Deborah Kerr
| Deborah Kerr | |||||||||||||||||||
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 in An Affair to Remember (1957) |
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| Born | Deborah Jane Kerr-Trimmer 30 September 1921 Glasgow, Scotland |
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| Died | 16 October 2007 (aged 86) Botesdale, Suffolk, England |
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| Other name(s) | Deborah Kerr | ||||||||||||||||||
| Years active | 1940 - 1986 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Spouse(s) | Anthony Bartley (1945-1959) Peter Viertel (1960-2007) |
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Deborah Kerr, born Deborah Jane Kerr-Trimmer, CBE (30 September 1921 – 16 October 2007) was a Scottish stage, television and film actress. She won the Sarah Siddons Award for her Chicago performance in Tea and Sympathy, which she originated on Broadway, a Golden Globe Award for the motion picture, The King and I, and she was also the recipient of honorary Academy, BAFTA and Cannes Film Festival awards.
She was nominated six times for an Academy Award as Best Actress but never won. In 1994, however, she was cited by the Motion Picture Academy for a film career that always represented "Perfection, Discipline and Elegance". Amongst her most famous films were: The King and I, An Affair to Remember, From Here to Eternity, Heaven Knows, Mr Allison and Separate Tables.
Although the Scottish pronunciation of her surname is closer to a phonetic reading of the name(pronounced /kɛr/), when she was being promoted as a Hollywood actress it was made clear that her surname should be pronounced the same as "car". In order to avoid confusion over pronunciation, Louis B. Mayer of MGM billed her as "Kerr rhymes with Star!"[1]
Contents |
Early life
Kerr was born Deborah Jane Kerr-Trimmer in Glasgow, Scotland,[2] the eldest child and only daughter of Kathleen Rose (née Smale) and Capt. Arthur Charles Kerr-Trimmer, a World War I veteran pilot who later became a naval architect and civil engineer.[3] She was, however, raised in the nearby town of Helensburgh, where her parents lived at the time of her birth. Kerr had a younger brother, Edward (a.k.a. Teddy), who became a journalist and died in a road-rage incident in 2004.[4][5]
Kerr originally trained as a ballet dancer, first appearing on stage at Sadler's Wells in 1938. After changing careers, she soon found success as an actress. Her first acting teacher was her aunt, Phyllis Smale, who ran the Hicks-Smale Drama School in Bristol.[6][7]
Career
Films
Kerr's first film role was in the British film Contraband in 1940 but her scenes were left on the cutting room floor. She followed that with a series of films, including Hatter's Castle (1942), in which she starred opposite Robert Newton and James Mason. The following year, she played the multiple roles of the hero's three women in Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger's The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp. During the filming, according to Powell's autobiography, she and Powell became lovers:[8]:
| “ | "I realised that Deborah was both the ideal and the flesh-and-blood woman whom I had been searching for".[8] | ” |
Although Winston Churchill thought it would ruin wartime morale, and the British Army refused to extend co-operation with the producers, the film confounded critics by proving to be an artistic and commercial success.[8] Powell had hoped to reunite Kerr and Roger Livesey, who had played the title character, in his next film, A Canterbury Tale (1944), but her agent had sold her contract to MGM. According to Powell, his affair with Kerr ended when she made it clear to him that she would accept an offer to go to Hollywood if one was made.[8]
It was her role as a troubled nun in Black Narcissus in 1947 which brought her to the attention of Hollywood producers. The film was a hit in the US as well as the UK, and Kerr won the New York Film Critics' Award as Actress of the Year. In Hollywood, her British accent and manners led to a succession of roles portraying a refined, reserved, and proper English lady. Nevertheless, Kerr frequently used any opportunity to discard her cool exterior. In the 1950 adventure film, King Solomon's Mines, shot on location in Africa with Stewart Granger and Richard Carlson, she impressed audiences with a sexuality and an emotional vulnerability that brought new dimensions to a male-oriented action film. This was immediately followed by her appearance in the religious epic Quo Vadis? (1951), shot at Cinecittà in Rome, in which she played the indomitable Lygia, a first century Christian.
Kerr also departed from typecasting with a performance that brought out her sensuality, as Karen in From Here to Eternity (1953), for which she received an Oscar nomination for Best Actress. The American Film Institute acknowledged the iconic status of the scene from that film in which she and Burt Lancaster make love on a Hawaii beach amidst the crashing waves. The organisation named it one of "AFI's top 100 Most Romantic Films" of all time.
From then on, Kerr's career choices would make her known in Hollywood for her versatility as an actress,[9][1] She portrayed a nun (Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison), a mama's girl (Separate Tables), and a governess (The Chalk Garden), but she also portrayed an earthy Australian sheep-herder's wife (The Sundowners) and lustful and beautiful screen enchantresses (Beloved Infidel, Bonjour tristesse). She also starred in comedies (The Grass is Greener).
