Eva Marie Saint

Eva Marie Saint
Eva Marie Saint studio photo.
Born	(1924-07-04) July 4, 1924 Newark, New Jersey, The United States
Alma mater	Actors Studio Bowling Green State University
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1946-present
Spouse(s)	Jeffrey Hayden (since 1951; 2 children)
Children	Darrell (born 1955) Laurette (born 1958)

Eva Marie Saint (born July 4, 1924) is an American actress who has starred in films, on Broadway, and on television in a career spanning seven decades. She won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the drama film On the Waterfront (1954), and later starred in the thriller film North by Northwest (1959), directed by Alfred Hitchcock. Saint received Golden Globe and BAFTA award nominations for the drama film A Hatful of Rain (1957) and won an Emmy Award for the television miniseries People Like Us (1990). Her film career also includes roles in Raintree County (1957), Exodus (1960), Because of Winn-Dixie (2005), Superman Returns (2006) and Winter's Tale (2013).

Early life and education

Saint was born in the City of Newark to Eva Marie (née Rice) and John Merle Saint. She attended Bethlehem Central High School in Delmar, New York, graduating in 1942, and was inducted into the high school's hall of fame in 2006. She studied acting at Bowling Green State University while a member of Delta Gamma Sorority, and there is now a theater on Bowling Green's campus named for her. She was an active member in the theater honorary fraternity, Theta Alpha Phi and served as Secretary of the Bowling Green Student Government in 1944.

Career

Early television career

Saint's introduction to television began as an NBC page. She appeared in the very early live NBC TV show Campus Hoopla in 1946–47. Her performances on this program are recorded on rare kinescope, and audio recordings of these telecasts are preserved in the Library of Congress. She also appeared in the 1949 Bonnie Maid Versa-Tile Varieties NBC program as one of the singing Bonnie Maids used in the live commercials. She appeared in a 1947 Life Magazine special about television, and also in a 1949 feature Life article about her as a struggling actress earning minimum amounts from early TV while trying to make ends meet in New York City. In the late 1940s, she continued doing extensive work in radio and television before winning the Drama Critics Award for her Broadway stage role in the Horton Foote play The Trip to Bountiful (1953), in which she co-starred with such formidable actors as Lillian Gish and Jo Van Fleet. In 1955, she was nominated for her first Emmy for "Best Actress In A Single Performance" on The Philco Television Playhouse for playing the young mistress of middle-aged E. G. Marshall in Middle of the Night by Paddy Chayefsky. She won another Emmy nomination for the 1955 television musical version of the Thornton Wilder classic play Our Town with co-stars Paul Newman and Frank Sinatra. Her success and acclaim were of such a high level that the young Saint earned the nickname "the Helen Hayes of television."

Film debut

Saint in On the Waterfront, 1954

Saint's first feature-film role, at age 30, was in On the Waterfront (1954), directed by Elia Kazan and starring Marlon Brando - a performance for which she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Her role as Edie Doyle (whose brother's death sets the film's drama in motion), which she won over such leading contenders as Claire Trevor, Nina Foch, Katy Jurado, and Jan Sterling also earned her a British Academy of Film and Television Award nomination for "Most Promising Newcomer." In his New York Times review, film critic Bosley Crowther wrote:

"In casting Eva Marie Saint - a newcomer to movies from TV and Broadway - Mr. Kazan has come up with a pretty and blond artisan who does not have to depend on these attributes. Her parochial school training is no bar to love with the proper stranger. Amid scenes of carnage, she gives tenderness and sensitivity to genuine romance."

Saint and Brando in On the Waterfront

In a 2000 interview in Premiere magazine, Saint recalled making the hugely influential film:

“

[Elia] Kazan put me in a room with Marlon Brando. He said 'Brando is the boyfriend of your sister. You're not used to being with a young man. Don't let him in the door under any circumstances'. I don't know what he told Marlon; you'll have to ask him - good luck! [Brando] came in and started teasing me. He put me off-balance. And I remained off-balance for the whole shoot.

”

The film was a major success and launched Saint's movie career. She starred with Don Murray in the pioneering drug-addiction drama, A Hatful of Rain (1957), for which she received a nomination for the "Best Foreign Actress" award from the British Academy of Film and Television, and the lavish Civil War epic Raintree County (also 1957) with Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift.

Working with Hitchcock

in North by Northwest, 1959

Director Alfred Hitchcock surprised many by choosing Saint over dozens of other candidates for the femme fatale role in what was to become a suspense classic North by Northwest (1959) with Cary Grant and James Mason. Written by Ernest Lehman, the film updated and expanded upon the director's early "wrong man" spy adventures of the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s, including The 39 Steps, Young and Innocent, and Foreign Correspondent. North by Northwest became a box-office hit and an influence on spy films for decades. The film ranks number forty on the American Film Institute's list of the 100 Greatest American Movies of All Time.

