Jean Simmons
Encyclopedia
Jean Merilyn Simmons, OBE (January 31, 1929 January 22, 2010) was an English actress. She appeared predominantly in motion pictures, beginning with films made in Great Britain
during and after World War II
– she was one of J. Arthur Rank's 'well-spoken young starlets' – followed mainly by Hollywood films from 1950.
, London
, England
, to Charles Simmons
and his wife, Winifred (Loveland) Simmons. Jean was the youngest of four children with siblings Edna, Harold and Lorna. She began acting at the age of 14. During World War II
, the Simmons family was evacuated to Winscombe
in Somerset
. Her father, a physical education teacher (who had represented Great Britain in the 1912 Summer Olympics
), taught briefly at Sidcot School
, and sometime during this period Simmons followed her elder sister on to the village stage and sang songs such as "Daddy Wouldn't Buy Me a Bow Wow
". Returning to London and just enrolled at the Aida Foster School of Dance
, she was spotted by the director Val Guest
, who cast her in the Margaret Lockwood vehicle Give Us the Moon
. Prior to moving to Hollywood, she played the young Estella in David Lean
's version of Great Expectations
(1946) and Ophelia
in Laurence Olivier
's Hamlet
(1948), for which she received her first Oscar nomination. It was the experience of working on Great Expectations that caused her to pursue an acting career more seriously:
Playing Ophelia in Olivier's Hamlet made her a star, although she was already well-known for her work in other British films, including her first starring role in the film adaptation of Uncle Silas
, and Black Narcissus
(both 1947). Olivier offered her the chance to work and study at the Bristol Old Vic
, advising her to play anything they threw at her to get experience; she was under contract to the Rank Organisation
who vetoed the idea. In 1950 Rank sold her contract to Howard Hughes
, who then owned the RKO
studio in Hollywood.
In 1950 she married the English actor Stewart Granger
, with whom she appeared in several films, successfully making the transition to an American career. She made four films for Hughes, including Angel Face, directed by Otto Preminger
. According to David Thomson
"if she had made only one film – Angel Face – she might now be spoken of with the awe given to Louise Brooks
." A court case freed her from the contract with Hughes in 1952. In 1953 she starred alongside Spencer Tracy
in The Actress
, a film that was one of her personal favourites. Among the many films she appeared in during this period were The Robe
(1953), Young Bess
(1953), Désirée (1954), The Egyptian
(1954), Guys and Dolls
(1955) – "in which she's delightfully proper (and improper) as the Salvation Army
officer Sarah Brown" – The Big Country
(1958), Elmer Gantry
(1960), (directed by her second husband, Richard Brooks
), Spartacus
(1960), All the Way Home
(1963) – a film of James Agee
's novel, A Death in the Family
– and The Happy Ending
(1969), again directed by Brooks and for which she received her second Oscar nomination. In the opinion of film critic, Philip French
, a film of 1958, Home Before Dark, saw her give "perhaps her finest performance as a housewife driven into a breakdown in Mervyn LeRoy
's psychodrama."
By the 1970s Simmons turned her focus to stage and television acting. She toured the United States in Stephen Sondheim
's well-reviewed musical A Little Night Music
, then took the show to London, and thus originated the role of Desirée Armfeldt on the West End
. Doing the show for three years, she said she never tired of Sondheim's music; "No matter how tired or off you felt, the music would just pick you up."
She portrayed Fiona Cleary, Cleary family matriarch, in the 1983 mini-series, The Thorn Birds
; she won an Emmy Award
for her role.
In 1985 and 1986 she appeared in North & South
, again playing the role of the family matriarch as Clarissa Main.
In 1988 she starred in The Dawning
with Anthony Hopkins
and Hugh Grant
, and in 1989 she again starred in a mini-series, this time a version of Great Expectations
, in which she played the role of Miss Havisham, Estella's adoptive mother. Simmons made a late career appearance in the Star Trek: The Next Generation
episode "The Drumhead" as a hardened legal investigator who conducts a witch-hunt. From 1994 until 1998 Simmons narrated the A&E
documentary
television series, Mysteries of the Bible
. In 2004 Simmons voiced the lead-role of Sophie in the English dub of Howl's Moving Castle
.
in Tucson, Arizona
, on December 20, 1950. In 1956 she and Granger became U.S. citizens; they divorced in 1960. On November 1, 1960, she married director Richard Brooks
; they divorced in 1977. Although both men were significantly older than Simmons, she denied she was looking for a father figure. Her father had died when she was just 16 but she said: "They were really nothing like my father at all. My father was a gentle, soft-spoken man. My husbands were much noisier and much more opinionated ... it's really nothing to do with age ... it's to do with what's there – the twinkle and sense of humour." And in a 1984 interview, given in Copenhagen
at the time she was shooting the film Yellow Pages, she elaborated slightly on her marriages, stating,
She had two daughters, Tracy Granger (born September 1956) and Kate Brooks (born July 1961), one by each marriage – their names bearing witness to Simmons' friendship with Spencer Tracy
and Katharine Hepburn
. Simmons moved to the East Coast in the late 1970s, briefly owning a home in New Milford, Connecticut
near her longtime friend Rex Reed
. Later she moved to Santa Monica, California
, where she lived until her death from lung cancer
. She died at home on January 22, 2010, nine days before her 81st birthday, surrounded by her family.
Throughout her life Simmons spoke out publically about her own struggle with addiction, and in 2003 became the patron of the UK drugs and human rights charity Release. She was an active supporter of their campaigns for just, humane and effective drug policies, recognising that many of those with drug problems cannot afford the luxurious facilities available to celebrities. In 2005 Simmons signed a petition to the British Prime Minister Tony Blair asking him not to upgrade cannabis from a class C drug to a class B.. Being legal in California, Simmons was able to use Medical cannabis
to ease her pain and suffering during the last months of her life.
She was cremated in Santa Monica and her ashes buried in North London in Highgate Cemetery
West.
Tributes and photographs can be found on her Facebook page.
Nominations
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
during and after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
– she was one of J. Arthur Rank's 'well-spoken young starlets' – followed mainly by Hollywood films from 1950.
