This page will contain additional articles about Blythe Danner, as they become available.Blythe DannerBlythe Danner is a prolific American actress who has appeared in numerous stage, screen, and film roles. With daughter Gwyneth Paltrow (left) in a scene from the film SylviaShe was born Blythe Katherine Danner on February 3, 1943 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the daughter of a bank executive. She has two brothers, opera singer Harry Danner and violin maker William Danner. She attended the private George School, in Newtown, Pennsylvania, and Bard College, from where she graduated in 1965. She holds three honorary doctorates of fine arts from Bard, Williams College, and Hobart. Acting careerDanner first appeared on stage with the Theater Company of Boston and the Trinity Square Playhouse of Boston, and first gained national attention at age 25 by winning the Theatre World Award for her performance in the Lincoln Center Rep's production of The Miser. She went on to win a Tony Award in 1970 for her Broadway debut in Butterflies Are Free, playing the role later portrayed by Goldie Hawn in the film adaptation. The same year she appeared in her first film role, in a television production of Dr. Cook's Garden. She also received Tony nominations in 1980 for the original Broadway production of Harold Pinter's Betrayal, in 1988 for a revival of the Pulitzer Prize-winning drama A Streetcar Named Desire, and again in 2001 for a revival of Stephen Sondheim's Follies. Danner was a close friend of actor Christopher Reeve and appeared with him in several plays. Due to Danner's WASPy apearance and husky voice, she most frequently is cast as a middle class or upper class wife, or more lately, matriarch; although in 1986 in Brighton Beach Memoirs, she portrayed a middle-aged Jewish woman, and in 1982 in the TV movie Inside the Third Reich, she played the wife of Albert Speer. Her earliest starring film roles were opposite Alan Alda in To Kill a Clown (1972) and in the title role of Lovin' Molly (1974), directed by Sidney Lumet. She has appeared in two films based on the novels of Pat Conroy, The Great Santini (1979) and The Prince of Tides (1991), as well as two television movies adapted from books by Anne Tyler, Saint Maybe and Back When We Were Grownups, both for the Hallmark Hall of Fame. Danner is more recently known for her role opposite Robert De Niro in the comedy hit Meet the Parents (2000) and its (2004) sequel, Meet the Fockers (with Barbra Streisand and Dustin Hoffman), and for her work in 2004 in the cable TV series Huff. For twenty-five years, she has been a regular performer at the Williamstown Summer Theater Festival, where she also serves on the Board of Directors. Personal lifeShe is the mother of actress Gwyneth Paltrow and actor Jake Paltrow, and the widow of producer Bruce Paltrow. Danner first co-starred with her daughter in 1992 in the TV movie Cruel Doubt, then again in the 2003 film Sylvia, playing the mother of the title character, played by her daughter. She is also the aunt of actresses Hillary Danner and Katherine Moennig, and sister-in-law (through brother Harry) of opera director Dorothy Danner. Although she has worked frequently on TV and on stage, Danner put her film career on hold for a number of years to raise her children. She often said the proudest night of her life was when Gwyneth won an Oscar for best actress, and her mother was the first person she thanked. Environmental activismIn addition to her acting work, Blythe Danner has been involved with environmental issues such as recycling and conservation for over 30 years, having seen firsthand the contrast between her rural youth and her later residence in Los Angeles and New York. She has been active with INFORM, is on the Board of Environmental Activists and the Board of Directors of the Environmental Media Association, and won the 2002 EMA Board of Directors Ongoing Commitment Award. She was instrumental in implementing curbside recycling in Santa Monica and in retaining the New York City recycling program despite threatened budget cuts in 1991, has driven an electric car since the first General Motors EV1 was available, and has installed solar panels at her house. In 2002 Danner, her husband Bruce Paltrow, and her daughter Gwyneth Paltrow worked together on a series of PSAs encouraging use of alternative energy sources and alternative fuel vehicles. Filmology
Television appearancesWith Stephen Collins in a scene from the short-lived CBS television series Tattinger's
Theater credits
This page about Blythe Danner includes information from a Wikipedia article. Additional articles about Blythe Danner News stories about Blythe Danner External links for Blythe Danner Videos for Blythe Danner Wikis about Blythe Danner Discussion Groups about Blythe Danner Blogs about Blythe Danner Images of Blythe Danner |
|
