The actress Maureen Stapleton was a multifaceted, well-liked performer who took home the Tony, Emmy, and Oscar. Despite her limited film roles, she had four Best Supporting Actress Oscar nods, with her outstanding portrayal of the anarchist Emma Goldman in Reds (1981) earning her the prize. She was praised especially for her portrayal of Tennessee Williams’ characters, whether she was portraying them as harsh or sensitive, serious or humorous. She acted in plays by Neil Simon and Lillian Hellman and created the female leads in The Rose Tattoo and Orpheus Descending. The Gingerbread Lady, in which she starred, is often seen as being based on Stapleton’s turbulent life. Stapleton rose to fame in 1951 thanks to her portrayal of the gruff Sicilian widow in The Rose Tattoo. Williams had created the part for Anna Magnani because she believed her English was insufficient for such a demanding stage role.
A spontaneous dive into her awards and nominations
Stapleton was one of two sisters who live their life for their brother in Lillian Hellman’s Toys in the Attic, a major blockbuster from 1960. Stapleton was nominated for a Tony Award, and Anne Revere, who played her sister, took home the honor. Her performance as Evy Meara, an alcoholic singer who returns from a drying-out session and tries to get rid of her controlling young lover, earned her another Tony Award in 1971. The actress contested Simon’s assertion that the role was mostly a mash-up of Judy Garland and Stapleton herself in her book, A Hell of a Life (1995). However, Stapleton openly admitted to having several rash, misguided relationships. These include one with stage director George Abbott that began when he was 81 and she was 43—as well as two unsuccessful marriages. In George Seaton’s box-office success Airport (1970), she received her second Oscar nomination for her long-suffering Inez Guerrero. Interiors (1978), Woody Allen’s first dramatic film, earned her a third nomination, and she won the award for Warren Beatty’s Reds, based on the life of liberal activist John Reed. Her other films include Cocoon (1985), in which she plays an elderly woman who discovers a way to rejuvenate herself. Another is, The Money Pit (1986), in which she plays a hilarious real-estate scammer. She received an Emmy Award for her role in Truman Capote’s Among the Paths to Eden (1967).
Evergreen legacy
Before winning for her portrayal of Emma Goldman in Reds (1981), she received nominations for her roles in Lonelyhearts (1958), Airport (1970), and Interiors (1978). Stapleton earned the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her work in Reds. She was nominated for five Golden Globe Awards, winning one for her performance in Airport. Bye Bye Birdie (1963), Plaza Suite (1971), The Fan (1981), Cocoon (1985), The Money Pit (1986), and Nuts (1987) were among her other conspicuous film jobs. She got seven Emmy designations and one honor for her work on the TV film Among the Paths to Eden (1967). The Playboy of the Western World served as Stapleton’s Broadway debut in 1946. She proceeded to win the Tony Grant Best Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for The Rose Tattoo in 1951. She likewise won the Tony Grant for Best Entertainer in a Play for The Gingerbread Woman in 1971. She was assigned to four more Tony Awards and drafted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 1981. She was “almost an EGOT,” having won the Triple Crown of Acting and every major performing award except a Grammy in 1975.
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