Early life and career
Simmons was born in Lower HollowayLower Holloway
Lower Holloway is a district in the London Borough of Islington, London. The name has fallen out of common use and the area is now generally regarded as being a part of Holloway. The area of Lower Holloway stretches from the South of Holloway Road to the Central side of Holloway, Nags Head. It is...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, to Charles Simmons
Charles Simmons (gymnast)
Charles Simmons was a British gymnast who competed in the 1912 Summer Olympics.He was born on December 24, 1885 in London. He was part of the British team, which won the bronze medal in the gymnastics men's team, European system event in 1912...
and his wife, Winifred (Loveland) Simmons. Jean was the youngest of four children with siblings Edna, Harold and Lorna. She began acting at the age of 14. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the Simmons family was evacuated to Winscombe
Winscombe
Winscombe is a village in North Somerset, England, close to the settlements of Axbridge and Cheddar, on the western edge of the Mendip Hills, south-east of Weston-super-Mare and south-west of Bristol...
in Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
. Her father, a physical education teacher (who had represented Great Britain in the 1912 Summer Olympics
1912 Summer Olympics
The 1912 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Stockholm, Sweden, between 5 May and 27 July 1912. Twenty-eight nations and 2,407 competitors, including 48 women, competed in 102 events in 14 sports...
), taught briefly at Sidcot School
Sidcot School
Sidcot School is a British co-educational independent school for boarding and day pupils, associated with the Religious Society of Friends. It is one of seven Quaker schools in England....
, and sometime during this period Simmons followed her elder sister on to the village stage and sang songs such as "Daddy Wouldn't Buy Me a Bow Wow
Daddy Wouldn't Buy Me a Bow Wow
"Daddy Wouldn’t Buy Me a Bow Wow" is a song written in 1892 by prolific English songwriter Joseph Tabrar.It was written for, and first performed in 1892 by, Vesta Victoria at the South London Palace, holding a kitten. The same year it was recorded by Silas Leachman for the North American Phonograph...
". Returning to London and just enrolled at the Aida Foster School of Dance
Aida Foster stage school
The Aida Foster School was founded by Aida Foster in 1929 as a hobby to teach dancing. It expanded over the years to become one of Britain's foremost stage schools. Many of the 20th-century stage and film personalities obtained their professional education from the school, and many their first...
, she was spotted by the director Val Guest
Val Guest
Val Guest was a British film director, best known for his science-fiction films for Hammer Film Productions in the 1950s, but who also enjoyed a long, varied and active career in the film industry from the early 1930s up until the early 1980s.-Early life and career:He was born Valmond Maurice...
, who cast her in the Margaret Lockwood vehicle Give Us the Moon
Give us the Moon
Give Us the Moon is a 1944 British comedy film directed by Val Guest and starring Vic Oliver, Margaret Lockwood and Peter Graves. A young layabout son of a hotel owner becomes involved with a group equally committed to doing no work and tries to join....
. Prior to moving to Hollywood, she played the young Estella in David Lean
David Lean
Sir David Lean CBE was an English film director, producer, screenwriter, and editor best remembered for big-screen epics such as The Bridge on the River Kwai , Lawrence of Arabia ,...
's version of Great Expectations
Great Expectations (1946 film)
Great Expectations is a 1946 British film which won two Academy Awards and was nominated for three others...
(1946) and Ophelia
Ophelia
Ophelia is a fictional character in the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare. She is a young noblewoman of Denmark, the daughter of Polonius, sister of Laertes, and potential wife of Prince Hamlet.-Plot:...
in 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 Hamlet
Hamlet (1948 film)
Hamlet is a 1948 British film adaptation of William Shakespeare's play Hamlet, adapted and directed by and starring Sir Laurence Olivier. Hamlet was Olivier's second film as director, and also the second of the three Shakespeare films that he directed...
(1948), for which she received her first Oscar nomination. It was the experience of working on Great Expectations that caused her to pursue an acting career more seriously:
Playing Ophelia in Olivier's Hamlet made her a star, although she was already well-known for her work in other British films, including her first starring role in the film adaptation of Uncle Silas
Uncle Silas
Uncle Silas is a Victorian Gothic mystery-thriller novel by the Irish writer J. Sheridan Le Fanu. It is notable as one of the earliest examples of the locked room mystery subgenre...
, and Black Narcissus
Black Narcissus
Black Narcissus is a 1947 film by the British director-writer team of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, based on the novel of the same name by Rumer Godden...
(both 1947). Olivier offered her the chance to work and study at the Bristol Old Vic
Bristol Old Vic
The Bristol Old Vic is a theatre company based at the Theatre Royal, King Street, in Bristol, England. The theatre complex includes the 1766 Theatre Royal, which claims to be the oldest continually-operating theatre in England, along with a 1970s studio theatre , offices and backstage facilities...
, advising her to play anything they threw at her to get experience; she was under contract to the Rank Organisation
Rank Organisation
The Rank Organisation was a British entertainment company formed during 1937 and absorbed in 1996 by The Rank Group Plc. It was the largest and most vertically-integrated film company in Britain, owning production, distribution and exhibition facilities....
who vetoed the idea. In 1950 Rank sold her contract to Howard Hughes
Howard Hughes
Howard Robard Hughes, Jr. was an American business magnate, investor, aviator, engineer, film producer, director, and philanthropist. He was one of the wealthiest people in the world...
, who then owned the RKO
RKO Pictures
RKO Pictures is an American film production and distribution company. As RKO Radio Pictures Inc., it was one of the Big Five studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orpheum theater chains and Joseph P...
studio in Hollywood.
In 1950 she married the English actor Stewart Granger
Stewart Granger
Stewart Granger was an English-American film actor, mainly associated with heroic and romantic leading roles. He was a popular leading man from the 1940s to the early 1960s rising to fame through his appearances in the Gainsborough melodramas.-Early life:He was born James Lablache Stewart in Old...
, with whom she appeared in several films, successfully making the transition to an American career. She made four films for Hughes, including Angel Face, directed by Otto Preminger
Otto Preminger
Otto Ludwig Preminger was an Austro–Hungarian-American theatre and film director.After moving from the theatre to Hollywood, he directed over 35 feature films in a five-decade career. He rose to prominence for stylish film noir mysteries such as Laura and Fallen Angel...