Among her most famous roles were Anna Leonowens in the film version of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The King and I (1956), and opposite Cary Grant in An Affair to Remember (1958). In 1966, the producers of Carry on Screaming offered her a fee comparable to that paid to the rest of the cast combined, but she turned it down in favour of appearing in an aborted stage version of Flowers for Algernon. In 1967, at the age of 46, she starred in Casino Royale, achieving the distinction of being the oldest 'Bond Girl' in any James Bond film.
In 1969, pressure of competition from younger, upcoming actresses made her agree to appear nude in John Frankenheimer's The Gypsy Moths,[10] the only nude scene in Kerr's career. Concern about the parts being offered to her, as well as the increasing amount of nudity in films in general, led her to abandon film work at the end of the 1960s in favour of television and theatre work.[10]
Theatre
As a stage actress, Deborah Kerr made her Broadway debut in 1953 in Robert Anderson's Tea and Sympathy, for which she received a Tony Award nomination. Kerr repeated her role along with her stage partner John Kerr (no relation) in Vincente Minnelli's film adaptation of the drama. In 1955, Kerr won the Sarah Siddons Award for her performance in Chicago during a national tour of the play. In 1975, she returned to Broadway, originating the role of Nancy in Edward Albee's Pulitzer-winning play Seascape.
The theatre, despite her success in films, was always to remain Kerr's first love, even though going on stage filled her with trepidation:
| “ | I do it because it's exactly like dressing up for the grown ups. I don't mean to belittle acting but I'm like a child when I'm out there performing – shocking the grownups, enchanting them, making them laugh or cry. It's an unbelievable terror, a kind of masochistic madness. The older you get, the easier it should be but it isn't.[6] | ” |
Television
Deborah Kerr experienced a career resurgence in the early 1980s on television, when she played the role of the nurse (played by Elsa Lanchester in the 1957 film version) in Witness for the Prosecution. Later, Kerr re-teamed with screen partner Robert Mitchum in Reunion at Fairborough. This period also saw Kerr take on the role as the older version of the female tycoon, Emma Harte, in the adaptation of Barbara Taylor Bradford's A Woman of Substance. For this performance, Kerr was nominated for an Emmy Award.
Personal life
Kerr's first marriage was to Royal Air Force Squadron Leader Anthony Bartley on 29 November 1945. They had two daughters, Melanie Jane, born on 27 December 1947, and Francesca Ann, the wife of the actor John Shrapnel. The marriage was troubled, due to Bartley's jealousy of his wife's fame and financial success,[10] and because her career often took her away from home. Kerr and Bartley divorced in 1959.
Her second marriage was to author Peter Viertel on 23 July 1960. In marrying Viertel, she acquired a stepdaughter, Christine Viertel. Although she long resided in Klosters, Switzerland and Marbella, Spain,[11] she moved back to Britain to be closer to her own children as her health began to deteriorate.[11] Her husband, however, continued to live in Marbella. She died from the effects of Parkinson's disease on 16 October 2007 at the age of 86 in the village of Botesdale, Suffolk.[12][13][14] Peter Viertel died of cancer on 4 November 2007, less than three weeks later.[15] At the time of Viertel's death, Director Michael Scheingraber was filming the documentary Peter Viertel: Between the Lines which Scheingraber says will include reminiscences about events concerning Kerr and the American Academy Awards. The film is as yet (2008) unreleased. [16]
Some of Deborah Kerr's leading men have stated in their autobiographies that they had an affair or romantic fling with her. The actor Stewart Granger claimed that Kerr seduced him in the back of a London cab in 1950.[17] Likewise Burt Lancaster claimed that he was romantically involved with her during the filming of From Here to Eternity in 1953.[18] There is no independent corroboration of either actor's claims.
Honours
Deborah Kerr was appointed a Commander of the Order the British Empire in 1998, but was unable to accept the honour in person due to ill health.[19] She was also honoured in Hollywood where, for her contributions to the motion picture industry, she received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, at 1709 Vine Street.
Although she never won a BAFTA, Oscar or Cannes Film Festival award in a competitive category, all three academies gave her honorary awards:
In 1984, she was awarded a Cannes Film Festival Tribute.[20] In 1991, she received a BAFTA Special Award[6] and in 1994, she received an Honorary Academy Award in recognition of "an artist of impeccable grace and beauty, a dedicated actress whose motion picture career has always stood for perfection, discipline and elegance".[21]
Award nominations
Deborah Kerr was nominated six times for the Academy Award for Best Actress: Edward, My Son (1949), From Here to Eternity (1953), The King and I (1956), Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison (1957), Separate Tables (1958) and The Sundowners (1960).
