| Eva Marie Saint | |
|---|---|
Eva Marie Saint as Eve Kendall in Alfred Hitchcock's North by Northwest (1959) |
|
| Born | July 4, 1924 Newark, New Jersey, United States |
| Alma mater | Actors Studio Bowling Green State University |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1946-present |
| Spouse | Jeffrey Hayden (since 1951; 2 children) |
Eva Marie Saint (born July 4, 1924) is an American actress who has starred in films, on Broadway, and on television in a career spanning seven decades. She won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the drama film On the Waterfront (1954), and later starred in the thriller film North by Northwest (1959), directed by Alfred Hitchcock. Saint received Golden Globe and BAFTA award nominations for the drama film A Hatful of Rain (1957) and won an Emmy Award for the television miniseries People Like Us (1990). Her film career also includes roles in Raintree County (1957), Because of Winn-Dixie (2005), and Superman Returns (2006).
Contents |
Saint was born in Newark, New Jersey, the daughter of Eva Marie (née Rice) and John Merle Saint.[1] She attended Bethlehem Central High School in Delmar, New York, graduating in 1942. Eva Marie was inducted into the high school's hall of fame in 2006. She studied acting at Bowling Green State University, while a member of Delta Gamma Sorority. There is a theater on Bowling Green's campus named for her. She was an active member in the theater honorary fraternity, Theta Alpha Phi and served as Secretary of the Bowling Green Student Government in 1944.[2]
Her introduction to television began as an NBC page.[3] She appeared in the very early live NBC TV show "Campus Hoopla" in 1946 - 47, and her performances on this program are recorded on rare kinescope and also audio recordings of these tele-casts as preserved in the Library of Congress. She also appeared in the 1949 Bonnie Maid Versa-Tile Varieties NBC program as one of the singing Bonnie Maids used in the live commercials. She appears in 1947 Life Magazine special on Television and also in a feature Life 1949 article on her as struggling actress earning minimum amounts from early TV while trying to make ends meet in NYC. In the late 1940s, she continued doing extensive work in radio and television before winning the Drama Critics Award for her Broadway stage role in the Horton Foote play The Trip to Bountiful (1953), in which she co-starred with such formidable actors as Lillian Gish and Jo Van Fleet. In 1955, she was nominated for her first Emmy for "Best Actress In A Single Performance" on The Philco Television Playhouse for playing the young mistress of middle-aged E. G. Marshall in Middle of the Night by Paddy Chayefsky. She won another Emmy nomination for the 1955 television musical version of the Thornton Wilder classic play Our Town with co-stars Paul Newman and Frank Sinatra. Her success and acclaim were of such a high level that the young Saint earned the nickname "the Helen Hayes of television."
Saint's first feature-film role was in On the Waterfront (1954), directed by Elia Kazan and starring Marlon Brando - a performance for which she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Her role as Edie Doyle (whose brother's death sets the film's drama in motion), which she won over such leading contenders as Claire Trevor, Nina Foch, Katy Jurado, and Jan Sterling also earned her a British Academy of Film and Television Award nomination for "Most Promising Newcomer." In his New York Times review, film critic Bosley Crowther wrote:
"In casting Eva Marie Saint - a newcomer to movies from TV and Broadway - Mr. Kazan has come up with a pretty and blond artisan who does not have to depend on these attributes. Her parochial school training is no bar to love with the proper stranger. Amid scenes of carnage, she gives tenderness and sensitivity to genuine romance."[4]
In a 2000 interview in Premiere magazine, Saint recalled making the hugely influential film:
| “ | [Elia] Kazan put me in a room with Marlon Brando. He said 'Brando is the boyfriend of your sister. You're not used to being with a young man. Don't let him in the door under any circumstances'. I don't know what he told Marlon; you'll have to ask him - good luck! [Brando] came in and started teasing me. He put me off-balance. And I remained off-balance for the whole shoot. | ” |
The watershed success of the film launched Saint into many of the best known films of her early screen career. They include starring with Don Murray in the pioneering drug-addiction drama, A Hatful of Rain (1957), for which she received a nomination for the "Best Foreign Actress" award from the British Academy of Film and Television, and the lavish Civil War epic Raintree County, opposite Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift.