. According to David Thomson
David Thomson (film critic)
David Thomson is a film critic and historian based in the United States and the author of more than 20 books, including The New Biographical Dictionary of Film.-Career:...
"if she had made only one film – Angel Face – she might now be spoken of with the awe given to Louise Brooks
Louise Brooks
Mary Louise Brooks , generally known by her stage name Louise Brooks, was an American dancer, model, showgirl and silent film actress, noted for popularizing the bobbed haircut. Brooks is best known for her three feature roles including two G. W...
." A court case freed her from the contract with Hughes in 1952. In 1953 she starred alongside Spencer Tracy
Spencer Tracy
Spencer Bonaventure Tracy was an American theatrical and film actor, who appeared in 75 films from 1930 to 1967. Tracy was one of the major stars of Hollywood's Golden Age, ranking among the top ten box office draws for almost every year from 1938 to 1951...
in The Actress
The Actress
The Actress is an 1953 American comedy-drama film based on Ruth Gordon's autobiographical play Years Ago. Gordon herself wrote the screenplay. The film was directed by George Cukor and stars Jean Simmons, Spencer Tracy, Teresa Wright, and Anthony Perkins in his film debut.The film was nominated for...
, a film that was one of her personal favourites. Among the many films she appeared in during this period were The Robe
The Robe
The Robe is a 1942 historical novel about the Crucifixion written by Lloyd C. Douglas. The book was one of the best-selling titles of the 1940s. It entered the New York Times Best Seller list in October 1942, and four weeks later rose to No. 1. It held the position for nearly a year...
(1953), Young Bess
Young Bess
Young Bess is a 1953 biographical film made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer about the early life of Elizabeth I, from her turbulent childhood to the eve of her accession to the throne of England...
(1953), Désirée (1954), The Egyptian
The Egyptian (film)
The Egyptian is an American 1954 epic film made in CinemaScope by 20th Century Fox, directed by Michael Curtiz and produced by Darryl F. Zanuck. It is based on Mika Waltari's novel and the screenplay was adapted by Philip Dunne and Casey Robinson...
(1954), Guys and Dolls
Guys and Dolls (film)
Guys and Dolls is a 1955 musical film starring Marlon Brando, Jean Simmons, Frank Sinatra and Vivian Blaine. The film was made by the Samuel Goldwyn Company and distributed by MGM. It was produced by Samuel Goldwyn, and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, who also wrote the screenplay...
(1955) – "in which she's delightfully proper (and improper) as the Salvation Army
Salvation Army
The Salvation Army is a Protestant Christian church known for its thrift stores and charity work. It is an international movement that currently works in over a hundred countries....
officer Sarah Brown" – The Big Country
The Big Country
Meanwhile, Terrill insists on riding into the canyon. Initially, Leech refuses to accompany him, and the other men follow his lead. However, after Terrill rides out alone, Leech catches up with him. The remaining hands again align themselves with Leech by following. The group soon rides into a trap...
(1958), Elmer Gantry
Elmer Gantry (film)
Elmer Gantry is a 1960 drama film about a con man and a female evangelist selling religion to small town America. Adapted by director Richard Brooks, the film is based on the 1927 novel of the same name by Sinclair Lewis and stars Burt Lancaster and Jean Simmons.Lancaster won an Academy Award for...
(1960), (directed by her second husband, Richard Brooks
Richard Brooks
Richard Brooks was an American screenwriter, film director, novelist and occasional film producer.-Early life and career:...
), Spartacus
Spartacus (film)
Spartacus is a 1960 American epic historical drama film directed by Stanley Kubrick and based on the novel of the same name by Howard Fast...
(1960), All the Way Home
All the Way Home (film)
All the Way Home is a 1963 drama film about a young boy and his mother dealing with the sudden death of his father. It stars Jean Simmons, Robert Preston, and Pat Hingle, with the boy being portrayed by Michael Kearney...
(1963) – a film of James Agee
James Agee
James Rufus Agee was an American author, journalist, poet, screenwriter and film critic. In the 1940s, he was one of the most influential film critics in the U.S...
's novel, A Death in the Family
A Death in the Family
A Death in the Family is an autobiographical novel by author James Agee, set in Knoxville, Tennessee. He began writing it in 1948, but it was not quite complete when he died in 1955. It was edited and released posthumously in 1957 by editor David McDowell. Agee's widow and children were left with...
– and The Happy Ending
The Happy Ending
The Happy Ending is a 1969 film written and directed by Richard Brooks, which tells the story of a repressed housewife who longs for liberation from her marriage...
(1969), again directed by Brooks and for which she received her second Oscar nomination. In the opinion of film critic, Philip French
Philip French
Philip French is a British film critic and former radio producer.French, the son of an insurance salesman, was educated at the direct grant Bristol Grammar School, read Law at Oxford University. and post graduate study in Journalism at Indiana University, Bloomington on a scholarship.He has been...
, a film of 1958, Home Before Dark, saw her give "perhaps her finest performance as a housewife driven into a breakdown in Mervyn LeRoy
Mervyn LeRoy
Mervyn LeRoy was an American film director, producer and sometime actor.-Early life:Born to Jewish parents in San Francisco, California, his family was financially ruined by the 1906 earthquake...
's psychodrama."
By the 1970s Simmons turned her focus to stage and television acting. She toured the United States in Stephen Sondheim
Stephen Sondheim
Stephen Joshua Sondheim is an American composer and lyricist for stage and film. He is the winner of an Academy Award, multiple Tony Awards including the Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre, multiple Grammy Awards, a Pulitzer Prize and the Laurence Olivier Award...
's well-reviewed musical A Little Night Music
A Little Night Music
A Little Night Music is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Hugh Wheeler. Inspired by the Ingmar Bergman film Smiles of a Summer Night, it involves the romantic lives of several couples. Its title is a literal English translation of the German name for Mozart's Serenade...
, then took the show to London, and thus originated the role of Desirée Armfeldt on the West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
. Doing the show for three years, she said she never tired of Sondheim's music; "No matter how tired or off you felt, the music would just pick you up."
