Dame Angela Brigid Lansbury (October 16, 1925 – October 11, 2022) was an Irish-British and American film, stage, and television actress. Her career spanned eight decades, much of it in the United States, and her work received a great deal of international attention. At the time of her death, she was one of the last surviving stars from the
Golden Age of Hollywood cinema. Lansbury received
many accolades throughout her career, including six
Tony Awards
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual c ...
(including a
Lifetime Achievement Award
Lifetime achievement awards are awarded by various organizations, to recognize contributions over the whole of a career, rather than or in addition to single contributions.
Such awards, and organizations presenting them, include:
A
* A.C. ...
), six
Golden Globe Awards, a
Laurence Olivier Award, and the
Academy Honorary Award, in addition to nominations for three
Academy Awards
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
, eighteen
Primetime Emmy Awards
The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the Primetime ...
, and a
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
. In 2014,
Queen Elizabeth II appointed Lansbury
Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire.
Lansbury was born to an upper-middle-class family in
Central London, the daughter of Irish actress
Moyna Macgill
Moyna Macgill (born Charlotte Lillian McIldowie; 10 December 1895 – 25 November 1975) was an Irish actress from Belfast and the mother of actress Angela Lansbury and producers Edgar and Bruce Lansbury. In 2020, she was listed at number 35 on ...
and English politician
Edgar Lansbury. She moved to the United States in 1940 to escape
the Blitz
The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'.
The Germa ...
and studied acting in New York City. Proceeding to Hollywood in 1942, she signed with
MGM
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...
and obtained her first film roles, in ''
Gaslight
Gas lighting is the production of artificial light from combustion of a gaseous fuel, such as hydrogen, methane, carbon monoxide, propane, butane, acetylene, ethylene, coal gas (town gas) or natural gas. The light is produced either direct ...
'' (1944), ''
National Velvet
''National Velvet'' is a novel by Enid Bagnold (1889–1981), first published in 1935. It was illustrated by Laurian Jones, Bagnold's daughter, who was born in 1921.
Plot summary
''National Velvet'' is the story of a 14-year-old girl named ...
'' (1944), and ''
The Picture of Dorian Gray
''The Picture of Dorian Gray'' is a philosophical novel by Irish writer Oscar Wilde. A shorter novella-length version was published in the July 1890 issue of the American periodical '' Lippincott's Monthly Magazine''.''The Picture of Dorian G ...
'' (1945), earning two
Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
nominations and a
Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress. She appeared in eleven more MGM films, mostly in supporting and character roles, and after her contract ended in 1952, she began to supplement her cinematic work with theatrical appearances. Although she was largely seen as a
B-list
An A-list actor is a major movie star, or one of the most bankable actors in a film industry.
The A-list is part of a larger guide called ''The Hot List'', which ranks the bankability of 1,400 movie actors worldwide, and has become an industry ...
star during this period, her role in the film ''
The Manchurian Candidate
''The Manchurian Candidate'' is a novel by Richard Condon, first published in 1959. It is a political thriller about the son of a prominent U.S. political family who is brainwashed into being an unwitting assassin for a Communist conspiracy.
Th ...
'' (1962) received widespread acclaim, and it is frequently cited as one of her best performances. It earned her a third Academy Award nomination and another Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress.
In 1964, Lansbury transitioned to the
Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
**Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
stage in her first musical,
Stephen Sondheim's ''
Anyone Can Whistle
''Anyone Can Whistle'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents. Described as "a satire on conformity and the insanity of the so-called sane," the show tells a story of an economically depressed town w ...
''. Lansbury gained stardom playing the titular role in
Jerry Herman
Gerald Sheldon Herman (July 10, 1931December 26, 2019) was an American composer and lyricist, known for his work in Broadway theatre.
One of the most commercially successful Broadway songwriters of his time, Herman was the composer and lyricist ...
's musical ''
Mame
MAME (formerly an acronym of Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator) is a free and open-source emulator designed to recreate the hardware of arcade game systems in software on modern personal computers and other platforms. Its intention is to preserve ...
'' (1966), winning her first
Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical
The Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical is awarded to the best actress in a musical, whether a new production or a revival. The award has been given since 1948, but the nominees who did not win have only been publicly ...
, and establishing her as a gay icon. She received two more Tony Awards for her starring roles as Countess Aurelia in ''
Dear World
''Dear World'' is a musical with a book by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman. With its opening, Herman became the first composer-lyricist in history to have three productions running simultaneously on Broa ...
'' in 1969 and Rose in ''
Gypsy
The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...
'' in 1973. She cemented her status as a Broadway icon in 1979 portraying
Mrs. Lovett
Mrs. Lovett is a fictional character appearing in many adaptations of the story ''Sweeney Todd''. Her first name is most commonly referred to as Nellie, although she has also been referred to as Amelia, Margery, Maggie, Sarah, Shirley, Wilhelmina ...
in Sondheim's musical ''
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street'', and garnering her fourth Tony Award.
Lansbury earned international acclaim on television portraying the fictional writer and sleuth
Jessica Fletcher
Jessica Beatrice "J. B." Fletcher (born Jessica Beatrice MacGill) is a detective show character and the protagonist on the American television series '' Murder, She Wrote''.
Portrayed by award-winning actress Angela Lansbury, Fletcher is a bes ...
in the
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
whodunit
A ''whodunit'' or ''whodunnit'' (a colloquial elision of "Who asdone it?") is a complex plot-driven variety of detective fiction in which the puzzle regarding who committed the crime is the main focus. The reader or viewer is provided with the c ...
series ''
Murder, She Wrote'' (1984-1996), among the longest-running and most popular detective series in television history. Through
Corymore Productions
Corymore Productions is an American television production company that was created and founded in 1987 by producer Peter Shaw, the late husband of actress Angela Lansbury.
Shaw launched Corymore Productions at Universal Studios with his two son ...
, a company that she co-owned with her husband,
Peter Shaw, Lansbury assumed ownership of the series and served as its
executive producer during the final four seasons. She was also associated with roles in family films such as ''
Bedknobs and Broomsticks
''Bedknobs and Broomsticks'' is a 1971 American live-action animated musical fantasy film directed by Robert Stevenson and produced by Bill Walsh for Walt Disney Productions. It is loosely based upon the books '' The Magic Bedknob; or, How t ...
'' (1971), ''
The Last Unicorn
''The Last Unicorn'' is a fantasy novel by American author Peter S. Beagle and published in 1968, by Viking Press in the U.S. and The Bodley Head in the U.K. It follows the tale of a unicorn, who believes she is the last of her kind in the wor ...
'' (1982), ''
Beauty and the Beast
''Beauty and the Beast'' (french: La Belle et la Bête) is a fairy tale written by French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740 in ''La Jeune Américaine et les contes marins'' (''The Young American and Marine ...
'' (1991), and ''
Anastasia
Anastasia (from el, Ἀναστασία, translit=Anastasía) is a feminine given name of Greek origin, derived from the Greek word (), meaning "resurrection". It is a popular name in Eastern Europe, particularly in Russia, where it was the most ...
'' (1997). Lansbury toured in a variety of international stage productions and returned to Broadway at the age of 84, earning her fifth Tony Award playing Madame Arcati in ''
Blithe Spirit'' (2009). Lansbury's later film appearances include ''
Nanny McPhee
''Nanny McPhee'' is a 2005 comedy drama fantasy film based on the Nurse Matilda character by Christianna Brand. It was directed by Kirk Jones, coproduced by StudioCanal, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, Working Title Films, Three Strange Angel ...
'' (2005), ''
Mary Poppins Returns
''Mary Poppins Returns'' is a 2018 American musical fantasy film directed by Rob Marshall, with a screenplay written by David Magee and a story by Magee, Marshall, and John DeLuca. Loosely based on the book series ''Mary Poppins'' by P. L. Tr ...
'' (2018), and a (posthumous) cameo in ''
Glass Onion
A glass onion is a shape of bottle developed in the 17th century.
The term may also refer to:
* "Glass Onion" (song), a 1968 song by the Beatles.
* '' Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery'', a 2022 film by Rian Johnson
** ''Glass Onion: A Knives ...
'' (2022).
Early life and childhood
Lansbury was born to an upper-middle-class family on October 16, 1925, in the district of
St Pancras in
Central London. Her birthplace is sometimes given, wrongly, as
Poplar, East London. Lansbury said that she had ancestral connections to Poplar but was born in
Regent's Park
Regent's Park (officially The Regent's Park) is one of the Royal Parks of London. It occupies of high ground in north-west Inner London, administratively split between the City of Westminster and the Borough of Camden (and historically betwee ...
, Central London.
[ "I want to make one thing clear: I was not born in Poplar, that's not true, I was born in Regent's Park, so I wasn't born in the East End, I wish I could say I had been. Certainly, my antecedents were: my grandfather, my father." (mins 3–4)] Her mother was
Belfast
Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...
-born actress
Moyna Macgill
Moyna Macgill (born Charlotte Lillian McIldowie; 10 December 1895 – 25 November 1975) was an Irish actress from Belfast and the mother of actress Angela Lansbury and producers Edgar and Bruce Lansbury. In 2020, she was listed at number 35 on ...
(born Charlotte Lillian McIldowie). Macgill regularly appeared on stage in the
West End and starred in several films. Lansbury's father was the wealthy English timber merchant and politician
Edgar Lansbury, a member of the
Communist Party of Great Britain and former mayor of the
Metropolitan Borough of Poplar
Poplar was a local government district in the metropolitan area of London, England. It was formed as a district of the Metropolis in 1855 and became a metropolitan borough in the County of London in 1900. It comprised Poplar, Millwall, Bromle ...
. Her paternal grandfather was the
Labour Party leader and anti-war activist
George Lansbury
George Lansbury (22 February 1859 – 7 May 1940) was a British politician and social reformer who led the Labour Party from 1932 to 1935. Apart from a brief period of ministerial office during the Labour government of 1929–31, he spe ...
. Angela felt "awed" by him and considered him "a giant in my youth". She had an older half-sister, Isolde, born of Moyna's previous marriage to writer and director
Reginald Denham
Reginald Denham (10 January 1894 – 4 February 1983) was an English writer, theatre and film director, actor and film producer.
Biography
Reginald H. F. Denham was born in London, England, in 1894.
He spent a good part of his career dire ...
. In January 1930, when Angela was four, her mother gave birth to twin boys,
Bruce
The English language name Bruce arrived in Scotland with the Normans, from the place name Brix, Manche in Normandy, France, meaning "the willowlands". Initially promulgated via the descendants of king Robert the Bruce (1274−1329), it has been ...
and
Edgar, leading the Lansburys to move from their Poplar flat to a house in
Mill Hill
Mill Hill is a suburb in the London Borough of Barnet, England. It is situated around northwest of Charing Cross. Mill Hill was in the historic county of Middlesex until 1965, when it became part of Greater London. Its population counted 18,45 ...
, North London. They spent weekends on a rural farm in
Berrick Salome
Berrick Salome is a village and civil parish in South Oxfordshire, England, about north of Wallingford. Since the 1992 boundary changes, the parish has included the whole of Roke and Rokemarsh (previously largely in the parish of Benson) an ...
, near Wallingford, Oxfordshire.
When Lansbury was nine, her father died from stomach cancer and she retreated into playing characters as a coping mechanism. Facing financial difficulty, her mother became engaged to Leckie Forbes, a Scottish colonel, and moved into his house in
Hampstead. Although Lansbury received an education at
South Hampstead High School
)
, established = as St. Johns Wood School
, closed =
, type = Independent day school
, religious_affiliation =
, president =
, head_label =
, head ...
from 1934 until 1939, where she was two years below
Glynis Johns
Glynis Margaret Payne Johns (born 5 October 1923) is a South African-born British former actress, dancer, musician and singer. Recognised as a film and Broadway icon, Johns has a career spanning eight decades, in which she appeared in more than ...
(who later became an actress and another of the last surviving stars from the
Golden Age of Hollywood
Golden means made of, or relating to gold.
Golden may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
*Golden, in the parish of Probus, Cornwall
*Golden Cap, Dorset
*Golden Square, Soho, London
*Golden Valley, a valley on the River Frome in Gloucestershir ...