Director Alfred Hitchcock surprised many by choosing Saint over dozens of other candidates for the femme fatale role in what was to become a suspense classic North by Northwest (1959) with Cary Grant and James Mason. Written by Ernest Lehman, the film updated and expanded upon the director's early "wrong man" spy adventures of the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s, including The 39 Steps, Young and Innocent, and Foreign Correspondent. North by Northwest became a box-office hit and an influence on spy films for decades. The film ranks number forty on the American Film Institute's list of the 100 Greatest American Movies of All Time.
At the time of the film's production, much publicity was garnered by Hitchcock's decision to cut Saint's waist-length blonde hair for the first time in her career. Hitchcock explained at the time, "Short hair gives Eva a more exotic look, in keeping with her role of the glamorous woman of my story. I wanted her dressed like a kept woman - smart, simple, subtle and quiet. In other words, anything but the bangles and beads type." The director also worked with Saint to make her voice lower and huskier and even personally chose costumes for her during a shopping trip to Bergdorf Goodman in New York City.
The change in Saint's screen persona, coupled with her adroit performance as a seductive woman of mystery who keeps Cary Grant (and the audience) off-balance, was widely heralded. In his New York Times review of August 7, 1959, critic Bosley Crowther wrote, "In casting Eva Marie Saint as [Cary Grant's] romantic vis-a-vis, Mr. Hitchcock has plumbed some talents not shown by the actress heretofore. Although she is seemingly a hard, designing type, she also emerges both the sweet heroine and a glamorous charmer." In 2000, recalling her experience making the picture with Cary Grant and Hitchcock, Saint said, "[Grant] would say, 'See, Eva Marie, you don't have to cry in a movie to have a good time. Just kick up your heels and have fun.' Hitchcock said, 'I don't want you to do a sink-to-sink movie again, ever. You've done these black-and-white movies like On the Waterfront. It's drab in that tenement house. Women go to the movies, and they've just left the sink at home. They don't want to see you at the sink.' I said, 'I can't promise you that, Hitch, because I love those dramas.'"
Although North by Northwest might have propelled her to the top ranks of stardom, she elected to limit film work in order to spend time with her husband since 1951, director Jeffrey Hayden, and their two children. Nevertheless, in the 1960s, Saint continued to distinguish herself in both high-profile and offbeat pictures. She co-starred again with Paul Newman in the historical drama about the founding of the state of Israel Exodus (1960), directed by Otto Preminger. She also co-starred with Warren Beatty, Karl Malden and Angela Lansbury as a tragic beauty in the drama All Fall Down (1962). Based upon a novel by James Leo Herlihy and a screenplay by William Inge, the film was directed by John Frankenheimer.
She was seen with Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton in the melodrama The Sandpiper for Vincente Minnelli, and with James Garner in the World War II thriller 36 Hours (1964), directed by George Seaton. Saint joined an all-star cast in the comedic satire The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming, directed by Norman Jewison and the international racing drama Grand Prix (1966) presented in Cinerama and directed by Frankenheimer.
Saint received some of her best reviews for her appearance in Loving (1970), co-starring as the wife of George Segal in a critically acclaimed but underseen drama about a commercial artist's relationship with his wife and other women. Because of the mostly second-rate film roles that came her way in the 1970s, Saint returned to television and the stage in the 1980s. She appeared in a number of made-for-television films and played the mother of Cybill Shepherd on the television series Moonlighting over a three-year period. She received an Emmy nomination for the 1977 miniseries How The West Was Won, and a 1978 Emmy nomination for Taxi!!!.
Saint returned to the big screen for the first time in over a decade as Tom Hanks' mother in the Garry Marshall-directed comedy Nothing in Common (1986). Critics applauded her return to features, but Saint was soon back on the small screen in numerous projects.
After receiving five nominations, Saint won her first Emmy Award for the 1990 miniseries film People Like Us. She appeared in a number of television productions in the 1990s and was cast as the mother of Frasier Crane's radio producer, Roz Doyle, in a 1999 episode of the hit comedy series Frasier.