She portrayed Fiona Cleary, Cleary family matriarch, in the 1983 mini-series, The Thorn Birds
The Thorn Birds (TV miniseries)
The Thorn Birds is a television mini-series broadcast on ABC between 27 and 30 March 1983. It starred Richard Chamberlain, Rachel Ward, Barbara Stanwyck, Christopher Plummer, Richard Kiley, Bryan Brown, Mare Winningham, Philip Anglim and Jean Simmons...
; she won 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...
for her role.
In 1985 and 1986 she appeared in North & South
North and South (TV miniseries)
North and South is the title of three American television miniseries broadcast on the ABC network in 1985, 1986, and 1994. Set before, during, and immediately after the American Civil War, they are based on the 1980s trilogy of novels North and South by John Jakes. The 1985 first installment, North...
, again playing the role of the family matriarch as Clarissa Main.
In 1988 she starred in The Dawning
The Dawning
The Dawning is a 1988 British film, based on Jennifer Johnston's novel, The Old Jest which depicts the Irish War of Independence through the eyes of the Anglo-Irish landlord class...
with Anthony Hopkins
Anthony Hopkins
Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins, KBE , best known as Anthony Hopkins, is a Welsh actor of film, stage and television...
and Hugh Grant
Hugh Grant
Hugh John Mungo Grant is an English actor and film producer. He has received a Golden Globe Award, a BAFTA, and an Honorary César. His films have earned more than $2.4 billion from 25 theatrical releases worldwide. Grant achieved international stardom after appearing in Richard Curtis's...
, and in 1989 she again starred in a mini-series, this time a version of Great Expectations
Great Expectations (1989 film)
Great Expectations is a British television serial based on Charles Dickens' novel of the same title. The six-part serial was first broadcast on the ITV network in 1991 though it was distributed on video in the United States in 1989....
, in which she played the role of Miss Havisham, Estella's adoptive mother. Simmons made a late career appearance in the Star Trek: The Next Generation
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Star Trek: The Next Generation is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry as part of the Star Trek franchise. Roddenberry, Rick Berman, and Michael Piller served as executive producers at different times throughout the production...
episode "The Drumhead" as a hardened legal investigator who conducts a witch-hunt. From 1994 until 1998 Simmons narrated the A&E
A&E Network
The A&E Network is a United States-based cable and satellite television network with headquarters in New York City and offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, London, Los Angeles and Stamford. A&E also airs in Canada and Latin America. Initially named the Arts & Entertainment Network, A&E launched...
documentary
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
television series, Mysteries of the Bible
Mysteries of the Bible
Mysteries of the Bible is a documentary television series that was originally broadcast by A&E from March 25, 1994 until June 13, 1998 and aired reruns until 2002. The series is about biblical mysteries and was produced by FilmRoos. The Discovery Channel and BBC also released a series of the same...
. In 2004 Simmons voiced the lead-role of Sophie in the English dub of Howl's Moving Castle
Howl's Moving Castle (film)
is a 2004 Japanese animated fantasy film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki of Studio Ghibli and based on the novel of the same name by Diana Wynne Jones...
.
Personal life
Jean Simmons was married and divorced twice. She married Stewart GrangerStewart Granger
Stewart Granger was an English-American film actor, mainly associated with heroic and romantic leading roles. He was a popular leading man from the 1940s to the early 1960s rising to fame through his appearances in the Gainsborough melodramas.-Early life:He was born James Lablache Stewart in Old...
in Tucson, Arizona
Tucson, Arizona
Tucson is a city in and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States. The city is located 118 miles southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. The 2010 United States Census puts the city's population at 520,116 with a metropolitan area population at 1,020,200...
, on December 20, 1950. In 1956 she and Granger became U.S. citizens; they divorced in 1960. On November 1, 1960, she married director Richard Brooks
Richard Brooks
Richard Brooks was an American screenwriter, film director, novelist and occasional film producer.-Early life and career:...
; they divorced in 1977. Although both men were significantly older than Simmons, she denied she was looking for a father figure. Her father had died when she was just 16 but she said: "They were really nothing like my father at all. My father was a gentle, soft-spoken man. My husbands were much noisier and much more opinionated ... it's really nothing to do with age ... it's to do with what's there – the twinkle and sense of humour." And in a 1984 interview, given in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
at the time she was shooting the film Yellow Pages, she elaborated slightly on her marriages, stating,
She had two daughters, Tracy Granger (born September 1956) and Kate Brooks (born July 1961), one by each marriage – their names bearing witness to Simmons' friendship with Spencer Tracy
Spencer Tracy
Spencer Bonaventure Tracy was an American theatrical and film actor, who appeared in 75 films from 1930 to 1967. Tracy was one of the major stars of Hollywood's Golden Age, ranking among the top ten box office draws for almost every year from 1938 to 1951...
and Katharine Hepburn
Katharine Hepburn
Katharine Houghton Hepburn was an American actress of film, stage, and television. In a career that spanned 62 years as a leading lady, she was best known for playing strong-willed, sophisticated women in both dramas and comedies...
. Simmons moved to the East Coast in the late 1970s, briefly owning a home in New Milford, Connecticut
New Milford, Connecticut
New Milford is a town in southern Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States north of Danbury, on the Housatonic River. It is the largest town in the state in terms of land area at nearly . The population was 28,671 according to the Census Bureau's 2006 estimates...
near her longtime friend Rex Reed
Rex Reed
Rex Taylor Reed is an American film critic and former co-host of the syndicated television show At the Movies. He currently writes the column "On the Town with Rex Reed" for The New York Observer.-Life and career:...
. Later she moved to Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, US. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is surrounded on three sides by the city of Los Angeles — Pacific Palisades on the northwest, Brentwood on the north, West Los Angeles on the northeast, Mar Vista on the east, and...
, where she lived until her death from lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
. She died at home on January 22, 2010, nine days before her 81st birthday, surrounded by her family.
