Estelle Parsons
Biography
Estelle Parsons is an American actress who started out as a singer before turning to acting. Born in Massachusetts in 1927, she worked for the Today show and made her Broadway debut in 1956. She won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for Bonnie and Clyde (1967) and was nominated for Rachel, Rachel (1968). Her other films include Watermelon Man (1970), which brought her a BAFTA nomination, I Never Sang for My Father (1970), For Pete's Sake (1974), and Boys on the Side (1995). On stage, she has been nominated for five Tony Awards and became the first woman to direct at the New York Shakespeare Festival. She also directed several Broadway productions and served as artistic director of the Actors Studio from 1998 to 2003. On television, she played Beverly Harris on Roseanne and its spinoff The Conners. In 2004, she joined the American Theatre Hall of Fame.
98years old
Turns 99 on November 20in 39 days
- Born Marblehead
- Star sign: ScorpioThe sign runs October 23 to November 21
- Also credited as Estelle Margaret Parsons
Movie Career
- Films
- 15
- Career span
- 52 years1967 to 2019
Genres
- Drama60%, 9 films
- Comedy33%, 5 films
- Action13%, 2 films
- Crime13%, 2 films
- Documentary13%, 2 films
First and latest
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A first
Parsons became the first woman to direct at the New York Shakespeare Festival after Joseph Papp saw her 1979 production of Antony and Cleopatra, which mixed in some Spanish.
First role
Parsons made her Broadway debut in 1956 as a member of the ensemble in Happy Hunting, the Ethel Merman musical.
A change of course
Parsons finished her studies at Connecticut College in 1949, went on to Boston University School of Law to study law, and later sang with a band. By the early 1950s she had settled on an acting career.
Behind the camera
Parsons spent five years as the Artistic Director of the Actors Studio, serving in that position from 1998 to 2003.
Beyond film
In Threepenny Opera, Parsons took the role of Mrs. Peachum opposite Lotte Lenya's Jenny, appearing in New York City and on tour.
Estelle Parsons movies on Netflix
Best known for
The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.
Worked with
Estelle Parsons shares two films with Gene Hackman, and one with each of the others. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.
Films together
Gene Hackman's page
Samuel L. Jackson's page
Alec Baldwin's page
Whoopi Goldberg's page
James Earl Jones's page
Charles Durning's page
All films by Arthur Penn
Herbert RossDirector, 1 film, 1995
All films by Herbert Ross
All films by Al Pacino
Box office
What Estelle Parsons's films earned in cinemas worldwide.
Combined worldwide box office
$99.0 million
5 of the 15 films have a worldwide figure.
Of the 15 films: 5 worldwide figure; 4 us gross only; 4 never in cinemas; 2 figure not found.
- 5Worldwide figure
- 4US gross only
- 4Never in cinemas
- 2Figure not found
Top grosser
Highest grossing
The five biggest films earned 100% of the total. The bars are drawn to scale.
- 1$70M70.7% of the total
- 2$23M23.7% of the total
- 3$3.0M3.0% of the total
- 4$1.4M1.4% of the total
- 5$1.1M1.1% of the total
Awards
Two awards and honors from 1963 to 1968, one of them major.
| Year | Award | Film | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Academy Awards | |||
| 1968 | Best Supporting Actress | Bonnie and Clyde | Won |
| Other honors | |||
| 1963 | Theatre World Award | Won | |
Online
Official profiles and reference pages.