), she considered herself largely self-educated, learning from books, theatre and cinema. She became a self-professed "complete movie maniac", visiting the cinema regularly and imagining herself as certain characters. Keen on playing the piano, she briefly studied music at the Ritman School of Dancing. In 1940, she began studying acting at the
Webber Douglas School of Singing and Dramatic Art Webber may refer to:
* Webber, Kansas, a US city
* Webber Township, Jefferson County, Illinois, USA
* Webber Township, Lake County, Michigan, USA
* Webber International University, in Babson Park, Florida, USA
* Webber (surname), people with the su ...
in Kensington, West London, first appearing onstage as a
lady-in-waiting in the school's production of
Maxwell Anderson
James Maxwell Anderson (December 15, 1888 – February 28, 1959) was an American playwright, author, poet, journalist, and lyricist.
Background
Anderson was born on December 15, 1888, in Atlantic, Pennsylvania, the second of eight children to ...
's ''
Mary of Scotland''.
Angela's grandfather died that year, and with the onset of
the Blitz
The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'.
The Germa ...
, Macgill decided to take Angela, Bruce and Edgar to the United States. Isolde remained in Britain with her new husband, actor
Peter Ustinov. Macgill secured a job supervising 60 British children who were being evacuated to North America aboard the ''
Duchess of Atholl'', arriving with them in
Montreal, Quebec
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-pe ...
, Canada, in mid-August. From there, she proceeded by train to New York City, where she was financially sponsored by a
Wall Street businessman, Charles T. Smith, moving in with his family at their home at
Mahopac, New York
Mahopac ( or ) is a hamlet (and census-designated place) in the town of Carmel in Putnam County, New York, United States. Also known as Lake Mahopac, the exurb is located some north of New York City, on US Route 6 at the county's southern centr ...
. Lansbury received a scholarship from the
American Theatre Wing
The American Theatre Wing (the Wing for short) is a New York City–based non-profit organization "dedicated to supporting excellence and education in theatre", according to its mission statement. Originally known as the Stage Women's War Relief ...
which allowed her to study at the
Feagin School of Drama and Radio in New York City, where she appeared in performances of
William Congreve
William Congreve (24 January 1670 – 19 January 1729) was an English playwright and poet of the Restoration period. He is known for his clever, satirical dialogue and influence on the comedy of manners style of that period. He was also a mi ...
's ''
The Way of the World
''The Way of the World'' is a play written by the English playwright William Congreve. It premiered in early March 1700 in the theatre in Lincoln's Inn Fields in London. It is widely regarded as one of the best Restoration comedies and is stil ...
'' and
Oscar Wilde
Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular playwrights in London in the early 1890s. He is ...
's ''
Lady Windermere's Fan
''Lady Windermere's Fan, A Play About a Good Woman'' is a four-act comedy by Oscar Wilde, first performed on Saturday, 20 February 1892, at the St James's Theatre in London.
The story concerns Lady Windermere, who suspects that her husband is ...
''. She graduated in March 1942, by which time the family had moved to a flat on Morton Street in
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village ( , , ) is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street to the north, Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the south, and the Hudson River to the west. Greenwich Village ...
in the New York City borough of
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
.
Acting career
Film
Career beginnings and breakthrough (1940–1950)
Macgill secured work in a Canadian touring production of ''
Tonight at 8.30.'' Lansbury joined her and gained her first theatrical job as a nightclub act at the Samovar Club in
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
. Claiming to be 19 when she was only 16,
she earned $60 a week singing songs by
Noël Coward. Lansbury returned to New York City in August 1942. By then, her mother had moved to Hollywood, Los Angeles, hoping to resurrect her film career; Lansbury and her brothers followed. The family moved into a bungalow in
Laurel Canyon
Laurel Canyon is a mountainous neighborhood in the Hollywood Hills region of the Santa Monica Mountains, within the Hollywood Hills West district of Los Angeles, California. The main thoroughfare of Laurel Canyon Boulevard connects the neighb ...
, and Lansbury and her mother obtained Christmas jobs at the
Bullocks Wilshire
Bullocks Wilshire, located at 3050 Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles, California, is a Art Deco building. The building opened in September 1929 as a luxury department store for owner John G. Bullock (owner of the more mainstream Bullock's in Dow ...
department store in Los Angeles. Macgill was sacked for incompetence, leaving the family to subsist on Lansbury's wages of $28 a week. Lansbury befriended a group of
gay men and became privy to the city's underground gay scene. She and her mother attended lectures given by spiritual guru
Jiddu Krishnamurti; she met
Aldous Huxley
Aldous Leonard Huxley (26 July 1894 – 22 November 1963) was an English writer and philosopher. He wrote nearly 50 books, both novels and non-fiction works, as well as wide-ranging essays, narratives, and poems.
Born into the prominent Huxle ...
at one of these lectures.
![Angela Lansbury in The Picture of Dorian Gray trailer](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/Angela_Lansbury_in_The_Picture_of_Dorian_Gray_trailer.jpg)
At a party hosted by her mother, Lansbury met
John van Druten
John William Van Druten (1 June 190119 December 1957) was an English playwright and theatre director. He began his career in London, and later moved to America, becoming a U.S. citizen. He was known for his plays of witty and urbane observation ...
, who had recently co-authored a script for ''
Gaslight
Gas lighting is the production of artificial light from combustion of a gaseous fuel, such as hydrogen, methane, carbon monoxide, propane, butane, acetylene, ethylene, coal gas (town gas) or natural gas. The light is produced either direct ...
'' (1944), a mystery-thriller based on
Patrick Hamilton's 1938 play ''
Gas Light
''Gas Light'' is a 1938 thriller play, set in the Victorian era, written by the British novelist and playwright Patrick Hamilton. Hamilton's play is a dark tale of a marriage based on deceit and trickery, and a husband committed to driving h ...
''. Set in
Victorian London, the film starred
Ingrid Bergman and was directed by
George Cukor
George Dewey Cukor (; July 7, 1899 – January 24, 1983) was an American film director and film producer. He mainly concentrated on comedies and literary adaptations. His career flourished at RKO when David O. Selznick, the studio's Head ...
. Van Druten suggested that Lansbury would be perfect for the role of Nancy Oliver, a conniving
cockney
Cockney is an accent and dialect of English, mainly spoken in London and its environs, particularly by working-class and lower middle-class Londoners. The term "Cockney" has traditionally been used to describe a person from the East End, or ...
maid. She was accepted for the part, though a social worker had to accompany her on the set because she was only 17. She obtained an agent, Earl Kramer, and signed a seven-year contract with
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...
, starting at $500 a week. She used her real name as her professional name. Her casting received immediate attention: In August 1943,
'' Variety'' magazine claimed that Lansbury had gone from unknown to a movie star in just four days.
''Gaslight'' received mixed reviews from critics, but Lansbury's performance was widely praised. The film earned seven Academy Award nominations, including one for Lansbury as
Best Supporting Actress.
Her next film appearance was as Edwina Brown, the older sister of Velvet Brown in ''
National Velvet
''National Velvet'' is a novel by Enid Bagnold (1889–1981), first published in 1935. It was illustrated by Laurian Jones, Bagnold's daughter, who was born in 1921.
Plot summary
''National Velvet'' is the story of a 14-year-old girl named ...
'' (1944). The film was a major commercial hit, and Lansbury developed a lifelong friendship with
Elizabeth Taylor
Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor (February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2011) was a British-American actress. She began her career as a child actress in the early 1940s and was one of the most popular stars of classical Hollywood cinema in the 1950s. ...
, who played Velvet. Lansbury next appeared in ''
The Picture of Dorian Gray
''The Picture of Dorian Gray'' is a philosophical novel by Irish writer Oscar Wilde. A shorter novella-length version was published in the July 1890 issue of the American periodical '' Lippincott's Monthly Magazine''.''The Picture of Dorian G ...
'' (1945), a cinematic adaptation of
Oscar Wilde
Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular playwrights in London in the early 1890s. He is ...
's 1890
novel of the same name, directed by
Albert Lewin
Albert Lewin (September 23, 1894 – May 9, 1968) was an American film director, producer, and screenwriter.
Personal life
Lewin was born in Brooklyn, New York and raised in Newark, New Jersey. He earned a master's degree at Harvard and taught ...
. Lansbury was cast as Sibyl Vane, a working-class
music hall
Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as variety. Perceptions of a distinction in Bri ...
singer who falls in love with the protagonist,
Dorian Gray
''The Picture of Dorian Gray'' is a philosophical novel by Irish writer Oscar Wilde. A shorter novella-length version was published in the July 1890 issue of the American periodical '' Lippincott's Monthly Magazine''.''The Picture of Dorian G ...
(
Hurd Hatfield
William Rukard Hurd Hatfield (December 7, 1917 – December 26, 1998) was an American actor. He is best known for having played characters of handsome, narcissism, narcissistic young men, most notably Dorian Gray in the film ''The Picture of Dori ...
). Although the film was not a financial success, Lansbury's performance once more drew praise, earning her a
. She was again nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, losing to
Anne Revere
Anne Revere (June 25, 1903 – December 18, 1990) was an American actress and a progressive member of the board of the Screen Actors' Guild. She was best known for her work on Broadway and her film portrayals of mothers in a series of critical ...
, who played Mrs Brown in ''National Velvet''.
On September 27, 1945, Lansbury married
Richard Cromwell
Richard Cromwell (4 October 162612 July 1712) was an English statesman who was the second and last Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland and son of the first Lord Protector, Oliver Cromwell.
On his father's death ...
, a visual artist and decorator whose acting career had come to a standstill. Their marriage was troubled from the start. Cromwell was actually gay, and in denial; he had married Lansbury in the futile hope that doing so would miraculously "turn" him heterosexual. The marriage ended less than a year, when she filed for divorce on September 11, 1946. However, the two would remain friends until his death.
In December 1946, she was introduced to fellow English expatriate
Peter Pullen Shaw at a party held by Hurd Hatfield in
Ojai Valley
Ojai ( ; Chumash: ''’Awhaỳ'') is a city in Ventura County, California. Located in the Ojai Valley, it is northwest of Los Angeles and east of Santa Barbara. The valley is part of the east–west trending Western Transverse Ranges and is ...
. An aspiring actor, Shaw was also signed to MGM, and he had recently ended a relationship with
Joan Crawford
Joan Crawford (born Lucille Fay LeSueur; March 23, ncertain year from 1904 to 1908was an American actress. She started her career as a dancer in traveling theatrical companies before debuting on Broadway theatre, Broadway. Crawford was si ...
. He and Lansbury became a couple, living together before she proposed marriage to him.
![Angela Lansbury in Till the Clouds Roll By](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/17/Angela_Lansbury_in_Till_the_Clouds_Roll_By.jpg)
They were intent on getting married in England, but the
Church of England
The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...
would not perform a marriage ceremony for a divorced person whose spouse was still living. So in August 1949, they wed in a
Church of Scotland
The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland.
The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Scottish Reformation, Reformation of 1560, when it split from t ...
ceremony at
St. Columba's Church in
Knightsbridge
Knightsbridge is a residential and retail district in central London, south of Hyde Park, London, Hyde Park. It is identified in the London Plan as one of two international retail centres in London, alongside the West End of London, West End.
...
, London. They honeymooned in France and returned to the United States, where they settled into Lansbury's home in the
Rustic Canyon neighbourhood of Los Angeles, close to Santa Monica and the beach, in 1951, they became naturalized US citizens, retaining their British citizenship via dual nationality.
Established character actress (1940–1960)
Following the success of ''Gaslight'' and ''The Picture of Dorian Gray'', MGM cast Lansbury in 11 more films until her contract with the company ended in 1952. Keeping her among their B-list stars, MGM used her less than actresses of the same age. Biographers Edelman and Kupferberg believe that the majority of these films were "mediocre", doing little to further her career. George Cukor believed Lansbury had been "consistently miscast" by MGM. She was repeatedly made to portray older women, often villainous, and became increasingly dissatisfied with working for MGM. "I kept wanting to play the
Jean Arthur
Jean Arthur (born Gladys Georgianna Greene; October 17, 1900 – June 19, 1991) was an American Broadway and film actress whose career began in silent films in the early 1920s and lasted until the early 1950s.
Arthur had feature roles in three F ...
roles, and
Mr. Mayer kept casting me as a series of venal bitches," she recalled. Suffering from the post-1948 slump in box office revenue, the company was slashing film budgets and cutting staff.
