A happy birthday salute to Gena Rowlands, 77 today. One of the great character actors, she's starred as the main protagonist in several films. Her outstanding performances can be sampled in: John Cassavetes' Faces (1968), A Woman Under the Influence (1974), and Opening Night (1977); Woody Allen's Another Woman (1988); Mira Nair's Hysterical Blindness (2002).
Gena Rowlands' birthday reminds me also to salute another great actor, Detroit-born Ellen Burstyn. She's excellent in movies as varied as Peter Bogdanovich's The Last Picture Show (playing Lois Farrow), William Friedkin's The Exorcist (1973), Martin Scorsese's Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974), and Darren Aronofsky's Requiem for a Dream (2000).
Today's Rune: Protection.
Birthdays: James Stuart, Blaise Pascal, The Duchess of Windsor (Wallis Simpson Spencer, b. Bessie Wallis Warfield), Gaetano Alberto Guy Lombardo, Lou Gehrig, Louis Jourdan (Gendre), Pauline Kael, Gena Rowlands, Shirley Goodman, Salman Rushdie, Nick Drake, Ann Wilson, Kathleen Turner, Ylva Anna Maria Lindh, Poppy Montgomery (b. Petal Emma Elizabeth Deveraux Donahue) .
Ciao!
4 comments:
I thought you were going to have a clip of Siouxsie's Face to Face for a moment there - not that she was needed - but made me think - perhaps your thoughts on the once woman of my dreams could be given the Choice Treatment one of these days....
And I'm ashamed to say I know little of Ms. Rowlands...
Will haveta check her out...
When I was younger and watched The Exorcist, and when I was a little bit older and watched Requiem, I never realized that both the mother's were played by the same actress. But a year or so ago I finally realized it, and damn, I thought, she's fuckin awesome!
I've liked Rowlands in everything of hers I've seen, especially "Another Woman." I saw it on cable one night, and bought it, it fascinated me so much.
I have yet to see her late husband's films-- I think all those indy movies he did are out on DVD now.
Post a Comment