At the time of the film's production, much publicity was gained by Hitchcock's decision to cut Saint's waist-length blonde hair for the first time in her career. Hitchcock explained at the time, "Short hair gives Eva a more exotic look, in keeping with her role of the glamorous woman of my story. I wanted her dressed like a kept woman - smart, simple, subtle and quiet. In other words, anything but the bangles and beads type." The director also worked with Saint to make her voice lower and huskier and even personally chose costumes for her during a shopping trip to Bergdorf Goodman in New York City.

The change in Saint's screen persona, coupled with her adroit performance as a seductive woman of mystery who keeps Cary Grant (and the audience) off-balance, was widely heralded. In his New York Times review of August 7, 1959, critic Bosley Crowther wrote, "In casting Eva Marie Saint as [Cary Grant's] romantic vis-a-vis, Mr. Hitchcock has plumbed some talents not shown by the actress heretofore. Although she is seemingly a hard, designing type, she also emerges both the sweet heroine and a glamorous charmer." In 2000, recalling her experience making the picture with Cary Grant and Hitchcock, Saint said, "[Grant] would say, 'See, Eva Marie, you don't have to cry in a movie to have a good time. Just kick up your heels and have fun.' Hitchcock said, 'I don't want you to do a sink-to-sink movie again, ever. You've done these black-and-white movies like On the Waterfront. It's drab in that tenement house. Women go to the movies, and they've just left the sink at home. They don't want to see you at the sink.' I said, 'I can't promise you that, Hitch, because I love those dramas.'"

Mid-career

Although North by Northwest might have propelled her to the top ranks of stardom, she elected to limit film work in order to spend time with her husband since 1951, director Jeffrey Hayden, and their two children. Nevertheless, in the 1960s, Saint continued to distinguish herself in both high-profile and offbeat pictures. She co-starred again with Paul Newman in the historical drama about the founding of the state of Israel Exodus (1960), directed by Otto Preminger. She also co-starred with Warren Beatty, Karl Malden and Angela Lansbury as a tragic beauty in the drama All Fall Down (1962). Based upon a novel by James Leo Herlihy and a screenplay by William Inge, the film was directed by John Frankenheimer.

She was seen with Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton in the melodrama The Sandpiper for Vincente Minnelli, and with James Garner in the World War II thriller 36 Hours (1964), directed by George Seaton. Saint joined an all-star cast in the comedic satire The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming, directed by Norman Jewison and the international racing drama Grand Prix (1966) presented in Cinerama and directed by Frankenheimer.

Saint received some of her best reviews^{[citation needed]} for her appearance in Loving (1970), co-starring as the wife of George Segal in a critically acclaimed but underseen drama about a commercial artist's relationship with his wife and other women. Because of the mostly second-rate film roles that came her way in the 1970s, Saint returned to television and the stage in the 1980s. She appeared in a number of made-for-television films and played the mother of Cybill Shepherd on the television series Moonlighting over a three-year period. She received an Emmy nomination for the 1977 miniseries How The West Was Won, and a 1978 Emmy nomination for Taxi!!!.

"She looks like Eve Marie Saint, in On the Waterfront" was the opening of the chorus to Rattlesnakes, the debut album by Lloyd Cole and the Commotions which was also released as a single, both in 1984.

Later career

Saint in September 1990

Saint returned to the big screen for the first time in over a decade as Tom Hanks' mother in the Garry Marshall-directed comedy Nothing in Common (1986). Critics applauded her return to features, but Saint was soon back on the small screen in numerous projects.

After receiving five nominations, Saint won her first Emmy Award for the 1990 miniseries film People Like Us. She appeared in a number of television productions in the 1990s and was cast as the mother of Frasier Crane's radio producer, Roz Doyle, in a 1999 episode of the hit comedy series Frasier.

In 2000, she returned to feature films once again in I Dreamed of Africa with Kim Basinger. In 2005 she co-starred with Jessica Lange and Sam Shepard in Don't Come Knocking. Also in 2005, she appeared in the family film Because of Winn-Dixie, co-starring AnnaSophia Robb, Jeff Daniels and Cicely Tyson.

In 2006, Saint appeared in Superman Returns, as Martha Kent, the adoptive mother of Superman, alongside Brandon Routh, Kevin Spacey, Kate Bosworth, and a computer-generated performance from her On The Waterfront co-star Marlon Brando.

Saint has appeared in a number of television specials and documentaries, particularly in the past decade, including The Making of North by Northwest, which she narrated and hosted. In 2009, she made a rare public appearance at the 81st Academy Awards ceremony as a Best Supporting Actress presenter. In 2011, Saint participated in two screenings of North by Northwest with Robert Osborne. The films were shown in Seattle and Cleveland. Saint and Osborne participated in meet-and-greet sessions as well as a pre-movie question and answer session.^{[citation needed]} Saint has also appeared in the 2012 Nickelodeon animated series The Legend of Korra, which is a sequel to the hit TV show Avatar: The Last Airbender as the voice actor for a now-elderly Katara, a main character from the original.

In September 2012, Saint was cast as the adult version of Willa in the film adaptation of Mark Helprin's 1983 novel Winter's Tale.

She has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, for motion pictures at 6624 Hollywood Boulevard, and television at 6730 Hollywood Boulevard.