Lansbury's first American character is "Em", a tough honky-tonk saloon singer who slaps Judy Garland's character in the Oscar-winning
Wild West
The American frontier, also known as the Old West or the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that began with European colonial ...
musical ''
The Harvey Girls
''The Harvey Girls'' is a 1946 Technicolor American musical film produced by Arthur Freed for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It is based on the 1942 novel of the same name by Samuel Hopkins Adams, about Fred Harvey's Harvey House waitresses. Directed ...
'' (1946) Lansbury's singing voice was dubbed. She appeared in ''
The Hoodlum Saint
''The Hoodlum Saint'' is a 1946 American drama film starring William Powell and Esther Williams.
Plot
Major Terry O'Neill (William Powell) returns to Baltimore in 1919, after the end of World War I, expecting to get his old newspaper night edit ...
'' (1946), ''
Till the Clouds Roll By
''Till The Clouds Roll By'' is a 1946 American Technicolor musical film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. A fictionalized biopic of composer Jerome Kern, portrayed by Robert Walker, Kern was originally involved with the production, but died before ...
'' (1947), ''
If Winter Comes
''If Winter Comes'' is a 1947 drama film released by MGM. The movie was directed by Victor Saville and based on the 1921 novel by A.S.M. Hutchinson. The film tells the story of an English textbook writer who takes in a pregnant girl. The novel ...
'' (1947), ''
Tenth Avenue Angel
''Tenth Avenue Angel'' is a 1948 American film directed by Roy Rowland and starring Margaret O'Brien, Angela Lansbury, and George Murphy. It chronicles the life and family of Flavia Mills (Margaret O'Brien) in the late 1930s. Filming took place 1 ...
'' (1948), ''
The Three Musketeers
''The Three Musketeers'' (french: Les Trois Mousquetaires, links=no, ) is a French historical adventure novel written in 1844 by French author Alexandre Dumas. It is in the swashbuckler genre, which has heroic, chivalrous swordsmen who fight ...
'' (1948), ''
State of the Union
The State of the Union Address (sometimes abbreviated to SOTU) is an annual message delivered by the president of the United States to a joint session of the United States Congress near the beginning of each calendar year on the current conditio ...
'' (1948), and ''
The Red Danube
''The Red Danube'' is a 1949 American drama film directed by George Sidney and starring Walter Pidgeon. The film is set during Operation Keelhaul and was based on the 1947 novel '' Vespers in Vienna'' by Bruce Marshall.
Plot
In Rome shortly af ...
'' (1949). She was loaned by MGM, first to
United Artists
United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the studi ...
for ''
The Private Affairs of Bel Ami
''The Private Affairs of Bel Ami'' is a 1947 American drama film directed by Albert Lewin. The film stars George Sanders as a ruthless cad who uses women to rise in Parisian society, co-starring Angela Lansbury and Ann Dvorak. It is based on the ...
'' (1947), and then to
Paramount
Paramount (from the word ''paramount'' meaning "above all others") may refer to:
Entertainment and music companies
* Paramount Global, also known simply as Paramount, an American mass media company formerly known as ViacomCBS. The following busin ...
for ''
Samson and Delilah
Samson and Delilah are Biblical
figures.
Samson and Delilah may also refer to:
In music
* ''Samson and Delilah'' (opera), an opera by Camille Saint-Saëns
* ''Samson & Delilah'' (album), released in 2013 by V V Brown
* "Samson and Delilah" (t ...
'' (1949). She appeared as a villainous maidservant in ''
Kind Lady'' (1951) and a French adventuress in ''
Mutiny'' (1952). Turning to the radio, in 1948 she appeared in an audio adaptation of
Somerset Maugham
William Somerset Maugham ( ; 25 January 1874 – 16 December 1965) was an English writer, known for his plays, novels and short stories. Born in Paris, where he spent his first ten years, Maugham was schooled in England and went to a German un ...
's ''
Of Human Bondage
''Of Human Bondage'' is a 1915 novel by W. Somerset Maugham. The novel is generally agreed to be Maugham's masterpiece and to be strongly autobiographical in nature, although he stated, "This is a novel, not an autobiography; though much in i ...
'' for ''
NBC University Theatre
''NBC University Theater'' (also known as ''NBC University Theater of the Air'', ''NBC Theater of the Air'' or ''NBC Theater'') was a brand the National Broadcasting Co. applied to a category of radio programming. Although not actually a universit ...
,'' and the following year she starred in their adaptation of
Jane Austen
Jane Austen (; 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for her six major novels, which interpret, critique, and comment upon the British landed gentry at the end of the 18th century. Austen's plots of ...
's ''
Pride and Prejudice''. Moving into television, she appeared in a 1950 episode of ''
Robert Montgomery Presents
''Robert Montgomery Presents'' is an American dramatic television series which was produced by NBC from January 30, 1950, until June 24, 1957. The live show had several sponsors during its eight-year run, and the title was altered to feature the ...
'' adapted from
A.J. Cronin
Archibald Joseph Cronin (19 July 1896 – 6 January 1981), known as A. J. Cronin, was a Scottish physician and novelist. His best-known novel is ''The Citadel'' (1937), about a Scottish doctor who serves in a Welsh mining village before achievi ...
's ''
The Citadel
The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina, commonly known simply as The Citadel, is a Public college, public United States senior military college, senior military college in Charleston, South Carolina. Established in 1842, it is one ...
''.
![Angela Lansbury NYWTS](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c0/Angela_Lansbury_NYWTS.jpg)
Unhappy with the roles MGM was giving her, Lansbury instructed her manager, Harry Friedman of
MCA Inc.
MCA Inc. (originally an initialism for Music Corporation of America) was an American media conglomerate founded in 1924. Originally a talent agency with artists in the music business as clients, the company became a major force in the film ind ...
, to terminate her contract in 1952, the same year that her son Anthony was born. Soon after his birth, she joined the East Coast touring productions of two recent Broadway hits:
Howard Lindsay
Howard Lindsay, born Herman Nelke, (March 29, 1889 – February 11, 1968) was an American playwright, librettist, director, actor and theatrical producer. He is best known for his writing work as part of the collaboration of Lindsay and Crouse ...
and
Russel Crouse
Russel Crouse (20 February 1893 – 3 April 1966) was an American playwright and librettist, best known for his work in the Broadway writing partnership of Lindsay and Crouse.
Life and career
Born in Findlay, Ohio, Crouse was the son of Sarah ...
's ''Remains to Be Seen'' and
Louis Verneuil
Louis Jacques Marie Collin du Bocage (14 May 1893 – 3 November 1952), better known by the pen name Louis Verneuil, was a French playwright, screenwriter, and actor.
Biography
Born in Paris, Verneuil wrote approximately sixty plays and was be ...
's ''
Affairs of State
''Affairs of State'' is a 1950 Broadway comedy written and directed by Louis Verneuil. It opened at the Royale Theatre, then moved to the Music Box Theatre and played for a total of 610 performances.
It was the first play Verneuil wrote in Engli ...
''. Biographer Margaret Bonanno later wrote that at this point, Lansbury's career "hit an all-time low".
In April 1953, her daughter, Deirdre Angela Shaw, was born. Shaw had a son by a previous marriage, David, and after gaining legal custody of the boy in 1953, brought him to California to live with the family. With three children to raise, the Shaws moved to a larger house on San Vicente Boulevard in
Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...
. However, Lansbury did not feel entirely comfortable in the Hollywood social scene. She later observed that because of her British roots, "in Hollywood, I always felt like a stranger in a strange land." In 1959, the family moved to
Malibu, settling into a house on the
Pacific Coast Highway that had been designed by
Aaron Green. There, Lansbury and Peter escaped the Hollywood scene and were able to send their children to a local public school.
Returning to the cinema as a freelance actress, Lansbury found herself typecast as a woman older—sometimes far older—than herself. "Hollywood made me old before my time," she said later, noting that in her 20s she was receiving
fan mail
Fan mail is mail sent to a public figure, especially a celebrity, by their admirers or " fans". In return for a fan's support and admiration, public figures may send an autographed poster, photo, reply letter or note thanking their fans for th ...
from people who believed her to be in her 40s. She had minor roles in the films ''
A Life at Stake
''A Life at Stake'' is a 1955 American film noir directed by Paul Guilfoyle and starring Angela Lansbury, Keith Andes and Claudia Barrett. It was an independent production, made and distributed outside the Hollywood studio system.
Plot summa ...
'' (1954), ''
A Lawless Street
''A Lawless Street'' is a 1955 American Western film directed by Joseph H. Lewis and starring Randolph Scott and Angela Lansbury. The film is also known as ''The Marshal of Medicine Bend'' in the United States.
Plot
The marshal of Medicine Ben ...
'' (1955), and ''
The Purple Mask'' (1955), later describing the last as "the worst movie I ever made". She played Princess Gwendolyn in the comedy film ''
The Court Jester
''The Court Jester'' is a 1955 musical-comedy, medieval romance, costume drama film starring Danny Kaye, Glynis Johns, Basil Rathbone, Angela Lansbury and Cecil Parker.
The movie was written, produced, and directed by Melvin Frank and Norman ...
'' (1956), and then took the role of a wife who kills her husband in ''
Please Murder Me
''Please Murder Me!'' is a 1956 American film noir directed by Peter Godfrey (director), Peter Godfrey and starring Angela Lansbury, Raymond Burr and Dick Foran. The film contains an incomplete copyright notice omitting mention of its claimant an ...
'' (1956). She appeared as Minnie Littlejohn in ''
The Long, Hot Summer
''The Long, Hot Summer'' is a 1958 American drama film directed by Martin Ritt. The screenplay was written by Irving Ravetch and Harriet Frank Jr., based in part on three works by William Faulkner: the 1931 novella " Spotted Horses", the 1939 s ...
'' (1958), and as Mabel Claremont in ''
The Reluctant Debutante'' (1958), which she filmed in Paris. Biographer
Martin Gottfried
Martin Gottfried (October 9, 1933 – March 6, 2014) was an American critic, columnist and author. He was born in Brooklyn, New York.
Biography
Early career
Gottfried was a 1959 graduate of Columbia College in New York City, and attended Columb ...
says that these latter two are roles restored Lansbury's status as an "A-picture actress". Throughout this period, she continued appearing on television, starring in episodes of ''Revlon Mirror Theatre'', ''
Ford Theatre
''Ford Theatre'', spelled ''Ford Theater'' for the original radio version and known, in full, as ''The Ford Television Theatre'' for the TV version, is a radio and television anthology series broadcast in the United States in the 1940s and 1950 ...
'' and ''
The George Gobel Show
George Leslie Goebel (May 20, 1919 – February 24, 1991) was an American humorist, actor, and comedian. He was best known as the star of his own weekly comedy variety television series, ''The George Gobel Show'', broadcasting from 1954 to 195 ...
'', and she became a regular on the game show ''
Pantomime Quiz
''Pantomime Quiz'', initially titled ''Pantomime Quiz Time'' and later ''Stump the Stars'', was an American television game show produced and hosted by Mike Stokey. Running from 1947—1959, it has the distinction of being one of the few tel ...
''.
Independent films and further acclaim (1960–1980)
Lansbury's rare sympathetic role as Mavis in ''
The Dark at the Top of the Stairs'' (1960) drew critical acclaim, as did her performances as a manipulative, destructive mother in ''
All Fall Down'' (1962) and the scheming ideologue Mrs Iselin in the
Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
thriller ''
The Manchurian Candidate
''The Manchurian Candidate'' is a novel by Richard Condon, first published in 1959. It is a political thriller about the son of a prominent U.S. political family who is brainwashed into being an unwitting assassin for a Communist conspiracy.
Th ...
'' (1962).
John Frankenheimer
John Michael Frankenheimer (February 19, 1930 – July 6, 2002) was an American film and television director known for social dramas and action/suspense films. Among his credits were ''Birdman of Alcatraz'' (1962), '' The Manchurian Candidate'' ( ...
cast her in the part of Iselin based on her performance in ''
All Fall Down''. Lansbury was only three years older than actor
Laurence Harvey, who played her son in the film. She agreed to appear in ''The Manchurian Candidate'' after reading the original novel, which she described as "one of the most exciting political books I ever read". Biographers Edelman and Kupferberg consider this role "her enduring cinematic triumph", while Gottfried states that it was "the strongest, the most memorable and the best picture she ever made ... she gives her finest film performance in it." Lansbury received her third Best Supporting Actress Academy Award nomination for the film, losing to
Patty Duke
Anna Marie "Patty" Duke (December 14, 1946 – March 29, 2016) was an American actress and mental health advocate. Over the course of her acting career, she was the recipient of an Academy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, three Primetime Emmy Aw ...
for ''
The Miracle Worker
''The Miracle Worker'' refers to a broadcast, a play and various other adaptations of Helen Keller's 1903 autobiography ''The Story of My Life''. The first of these works was a 1957 ''Playhouse 90'' broadcast written by William Gibson and sta ...