She was also nominated four times for the BAFTA Award for Best British Actress: The End of the Affair (1955), Tea and Sympathy (1956), The Sundowners (1961) and The Chalk Garden (1964)
She received one Emmy Award nomination in 1985 for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or a Special for A Woman of Substance. She won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for The King and I in 1957, and a Henrietta Award for World Film Favorite - Female. She was also nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama for Edward, My Son (1949), Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison (1957) and Separate Tables (1958)
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1940 | Contraband | Bit (scenes deleted) | UK release |
| 1941 | Major Barbara | Jenny Hill | UK release |
| Love on the Dole | Sally | UK release | |
| 1942 | Penn of Pennsylvania | Gulielma Maria Springett | U.S. title: Couragous Mr. Penn |
| Hatter's Castle | Mary Brodie | ||
| The Day Will Dawn | Kari Alstad | U.S. title: The Avengers | |
| A Battle for a Bottle | Linda | Voice - animated short | |
| 1943 | The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp | Edith Hunter/Barbara Wynne/Johnny Cannon | UK release |
| 1945 | Perfect Strangers | Catherine Wilson | U.S. title: Vacation From Marriage |
| 1946 | I See a Dark Stranger | Bridie Quilty | U.S. Title: The Adventuress |
| 1947 | Black Narcissus | Sister Clodagh | UK release |
| The Hucksters | Kay Dorrance | ||
| If Winter Comes | Nona Tybar | ||
| 1949 | Edward, My Son | Evelyn Boult | Nominated - Academy Award for Best Actress Nominated - Golden Globe Award - Best Actress Drama |
| 1950 | Please Believe Me | Alison Kirbe | |
| King Solomon's Mines | Elizabeth Curtis | ||
| 1951 | Quo Vadis | Lygia | |
| 1952 | The Prisoner of Zenda | Princess Flavia | |
| Thunder in the East | Joan Willoughby | ||
| 1953 | Young Bess | Catherine Parr | |
| Julius Caesar | Portia | ||
| Dream Wife | Effie | ||
| From Here to Eternity | Karen Holmes | Nominated - Academy Award for Best Actress | |
| 1955 | The End of the Affair | Sarah Miles | Nominated - BAFTA Award - Best British Actress |
| 1956 | The Proud and Profane | Lee Ashley | |
| The King and I | Anna Leonowens | singing voice dubbed by Marni Nixon Golden Globe Award - Best Actress Musical Nominated - Academy Award for Best Actress |
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| Tea and Sympathy | Laura Reynolds | Nominated - BAFTA Award - Best British Actress | |
| 1957 | Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison | Sister Angela | Nominated - Academy Award for Best Actress Nominated - Golden Globe Award - Best Actress Drama |
| An Affair to Remember | Terry McKay | ||
| Kiss Them for Me | Gwinneth Livingston | Unbilled, dubbed voice of Suzy Parker in a few scenes | |
| 1958 | Bonjour Tristesse | Anne Larson | |
| Separate Tables | Sibyl Railton-Bell | Nominated - Academy Award for Best Actress Nominated - Golden Globe Award - Best Actress Drama |
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| 1959 | The Journey | Diana Ashmore | |
| Count Your Blessings | Grace Allingham | ||
| Beloved Infidel | Sheilah Graham | ||
| 1960 | The Sundowners | Ida Carmody | Nominated - Academy Award for Best Actress Nominated - BAFTA Award - Best British Actress |
| The Grass Is Greener | Lady Hilary Rhyall | ||
| 1961 | The Naked Edge | Martha Radcliffe | UK release |
| The Innocents | Miss Giddens | UK release | |
| 1964 | On the Trail of the Iguana | Herself | UK promotional short subject |
| The Chalk Garden | Miss Madrigal | Nominated - BAFTA Award - Best British Actress | |
| The Night of the Iguana | Hannah Jelkes | ||
| 1965 | Marriage on the Rocks | Valerie Edwards | UK release |
| 1967 | Casino Royale | Agent Mimi / Lady Fiona McTarry | |
| Eye of the Devil | Catherine de Montfaucon | UK release | |
| 1968 | Prudence and the Pill | Prudence Hardcastle | UK release |
| 1969 | The Gypsy Moths | Elizabeth Brandon | US release |
| The Arrangement | Florence Anderson | US release | |
| 1982 | BBC2 Playhouse | Carlotta Gray | TV episode: "A Song at Twilight" |
| Witness for the Prosecution | Nurse Plimsoll | ||
| 1984 | A Woman of Substance | Emma Harte | UK TV mini-series |
| 1985 | The Assam Garden | Helen | UK release |
| Reunion at Fairborough | Sally Wells Grant | UK TV movie | |
| 1986 | Hold the Dream | Emma Harte | UK TV mini-series |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 New York Times (October 19, 2007). "Deborah Kerr, Actress Known for Genteel Grace and a Sexy Beach Kiss, Dies at 86". Retrieved on 2007-10-20.