Throughout her life Simmons spoke out publically about her own struggle with addiction, and in 2003 became the patron of the UK drugs and human rights charity Release. She was an active supporter of their campaigns for just, humane and effective drug policies, recognising that many of those with drug problems cannot afford the luxurious facilities available to celebrities. In 2005 Simmons signed a petition to the British Prime Minister Tony Blair asking him not to upgrade cannabis from a class C drug to a class B.. Being legal in California, Simmons was able to use Medical cannabis
Medical cannabis
Medical cannabis refers to the use of parts of the herb cannabis as a physician-recommended form of medicine or herbal therapy, or to synthetic forms of specific cannabinoids such as THC as a physician-recommended form of medicine...
to ease her pain and suffering during the last months of her life.
She was cremated in Santa Monica and her ashes buried in North London in Highgate Cemetery
Highgate Cemetery
Highgate Cemetery is a cemetery located in north London, England. It is designated Grade I on the English Heritage Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England. It is divided into two parts, named the East and West cemetery....
West.
Tributes and photographs can be found on her Facebook page.
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1944 | Sports Day | Peggy | |
| Give us the Moon Give us the Moon Give Us the Moon is a 1944 British comedy film directed by Val Guest and starring Vic Oliver, Margaret Lockwood and Peter Graves. A young layabout son of a hotel owner becomes involved with a group equally committed to doing no work and tries to join.... |
Heidi | ||
| Mr. Emmanuel Mr. Emmanuel Mr Emmanuel is a British film directed by Harold French, based on a 1938 novel by Louis Golding, who adapted the novel for the screen.-Plot synopsis:... |
Sally Cooper | Billed as Jean Simmonds | |
| 1945 | Kiss the Bride Goodbye Kiss the Bride Goodbye Kiss the Bride Goodbye is a 1945 British romantic comedy drama, directed by Paul L. Stein and starring Patricia Medina and Jimmy Hanley. The film also features an early role for Jean Simmons, almost two years before she achieved stardom in Great Expectations.-Plot:Factory girl Joan Dodd and Jack... |
Molly Dodd | |
| Meet Sexton Blake Meet Sexton Blake Meet Sexton Blake is a 1945 British drama film directed by John Harlow and starring David Farrar, Manning Whiley, Dennis Arundell and John Varley.-Cast:* David Farrar - Sexton Blake* Manning Whiley - Raoul Sudd* Dennis Arundell - Johann Sudd... |
Eva Watkins | ||
| The Way to the Stars The Way to the Stars The Way to the Stars, also known as Johnny in the Clouds, is a 1945 British war drama film made by Two Cities Films and released by United Artists. It was produced by Anatole de Grunwald and directed by Anthony Asquith... |
A singer | ||
| Caesar and Cleopatra | harpist | ||
| 1946 | Great Expectations Great Expectations (1946 film) Great Expectations is a 1946 British film which won two Academy Awards and was nominated for three others... |
Estella as a girl | |
| 1947 | The Woman in the Hall The Woman in the Hall The Woman in the Hall is a 1947 British drama film, directed by Jack Lee, with a screenplay by Jack Lee, Ian Dalrymple and Gladys Bronwyn Stern, from Stern's novel. It was released in 1947... |
Jay | |
| Uncle Silas Uncle Silas (film) Uncle Silas is a 1947 British drama film directed by Charles Frank and starring Jean Simmons, Katina Paxinou and Derrick De Marney. It is an adaptation of the novel Uncle Silas... |
Caroline Ruthyn | ||
| Black Narcissus Black Narcissus Black Narcissus is a 1947 film by the British director-writer team of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, based on the novel of the same name by Rumer Godden... |
Kanchi | ||
| Hungry Hill Hungry Hill (film) Hungry Hill is a 1947 British film directed by Brian Desmond Hurst and starring Margaret Lockwood, Dennis Price and Cecil Parker with a screenplay by Terence Young and Daphne du Maurier, from the novel by Daphne du Maurier.... |
Jane Brodrick | ||
| 1948 | Hamlet Hamlet (1948 film) Hamlet is a 1948 British film adaptation of William Shakespeare's play Hamlet, adapted and directed by and starring Sir Laurence Olivier. Hamlet was Olivier's second film as director, and also the second of the three Shakespeare films that he directed... |
Ophelia | 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... |
| 1949 | The Blue Lagoon The Blue Lagoon (1949 film) The Blue Lagoon is a 1949 British romance and adventure film produced and directed by Frank Launder, starring Jean Simmons and Donald Houston. The screenplay was adapted by John Baines, Michael Hogan and Frank Launder from the novel The Blue Lagoon by Henry De Vere Stacpoole... |
Emmeline Foster | |
| Adam and Evelyne Adam and Evelyne Adam and Evelyne, released in the U.S. as Adam and Evelyn, is a 1949 romance film starring Stewart Granger and Jean Simmons. According to Robert Osborne, host of Turner Classic Movies, this suited the stars, as they were romantically involved at the time, despite their age difference... |
Evelyne Kirby | ||
| 1950 | So Long at the Fair So Long at the Fair So Long at the Fair is a 1950 British thriller film directed by Terence Fisher and Anthony Darnborough, and starring Jean Simmons and Dirk Bogarde. It was adapted from the 1947 novel of the same name by Anthony Thorne... |
Vicky Barton | |
| Cage of Gold Cage of Gold Cage of Gold is a 1950 British drama film directed by Basil Dearden and starring Jean Simmons, Herbert Lom and Bernard Lee.-Plot:A young woman gives up her stable life and leaves her fiancé for a married man, who gets her pregnant and then abandons her.... |
Judith Moray | ||
| Trio Trio (1950 film) Trio is a 1950 British anthology film based on three short stories by W. Somerset Maugham: "The Verger", "Mr. Know-All" and "Sanatorium". Ken Annakin directed "The Verger" and "Mr... : "Sanatorium" |
Evie Bishop | ||
| 1951 | The Clouded Yellow The Clouded Yellow The Clouded Yellow is a 1951 British mystery film directed by Ralph Thomas and produced by Betty E. Box for Carillon Films.-Plot synopsis:... |
Sophie Malraux | |
| 1952 | Angel Face | Diane Tremayne | |
| Androcles and the Lion | Lavinia | ||