'' (1962).
Lansbury played Sybil Logan in ''
In the Cool of the Day
''In the Cool of the Day'' is a 1963 British-American romantic drama film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in Metrocolor and Panavision. The film is directed by Robert Stevens and starring Peter Finch, Jane Fonda, Angela Lansbury, Arthur Hill, a ...
'' (1963)—a film she renounced as awful— wealthy socialite Isabel Boyd in ''
The World of Henry Orient
''The World of Henry Orient'' is a 1964 American comedy film directed by George Roy Hill and starring Peter Sellers, Paula Prentiss, Angela Lansbury, Tippy Walker, Merrie Spaeth, Phyllis Thaxter, Bibi Osterwald and Tom Bosley. It is based o ...
'' (1964), the widow Phyllis in ''
Dear Heart
''Dear Heart'' is a 1964 American romantic-comedy film starring Glenn Ford and Geraldine Page as lonely middle-aged people who fall in love at a hotel convention. It was directed by Delbert Mann, from a screenplay by Tad Mosel. Its theme song " ...
'' (1964), and the mother of screen actress
Jean Harlow
Jean Harlow (born Harlean Harlow Carpenter; March 3, 1911 – June 7, 1937) was an American actress. Known for her portrayal of "bad girl" characters, she was the leading sex symbol of the early 1930s and one of the defining figures of the ...
(played by
Carroll Baker
Carroll Baker (born May 28, 1931) is an American former actress. After studying under Lee Strasberg at the Actors Studio, Baker began performing on Broadway in 1954. From there, she was recruited by director Elia Kazan to play the lead in t ...
) in
Harlow
Harlow is a large town and local government district located in the west of Essex, England. Founded as a new town, it is situated on the border with Hertfordshire and London, Harlow occupies a large area of land on the south bank of the upp ...
(1965).
Lansbury declined several film roles, including the lead in ''
The Killing of Sister George
''The Killing of Sister George'' is a 1964 play by Frank Marcus that was later adapted into a 1968 film directed by Robert Aldrich.
Stage version
Sister George is a beloved character in the popular radio series ''Applehurst'', a district nurse ...
'' (1968) and the role of Nurse Ratched in ''
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'' (1975). Instead, she accepted the role of the Countess von Ornstein, an ageing German aristocrat who falls in love with a younger man, in ''
Something for Everyone
''Something for Everyone'' is a 1970 American black comedy film starring Angela Lansbury, Michael York, Anthony Higgins, and Jane Carr.
The film was based on the novel ''The Cook'' by Harry Kressing, with a screenplay by Hugh Wheeler. The pl ...
'' (1970), which was filmed on location in
Hohenschwangau
Hohenschwangau is a former village and now an urban district of the municipality of Schwangau, Ostallgäu district, Bavaria, Germany.
It is located between Schloss Neuschwanstein and Schloss Hohenschwangau and is visited by about 2 million pe ...
, Bavaria. She played the middle-aged English witch Eglantine Price in the Disney film ''
Bedknobs and Broomsticks
''Bedknobs and Broomsticks'' is a 1971 American live-action animated musical fantasy film directed by Robert Stevenson and produced by Bill Walsh for Walt Disney Productions. It is loosely based upon the books '' The Magic Bedknob; or, How t ...
'' (1971). This was her first lead in a screen musical, and it led to her publicizing the film on television programmes like the ''
David Frost Show''. She later noted that as a big commercial hit, this film "secured an enormous audience for me".
Lansbury spent most of the 1970s on stage rather than on screen, but she was acclaimed for her supporting performance as the perpetually inebriated romance novelist and murder suspect Salome Otterbourne in the classic 1978 whodunnit ''
Death on the Nile
''Death on the Nile'' is a work of detective fiction by British writer Agatha Christie, published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club on 1 November 1937 and in the US by Dodd, Mead and Company the following year. The UK edition retailed at s ...
'', a turn which garnered her a
BAFTA Award nomination, and a
National Board of Review
The National Board of Review of Motion Pictures is a non-profit organization of New York City area film enthusiasts. Its awards, which are announced in early December, are considered an early harbinger of the film awards season that culminat ...
Award nomination and win for her portrayal.
Johnny Depp
John Christopher Depp II (born June 9, 1963) is an American actor and musician. He is the recipient of multiple accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award, in addition to nominations for three Academy Award ...
cited Lansbury's performance as one of his inspirations for his performance as
Ichabod Crane in
Tim Burton
Timothy Walter Burton (born August 25, 1958) is an American filmmaker and animator. He is known for his gothic fantasy and horror films such as '' Beetlejuice'' (1988), '' Edward Scissorhands'' (1990), '' The Nightmare Before Christmas'' (1993 ...
's ''
Sleepy Hollow.'' Lansbury appeared as Miss Froy in ''
The Lady Vanishes
''The Lady Vanishes'' is a 1938 British mystery thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Margaret Lockwood and Michael Redgrave. Written by Sidney Gilliat and Frank Launder, based on the 1936 novel ''The Wheel Spins'' by Ethel L ...
'' (1979), a remake of
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...
's earlier
film, released in 1938. ''
The Mirror Crack'd
''The Mirror Crack'd'' is a 1980 British mystery film directed by Guy Hamilton from a screenplay by Jonathan Hales and Barry Sandler, based on Agatha Christie's Miss Marple novel ''The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side'' (1962). It stars Ange ...
'' (1980) featured her in another film based on
an Agatha Christie novel, this time as
Miss Marple
Miss Marple is a fictional character in Agatha Christie's crime novels and short stories. Jane Marple lives in the village of St. Mary Mead and acts as an amateur consulting detective. Often characterized as an elderly spinster, she is one of Ch ...
, a sleuth in 1950s
Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
. Lansbury hoped to get away from the depiction of the character popularised by
Margaret Rutherford
Dame Margaret Taylor Rutherford, (11 May 1892 – 22 May 1972) was an English actress of stage, television and film.
She came to national attention following World War II in the film adaptations of Noël Coward's ''Blithe Spirit'', and Oscar ...
, returning to Christie's description of the character and creating a precursor to her later role as Jessica Fletcher. She was signed to appear in two sequels as Miss Marple, but these never were made. Her tour-de-force in the film earned her a
Saturn Award
The Saturn Awards are American awards presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. The awards were created to honor science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, but have since grown to reward other films be ...
nomination for Best Actress.
Lansbury's next role was in the animated film ''
The Last Unicorn
''The Last Unicorn'' is a fantasy novel by American author Peter S. Beagle and published in 1968, by Viking Press in the U.S. and The Bodley Head in the U.K. It follows the tale of a unicorn, who believes she is the last of her kind in the wor ...
'' (1982), for which she provided the voice of the witch Mommy Fortuna.
''Beauty and the Beast'' and other roles (1990–2000)
Throughout the run of ''Murder, She Wrote'', Lansbury continued making appearances in other television films, miniseries, and cinema. In 1986, she co-hosted with
Kirk Douglas. the
New York Philharmonic
The New York Philharmonic, officially the Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc., globally known as New York Philharmonic Orchestra (NYPO) or New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra, is a symphony orchestra based in New York City. It is ...
's televised tribute to the centenary of the
Statue of Liberty
The Statue of Liberty (''Liberty Enlightening the World''; French: ''La Liberté éclairant le monde'') is a List of colossal sculpture in situ, colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor in New York City, in the U ...
She appeared as the protagonist's mother in ''Rage of Angels: The Story Continues'' (1986) and portrayed Nan Moore – the mother of a victim of the real-life
Korean Air Lines Flight 007
Korean Air Lines Flight 007 (KE007/KAL007)The flight number KAL 007 was used by air traffic control, while the public flight booking system used KE 007 was a scheduled Korean Air Lines flight from New York City to Seoul via Anchorage, Alas ...
plane crash – in ''
Shootdown'' (1988); as a mother, she was "enormously touched by the incident". She was featured in ''
The Shell Seekers'' (1989) as an Englishwoman recuperating from a heart attack, and starred in ''The Love She Sought'' (1990), also known as ''A Green Journey'', as an American school teacher who falls in love with a Catholic priest (played by
Denholm Elliott
Denholm Mitchell Elliott, (31 May 1922 – 6 October 1992) was an English actor, with more than 125 film and television credits. His well-known roles include the abortionist in '' Alfie'' (1966), Marcus Brody in ''Raiders of the Lost Ark'' (19 ...
) while visiting Ireland. Lansbury thought it "a marvellous woman's story". She next starred as the Cockney Mrs Harris in a film adaptation of the novel ''
Mrs 'Arris Goes to Paris
''Mrs. 'Arris Goes to Paris'' is a novel written by Paul Gallico and published in 1958. In the United Kingdom, it was published as ''Flowers for Mrs Harris''. It was the first in a series of four books about the adventures of a London charwoman. P ...
'' (1992), which was directed by her son and executive produced by her stepson. Her highest profile film role since ''The Manchurian Candidate'' was as the voice of the motherly teapot
Mrs. Potts
Various characters have been featured in Disney's ''Beauty and the Beast'' franchise. This list includes those from the 1991 animated film, its direct-to-video follow-up, a short story collection, the stage musical adaptation, and the 20 ...
in the
Disney
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
animation ''
Beauty and the Beast
''Beauty and the Beast'' (french: La Belle et la Bête) is a fairy tale written by French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740 in ''La Jeune Américaine et les contes marins'' (''The Young American and Marine ...
'' (1991). She considered Mrs Potts to be a gift to her three grandchildren. Lansbury performed the
title song
A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify either generation, an official position, or a professional or academic qualification. In some languages, titles may be inserted between the f ...
to the film, which won the
Academy Award for Best Original Song
The Academy Award for Best Original Song is one of the awards given annually to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is presented to the ''songwriters'' who have composed th ...
,
Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song
The Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song is a Golden Globe Award that was awarded for the first time in 1962 and has been awarded annually since 1965 by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. The award is presented to the songwriters of a ...
, and
. Additionally, her work on ''Beauty and the Beast'' garnered her nominations for a
Grammy Award for Album of the Year, as well as for an Awards Circuit Community Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role.
In 2021, Lansbury made a surprise appearance referencing her role as Mrs Potts on the audio guide of "Inspiring Walt Disney: The Animation of French Decorative Arts",
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...
's first exhibition about
Walt Disney
Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...
and his studios. It was probably her last recorded performance.
Return to film (2005–2022)
Lansbury starred in the film ''
Nanny McPhee
''Nanny McPhee'' is a 2005 comedy drama fantasy film based on the Nurse Matilda character by Christianna Brand. It was directed by Kirk Jones, coproduced by StudioCanal, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, Working Title Films, Three Strange Angel ...
'' (2005) as Aunt Adelaide, later informing an interviewer that working on ''Nanny McPhee'' "pulled me out of the abyss" after the death of her husband.
She then appeared in the film ''
Mr. Popper's Penguins'' (2011), opposite
Jim Carrey
James Eugene Carrey (; born January 17, 1962) is a Canadian-American actor, comedian and artist. Known for his energetic slapstick performances, Carrey first gained recognition in 1990, after landing a role in the American sketch comedy te ...
. In 2012, it was announced that Lansbury was set to star in
Wes Anderson
Wesley Wales Anderson (born May 1, 1969) is an American filmmaker. His films are known for their eccentricity and unique visual and narrative styles. They often contain themes of grief, loss of innocence, and dysfunctional families. Cited by ...
's ''
The Grand Budapest Hotel
''The Grand Budapest Hotel'' is a 2014 comedy-drama film written and directed by Wes Anderson. Ralph Fiennes leads a seventeen-actor ensemble cast as Monsieur Gustave H., famed concierge of a twentieth-century mountainside resort in the fiction ...
