Jessica Tandy
Triple Crown-winning actress who brought Blanche DuBois and Miss Daisy to life.
Tandy married English actor Jack Hawkins in 1932 and they had a daughter, Susan Hawkins.[1] Tandy won an Oscar at age 80 for her performance in Driving Miss Daisy (1989).[2][3] When Tandy was twelve years old, her father passed away; afterward, her mother supported the family by teaching evening classes.[4] At age 18, in 1927, Tandy first appeared on a professional stage.[5]
Tandy ended her marriage to Hawkins in 1940, and two years later she wed the Canadian actor Hume Cronyn.[1] For originating the role of Blanche Dubois in the 1948 Broadway premiere of A Streetcar Named Desire, Tandy received a Tony Award.[6] At her home in Easton, Connecticut, on September 11, 1994, Tandy died at 85 years of age.[7]
Quick Facts
- Birth name
- Jessie Alice Tandy
- Born
- 7 June 1909
- Birthplace
- Stoke Newington, London, England
- Died
- 11 September 1994
- Place of death
- Easton, Connecticut, US
- Citizenship
- United Kingdom; United States (from 1952)
- Children
- 3
- Occupation
- Actress
Facts from the source article.
What the cited sources add
Shipman's obituary notes Tandy trained at the Ben Greet Academy and made her stage debut in The Manderson Girls.[2] The same source states Tandy made her New York bow in The Matriarch in 1930.[2] Shipman reports Tandy played Cordelia in King Lear directed by Lewis Casson and Harley Granville-Barker.[2] The Chicago Tribune article notes Tandy became the oldest best actress winner at age 80, surpassing Katharine Hepburn.[3]
Kirkus Reviews states Jessica Tandy's portrayal of Amanda in The Glass Menagerie deserves special kudos.[8] The Paley Center record shows Tandy performed as Blanche in a 1948 radio broadcast of A Streetcar Named Desire.[9] Shipman's obituary mentions Tandy played Joseph Cotten's unfeeling wife in September Affair (1950).[2]
References
- Wikipedia, "Jessica Tandy" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Champlin, "Life After Jessie: For 52 years, Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy shared the love story of the century. Her death last year devastated him, but his love lives on.", Los Angeles Times, June 18, 1995 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Shipman, "Obituary: Jessica Tandy", The Independent, 12 September 1994. facts only, no text reused. independent.co.uk
- "Miss Daisy, Jessica Tandy Win Top Oscars", Chicago Tribune, 27 March 1990. facts only, no text reused. chicagotribune.com
- Wikipedia, "Jessica Tandy" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Kelly, "Living with Japanese", Kellan Press, 1977, p. 136 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Jessica Tandy" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Berger, "Jessica Tandy, a Patrician Star Of Theater and Film, Dies at 85", The New York Times, 12 September 1994 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Jessica Tandy" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Jessica Tandy acting credits", Stratford Festival Archives; Blackadar, "Hume Cronyn turns playwright with Foxfire", Toronto Star, 10 May 1980, p. F1 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Jessica Tandy" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Berger, "Jessica Tandy, a Patrician Star Of Theater and Film, Dies at 85", The New York Times, 12 September 1994; Shipman, "Obituary: Jessica Tandy", The Independent, 12 September 1994; "From the Archives: Jessica Tandy, Star of Stage, Screen and TV, Dies at 85", Los Angeles Times, 12 September 1994 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- "The Glass Menagerie", Kirkus Reviews. facts only, no text reused. kirkusreviews.com
- "Streetcar Named Desire, a {Excerpt} {1947 Drama Critics Circle Awards} (Radio)", Paley Center for Media. facts only, no text reused. paleycenter.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Jessica Tandy (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
More in Writers & Journalists
Elsewhere in Historical Figures
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced