon: The Return Cocoon: The Return Cocoon: The Return is a 1988 science fiction film that is the sequel to the 1985 film Cocoon. All of the starring actors from the first film reprised their roles in this film, although Brian Dennehy only appears in one scene at the end of the film... |
Alma Finley | |
| 1989 | Driving Miss Daisy Driving Miss Daisy Driving Miss Daisy is a 1989 American comedy-drama film adapted from the Alfred Uhry play of the same name. The film was directed by Bruce Beresford, with Morgan Freeman reprising his role as Hoke Colburn and Jessica Tandy playing Miss Daisy... |
Daisy Werthan | Academy Award for Best Actress Academy Award for Best Actress Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry... BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role Best Actress in a Leading Role is a British Academy Film award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts to recognise an actress who has delivered an outstanding leading performance in a film.- Winners and nominees :... Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Silver Bear for the Best Joint Performance |
| 1991 | Fried Green Tomatoes Fried Green Tomatoes (film) Fried Green Tomatoes is a 1991 comedy-drama film based on the novel Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg. It was released in the UK under the novel's full title. Directed by Jon Avnet and written by Fannie Flagg and Carol Sobieski, it stars Kathy Bates, Jessica Tandy,... |
Ninny Threadgoode | Nominated — Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the... Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role Best Actress in a Supporting Role is a British Academy Film award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding supporting performance in a film... Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture |
| 1991 | Grace | TV movie; Later renamed "The Christmas Story Lady" | |
| 1992 | Used People Used People Used People is a 1992 American romantic comedy film directed by Beeban Kidron. The screenplay by Todd Graff, adapted from his 1988 off-Broadway play The Grandma Plays , takes a humorous look at a highly dysfunctional family living in the New York City borough of Queens circa 1969... |
Freida | |
| 1993 | To Dance with the White Dog To Dance with the White Dog To Dance with the White Dog is a 1990 novel by Georgia author Terry Kay, based on the experiences of his father.-Plot summary:Sam Peek happily resides in Hart County, Georgia as a pecan farmer and local celebrity featured in many gardening/horticultural magazines. He and his wife Cora are both in... |
Cora Peek | |
| 1994 | Herself | documentary | |
| 1994 | Nobody's Fool | Beryl Peoples | |
| 1994 | Camilla Camilla (film) Camilla is a 1994 film directed by Deepa Mehta and Jessica Tandy's last movie appearance.-Critical reception:Several reviewers wrote that Tandy's performance was the best aspect of the film... |
Camilla Cara |
External links
- Movie Magazine International Tribute
- Lifetime Honors - National Medal of Arts
- Obituary New York Times 12 September 1994