Jo Van Fleet

'Jo Van Fleet' (qv) was born on December 29, 1915 in Oakland, California. She established herself as a notable dramatic actress on Broadway over several years, winning a Tony Award in 1954 for her skill in a difficult role, playing an unsympathetic, even abusive character, in 'Horton Foote' (qv)'s "The Trip to Bountiful" with 'Lillian Gish' (qv) and 'Eva Marie Saint' (qv). Her first film role was playing the estranged mother of 'James Dean' (qv)'s character in _East of Eden (1955)_ (qv). This debut performance earned Van Fleet an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Her subsequent film work was steady through 1960, then very sporadic, and include such films as _The Rose Tattoo (1955)_ (qv), _I'll Cry Tomorrow (1955)_ (qv), _The King and Four Queens (1956)_ (qv), _Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957)_ (qv) and _Cool Hand Luke (1967)_ (qv).In 1958, Van Fleet was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play for her performance in "Look Homeward, Angel" on Broadway. Other films include _Wild River (1960)_ (qv), Rodgers and Hammerstein's _Cinderella (1965)_ (qv) and _I Love You, Alice B. Toklas! (1968)_ (qv). Her television work include _Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955)_ (qv), _Bonanza (1959)_ (qv), _Thriller (1960)_ (qv) and _Verrückter wilder Westen (1965)_ (qv).'Jo Van Fleet' (qv) died at age 80 of undisclosed causes on June 10, 1996 in Queens, New York City.::Ray Hamel