| 1953 | Young Bess Young Bess Young Bess is a 1953 biographical film made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer about the early life of Elizabeth I, from her turbulent childhood to the eve of her accession to the throne of England... |
Princess Elizabeth | |
| Affair with a Stranger Affair with a Stranger Affair with a Stranger is a 1953 American comedy-drama starring Jean Simmons and Victor Mature. It was directed by Roy Rowland, and was originally to be released as Kiss and Run.... |
Carolyn Parker | ||
| The Robe The Robe (film) The Robe is a 1953 American Biblical epic film that tells the story of a Roman military tribune who commands the unit that crucifies Jesus. The film was made by 20th Century Fox and is notable for being the first film released in the widescreen process CinemaScope.It was directed by Henry Koster... |
Diana | ||
| The Actress The Actress The Actress is an 1953 American comedy-drama film based on Ruth Gordon's autobiographical play Years Ago. Gordon herself wrote the screenplay. The film was directed by George Cukor and stars Jean Simmons, Spencer Tracy, Teresa Wright, and Anthony Perkins in his film debut.The film was nominated for... |
Ruth Gordon Jones | National Board of Review Award for Best Actress | |
| 1954 | She Couldn't Say No She Couldn't Say No (1954 film) She Couldn't Say No is a 1954 comedy-drama film starring Robert Mitchum and Jean Simmons.-Plot:Wealthy Corby Lane visits the small American hamlet of Progress, Arkansas, whose residents had paid for a critical medical operation for her when she was a child. She decides to express her gratitude by... (AKA Beautiful but Dangerous ) |
Corby Lane | |
| Demetrius and the Gladiators Demetrius and the Gladiators Demetrius and the Gladiators is a 1954 sword and sandal drama film and a sequel to The Robe. It was made by 20th Century Fox, directed by Delmer Daves and produced by Frank Ross. The screenplay was by Philip Dunne based on characters created by Lloyd C... |
Diana | Appeared in a clip from The Robe | |
| The Egyptian The Egyptian (film) The Egyptian is an American 1954 epic film made in CinemaScope by 20th Century Fox, directed by Michael Curtiz and produced by Darryl F. Zanuck. It is based on Mika Waltari's novel and the screenplay was adapted by Philip Dunne and Casey Robinson... |
Meryt | ||
| A Bullet Is Waiting | Cally Canham | ||
| Désirée | Désirée Clary | ||
| 1955 | Footsteps in the Fog Footsteps in the Fog Footsteps in the Fog is a 1955 British crime film starring Jean Simmons and Stewart Granger, with a screenplay co-written by Lenore Coffee and Dorothy Davenport, and released by Columbia Pictures. It is based on the short story "The Interruption" by W.W... |
Lily Watkins | |
| Guys and Dolls Guys and Dolls (film) Guys and Dolls is a 1955 musical film starring Marlon Brando, Jean Simmons, Frank Sinatra and Vivian Blaine. The film was made by the Samuel Goldwyn Company and distributed by MGM. It was produced by Samuel Goldwyn, and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, who also wrote the screenplay... |
Sergeant Sarah Brown | Awarded — Golden Globe for Best Musical/Comedy Actress Nominated — BAFTA for Best Actress |
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| 1956 | Hilda Crane Hilda Crane Hilda Crane, also known as The Many Loves of Hilda Crane, is a 1956 drama film made by 20th Century Fox. It was directed by Philip Dunne and produced by Herbert B. Swope Jr. from a screenplay adapted by Dunne from the play by Samson Raphaelson. The music score was by David Raksin and the... |
Hilda Crane | |
| 1957 | This Could Be the Night This Could Be the Night (film) This Could Be the Night is a 1957 MGM comedy-drama film directed by Robert Wise. The movie is based on the short stories by Cornelia Baird Gross and stars Jean Simmons and Paul Douglas. Actor Anthony Franciosa made his debut in this film.-Plot:... |
Anne Leeds | Nominated — Golden Globe for Best Musical/Comedy Actress |
| Until They Sail Until They Sail Until They Sail is a 1957 American black and white CinemaScope drama film directed by Robert Wise. The screenplay by Robert Anderson, based on a story by James A. Michener included in his 1951 anthology Return to Paradise, focuses on four New Zealand sisters and their relationships with U.S... (1957) |
Barbara Leslie Forbes | ||
| 1958 | The Big Country The Big Country Meanwhile, Terrill insists on riding into the canyon. Initially, Leech refuses to accompany him, and the other men follow his lead. However, after Terrill rides out alone, Leech catches up with him. The remaining hands again align themselves with Leech by following. The group soon rides into a trap... |
Julie Maragon | |
| Home Before Dark | Charlotte Bronn | Nominated — Golden Globe for Best Drama Actress | |
| 1959 | This Earth Is Mine This Earth Is Mine This Earth Is Mine is a 1959 drama film directed by Henry King and starring Rock Hudson and Jean Simmons. The film portrays the lives and loves of the Rambeau family, a California winemaking dynasty trying to survive during Prohibition in the United States.-Summary:Elizabeth , an English cousin of... |
Elizabeth Rambeau | |
| 1960 | Elmer Gantry Elmer Gantry (film) Elmer Gantry is a 1960 drama film about a con man and a female evangelist selling religion to small town America. Adapted by director Richard Brooks, the film is based on the 1927 novel of the same name by Sinclair Lewis and stars Burt Lancaster and Jean Simmons.Lancaster won an Academy Award for... |
Sharon Falconer | Nominated — BAFTA for Best Actress Nominated — Golden Globe for Best Drama Actress |
| Spartacus | Varinia | ||
| The Grass Is Greener The Grass Is Greener The Grass Is Greener is a 1960 comedy film featuring an ensemble cast consisting of screen veterans Cary Grant, Deborah Kerr, Robert Mitchum, and Jean Simmons,directed by Stanley Donen... |
Hattie Durant | ||
| 1963 | All the Way Home All the Way Home (film) All the Way Home is a 1963 drama film about a young boy and his mother dealing with the sudden death of his father. It stars Jean Simmons, Robert Preston, and Pat Hingle, with the boy being portrayed by Michael Kearney... |
Mary Follett | |
