Ellen Burstyn

Ellen Burstyn, born Edna Rae Gillooly, is an American actress known for her portrayals of complex women in dramatic works. She is one of the few performers to attain the "Triple Crown of Acting," having earned an Academy Award, a Tony Award, and two Primetime Emmy Awards. Over the course of her career, she has also received a BAFTA Award and a Golden Globe Award.

Burstyn was born on December 7, 1932, in Detroit, Michigan, to parents Correine Marie and John Austin Gillooly. Her ancestry includes Irish, French, Pennsylvania Dutch, and Canadian Indian heritage. After her parents divorced when she was young, she was raised alongside her two brothers by her mother and stepfather. She attended Cass Technical High School, where she majored in fashion illustration and was active in drama, cheerleading, and student council. She dropped out during her senior year and subsequently worked as a dancer under the name Kerri Flynn and as a model before moving to New York City.

From 1955 to 1956, she appeared as a dancer on The Jackie Gleason Show under the name Erica Dean. Burstyn then decided to pursue acting, adopting the professional name Ellen McRae. She made her Broadway debut in the 1957 play Fair Game. Throughout the late 1950s and 1960s, she appeared in numerous primetime television series, including Dr. Kildare, Perry Mason, Gunsmoke, and The Time Tunnel. Following her 1964 marriage to Neil Burstyn, she officially adopted the surname Burstyn for her professional credits starting in 1967.

Burstyn achieved widespread critical recognition with her supporting role in Peter Bogdanovich's coming-of-age film The Last Picture Show (1971), which earned her an Academy Award nomination. She followed this success with a starring role as Chris MacNeil in the horror film The Exorcist (1973), securing her first Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. In 1974, she won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in Martin Scorsese's romantic drama Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore. Burstyn also won a Tony Award in 1975 for the Broadway play Same Time, Next Year, later earning another Oscar nomination for its 1978 film adaptation.

During the 1980s and 1990s, Burstyn maintained a steady presence in film, television, and theatre. She earned another Oscar nomination for Resurrection (1980) and starred in television projects such as The People vs. Jean Harris, Pack of Lies, and her 1986 sitcom, The Ellen Burstyn Show. Her feature film credits during this period included Twice in a Lifetime, How to Make an American Quilt, The Spitfire Grill, and Playing by Heart. In 1990, she was honored with the Sarah Siddons Award for her theatrical work in Chicago.

Burstyn received further critical acclaim for her role as Sara Goldfarb in Darren Aronofsky's psychological drama Requiem for a Dream (2000), which earned her a fifth Academy Award nomination. In television, she won Primetime Emmy Awards for her guest role in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit in 2009 and her supporting role in the miniseries Political Animals in 2013. In addition to her acting work, Burstyn became co-president of the Actors Studio drama school in 2000 and was inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame in 2013.