In 2000, she returned to feature films once again in I Dreamed of Africa with Kim Basinger. In 2005 she co-starred with Jessica Lange and Sam Shepard in Don't Come Knocking. Also in 2005, she appeared in the family film Because of Winn-Dixie, co-starring Annasophia Robb, Jeff Daniels and Cicely Tyson.
In 2006, Saint appeared in Superman Returns, as Martha Kent, the adoptive mother of Superman, alongside Brandon Routh, Kevin Spacey, Kate Bosworth, and a computer-generated performance from her On The Waterfront co-star Marlon Brando.
Saint has appeared in a number of television specials and documentaries, particularly in the past decade, including The Making of North by Northwest, which she narrated and hosted. In 2009, she made a rare public appearance at the 81st Academy Awards ceremony as a Best Supporting Actress presenter. In 2011, Saint participated in two screenings of North by Northwest with Robert Osborne. The films were shown in Seattle, and Cleveland. Saint and Osborne participated in meet-and-greet sessions and well as a pre-movie question and answer session.
She has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, for motion pictures at 6624 Hollywood Boulevard, and television at 6730 Hollywood Boulevard.
Saint has also been confirmed to appear in the 2012 Nickelodeon animated series Avatar: The Legend of Korra, which is a sequel to the hit TV Show Avatar: The Last Airbender. She will be the voice actor for Elderly Katara
Saint has been married to producer/director Jeffrey Hayden since October 28, 1951. They have two children, Darrell (born April 1, 1955) and Laurette (born July 19, 1958), and three grandchildren.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1947 | A Christmas Carol | Television film | |
| 1948–1955 | The Philco Television Playhouse | TV, 4 episodes, Nominated for Best Actress Emmy | |
| 1949 | Lights Out | TV, 1 episode | |
| 1949 | Suspense | Francie | TV, 1 episode |
| 1949–1950 | Actor's Studio | TV, 3 episodes | |
| 1949–1953 | Studio One | TV, 3 episodes | |
| 1950 | The Prudential Family Playhouse | TV, 1 episode | |
| 1950–1951 | Buck Rogers | Wilma Deering | TV, 41 episodes |
| 1950–1952 | One Man's Family | Claudia Barbour Roberts #2 | TV |
| 1950–1951 | Versatile Varieties | TV, unknown episodes | |
| 1953 | The Trip to Bountiful | Thelma | Television film |
| 1953 | ABC Album/Jamie | Cousin Liz | TV, 1 episode |
| 1953 | The Web | TV, 2 episodes | |
| 1953 | Eye Witness | TV, 1 episode | |
| 1953 | The Revlon Mirror Theater | TV, 1 episode | |
| 1953–1954 | Goodyear Television Playhouse | Frances Barclay | TV, 2 episodes |
| 1954 | On the Waterfront | Edie Doyle | Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated for BAFTA award |
| 1954 | General Electric Theater | Maudle Applegate | TV, 1 episode |
| 1955 | Producers' Showcase | TV, 2 episodes, Nominated for Best Actress Emmy | |
| 1956 | That Certain Feeling | Dunreath Henry | |
| 1957 | A Hatful of Rain | Celia Pope | Nominated for Best Foreign Actress BAFTA Nominated for Golden Globe Nominated for Laurel Award |
| 1957 | Raintree County | Nell Gaither | |
| 1959 | North by Northwest | Eve Kendall | |
| 1960 | Exodus | Kitty Fremont | |
| 1962 | All Fall Down | Echo O'Brien | |
| 1964 | Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre | Diane Wescott | TV, 1 episode |
| 1964 | Carol for Another Christmas | The Wave | Television film |
| 1965 | 36 Hours | Anna Hedler | |
| 1965 | The Sandpiper | Claire Hewitt | |
| 1966 | The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming | Elspeth Whittaker | |
| 1966 | Grand Prix | Louise Frederickson | |
| 1968 | The Stalking Moon | Sarah Carver | |
| 1970 | Loving | Selma Wilson | |
| 1972 | Cancel My Reservation | Sheila Bartlett | |
| 1974 | The First Woman President | Oklahoma Red | Television film |
