Darlene Cates
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Darlene Cates (born Rita Darlene Guthrie; December 13, 1947 – March 26, 2017) was an American actress. She became known for her role in the 1993 film ''
What's Eating Gilbert Grape ''What's Eating Gilbert Grape'' is a 1993 American coming-of-age drama film directed by Lasse Hallström and starring Johnny Depp, Leonardo DiCaprio, Juliette Lewis and Darlene Cates. It follows 25-year-old Gilbert (Depp), a grocery store cler ...
'', in which she played the title character's housebound mother.


Career

Author and screenwriter
Peter Hedges Peter Simpson Hedges (born July 6, 1962) is an American novelist, playwright, screenwriter, film director and film producer. Early life Hedges was born in West Des Moines, Iowa, where he was raised, the son of Carole (Simpson), a psychotherapis ...
saw a tape of Cates on a 1992 episode of ''
Sally Sally may refer to: People *Sally (name), a list of notable people with the name Military *Sortie (siege warfare), Sally (military), an attack by the defenders of a town or fortress under siege against a besieging force; see sally port *Sally, ...
'' entitled "Too Heavy to Leave Their House". On the show, she discussed her battle with obesity and how it had affected her life. In 1986, pelvic infections caused by her excess weight kept her bedridden for two years, during which she gained an additional . Hedges offered her the role of a
morbidly obese Obesity is a risk factor for many chronic physical and mental illnesses. The health effects of being overweight but not obese are controversial, with some studies showing that the mortality rate for individuals who are classified as overweight ( ...
mother in the 1993 film ''
What's Eating Gilbert Grape ''What's Eating Gilbert Grape'' is a 1993 American coming-of-age drama film directed by Lasse Hallström and starring Johnny Depp, Leonardo DiCaprio, Juliette Lewis and Darlene Cates. It follows 25-year-old Gilbert (Depp), a grocery store cler ...
'', which she accepted. Television roles followed on the shows ''
Picket Fences ''Picket Fences'' is an American family drama television series about the residents of the town of Rome, Wisconsin, created and produced by David E. Kelley. The show initially ran from September 18, 1992, to June 26, 1996, on the CBS televisio ...
'' in 1994 and ''
Touched by an Angel ''Touched by an Angel'' is an American fantasy drama television series that premiered on CBS on September 21, 1994, and ran for 211 episodes over nine seasons until its conclusion on April 27, 2003. Created by John Masius and executive produced b ...
'' in 1996. She had a small role in the 2001 film '' Wolf Girl''. Producer J. Miles Dale flew a small crew and the film's stars from
Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
to
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
to shoot their scenes with Cates. Her performance in ''What's Eating Gilbert Grape'', her first attempt at acting in any form, received critical acclaim and was lauded by her costars Leonardo DiCaprio and
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 ...
.


Personal life

Cates married Robert Cates, a
U.S. Marine The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through com ...
, on January 11, 1963. She had one daughter, Sheri Ann, and two sons, Mark and Chris. She had four grandchildren and lived in
Forney, Texas Forney is a city in Kaufman County, Texas, United States, and has been named by the Texas Legislature as the "Antique Capital of Texas". It is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. Its population was 14,661 at the 2010 census, up from 5,5 ...
. In 1992, she received her high school diploma via correspondence courses. In 2012, Cates had lost 240 pounds after a series of health issues in 2010 kept her hospitalized for nearly a year, and she expressed a desire to resume her acting career.


Death

Cates died in her sleep at age 69 on March 26, 2017. Her daughter, Sheri Cates Morgan, announced her passing on a Facebook post.


Filmography


Film


Television


References


External links

* * *Burial https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/177845483/darlene-cates {{DEFAULTSORT:Cates, Darlene 1947 births 2017 deaths American film actresses American television actresses People from Borger, Texas 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses Actresses from Dallas People from Dumas, Texas People from Forney, Texas