In 2002 Danner, her husband Bruce Paltrow, and her daughter Gwyneth Paltrow worked together on a series of PSAs encouraging use of alternative energy sources and alternative fuel vehicles. She retired in 1940, and died in Beverly Hills, California in 1992. She was instrumental in implementing curbside recycling in Santa Monica and in retaining the New York City recycling program despite threatened budget cuts in 1991, has driven an electric car since the first General Motors EV1 was available, and has installed solar panels at her house. Her best remembered films are arguably some of those in which she played key supporting roles, such as Anthony Adverse (1936) and Waterloo Bridge (1940). She has been active with INFORM, is on the Board of Environmental Activists and the Board of Directors of the Environmental Media Association, and won the 2002 EMA Board of Directors Ongoing Commitment Award. The films in which she played lead roles such as Panama Lady (1939) with Lucille Ball, were popular but did not make her a major star. In addition to her acting work, Blythe Danner has been involved with environmental issues such as recycling and conservation for over 30 years, having seen firsthand the contrast between her rural youth and her later residence in Los Angeles and New York. During the 1930s Duna played a variety of nationalities but, despite her European background, was often cast as fiery Latin femme fatales in films that made full use of her exotic and glamorous persona. She often said the proudest night of her life was when Gwyneth won an Oscar for best actress, and her mother was the first person she thanked. She made her film debut in The Indiscretions of Eve (1932) in the starring role (along with Jessica Tandy also making her debut). Although she has worked frequently on TV and on stage, Danner put her film career on hold for a number of years to raise her children. Born Stephanie Berindey in Budapest, Hungary, Duna first attracted attention as a thirteen year old ballet dancer in Europe. She is also the aunt of actresses Hillary Danner and Katherine Moennig, and sister-in-law (through brother Harry) of opera director Dorothy Danner. Steffi Duna (February 8, 1910 – April 22, 1992) was a Hungarian born film actress popular in American and British films during the 1930s. Danner first co-starred with her daughter in 1992 in the TV movie Cruel Doubt, then again in the 2003 film Sylvia, playing the mother of the title character, played by her daughter. She is the mother of actress Gwyneth Paltrow and actor Jake Paltrow, and the widow of producer Bruce Paltrow. For twenty-five years, she has been a regular performer at the Williamstown Summer Theater Festival, where she also serves on the Board of Directors. She has appeared in two films based on the novels of Pat Conroy, The Great Santini (1979) and The Prince of Tides (1991), as well as two television movies adapted from books by Anne Tyler, Saint Maybe and Back When We Were Grownups, both for the Hallmark Hall of Fame. Danner is more recently known for her role opposite Robert De Niro in the comedy hit Meet the Parents (2000) and its (2004) sequel, Meet the Fockers (with Barbra Streisand and Dustin Hoffman), and for her work in 2004 in the cable TV series Huff. Her earliest starring film roles were opposite Alan Alda in To Kill a Clown (1972) and in the title role of Lovin' Molly (1974), directed by Sidney Lumet. Due to Danner's WASPy apearance and husky voice, she most frequently is cast as a middle class or upper class wife, or more lately, matriarch; although in 1986 in Brighton Beach Memoirs, she portrayed a middle-aged Jewish woman, and in 1982 in the TV movie Inside the Third Reich, she played the wife of Albert Speer. Danner was a close friend of actor Christopher Reeve and appeared with him in several plays. She also received Tony nominations in 1980 for the original Broadway production of Harold Pinter's Betrayal, in 1988 for a revival of the Pulitzer Prize-winning drama A Streetcar Named Desire, and again in 2001 for a revival of Stephen Sondheim's Follies. Cook's Garden. The same year she appeared in her first film role, in a television production of Dr. She went on to win a Tony Award in 1970 for her Broadway debut in Butterflies Are Free, playing the role later portrayed by Goldie Hawn in the film adaptation. Danner first appeared on stage with the Theater Company of Boston and the Trinity Square Playhouse of Boston, and first gained national attention at age 25 by winning the Theatre World Award for her performance in the Lincoln Center Rep's production of The Miser. She holds three honorary doctorates of fine arts from Bard, Williams College, and Hobart. She attended the private George School, in Newtown, Pennsylvania, and Bard College, from where she graduated in 1965. She has two brothers, opera singer Harry Danner and violin maker William Danner. She was born Blythe Katherine Danner on February 3, 1943 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the daughter of a bank executive. Blythe Danner is a prolific American actress who has appeared in numerous stage, screen, and film roles. Much Ado About Nothing. Follies (2001). A Streetcar Named Desire (1988). Betrayal (1980). Butterflies Are Free (1970). The Miser (1968). Back When We Were Grownups. We Were the Mulvaneys. Saint Maybe. A Call to Remember. Candida. The Seagull. Will & Grace (in recurring role as Will's mother). Elsewhere. St. Huff (2004). Cruel Doubt (1992). Nick and Hillary (1989). Tattinger's (1988). Inside the Third Reich (1982). Scott Fitzgerald and the Last of the Belles (1974). F. Adam's Rib (1973). Cook's Garden (1970). Dr. Meet the Fockers (2004). Meet the Parents (2000). The Love Letter (1999). The X-Files (1998). The Myth of Fingerprints (1997). To Wong Foo: Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar (1995). Husbands and Wives (1992). The Prince of Tides (1991). Bridge (1990). & Mrs. Mr. Alice (1990). Another Woman (1988). Brighton Beach Memoirs (1986). The Great Santini (1979). Futureworld (1976). Hearts of the West (1975). Lovin' Molly (1974). To Kill a Clown (1972). 1776 (1972). |