Joan Plowright

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Joan Plowright

Born Joan Ann Plowright
28 October 1929 (1929-10-28) (age 78)
Brigg, Parts of Lindsey, Lincolnshire, England
Spouse(s) Roger Gage (div 1961)
Laurence Olivier (1961-1989)

Joan Ann Olivier, Baroness Olivier, DBE (born 28 October 1929), better known as Dame Joan Plowright, is an English actress and the third wife and widow of Laurence Olivier. She was awarded a CBE in 1970 and was made a Dame (DBE) in the New Year's Honours of 2004.

Contents

[edit] Biography

[edit] Early life

Plowright was born in Brigg, Lincolnshire, the daughter of Daisy Margaret (née Burton) and William Ernest Plowright, who was a journalist and newspaper editor.[1][2] She attended Scunthorpe Grammar School and trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School.

[edit] Career

Plowright made her stage debut in 1951 and her London debut in 1954; she was long known as a superb theatre actress.

In 1956 she joined the English Stage Company at the Royal Court and won the role of Margery Pinchwife in The Country Wife. She appeared with George Devine in the Eugène Ionesco play, Les Chaises, Major Barbara, Saint Joan, and in 1957 she co-starred with future husband Sir Laurence Olivier in the original London production of John Osborne's The Entertainer, taking over the role of Jean Rice from Dorothy Tutin when the play transferred from the Royal Court to the Palace Theatre.

Plowright continued to appear on stage and in films such as The Entertainer (1960) and The Three Sisters (1970). In 1961 she received a Tony Award for her role in A Taste of Honey on Broadway. After a brief hiatus to devote time to her family she returned to the screen and can be seen in films such as Dennis the Menace, Enchanted April, for which she won a Golden Globe Award, and Tea With Mussolini. She was also notable for her major roles in 101 Dalmatians and Balto.

In 2003, Plowright performed in the stage production Absolutely! in London.

[edit] Personal life

Plowright was first married to Roger Gage. She divorced him, and in 1961 married Laurence Olivier. Together the couple had three children, Richard Kerr, Tamsin Agnes Margaret and Julie-Kate. Both daughters are actresses.[3] The couple remained married until his death from cancer in 1989.

The Plowright Theatre in Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire, is named in her honour. Upon her marriage to Sir Laurence Olivier, her formal title became "Lady Olivier", however she does not use it in her professional career.

Her brother, David Plowright CBE (1930-2006), was an executive at Granada Television.

[edit] Filmography

[edit] References

  1. ^ Joan Plowright Biography. Yahoo! Movies. Retrieved on 2007-06-29.
  2. ^ Joan Plowright Biography (1929-)
  3. ^ Joan Plowright Biography (1929-). Film Reference. Retrieved on 2007-06-29.

[edit] External links


Awards
Preceded by
Mercedes Ruehl
for The Fisher King		 Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture
for Enchanted April
1993		 Succeeded by
Winona Ryder
for The Age of Innocence
v • d • e
Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play

Ingrid Bergman / Helen Hayes (1947) · Judith Anderson / Jessica Tandy (1948) · Shirley Booth (1950) · Uta Hagen (1951) · Julie Harris (1952) · Shirley Booth (1953) · Audrey Hepburn (1954) · Nancy Kelly (1955) · Julie Harris (1956) · Margaret Leighton (1957) · Helen Hayes (1958) · Gertrude Berg (1959) · Anne Bancroft (1960) · Joan Plowright. (1961) · Margaret Leighton (1962) · Uta Hagen (1963) · Sandy Dennis (1964) · Irene Worth (1965) · Rosemary Harris (1966) · Beryl Reid (1967) · Zoe Caldwell (1968) · Julie Harris (1969) · Tammy Grimes (1970) · Maureen Stapleton (1971) · Sada Thompson (1972) · Julie Harris (1973) · Colleen Dewhurst (1974) · Ellen Burstyn (1975)
Persondata
NAME Plowright, Joan
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Plowright, Joan Ann
SHORT DESCRIPTION Actress
DATE OF BIRTH 28 October 1929
PLACE OF BIRTH Brigg, Parts of Lindsey, Lincolnshire, England
DATE OF DEATH
PLACE OF DEATH