| 1976 | The Macahans | Kate Macahan | Television film |
| 1976 | The Fatal Weakness | Television film | |
| 1977 | How the West Was Won | Katherine "Kate" Macahan | Miniseries, Nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress Emmy |
| 1978 | Taxi!!! | Passenger | Television film, Nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress Emmy |
| 1978 | A Christmas to Remember | Emma Larson | Television film |
| 1979 | When Hell Was in Session | Jane Denton | Television film |
| 1980 | The Curse of King Tut's Tomb | Sarah Morrissey | Television film |
| 1981 | The Best Little Girl in the World | Joanne Powell | Television film |
| 1981 | Splendor in the Grass | Mrs. Loomis | Television film |
| 1983 | Malibu | Mary Wharton | Television film |
| 1983 | Jane Doe | Dr. Addie Coleman | Television film |
| 1983–1984 | The Love Boat | Priscilla | TV, 4 episodes |
| 1984 | Love Leads the Way: A True Story | Mrs. Eustes | Television film |
| 1984 | Fatal Vision | Mildred Kassab | Television film |
| 1986 | A Year in the Life | Ruth Gardner | Miniseries |
| 1986 | Nothing in Common | Lorraine Basner | |
| 1986 | The Last Days of Patton | Mrs. Beatrice Ayer Patton | Television film |
| 1986–1988 | Moonlighting | Virginia Hayes | TV, 6 episodes |
| 1987 | Breaking Home Ties | Emma | Television film |
| 1988 | I'll Be Home for Christmas | Martha Bundy | Television film |
| 1990 | Voyage of Terror: The Achille Lauro Affair | Marilyn Klinghoffer | Television film |
| 1990 | People Like Us | Lil Van Degan Altemus | Television film Won Outstanding Supporting Actress Emmy |
| 1991 | Palomino | Caroline Lord | Television film |
| 1993 | Kiss of a Killer | Mrs. Wilson | Television film |
| 1995 | My Antonia | Emmaline Burden | Television film |
| 1996 | Mariette in Ecstasy | Mother Saint-Raphael | |
| 1996 | After Jimmy | Liz | Television film |
| 1996 | Titanic | Hazel Foley | Miniseries |
| 1997 | Time to Say Goodbye? | Ruth Klooster | |
| 1999 | Frasier | Joanna Doyle | TV, 1 episode |
| 2000 | I Dreamed of Africa | Franca | |
| 2000 | Papa's Angels | Dori "Grammy" Jenkins | Television film |
| 2003 | Open House | Veronica Reynolds | Television film |
| 2005 | Because of Winn-Dixie | Miss Franny | |
| 2005 | Don't Come Knocking | Howard's Mother | |
| 2006 | Superman Returns | Martha Kent | |
| 2012 | The Last Airbender: Legend of Korra | Miniseries |
| Year | Group | Award | Film or series | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | Academy Award | Best Actress in a Supporting Role | On the Waterfront | Won |
| 1999 | Ft. Lauderdale International Film Festival | Lifetime Achievement Award |
|
Won |
| 2000 | Savannah Film and Video Festival | Lifetime Achievement Award |
|
Won |
| 2004 | San Luis Obispo International Film Festival | King Vidor Memorial Award |
|
Won |
| 2007 | Golden Boot Awards |
|
|
Won |
| 1955 | BAFTA Award | Most Promising Newcomer to Film | On the Waterfront | Nominated |
| 1958 | BAFTA Award | Best Foreign Actress | Hatful of Rain | Nominated |
| 1955 | Emmy Award | Best Actress in a Single Performance | The Philco Television Playhouse (Episode: "Middle of the Night") | Nominated |
| 1956 | Emmy Award | Best Actress - Single Performance | Producers' Showcase (Episode: "Our Town") | Nominated |
| 1977 | Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series | How the West Was Won | Nominated |
| 1978 | Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama or Comedy Special | Taxi!!! | Nominated |
| 1990 | Emmy Award | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Special | People Like Us | Won |
| 1958 | Golden Globe Award | Best Motion Picture Actress - Drama | A Hatful of Rain | Nominated |
| 1958 | Laurel Awards | Top Female Dramatic Performance | A Hatful of Rain | 3rd Place |