Karen Black Photo

Karen Black

Acting

0.9 Popularity Jul 01, 1939 (74 years old) Park Ridge, Illinois, USA

Karen Blanche Black (née Ziegler; July 1, 1939 – August 8, 2013) was an American actress, screenwriter, singer, and songwriter. She rose to prominence for her work in various studio and independent films in the 1970s, frequently portraying eccentric and offbeat characters, and established herself...

Biography

Karen Blanche Black (née Ziegler; July 1, 1939 – August 8, 2013) was an American actress, screenwriter, singer, and songwriter. She rose to prominence for her work in various studio and independent films in the 1970s, frequently portraying eccentric and offbeat characters, and established herself as a figure of New Hollywood. Her career spanned over 50 years and includes nearly 200 credits in both independent and mainstream films. Black received numerous accolades throughout her career, including two Golden Globe Awards, as well as an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

A native of suburban Chicago, Black studied theater at Northwestern University before dropping out and relocating to New York City. She performed on Broadway in 1965 before making her major film debut in Francis Ford Coppola's You're a Big Boy Now (1966). Black relocated to California and was cast as an acid-tripping prostitute in Dennis Hopper's road film Easy Rider (1969). That led to a lead in the drama Five Easy Pieces (1970), in which she played a hopeless beautician, for which she was nominated for an Academy Award and won a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress. Black made her first major commercial picture with the disaster film Airport 1975 (1974), and her subsequent appearance as Myrtle Wilson in The Great Gatsby (1974) won her a second Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress.

Black starred as a glamorous country singer in Robert Altman's ensemble musical drama Nashville (1975), also writing and performing two songs for the soundtrack, which won a Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack. Her portrayal of an aspiring actress in John Schlesinger's drama The Day of the Locust (also 1975) earned her a third Golden Globe nomination, this time for Best Actress. She subsequently took on four roles in Dan Curtis' anthology horror film Trilogy of Terror (1975), followed by Curtis's supernatural horror feature, Burnt Offerings (1976). The same year, she starred as a con artist in Alfred Hitchcock's final film, Family Plot.

In 1982, Black starred as a trans woman in the Robert Altman-directed Broadway debut of Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean, a role she also reprised in Altman's subsequent film adaptation. She next starred in the comedy Can She Bake a Cherry Pie? (1983), followed by Tobe Hooper's remake of Invaders from Mars (1986). For much of the late 1980s and 1990s, Black starred in a variety of arthouse, independent, and horror films, as well as writing her own screenplays. She had a leading role as a villainous mother in Rob Zombie's House of 1000 Corpses (2003), which cemented her status as a cult horror icon. She continued to star in low-profile films throughout the early 2000s, as well as working as a playwright before her death from ampullary cancer in 2013.

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Filmography 205

2018
Deadly Dolls: Deepest Cuts Movie

as (archive footage)

2015
Bottomless Pit Movie

as Karen Black

2015
2014
Wild in Blue Movie

as Justine

2013
Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia Movie

as Self (archive footage)

2013
She Loves Me Not Movie

as Karla

2013
Ooga Booga Movie

as Mrs. Allardyce

2012
Dark Blood Movie

as Motel Woman

2012
Maria My Love Movie

as Maria

2012
OowieWanna Movie

as The Donna

2012
Mommy's Little Monster Movie

as Mrs. Melnick

2011
Letters from the Big Man Movie

as Sean's Colleague

2011
Some Guy Who Kills People Movie

as Ruth Boyd

2010
Nothing Special Movie

as May

2009
Double Duty Movie

as Annabelle

2009
Stuck! Movie

as The Neighbor Lady

2009
Repo Chick Movie

as Aunt De La Chasse

Photos 9

Karen Black Photo
Karen Black Photo
Karen Black Photo
Karen Black Photo
Karen Black Photo
Karen Black Photo
Karen Black Photo
Karen Black Photo
Karen Black Photo

Personal Details

Known For Acting
Gender Not specified
Birthday July 01, 1939 (74 years old)
Died August 08, 2013
Place of Birth Park Ridge, Illinois, USA
Also Known As カレン・ブラック, Karen Blanche Ziegler
Years Active 1960 - 2018
Popularity 0.9
Career Stats
205 Total Credits
170 Movie Roles
28 TV Roles
9 Photos