''; however, she had to back out of the project (with
Tilda Swinton
Katherine Matilda Swinton (born 5 November 1960) is a British actress. Known for her roles in independent films and blockbusters, she has received various accolades, including an Academy Award and a British Academy Film Award, in addition t ...
replacing her) due to prior scheduling conflicts with the Australian production of the play ''
Driving Miss Daisy
'' Driving Miss Daisy'' is a 1989 American comedy-drama film directed by Bruce Beresford and written by Alfred Uhry, based on his 1987 play of the same name. The film stars Jessica Tandy, Morgan Freeman, and Dan Aykroyd. Freeman reprised his ro ...
'', in which she co-starred with
James Earl Jones
James Earl Jones (born January 17, 1931) is an American actor. He has been described as "one of America's most distinguished and versatile" actors for his performances in film, television, and theater, and "one of the greatest actors in America ...
. In November 2013, she received an
Academy Honorary Award for lifetime achievement at the
Governors Awards.
Robert Osborne
Robert Jolin Osborne (; May 3, 1932 – March 6, 2017) was an American film historian, television presenter, author, actor and the primary host for more than 20 years of the cable channel Turner Classic Movies (TCM). Prior to hosting at TCM, Os ...
of
Turner Classic Movies
Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie channel, movie-oriented pay television, pay-TV television network, network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasti ...
presented the award and
Emma Thompson and
Geoffrey Rush
Geoffrey Roy Rush (born 6 July 1951) is an Australian actor. He is known for his eccentric leading man roles on stage and screen. He is among 24 people who have won the Triple Crown of Acting, having received an Academy Award, a Primetime Em ...
offered tributes. She voices the Witch in the Spanish film ''
Justin and the Knights of Valour
''Justin and the Knights of Valour'' (Spanish: ''Justin y la espada del valor'') is a 2013 computer-animated fantasy film whose working title was ''Goleor: The Scales and the Sword''. It is the story of a boy named Justin, who wants to become a ...
(2013).''
Lansbury appears as The Balloon Woman in ''
Mary Poppins Returns
''Mary Poppins Returns'' is a 2018 American musical fantasy film directed by Rob Marshall, with a screenplay written by David Magee and a story by Magee, Marshall, and John DeLuca. Loosely based on the book series ''Mary Poppins'' by P. L. Tr ...
'' (2018), a sequel to the
original 1964 film set 20 years later in
Depression-era London.
Emily Blunt
Emily Olivia Leah Blunt (born 23 February 1983) is a British actress. She is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award, in addition to nominations for three British Academy Film Awar ...
plays the
title character
The title character in a narrative work is one who is named or referred to in the title of the work. In a performed work such as a play or film, the performer who plays the title character is said to have the title role of the piece. The title of ...
,
["Mary Poppins Returns: Angela Lansbury joins cast of Disney sequel"]
independent.co.uk, February 19, 2017 Lansbury was originally short-listed for the title role in ''Mary Poppins'' that was originated by Julie Andrews.
Lansbury made her penultimate film appearance playing her last starring role in the 2018 fantasy film ''
Buttons: A Christmas Tale'', co-starring with
Dick Van Dyke.
In January 2019, Lansbury was invited to give the annual benediction to the
American Film Institute
The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees.
Leade ...
's luncheon. She talked about her experiences at
MGM
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...
, the craft of acting and the importance of a film community. The appearance was a surprise to the audience of film and television stars, who gave her a standing ovation. Lansbury concluded her remarks by advising about the awards season to the possible
Oscar
Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to:
People
* Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms.
* Oscar (Irish mythology) ...
and
Golden Globe contenders: "As you leave here today and are invited to endure a seemingly endless parade of programs that label you a 'winner' or a 'loser' – I've been there, I've done that, remember this room, when we are all together as one."
Lansbury's final film role was a cameo appearance in
Rian Johnson
Rian Craig Johnson (born December 17, 1973) is an American filmmaker. He made his directorial debut with the neo-noir mystery film '' Brick'' (2005), which received positive reviews and grossed nearly $4 million on a $450,000 budget. Transitio ...
's 2022 detective drama ''
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery''.
Theatre
Career beginnings and breakthrough (1957–1961)
In April 1957, she debuted on Broadway at the
Henry Miller Theatre
The Stephen Sondheim Theatre, formerly Henry Miller's Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 124 West 43rd Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Owned by the Durst Organization and managed by the Roundabout Theatre ...
in ''
Hotel Paradiso
''Hotel Paradiso'' is a 1966 British comedy film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in Panavision. It was directed by Peter Glenville and based on the play '' L'Hôtel du libre échange'' by Maurice Desvallières and Georges Feydeau. The film allo ...
'', a French
burlesque
A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects. set in Paris, directed by
Peter Glenville
Peter Glenville (born Peter Patrick Brabazon Browne; 28 October 19133 June 1996) was an English film and stage actor and director.
Biography
Born in Hampstead, London, into a theatrical family, Glenville was the son of Shaun Glenville (born J ...
. The play ran for only 15 weeks, although she earned good reviews for her role as "Marcel Cat". She said later that her "whole career would have fizzled out." if she had not appeared in the play. She followed this with the 1960;Broadway production of ''
A Taste of Honey'' at the
Lyceum Theatre, directed by
Tony Richardson
Cecil Antonio "Tony" Richardson (5 June 1928 – 14 November 1991) was an English theatre and film director and producer whose career spanned five decades. In 1964, he won the Academy Award for Best Director for the film ''Tom Jones (1963 film ...
and
George Devine
George Alexander Cassady Devine (20 November 1910 – 20 January 1966) was an English theatrical manager, director, teacher, and actor based in London from the early 1930s until his death. He also worked in TV and film.
Early life and education
...
. Lansbury played Helen, the boorish, verbally abusive, otherwise absentee mother of Josephine (played by
Joan Plowright
Joan Ann Olivier, Baroness Olivier, (née Plowright; born 28 October 1929), professionally known as Dame Joan Plowright, is an English retired actress whose career has spanned over seven decades. She has won two Golden Globe Awards and a Tony ...
, only four years Lansbury's junior). Lansbury gained "a great deal of satisfaction" from the role and made friends with Plowright, and Plowright's lover and future husband,
Laurence Olivier
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier (; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, was one of a trio of male actors who dominated the Theatre of the U ...
. Plowright and Olivier eloped to be married from Lansbury's rented flat on East 97th Street.
After a well-reviewed appearance in ''
Summer of the Seventeenth Doll
''Summer of the Seventeenth Doll'' is an Australian play written by Ray Lawler and first performed at the Union Theatre in Melbourne on 28 November 1955. The play is considered to be the most significant in Australian theatre history, and a " ...
'' (1959) – filmed in Sydney – and a minor role in ''
A Breath of Scandal
''A Breath of Scandal'' (released as ''Olympia'' in Italy) is a 1960 American/Italian international co-production romantic comedy-drama film directed by Michael Curtiz, based on the stage play ''Olympia'' by Ferenc Molnár. It stars Sophia Lore ...
'' (1960), she appeared in ''
Blue Hawaii'' (1961) as an overbearing mother. Her son was played by
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...
, although he was only nine years younger. Acknowledging that the film was of poor quality, she recalled that she agreed to appear in it because "I was desperate."
![Angela Lansbury Joan Plowright A Taste of Honey Broadway](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f6/Angela_Lansbury_Joan_Plowright_A_Taste_of_Honey_Broadway.jpg)
Her first appearance in a theatrical musical was in the short-lived ''
Anyone Can Whistle
''Anyone Can Whistle'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents. Described as "a satire on conformity and the insanity of the so-called sane," the show tells a story of an economically depressed town w ...
'', written by
Arthur Laurents
Arthur Laurents (July 14, 1917 – May 5, 2011) was an American playwright, theatre director, film producer and screenwriter.
After writing scripts for radio shows after college and then training films for the U.S. Army during World War II ...
and
Stephen Sondheim, which opened at the
Majestic Theatre Majestic Theatre or Majestic Theater may refer to:
Australia
* Majestic Theatre, Adelaide, former name of a theatre in King William Street, Adelaide, built 1916, now demolished
* Majestic Theatre, Launceston, a former cinema in Tasmania designed b ...
on Broadway in April 1964. An experimental work, it was panned by critics and closed after nine performances. Lansbury played the role of crooked mayoress Cora Hoover Hooper, and although she loved Sondheim's score, she had personal differences with Laurents and was glad when the show closed. In 1965, she appeared as a flamboyant wealthy actress in a second-season episode of ''
The Man from U.N.C.L.E.
''The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'' is an American spy fiction television series produced by MGM Television, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Television and first broadcast on NBC. The series follows secret agents, played by Robert Vaughn and David McCallum, who wo ...
''. She was among 30 actors playing brief credited cameo roles in ''
The Greatest Story Ever Told
''The Greatest Story Ever Told'' is a 1965 American epic film produced and directed by George Stevens. It is a retelling of the Biblical account about Jesus of Nazareth, from the Nativity through to the Ascension. Along with the ensemble cast ...
'' (1965), an epic film about the life of Jesus. She was cut almost entirely in the final edit. Appearances as Mama Jean Bello in ''
Harlow
Harlow is a large town and local government district located in the west of Essex, England. Founded as a new town, it is situated on the border with Hertfordshire and London, Harlow occupies a large area of land on the south bank of the upp ...
'' (1965), as Lady Blystone in ''
The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders
''The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders'' is a 1965 British historical comedy film directed by Terence Young and starring Kim Novak, Richard Johnson, and Angela Lansbury. It is based on the 1722 novel '' Moll Flanders'' by Daniel Defoe.
...
'' (1965), and as Gloria in ''
Mister Buddwing
''Mister Buddwing'' is a 1966 American film drama directed by Delbert Mann and starring James Garner.
The film depicts a well-dressed man who finds himself on a bench in Central Park with no idea who he is. He proceeds to wander around Manhatta ...
'' (1966) followed. Despite her well-received performances in several films, "celluloid superstardom" evaded her, and she became increasingly dissatisfied with these minor roles, feeling that none allowed her to explore her potential as an actress.
Returning to the musical cinema, Lansbury starred as Ruth in ''
The Pirates of Penzance
''The Pirates of Penzance; or, The Slave of Duty'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. Its official premiere was at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City on 31 December 187 ...
'' (1983), a film based on
Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan was a Victorian era, Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the dramatist W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) and the composer Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900), who jointly created fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which ...
's
comic opera of the same name. While filming it in London she sang on a recording of ''
The Beggar's Opera
''The Beggar's Opera'' is a ballad opera in three acts written in 1728 by John Gay with music arranged by Johann Christoph Pepusch. It is one of the watershed plays in Augustan drama and is the only example of the once thriving genre of satiri ...
'' as a
mezzo-soprano
A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; ; meaning "half soprano") is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A below middle C ...
.
She played the Grandmother in the gothic fantasy film ''
The Company of Wolves
''The Company of Wolves'' is a 1984 British gothic fantasy horror film directed by Neil Jordan and starring Angela Lansbury, David Warner, Micha Bergese and Sarah Patterson in her film debut. The screenplay was written by Jordan and Angela C ...
'' (1984). Lansbury began to work in television, appearing with Bette Davis in a miniseries about the 1930s custody fight over
Gloria Vanderbilt titled ''
Little Gloria... Happy at Last'' (1982). Lansbury's performance as
Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney
Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney (January 9, 1875 – April 18, 1942) was an American sculptor, art patron and collector, and founder in 1931 of the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City. She was a prominent social figure and hostess, ...
earned her a nomination for the
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie.. She followed this with an appearance in ''
The Gift of Love: A Christmas Story'' (1983), which she later described as "the most unsophisticated thing you can imagine". She plays a wheelchair-using mystery writer in the television film ''
A Talent for Murder
''A Talent for Murder'' is a 1983 British television film directed by Alvin Rakoff, starring Angela Lansbury, Laurence Olivier and Hildegard Neil;Parish p.38 the 1981, Edgar award winning Broadway play of the same name, written by Jerome Chodo ...
'' (1984). She described it as "a rush job" that she did to work with co-star
Laurence Olivier
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier (; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, was one of a trio of male actors who dominated the Theatre of the U ...
. Two miniseries featuring Lansbury appeared in 1984: ''
Lace
Lace is a delicate fabric made of yarn or thread in an open weblike pattern, made by machine or by hand. Generally, lace is divided into two main categories, needlelace and bobbin lace, although there are other types of lace, such as knitted o ...