| 1965 | Life at the Top Life at the Top (film) Life at the Top is a 1965 drama film made by Romulus Films and released by Columbia Pictures. It is a sequel to Room at the Top. It was directed by Ted Kotcheff and produced by James Woolf with William Kirby as associate producer. The screenplay was by Mordecai Richler, based on the novel Life at... |
Susan Lampton | |
| 1966 | Mister Buddwing Mister Buddwing Mister Buddwing is a 1966 American film drama starring James Garner, directed by Delbert Mann.It is the story of a well-dressed man who finds himself on a bench in Central Park with no idea of who he is... (1966) |
The Blonde | |
| 1967 | Divorce American Style Divorce American Style Divorce American Style is a 1967 American satirical comedy film directed by Bud Yorkin.Norman Lear produced the film and wrote the script based on a story by Robert Kaufman... |
Nancy Downes | |
| Rough Night in Jericho Rough Night in Jericho (film) Rough Night in Jericho is a 1967 western film starring George Peppard, Dean Martin, and Jean Simmons, and directed by Arnold Laven. The supporting cast includes John McIntire and Slim Pickens. This is the only film where Dean Martin portrayed the villain.... |
Molly Lang | ||
| 1968 | Heidi Heidi (1968 film) Heidi was a 1968 NBC made-for-TV film version of the original 1880 novel of the same name which debuted on November 17, 1968. It starred actress Jennifer Edwards, stepdaughter of Julie Andrews and daughter of Blake Edwards, in the title role, alongside Maximillian Schell, Jean Simmons, and Michael... |
Fräulein Rottenmeier | |
| 1969 | The Happy Ending The Happy Ending The Happy Ending is a 1969 film written and directed by Richard Brooks, which tells the story of a repressed housewife who longs for liberation from her marriage... |
Mary Spencer | Nominated — Academy Award for Best Actress |
| 1971 | Say Hello to Yesterday Say Hello to Yesterday Say Hello to Yesterday is a 1970 British drama film directed by the Canadian born Alvin Rakoff, on whose original story the film is based. Starring Jean Simmons and Leonard Whiting, it is ' a fast moving account of ten hours in the life of a suburban housewife' and was made at Twickenham Studios... |
Woman | |
| 1975 | Mr. Sycamore | Estelle Benbow | |
| 1978 | The Dain Curse The Dain Curse The Dain Curse is a novel written by Dashiell Hammett and published in 1929.- Plot summary :The detective known only as The Continental Op investigates a diamond heist that looks like an inside job. He is told of a supposed curse on the Dain family, said to inflict sudden and violent deaths upon... (TV) |
Aaronia Haldorn | |
| Dominique Dominique (film) Dominique is a 1980 British film directed by Michael Anderson.The film is also known as Dominique Is Dead .-Plot:... |
Dominique Ballard | ||
| 1979 | Beggarman, Thief Beggarman, Thief Beggarman, Thief is a 1977 novel written by Irwin Shaw. It was a sequel to his 1970 bestseller Rich Man, Poor Man.The miniseries adapted from the original novel had a sequel entitled Rich Man, Poor Man Book II, but it was broadcast prior to the publication of Beggarman, Thief and was not based on... (TV) |
Gretchen Jordache Burke | |
| 1981 | A Small Killing (TV) | Margaret Lawrence | |
| 1983 | The Thorn Birds The Thorn Birds (TV miniseries) The Thorn Birds is a television mini-series broadcast on ABC between 27 and 30 March 1983. It starred Richard Chamberlain, Rachel Ward, Barbara Stanwyck, Christopher Plummer, Richard Kiley, Bryan Brown, Mare Winningham, Philip Anglim and Jean Simmons... (TV) |
Fee Cleary | Awarded — Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress |
| 1984 | December Flower December Flower December Flower is a British single drama first broadcast at Christmas 1984. It featured the first acting appearance for 17 years by Bryan Forbes.-Plot synopsis:Newly widowed Etta Marsh goes to visit her elderly Aunt, Mary Grey, whom she has never met... (TV) |
Etta Marsh | |
| 1985 | Midas Valley (TV) | Molly Hammond | |
| North and South North and South (TV miniseries) North and South is the title of three American television miniseries broadcast on the ABC network in 1985, 1986, and 1994. Set before, during, and immediately after the American Civil War, they are based on the 1980s trilogy of novels North and South by John Jakes. The 1985 first installment, North... |
Clarissa Gault Main | ||
| 1986 | North and South Book II North and South (TV miniseries) North and South is the title of three American television miniseries broadcast on the ABC network in 1985, 1986, and 1994. Set before, during, and immediately after the American Civil War, they are based on the 1980s trilogy of novels North and South by John Jakes. The 1985 first installment, North... |
Clarissa Gault Main | |
| 1987 | Perry Mason: The Case of the Lost Love Perry Mason (TV series) Perry Mason is an American legal drama produced by Paisano Productions that ran from September 1957 to May 1966 on CBS. The title character, portrayed by Raymond Burr, is a fictional Los Angeles defense attorney who originally appeared in detective fiction by Erle Stanley Gardner... |
Laura Robertson | |
| 1988 | Yellow Pages | Maxine de la Hunt | |
| The Dawning The Dawning The Dawning is a 1988 British film, based on Jennifer Johnston's novel, The Old Jest which depicts the Irish War of Independence through the eyes of the Anglo-Irish landlord class... |
Aunt Mary | ||
| 1989 | Great Expectations Great Expectations (1989 film) Great Expectations is a British television serial based on Charles Dickens' novel of the same title. The six-part serial was first broadcast on the ITV network in 1991 though it was distributed on video in the United States in 1989.... |
Miss Havisham | |
| Murder She Wrote Episode: "Mirror, Mirror on the Wall" |
Nominated — Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actress, Drama Series | ||
| 1991 | Star Trek: The Next Generation Star Trek: The Next Generation Star Trek: The Next Generation is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry as part of the Star Trek franchise. Roddenberry, Rick Berman, and Michael Piller served as executive producers at different times throughout the production... Episode: "The Drumhead" |
Rear Admiral Norah Satie | |