- ↑ The Herald. "Deborah Kerr". Retrieved on 2007-11-19.
- ↑ Filmreference.com. "Deborah Kerr Biography (1921-2007)". Retrieved on 2007-10-29.
- ↑ "'Road rage' killer's appeal win", BBC News (2006-03-30).
- ↑ "Killer's term cut", Worcester News (2006-04-05).
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 "Deborah Kerr". The Daily Telegraph (19 October 2007). Retrieved on 2007-10-20.
- ↑ "Kerr, Deborah". International Dictionary of Film and Filmmakers. FindArticles.com (2000).
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 Powell, Michael. A Life In Movies. Heinemann, 1986. ISBN 0-434-59945-X
- ↑ "Deborah Kerr, versatile British actress, dies at 86." International Herald Tribune. 18 October 2007. Retrieved on 11 November 2007.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Braun, Eric. Deborah Kerr. St. Martin's Press, 1978. ISBN 0-312-18895-1.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 "Actress Deborah Kerr Dies At 86". Associated Press - CBS News. October 19, 2007. Retrieved: 2007-12-04
- ↑ Clark, Mike. "Actress Deborah Kerr dies at age 86". USA Today. October 18, 2007.
- ↑ "From Here to Eternity actress Kerr dies." CNN. October 18, 2007
- ↑ "Actress Deborah Kerr has died", Detroit Free Press (2007-10-18). Retrieved on 2007-10-18.
- ↑ "Peter Viertel, writer and scriptwriter, passed away yesterday in Marbella at 86 years." La Tribuna de Marbella. (c/o - Erik E. Weems - translated and paraphrased from Spanish). November 6, 2007. Retrieved: 2007-11-19.
- ↑ "Peter Viertel - Between the Lines". eeweems.com. July 28, 2008. Retrieved: 2008-08-25
- ↑ Granger, Stewart. Sparks fly Upward. Putnam, 1981. ISBN 0399126740.
- ↑ Buford, Kate. Burt Lancaster: An American Life. New York, New York: Knopf, 2001. ISBN 0679446036
- ↑ Baxter, Brian (2007-10-18). "Deborah Kerr" (obituary), Guardian Unlimited.
- ↑ Festival International de Cannes. "Cannes Film Festival Tribute" (in In French). Retrieved on 2007-11-24.
- ↑ "British actress Kerr dies at 86." BBC. 18 October 2007. Retrieved on 2007-11 November
Works cited
- Braun, Eric. Deborah Kerr. St. Martin's Press, 1978. ISBN 0-312-18895-1.
- Powell, Michael. A Life In Movies. Heinemann, 1986. ISBN 0-434-59945-X.
External links
- Deborah Kerr at the Internet Broadway Database
- Deborah Kerr at the Internet Movie Database
- Deborah Kerr at the TCM Movie Database
- Deborah Kerr at the British Film Institute's Screenonline
- Deborah Kerr at Find A Grave
- Deborah Kerr at Helensburgh Heroes
- essay The Enigma of Deborah Kerr - Ephemera, media files and an essay about Ms. Kerr
- 55th Sydney Film Festival Deborah Kerr Retrospective ("From Kerr To Eternity" 2008)
- Deborah Kerr Rhymes With Star, and What a Star She Was: She Deserves to be Remembered, Too (Huffington Post, 7 April 2008)
- Deborah Kerr Tribute by Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar, whose Broken Embraces script was influenced by his reflections of the great international star at the time of her death (blogpedroalmodóvar, 25 March 2008)
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Celia Johnson for Brief Encounter |
NYFCC Award for Best Actress 1947 for Black Narcissus |
Succeeded by Olivia de Havilland for The Snake Pit |
| Preceded by Beatrice Lillie |
Sarah Siddons Award - Sarah Siddons Society, Chicago 1955 |
Succeeded by Nancy Kelly |
| Preceded by Ingrid Bergman for Anastasia |
NYFCC Award for Best Actress 1957 for Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison |
Succeeded by Susan Hayward for I Want to Live! |
| Preceded by Jean Simmons for Guys and Dolls |
Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy 1957 for The King and I |
Succeeded by Kay Kendall for Les Girls |
| Preceded by Audrey Hepburn for The Nun's Story |
NYFCC Award for Best Actress 1960 for The Sundowners |
Succeeded by Sophia Loren for Two Women |
| Preceded by Federico Fellini |
Academy Honorary Award 1994 |
Succeeded by Michelangelo Antonioni |
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Kerr, Deborah |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Kerr-Trimmer, Deborah Jane |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | Actress |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 30 September 1921 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Helensburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom |
| DATE OF DEATH | 16 October 2007 |
| PLACE OF DEATH | Botesdale, England, United Kingdom |