'' and ''
The First Olympics: Athens 1896''.
Broadway stardom (1966–1980)
![Angela Lansbury 1966](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/82/Angela_Lansbury_1966.jpg)
In 1966, Lansbury took on the title role of Mame Dennis in ''
Mame
MAME (formerly an acronym of Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator) is a free and open-source emulator designed to recreate the hardware of arcade game systems in software on modern personal computers and other platforms. Its intention is to preserve ...
'',
Jerry Herman
Gerald Sheldon Herman (July 10, 1931December 26, 2019) was an American composer and lyricist, known for his work in Broadway theatre.
One of the most commercially successful Broadway songwriters of his time, Herman was the composer and lyricist ...
's musical adaptation of the novel ''
Auntie Mame
''Auntie Mame: An Irreverent Escapade'' is a 1955 novel by American author Patrick Dennis chronicling the madcap adventures of a boy, Patrick, growing up as the ward of his Aunt Mame Dennis, the sister of his dead father.
The book is often desc ...
''.
Rosalind Russell
Catherine Rosalind Russell (June 4, 1907November 28, 1976) was an American actress, comedienne, screenwriter, and singer,Obituary ''Variety'', December 1, 1976, p. 79. known for her role as fast-talking newspaper reporter Hildy Johnson in the H ...
, who played Mame in the non-musical film adaptation ''
Auntie Mame
''Auntie Mame: An Irreverent Escapade'' is a 1955 novel by American author Patrick Dennis chronicling the madcap adventures of a boy, Patrick, growing up as the ward of his Aunt Mame Dennis, the sister of his dead father.
The book is often desc ...
'', was the director's first choice for the role, but she declined. Lansbury actively sought the part, hoping that it would mark a change in her career. When she was chosen, it came as a surprise to theatre critics, who believed that it would go to a better-known actress. Lansbury was forty-one years old, and it was her first starring role. Mame Dennis was a glamorous character, with over twenty costume changes throughout the play, and Lansbury's role included ten songs and dance routines, for which she trained extensively. After runs in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
and in
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
, ''Mame'' opened at the
Winter Garden Theatre
The Winter Garden Theatre is a Broadway theatre at 1634 Broadway in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. It opened in 1911 under designs by architect William Albert Swasey. The Winter Garden's current design dates to 1922, when ...
on Broadway in May 1966. The film was already popular among the gay community, and ''Mame'' gained Lansbury a cult gay following, something that she later attributed to the fact that Mame Dennis was "every gay person's idea of glamour ... Everything about Mame coincided with every young man's idea of beauty and glory and it was lovely."
Reviews of Lansbury's performance were overwhelmingly positive.
Stanley Kauffmann
Stanley Kauffmann (April 24, 1916 – October 9, 2013) was an American writer, editor, and critic of film and theater.
Career
Kauffmann started with ''The New Republic'' in 1958 and contributed film criticism to that magazine for the next fifty ...
wrote in ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'': "Miss Lansbury is a singing-dancing actress, not a singer or dancer who also acts ... In this marathon role she has wit, poise, warmth and a very taking
coolth." Lansbury received her first
Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical
The Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical is awarded to the best actress in a Musical theatre, musical, whether a new production or a revival. The award has been given since 1948, but the nominees who did not win have o ...
. Lansbury's biographer Margaret Bonanno claims that ''Mame'' made Lansbury a "superstar". The actor herself observed: "Everyone loves you, everyone loves the success, and enjoys it as much as you do. And it lasts as long as you are on that stage and as long as you keep coming out of that stage door."
The stardom achieved through ''Mame'' allowed Lansbury to make further television appearances, including a guest shot on
Perry Como
Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (; May 18, 1912 – May 12, 2001) was an Italian-American singer, actor and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century, he recorded exclusively for RCA Victor for 44 years, after signing ...
's November 1966 Thanksgiving special. Her fame also allowed her to engage in a variety of high-profile charitable endeavours, appearing as the guest of honour at the 1967
March of Dimes
March of Dimes is a United States nonprofit organization that works to improve the health of mothers and babies. The organization was founded by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1938, as the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis, to comba ...
annual benefit luncheon. She was invited to star in a musical performance—"Thoroughly Modern Millie"—on the
1968 Academy Awards ceremony, and she co-hosted that year's Tony Awards with her former brother-in-law Peter Ustinov.
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
's
Hasty Pudding Club
The Hasty Pudding Club, often referred to simply as the Pudding, is a social club at Harvard University, and one of three sub-organizations that comprise the Hasty Pudding - Institute of 1770. The club's motto, ''Concordia Discors'' (discordant h ...
elected her "Woman of the Year" for 1968. When the
film adaptation of ''Mame'' was put into production, Lansbury hoped to be offered the part, but it went to
Lucille Ball
Lucille Désirée Ball (August 6, 1911 – April 26, 1989) was an American actress, comedienne and producer. She was nominated for 13 Primetime Emmy Awards, winning five times, and was the recipient of several other accolades, such as the Golden ...
, an established box-office success. Lansbury considered this to be "one of my bitterest disappointments". (The film was a box-office failure, critics panned it.)
Her personal life became complicated when she learned that both of her children were using
recreational drugs and that Anthony had become addicted to cocaine and heroin.
Lansbury followed the success of ''Mame'' with a performance as 75-year-old Parisian eccentric Countess Aurelia in ''Dear World'', a musical adaptation of
Jean Giraudoux
Hippolyte Jean Giraudoux (; 29 October 1882 – 31 January 1944) was a French novelist, essayist, diplomat and playwright. He is considered among the most important French dramatists of the period between World War I and World War II.
His wo ...
's ''
The Madwoman of Chaillot
''The Madwoman of Chaillot'' (french: La Folle de Chaillot) is a play, a poetic satire, by French dramatist Jean Giraudoux, written in 1943 and first performed in 1945, after his death. The play is in two acts. The story concerns an eccentric woma ...
''. The show opened at Broadway's
Mark Hellinger Theatre
The Mark Hellinger Theatre (formerly the 51st Street Theatre and the Hollywood Theatre) is a church (building), church building at 237 West 51st Street (Manhattan), 51st Street in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, which forme ...
in February 1969. Lansbury found it a "pretty depressing" experience. Reviews of her performance were positive, and she received her second Tony Award based on it. Reviews of the overall show were critical, however, and it closed after 132 performances. She followed this with the title role in the musical ''
Prettybelle
''Prettybelle'' is a musical with a book and lyrics by Bob Merrill and music by Jule Styne. It was adapted from Jean Arnold's darkly comic novel ''Prettybelle: A Lively Tale of Rape and Resurrection'' (Dial Press, 1970). It starred Angela Lansbu ...
'', which was based on Jean Arnold's book, ''The Rape of Prettybelle''. Set in the
Deep South
The Deep South or the Lower South is a cultural and geographic subregion in the Southern United States. The term was first used to describe the states most dependent on plantations and slavery prior to the American Civil War. Following the war ...
, it dealt with issues of racism, with Lansbury as a wealthy alcoholic driven mad by the revelation of her late husband's crimes against people of colour. She seeks sexual encounters with men of colour to compensate for them. A controversial play, it opened in Boston but received poor reviews and was cancelled before it reached Broadway. Lansbury later described the play as "a complete and utter fiasco", admitting that in her opinion, her "performance was awful".
The year 1970 was traumatic for the Lansbury family: Peter underwent a hip replacement, Anthony overdosed on heroin and became comatose, and the family's Malibu home was destroyed in a brush fire in September. To help her children, the family decided to move to Ireland. They purchased Knockmourne Glebe, a farmhouse constructed in the 1820s near the village of Conna in rural County Cork, and, after Anthony quit using cocaine and heroin, took him there to recover from his drug addiction. Lansbury did not work for a whole year so she could be there for Anthony and Deidre while they were recovering from their addictions. Anthony enrolled in the
Webber-Douglas School, his mother's alma mater, and became a professional actor, then moved into television directing. Lansbury and her husband did not return to California, instead dividing their time between County Cork and New York City.
In 1972, Lansbury returned to London's
West End to perform in the
Royal Shakespeare Company
The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and produces around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, St ...
's theatrical production of
Edward Albee's ''
All Over
''All Over'' is a two-act play written in 1970 by Edward Albee. He had originally developed it in 1967 as a short play entitled ''Death'', the second half of a projected double bill with another play called ''Life'' (which later became '' Seascap ...
'' at the
Aldwych Theatre
The Aldwych Theatre is a West End theatre, located in Aldwych in the City of Westminster, central London. It was listed Grade II on 20 July 1971. Its seating capacity is 1,200 on three levels.
History
Origins
The theatre was constructed in th ...
. She portrayed the mistress of a dying New England millionaire, and although the play's reviews were mixed, Lansbury's acting was widely praised. This was followed by her reluctant involvement in a revival of ''Mame'', which was then touring the United States, after which she returned to the West End to play the character of Rose in the musical ''
Gypsy
The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...
''. She had initially turned down the role, not wishing to be in the shadow of
Ethel Merman
Ethel Merman (born Ethel Agnes Zimmermann, January 16, 1908 – February 15, 1984) was an American actress and singer, known for her distinctive, powerful voice, and for leading roles in musical theatre.Obituary '' Variety'', February 22, 1984. ...
, who had played Rose in the original Broadway production, but she eventually accepted it. When the show opened in May 1973, she earned a standing ovation and rave reviews. Settling into a
Belgravia
Belgravia () is a Districts of London, district in Central London, covering parts of the areas of both the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.
Belgravia was known as the 'Five Fields' Tudor Period, during the ...
flat, she was soon in demand among London society: Dinners were held in her honour. In 1974, after the end of the London run, ''Gypsy'' toured the United States, and in Chicago Lansbury received the
Sarah Siddons Award for her performance. The show eventually reached Broadway, where it ran until January 1975. A critical success, it earned Lansbury her third Tony Award. After a hiatus of several months, ''Gypsy'' toured throughout the country again, in the summer of 1975.
Desiring to move on from musicals, Lansbury decided that she wanted to appear in a production of one of
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
's plays. She obtained the role of
Gertrude in the
National Theatre Company
The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. In ...
's production of ''
Hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
'', staged at the
Old Vic
Old or OLD may refer to:
Places
*Old, Baranya, Hungary
* Old, Northamptonshire, England
*Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD)
*OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Ma ...
. Directed by
Peter Hall, the production ran from December 1975 to May 1976, receiving mixed reviews. Lansbury later commented that she "hated" the role, believing it too restrained. Her mood was worsened by the news that in November 1975 her mother had died in California. Lansbury had her mother's body cremated and the ashes were scattered near her own County Cork home. Her next theatrical appearance was in two one-act plays by
Edward Albee, ''Counting the Ways'' and ''Listening'', performed side by side at the Hartford Stage Company in
Connecticut
Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...
. Reviews of the production were mixed, but Lansbury was again singled out for praise. Another revival tour of ''Gypsy'' followed.
In April 1978, Lansbury appeared in 24 performances of a revival of ''
The King and I
''The King and I'' is the fifth musical by the team of Rodgers and Hammerstein. It is based on Margaret Landon's novel '' Anna and the King of Siam'' (1944), which is in turn derived from the memoirs of Anna Leonowens, governess to the chil ...
'' musical staged at Broadway's
Uris Theatre
The Gershwin Theatre (originally the Uris Theatre) is a Broadway theater at 222 West 51st Street, on the second floor of the Paramount Plaza office building, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Opened in 1972, it is operated ...
. Lansbury played the role of Mrs Anna, replacing
Constance Towers
Constance Mary Towers (born May 20, 1933) is an American film, stage, and television actress, and singer. She gained prominence for her appearances in several mainstream 1950s films before transitioning to theater, starring in numerous Broadway ...
, who was on a short break. Her first cinematic role in seven years was as novelist and murder victim Salome Otterbourne in ''
Death on the Nile
''Death on the Nile'' is a work of detective fiction by British writer Agatha Christie, published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club on 1 November 1937 and in the US by Dodd, Mead and Company the following year. The UK edition retailed at s ...
'' (1978), an adaptation of
Agatha Christie
Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, (; 15 September 1890 – 12 January 1976) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fictiona ...