| Dark Shadows Dark Shadows Dark Shadows is a gothic soap opera that originally aired weekdays on the ABC television network, from June 27, 1966 to April 2, 1971. The show was created by Dan Curtis. The story bible, which was written by Art Wallace, does not mention any supernatural elements... |
Elizabeth Collins Stoddard / Naomi Collins | ||
| They Do It with Mirrors | Carrie-Louise Serrocold | ||
| 1995 | How to Make an American Quilt How to Make an American Quilt How to Make an American Quilt is a 1995 movie which was directed by Jocelyn Moorhouse and stars Winona Ryder, Maya Angelou, Ellen Burstyn and Anne Bancroft... |
Em Reed | |
| Daisies in December | Katherine Palmer | ||
| 2001 | Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within is a 2001 Japanese-American computer animated science fiction film directed by Hironobu Sakaguchi, creator of the Final Fantasy series of role-playing video games. It was the first photorealistic computer animated feature film and also holds the record for the most... |
Council Member 2 (voice) | |
| 2003 | Winter Solstice | Countess Lucinda Rhives | Released in Germany as Wintersonne |
| 2004 | Jean Simmons: Rose of England | Herself | |
| Howl's Moving Castle Howl's Moving Castle (film) is a 2004 Japanese animated fantasy film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki of Studio Ghibli and based on the novel of the same name by Diana Wynne Jones... |
Grandma Sophie (voice) | ||
| 2005 | Thru the Moebius Strip Thru the Moebius Strip Thru the Moebius Strip was a Hongkong produced 3D-CGI feature film, made in mainland China.-Plot:The story is about the coming of age of a 14 year old boy who grew up refusing to accept the loss of his father... |
Shepway (voice) | |
| 2009 | Shadows in the Sun | Hannah | |
Awards and nominations
Awards- Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress - Series/Special, The Thorn BirdsThe Thorn Birds (TV miniseries)The Thorn Birds is a television mini-series broadcast on ABC between 27 and 30 March 1983. It starred Richard Chamberlain, Rachel Ward, Barbara Stanwyck, Christopher Plummer, Richard Kiley, Bryan Brown, Mare Winningham, Philip Anglim and Jean Simmons...
(1983) - Golden Globe for Best Musical/Comedy Actress, Guys and DollsGuys and Dolls (film)Guys and Dolls is a 1955 musical film starring Marlon Brando, Jean Simmons, Frank Sinatra and Vivian Blaine. The film was made by the Samuel Goldwyn Company and distributed by MGM. It was produced by Samuel Goldwyn, and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, who also wrote the screenplay...
(1956)
Nominations
- Academy Award for Best ActressAcademy Award for Best ActressPerformance 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...
, The Happy EndingThe Happy EndingThe Happy Ending is a 1969 film written and directed by Richard Brooks, which tells the story of a repressed housewife who longs for liberation from her marriage...
(1969) - Academy Award for Best Supporting ActressAcademy Award for Best Supporting ActressPerformance 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...
, HamletHamlet (1948 film)Hamlet is a 1948 British film adaptation of William Shakespeare's play Hamlet, adapted and directed by and starring Sir Laurence Olivier. Hamlet was Olivier's second film as director, and also the second of the three Shakespeare films that he directed...
(1948) - BAFTA for Best Actress, Guys and DollsGuys and Dolls (film)Guys and Dolls is a 1955 musical film starring Marlon Brando, Jean Simmons, Frank Sinatra and Vivian Blaine. The film was made by the Samuel Goldwyn Company and distributed by MGM. It was produced by Samuel Goldwyn, and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, who also wrote the screenplay...
(1956) - BAFTA for Best Actress, Elmer GantryElmer Gantry (film)Elmer Gantry is a 1960 drama film about a con man and a female evangelist selling religion to small town America. Adapted by director Richard Brooks, the film is based on the 1927 novel of the same name by Sinclair Lewis and stars Burt Lancaster and Jean Simmons.Lancaster won an Academy Award for...
(1960) - Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actress - Drama Series, Murder, She WroteMurder, She WroteMurder, She Wrote is an American television mystery series starring Angela Lansbury as mystery writer and amateur detective Jessica Fletcher. The series aired for 12 seasons from 1984 to 1996 on the CBS network, with 264 episodes transmitted. It was followed by four TV films and a spin-off series,...
(1989) - Golden Globe for Best Drama Actress, Home Before Dark (1959)
- Golden Globe for Best Drama Actress, Elmer GantryElmer Gantry (film)Elmer Gantry is a 1960 drama film about a con man and a female evangelist selling religion to small town America. Adapted by director Richard Brooks, the film is based on the 1927 novel of the same name by Sinclair Lewis and stars Burt Lancaster and Jean Simmons.Lancaster won an Academy Award for...
(1961) - Golden Globe for Best Drama Actress, The Happy EndingThe Happy EndingThe Happy Ending is a 1969 film written and directed by Richard Brooks, which tells the story of a repressed housewife who longs for liberation from her marriage...
(1970) - Golden Globe for Best Musical/Comedy Actress, This Could Be the NightThis Could Be the Night (film)This Could Be the Night is a 1957 MGM comedy-drama film directed by Robert Wise. The movie is based on the short stories by Cornelia Baird Gross and stars Jean Simmons and Paul Douglas. Actor Anthony Franciosa made his debut in this film.-Plot:...
(1958) - Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress - Miniseries, The Thorn BirdsThe Thorn BirdsThe Thorn Birds is a 1977 best-selling novel by Colleen McCullough, an Australian author.In 1983 it was adapted as a television mini-series that, during its television run 27–30 March, became the United States' second highest rated mini-series of all time behind Roots; both series were produced by...
(1984)
External links
- The Jean Simmons Memorial YouTube Page
- Jean Simmons - A Fan Resource
- Jean Simmons 1946 newsreel footage from British Pathe (newsreel search)
- newsreel footage 19th birthday in Fiji
- BBC obituary
- Telegraph obituary
- Obituary in The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
(January 23, 2010) - Biography
- In Appreciation of Jean Simmons (1929-2010)
- Photographs and literature