's
1937 novel of the same name that was filmed in both London and Egypt. In the film, Lansbury starred alongside
Peter Ustinov and
Bette Davis
Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress with a career spanning more than 50 years and 100 acting credits. She was noted for playing unsympathetic, sardonic characters, and was famous for her pe ...
, who became a close friends. The role earned Lansbury the
National Board of Review
The National Board of Review of Motion Pictures is a non-profit organization of New York City area film enthusiasts. Its awards, which are announced in early December, are considered an early harbinger of the film awards season that culminat ...
award for Best Supporting Actress of 1978.
In March 1979, Lansbury originated the role of
Nellie Lovett in ''
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street'', a
Stephen Sondheim musical directed by
Harold Prince
Harold Smith Prince (born Harold Smith; January 30, 1928 – July 31, 2019), commonly known as Hal Prince, was an American theatre director and producer known for his work in musical theatre.
One of the foremost figures in 20th century America ...
. Opening at the
Uris Theatre
The Gershwin Theatre (originally the Uris Theatre) is a Broadway theater at 222 West 51st Street, on the second floor of the Paramount Plaza office building, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Opened in 1972, it is operated ...
on Broadway, she starred alongside
Len Cariou
Leonard Joseph Cariou (; born September 30, 1939) is a Canadian actor and stage director, best known for his portrayal of Sweeney Todd in the original cast of '' Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street'', for which he won the Tony Award ...
as
Sweeney Todd
Sweeney Todd is a fictional character who first appeared as the villain of the penny dreadful serial '' The String of Pearls'' (1846–47). The original tale became a feature of 19th-century melodrama and London legend. A barber from Fleet Stre ...
, the murderous barber in 19th-century London. When offered the role, she jumped at the opportunity because of Sondheim's involvement in the project. She loved "the extraordinary wit and intelligence of his lyrics". She remained in the role for fourteen months before being replaced by
Dorothy Loudon
Dorothy Loudon (September 17, 1925 – November 15, 2003) was an American actress and singer. She won the Tony Award for Best Lead Actress in a Musical in 1977 for her performance as Miss Hannigan in '' Annie''. Loudon was also nominated for T ...
; the musical received mixed critical reviews, although it earned Lansbury her fourth Tony Award and ''
After Dark'' magazine's Ruby Award for Broadway Performer of the Year. She returned to the role in October 1980 for a ten-month tour of six U.S. cities, with
George Hearn
George Hearn (born June 18, 1934) is an American actor and singer, primarily in Broadway musical theatre.
Early years
Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Hearn studied philosophy at Southwestern at Memphis, now Rhodes College before he embarked on ...
playing the title character; the production was also filmed and broadcast on ''
The Entertainment Channel
A&E is an American basic cable network, the flagship television property of A&E Networks. The network was originally founded in 1984 as the Arts & Entertainment Network, initially focusing on fine arts, documentaries, dramas, and educational enter ...
''.
In 1982, she took on the role of an upper-middle-class housewife who champions workers' rights in ''A Little Family Business'', a farce set in
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
in which her son Anthony also starred. It debuted at Los Angeles'
Ahmanson Theatre
The Ahmanson Theatre is one of the four main venues that compose the Los Angeles Music Center.
History
The theatre was built as a result of a donation from Howard F. Ahmanson Sr, the founder of H.F. Ahmanson & Co., an insurance and savings and ...
before heading on to Broadway's
Martin Beck Theatre. It was panned by critics and was accused of racism by the
Japanese-American
are Americans of Japanese ancestry. Japanese Americans were among the three largest Asian American ethnic communities during the 20th century; but, according to the 2000 census, they have declined in number to constitute the sixth largest Asi ...
community. That year, Lansbury was inducted into the
American Theatre Hall of Fame, and the following year she appeared in a ''Mame'' revival at Broadway's
Gershwin Theatre
The Gershwin Theatre (originally the Uris Theatre) is a Broadway theater at 222 West 51st Street, on the second floor of the Paramount Plaza office building, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Opened in 1972, it is operat ...
. Although Lansbury was praised, the show was a commercial flop. "I realised that it's not a show of today. It's a
period piece
A historical drama (also period drama, costume drama, and period piece) is a work set in a past time period, usually used in the context of film and television. Historical drama includes historical fiction and romances, adventure films, and swas ...
." Lansbury said.
Return to Broadway (2001–2009)
![Angela Lansbury in Deuce 2007](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/86/Angela_Lansbury_in_Deuce_2007.jpg)
Following the end of ''Murder, She Wrote'', Lansbury returned to the theatre. Although cast in the lead role in the 2001
Kander and Ebb
Kander and Ebb were a highly successful American songwriting team consisting of composer John Kander (born March 18, 1927) and lyricist Fred Ebb (April 8, 1928 – September 11, 2004). Known primarily for their stage musicals, which include ''C ...
musical ''
The Visit'', she withdrew before it opened due to her husband's deteriorating health. In January 2003, Peter died of
congestive heart failure
Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, ...
at the couple's home in
Brentwood, California.
Lansbury felt that she would not take on any more major acting roles, but might make a few cameo appearances .
Wanting to spend more time in New York City, in 2006 she purchased a $2 million condominium in Manhattan.
Lansbury returned to Broadway after a 23-year absence in ''Deuce
Deuce, Deuces, or The Deuce may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Fictional characters
* Deuce, in the ''Danger Girl'' comic book series
* Deuce, a character in ''Shake It Up''
* Deuce, in the ''Wild Cards'' science fiction universe
* Deuce Biga ...
'', a play by Terrence McNally
Terrence McNally (November 3, 1938 – March 24, 2020) was an American playwright, librettist, and screenwriter.
Described as "the bard of American theater" and "one of the greatest contemporary playwrights the theater world has yet produced," ...
that opened at the Music Box Theatre
The Music Box Theatre is a Broadway theater at 239 West 45th Street ( George Abbott Way) in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1921, the Music Box Theatre was designed by C. Howard Crane in a Palladian-inspir ...
in May 2007 for a limited run of eighteen weeks. Lansbury received a Tony Award nomination for Best Leading Actress in a Play for her role as a retired tennis player.
In March 2009, she returned to Broadway for a revival of '' Blithe Spirit'' at the Shubert Theatre, where she took on the role of Madame Arcati, an eccentric medium
Medium may refer to:
Science and technology
Aviation
*Medium bomber, a class of war plane
*Tecma Medium, a French hang glider design
Communication
* Media (communication), tools used to store and deliver information or data
* Medium of ...
. This appearance earned her the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play
The Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play is an honor presented at the Tony Awards, a ceremony established in 1947 as the Antoinette Perry Awards for Excellence in Theatre, to actresses for quality supporting roles in a Broadway play. Th ...
; her fifth Tony Award, tying her with the previous recordholder Julie Harris
Julia Ann Harris (December 2, 1925August 24, 2013) was an American actress. Renowned for her classical and contemporary stage work, she received five Tony Awards for Best Actress in a Play.
Harris debuted on Broadway in 1945, against the wish ...
, albeit all of Harris' Tonys were for Best Leading Actress. From December 2009 to June 2010, Lansbury starred as Madame Armfeldt alongside Catherine Zeta-Jones
Catherine Zeta-Jones (; born 25 September 1969) is a Welsh actress. Known for her versatility, she is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and a Tony Award. In 2010, she was appointed C ...
in the first Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim's ''A Little Night Music
''A Little Night Music'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Hugh Wheeler. Inspired by the 1955 Ingmar Bergman film ''Smiles of a Summer Night'', it involves the romantic lives of several couples. Its title is a ...
'', held at the Walter Kerr Theatre
The Walter Kerr Theatre, previously the Ritz Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 219 West 48th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. The theater was designed by Herbert J. Krapp and was constructed for the Shube ...
. The role earned her a seventh Tony Award nomination. In May 2010, she was awarded an honorary doctoral degree from the Manhattan School of Music
The Manhattan School of Music (MSM) is a private music conservatory in New York City. The school offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in the areas of classical and jazz performance and composition, as well as a bachelor's in mu ...
.
Return to the West End (2012–2019)
From April to July 2012, Lansbury starred as women's rights advocate Sue-Ellen Gamadge in the Broadway revival of Gore Vidal
Eugene Luther Gore Vidal (; born Eugene Louis Vidal, October 3, 1925 – July 31, 2012) was an American writer and public intellectual known for his epigrammatic wit, erudition, and patrician manner. Vidal was bisexual, and in his novels and ...
's '' The Best Man'' at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre
The Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre, formerly the Plymouth Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 236 West 45th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1917, the theater was designed by Herbert J. Krapp and was ...
. From February to June 2013, Lansbury starred alongside James Earl Jones
James Earl Jones (born January 17, 1931) is an American actor. He has been described as "one of America's most distinguished and versatile" actors for his performances in film, television, and theater, and "one of the greatest actors in America ...
in an Australian tour of ''Driving Miss Daisy
'' Driving Miss Daisy'' is a 1989 American comedy-drama film directed by Bruce Beresford and written by Alfred Uhry, based on his 1987 play of the same name. The film stars Jessica Tandy, Morgan Freeman, and Dan Aykroyd. Freeman reprised his ro ...
''. From March to June 2014, Lansbury reprised her performance as Madame Arcati in ''Blithe Spirit'' at the Gielgud Theatre
The Gielgud Theatre is a West End theatre, located on Shaftesbury Avenue, at the corner of Rupert Street, in the City of Westminster, London. The house currently has 986 seats on three levels.
The theatre was designed by W. G. R. Sprague and ...
in London's West End, her first London stage appearance in nearly 40 years. While in London, she made an appearance at the Angela Lansbury Film Festival in Poplar, a screening of some of her best-known films, organized by Poplar Film. From December 2014 to March 2015, she joined the tour of ''Blithe Spirit'' across North America.
In April 2015, when she was 89 , she received her first Olivier Award
The Laurence Olivier Awards, or simply the Olivier Awards, are presented annually by the Society of London Theatre to recognise excellence in professional theatre in London at an annual ceremony in the capital. The awards were originally known a ...
, as Best Supporting Actress for her performance as Arcati, and in November 2015 was awarded the Oscar Hammerstein Award for Lifetime Achievement in Musical Theatre.
On June 2, 2016, ''Playbill'' reported that Lansbury had confirmed that she would return to Broadway in the 2017–2018 season in a revival of Enid Bagnold
Enid Algerine Bagnold, Lady Jones, (27 October 1889 – 31 March 1981) was a British writer and playwright known for the 1935 story ''National Velvet''.
Early life
Enid Algerine Bagnold was born on 27 October 1889 in Rochester, Kent, daughte ...
's 1955 play ''The Chalk Garden
''The Chalk Garden'' is a play by Enid Bagnold that premiered in the US in 1955 and was produced in Britain the following year. It tells the story of the imperious Mrs St Maugham and her granddaughter Laurel, a disturbed child under the care of ...
'' to be produced by Scott Rudin
Scott Rudin (born July 14, 1958) is an American film, television, and theatre producer. His films include the Academy Award-winning Best Picture ''No Country for Old Men,'' as well as '' Uncut Gems'', '' Lady Bird, Fences, The Girl with the Drag ...
. However, in an interview published on September 20, 2016, Lansbury said she would not be performing in ''The Chalk Garden'', saying: "At my time of life, I've decided that I want to be with family more and being alone in New York doing a play requires an extraordinary amount of time left alone."["Exclusive: Angela Lansbury Reveals She Won't Return to Broadway in 'The Chalk Garden']
broadwayworld.com, September 20, 2016
On November 18, 2019, Lansbury made her final return to Broadway portraying Lady Bracknell
''The Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People'' is a play by Oscar Wilde. First performed on 14 February 1895 at the St James's Theatre in London, it is a farcical comedy in which the protagonists maintain fictitious ...
in a one-night benefit staging of Oscar Wilde
Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular playwrights in London in the early 1890s. He is ...
's ''The Importance of Being Earnest
''The Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People'' is a play by Oscar Wilde. First performed on 14 February 1895 at the St James's Theatre in London, it is a farcical comedy in which the protagonists maintain fictitious ...
'' for Roundabout Theatre Company
The Roundabout Theatre Company is a leading non-profit theatre company based in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, affiliated with the League of Resident Theatres.
History
The company was founded in 1965 by Gene Feist, Michael Fried and Elizabet ...
's American Airlines Theatre. In October 2020, ''Variety'' magazine said that her career "(defied) all logic" adding: "Though powerful women were sometimes maligned, it was thought you needed to be heartless to survive in showbiz, Lansbury has created a 77-year career and nobody has a bad word to say about her."
Television
''Murder, She Wrote'' (1984–2003)
In 1983, Lansbury was offered two main television roles, one in a Norman Lear sitcom opposite Charles Durning
Charles Edward Durning (February 28, 1923 – December 24, 2012) was an American actor who appeared in over 200 movies, television shows and plays.Schudel, Matt (December 26, 2012) "''In real life and on the screen, he played countless role ...
and the other in a detective series by co-creators William Link
William Theodore Link (December 15, 1933 – December 27, 2020) was an American film and television screenwriter and producer who often worked in collaboration with Richard Levinson.
Biography Early life
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvani ...
and Richard Levinson
Richard Leighton Levinson (August 7, 1934 – March 12, 1987) was an American screenwriter and producer who often worked in collaboration with William Link.
Life and career
Levinson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He attended the Unive ...
of '' Columbo'' fame. Unable to do both, she chose to do the detective series despite the fact her agents had advised her to accept the sitcom. The series '' Murder, She Wrote'' centred on the character of Jessica Fletcher
Jessica Beatrice "J. B." Fletcher (born Jessica Beatrice MacGill) is a detective show character and the protagonist on the American television series '' Murder, She Wrote''.
Portrayed by award-winning actress Angela Lansbury, Fletcher is a bes ...
, a retired school teacher from the fictional town of Cabot Cove, Maine, who became a successful detective novelist after her husband's death, also solving murders encountered during her travels. Lansbury described the character as "an American Miss Marple
Miss Marple is a fictional character in Agatha Christie's crime novels and short stories. Jane Marple lives in the village of St. Mary Mead and acts as an amateur consulting detective. Often characterized as an elderly spinster, she is one of Ch ...
". The series was created by Peter S. Fischer
Peter Steven Fischer is an American television writer and television producer, whose work includes '' Murder, She Wrote'', which he co-created with Richard Levinson and William Link. He was also the executive producer of the series for the first ...
, Richard Levinson
Richard Leighton Levinson (August 7, 1934 – March 12, 1987) was an American screenwriter and producer who often worked in collaboration with William Link.
Life and career
Levinson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He attended the Unive ...
, and William Link
William Theodore Link (December 15, 1933 – December 27, 2020) was an American film and television screenwriter and producer who often worked in collaboration with Richard Levinson.
Biography Early life
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvani ...
, who had earlier had success with '' Columbo'', and the role of Jessica Fletcher had been first offered to Jean Stapleton
Jean Stapleton (born Jeanne Murray; January 19, 1923 – May 31, 2013) was an American character actress of stage, television and film.
Stapleton was best known for playing Edith Bunker, the perpetually optimistic and devoted wife of Arc ...
, who declined the role, as did Doris Day. The pilot episode "The Murder of Sherlock Holmes" premiered on September 30, 1984, with the rest of the first season airing on Sundays from 8 to 9 pm. Although critical reviews were mixed, it proved highly popular, with the pilot having a Nielsen rating
Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rati ...
of 18.9 and the first season being rated top in its time slot. Designed as inoffensive family viewing, despite its topic the show eschewed violence and gore, following the "whodunit
A ''whodunit'' or ''whodunnit'' (a colloquial elision of "Who asdone it?") is a complex plot-driven variety of detective fiction in which the puzzle regarding who committed the crime is the main focus. The reader or viewer is provided with the c ...
" format rather than those of most contemporary U.S. crime shows; Lansbury herself commented that "best of all, there's no violence. I hate violence."
Lansbury was protective of Jessica Fletcher, having creative input over the character's costumes, makeup, and hair and rejecting pressure from network executives to put her in a relationship, believing that the character should remain a strong single female. When she believed that a scriptwriter had made Jessica do or say things that did not fit with the character's personality, Lansbury ensured that the script was changed. She saw Jessica as a role model for older female viewers, praising her "enormous, universal appeal – that was an accomplishment I never expected in my entire life." Lansbury biographers Rob Edelman and Audrey E. Kupferberg described the series as "a television landmark" in the U.S. for having an older female character as the protagonist, paving the way for later series like ''The Golden Girls
''The Golden Girls'' is an American sitcom created by Susan Harris that aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes, spanning seven seasons. With an ensemble cast starring Bea Arthur, Betty White ...
''. Lansbury herself noted that "I think it's the first time a show has been aimed at the middle-aged audience", and although it was most popular among senior citizens
Old age refers to ages nearing or surpassing the life expectancy of human beings, and is thus the end of the human biological life cycle, life cycle. Terms and euphemisms for people at this age include old people, the elderly (worldwide usage ...
, it gradually gained a younger audience. By 1991, one-third of the program's viewers were under the age of 50. It gained continually high ratings throughout most of its run, outdoing rivals in its time slot such as Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spie ...
's ''Amazing Stories
''Amazing Stories'' is an American science fiction magazine launched in April 1926 by Hugo Gernsback's Experimenter Publishing. It was the first magazine devoted solely to science fiction. Science fiction stories had made regular appearances i ...
''. In February 1987, a spin-off was produced, '' The Law & Harry McGraw'', although it was short-lived.
As the show's run continued, Lansbury assumed a larger role behind the scenes. In 1989, her company Corymore Productions
Corymore Productions is an American television production company that was created and founded in 1987 by producer Peter Shaw, the late husband of actress Angela Lansbury.
Shaw launched Corymore Productions at Universal Studios with his two son ...
began co-producing the show with Universal
Universal is the adjective for universe.
Universal may also refer to:
Companies
* NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company
** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of NBCUniversal
** Universal TV, a ...
. Nevertheless, she began to tire of the series and in particular the long working hours, stating that the 1990–91 season would be the show's last. She changed her mind after being appointed executive producer for the 1992–93 season, something that she felt "made it far more interesting to me". On her death in 2022 the BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
reported her involvement in producing the show helped earn her a "fortune estimated at nearly $100m."
For the eighth season, the show's setting moved to New York City, where Jessica had taken a job teaching criminology at Manhattan University. The move was an attempt to attract younger viewers and was encouraged by Lansbury. Having become a "Sunday-night institution" in the U.S., the show's ratings improved during the early 1990s, becoming a Top Five programme. However,
executives, hoping to gain a larger audience, moved it to Thursdays at 8 pm, opposite
''. Lansbury was upset by the move, believing that it ignored the show's core audience. The final episode of the series aired in May 1996, and ended with Lansbury voicing a "Goodbye from Jessica" message at the end. Tom Shales wrote in ''
'': "The title of the show's last episode, "Death by Demographics", is in itself something of a protest. ''Murder, She Wrote'' is partly a victim of commercial television's mad youth mania." At the time, it tied the original ''
and the role would prove to be the most successful and prominent of Lansbury's career. After the series ended, four further television movies bearing the ''Murder, She Wrote'' name and starring Lansbury were released between 1997 and 2003. Lansbury initially had plans for a ''Murder, She Wrote'' television film that would be a musical with a score composed by Jerry Herman. While this project did not materialize, it was transformed into ''
'' – in which Lansbury played Santa Claus' wife – which proved to be ratings hit. Lansbury employed
medical coverage for failing to meet the income threshold. She created a reoccurring librarian character for her, ensuring Rhue, who has
, did not lose her medical coverage.
Lansbury's higher profile gained from ''Murder, She Wrote'' resulted in her being employed to appear in advertisements and infomercials for
Company. In 1988, she released a video titled ''Angela Lansbury's Positive Moves: My Personal Plan for Fitness and Well-Being'', in which she outlined her personal exercise routine, and in 1990 published a book with the same title co-written with Mimi Avins, which she dedicated to her mother. As a result of her work, she was appointed
at the British consulate in Los Angeles. While living most of the year in California, Lansbury spent Christmases and summers at Corymore House, her farmhouse overlooking the Atlantic Ocean at
, County Cork, which she had built as a family home in 1991.
in 2005.
In December 2017, Lansbury performed in her final television role as Aunt March in the BBC miniseries ''
''. Lansbury received acclaim for her performance with ''Variety'' film critic Jaqueline Cutler writing, "That's Aunt March, played with magnificent imperiousness by Angela Lansbury, wielding power by lording her wealth overall." Daniel Feinberg of ''
'' praised Lansbury declaring, "Angela Lansbury towers over a solid cast...rests on no laurels and steals her every scene."
'' in 1972, Lansbury said that when she first came to the United States, she spoke "with a bit of an English accent . . . and a bit of a
accent too, I think, because I was a Londoner", but since then, had lost her native accent. She held Irish citizenship. Biographer
characterized her as "Meticulous. Cautious. Self-editing. Deliberate. It is what the British call reserved", adding that she was "as concerned, as sensitive, and as sympathetic as anyone might want in a friend". Also noting that she had "a profound sense of privacy", he added that she disliked attempts at flattery.
Lansbury was married twice, first to actor
, when she was nineteen and Cromwell was 35. They eloped and they were married in a small civil ceremony on September 27, 1945. They divorced in 1946, but they remained friends until he died in 1960. In 1949, Lansbury married actor and producer
, and they remained together for 54 years until his death in 2003.
They had two children together, Anthony Peter (b. 1952) and Deirdre Ann (b. 1953), and Lansbury became the stepmother of Shaw's son David from his first marriage. While Lansbury repeatedly stated that she wanted to put her children before her career, she admitted that she frequently had to leave them in California for long periods when she was working elsewhere. She brought up her children to be
, but they were not members of a congregation. She stated, "I believe that God is within all of us, that we are perfect, precious beings, and that we have to put our faith and trust in that."
In the latter part of the 1960s, Anthony and Deirdre became involved in
. Deirdre developed an acquaintance with the
and heroin. He overcame both addictions in 1971. After he recovered, Anthony became a television director and he directed 68 episodes of ''Murder, She Wrote''. Deirdre married a chef, and together they opened a restaurant in
. Lansbury had three grandchildren and five great-grandchildren at the time of her death in 2022.
Lansbury was a cousin of the
. She was also a second cousin of the academic and novelist
, who commented that she loved housekeeping. She preferred to spend quiet evenings with her friends inside her house because she did not like to engage in Hollywood nightlife. Her hobbies at the time included reading, riding, playing tennis, cooking, and playing the piano; she also had a keen interest in gardening. She cited
'' among her favourite television shows. In 1990, she cited her favourite female actors as being
. Lansbury was an avid letter writer who wrote letters by hand and made copies of all of them. At Howard Gotlieb's request, Lansbury's papers are housed at the
in the United States, describing herself as a "Democrat from the ground up", and of the
in her native United Kingdom.
Throughout her career, Lansbury supported a variety of charities, particularly, she supported charities which helped Abused Wives in Crisis and combated
and she also supported charities which worked towards rehabilitating drug users. In the 1980s, she began to support several charities engaged in the fight against
, but she conquered her addiction to smoking in the mid-1960s. In 1976 and 1987, she underwent cosmetic surgery on her neck to prevent it from broadening with age. During the 1990s, she began to suffer from
. Lansbury underwent
surgery in 2005.
Lansbury died in her sleep at her home in Los Angeles on October 11, 2022, aged 96. Many in the entertainment industry praised her following her life and legacy including
who wrote, "Singular. Thank you, Angela Lansbury. We'll miss you terribly." Former
, Angela Lansbury…a consummate professional, a talented actress, and a lovely person. Rest In Peace." Others who remembered Lansbury included
.
Lansbury had a prolific career in film, theatre, and television. She was one of the last film stars of the
in the 1940s. She acted alongside actors such as
'' (1978).
She is also known for her roles in classic children's films such as ''
'' (2018). Lansbury is also known for her iconic work in Broadway musicals working
'' (2009–2010). She also starred in
'' (1978). Lansbury is known for her performances in plays such as the
'' (2012). She gained international fame for her role as mystery writer turned sleuth
'' (1984–1996).
'' referred to Lansbury as the "First Lady of Musical Theatre". Lansbury described herself as an actress who also could sing, with Sondheim stating that she had a strong voice, albeit with a limited range. Lansbury's authorized biographer
described her as "an American icon", with a "practically saintly" public image.
A 2007 interviewer for ''The New York Times'' described her as "one of the few actors it makes sense to call beloved", noting that a 1994 article in ''
'' magazine awarded her a perfect score on its "lovability index".