Personal life

Saint has been married to producer/director Jeffrey Hayden since October 28, 1951. They have two children, Darrell (born April 1, 1955) and Laurette (born July 19, 1958), and three grandchildren.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1947	A Christmas Carol		DuMont Television Network special with John Carradine and David Carradine; Saint's TV debut
1948–1955	Philco Television Playhouse		TV, 4 episodes, Nominated for Best Actress Emmy Award
1949	Lights Out		TV, 1 episode
1949	Suspense	Francie	TV, 1 episode
1949–1950	Actors Studio		TV, 3 episodes
1949–1953	Studio One		TV, 3 episodes
1950	Prudential Family Playhouse		TV, 1 episode
1950–1951	Buck Rogers	Wilma Deering	TV, 41 episodes
1950–1952	One Man's Family	Claudia Barbour Roberts #2	TV
1950–1951	Versatile Varieties		TV, unknown episodes
1953	The Trip to Bountiful	Thelma	Television film
1953	ABC Album/Jamie	Cousin Liz	TV, 1 episode
1953	The Web		TV, 2 episodes
1953	Eye Witness		TV, 1 episode
1953	The Revlon Mirror Theater		TV, 1 episode
1953–1954	Goodyear Television Playhouse	Frances Barclay	TV, 2 episodes
1954	On the Waterfront	Edie Doyle	Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated for BAFTA award
1954	General Electric Theater	Maudle Applegate	TV, 1 episode
1955	Producers' Showcase		TV, 2 episodes, Nominated for Best Actress Emmy
1956	That Certain Feeling	Dunreath Henry
1957	A Hatful of Rain	Celia Pope	Nominated for Best Foreign Actress BAFTA Nominated for Golden Globe Nominated for Laurel Award
1957	Raintree County	Nell Gaither
1959	North by Northwest	Eve Kendall
1960	Exodus	Kitty Fremont
1962	All Fall Down	Echo O'Brien
1964	Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre	Diane Wescott	TV, 1 episode
1964	Carol for Another Christmas	The Wave	Television film
1965	36 Hours	Anna Hedler
1965	The Sandpiper	Claire Hewitt
1966	The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming	Elspeth Whittaker
1966	Grand Prix	Louise Frederickson
1968	The Stalking Moon	Sarah Carver
1970	Loving	Selma Wilson
1972	Cancel My Reservation	Sheila Bartlett
1974	The First Woman President	Oklahoma Red	Television film
1976	The Macahans	Kate Macahan	Television film
1976	The Fatal Weakness		Television film
1977	How the West Was Won	Katherine "Kate" Macahan	Miniseries, Nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress Emmy
1978	Taxi!!!	Passenger	Television film, Nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress Emmy
1978	A Christmas to Remember	Emma Larson	Television film
1979	When Hell Was in Session	Jane Denton	Television film
1980	The Curse of King Tut's Tomb	Sarah Morrissey	Television film
1981	The Best Little Girl in the World	Joanne Powell	Television film
1981	Splendor in the Grass	Mrs. Loomis	Television film
1983	Malibu	Mary Wharton	Television film
1983	Jane Doe	Dr. Addie Coleman	Television film
1983–1984	The Love Boat	Priscilla	TV, 4 episodes
1984	Love Leads the Way: A True Story	Mrs. Eustes	Television film
1984	Fatal Vision	Mildred Kassab	Television film
1986	A Year in the Life	Ruth Gardner	Miniseries
1986	Nothing in Common	Lorraine Basner
1986	The Last Days of Patton	Mrs. Beatrice Ayer Patton	Television film
1986–1988	Moonlighting	Virginia Hayes	TV, 6 episodes
1987	Breaking Home Ties	Emma	Television film
1988	I'll Be Home for Christmas	Martha Bundy	Television film
1990	Voyage of Terror: The Achille Lauro Affair	Marilyn Klinghoffer	Television film
1990	People Like Us	Lil Van Degan Altemus	Television film Won Outstanding Supporting Actress Emmy
1991	Palomino	Caroline Lord	Television film
1993	Kiss of a Killer	Mrs. Wilson	Television film
1995	My Antonia	Emmaline Burden	Television film
1996	Mariette in Ecstasy	Mother Saint-Raphael
1996	After Jimmy	Liz	Television film
1996	Titanic	Hazel Foley	Miniseries
1997	Time to Say Goodbye?	Ruth Klooster
1999	Frasier	Joanna Doyle	TV, 1 episode
2000	I Dreamed of Africa	Franca
2000	Papa's Angels	Dori "Grammy" Jenkins	Television film
2003	Open House	Veronica Reynolds	Television film
2005	Because of Winn-Dixie	Miss Franny
2005	Don't Come Knocking	Howard's Mother
2006	Superman Returns	Martha Kent
2012	The Legend of Korra	Katara	TV, recurring role
2013	Winter's Tale	Willa (adult)

Awards and nominations

Year	Group	Award	Film or series	Result
1955	Academy Award	Best Actress in a Supporting Role	On the Waterfront	Won
1955	BAFTA Award	Most Promising Newcomer to Film	On the Waterfront	Nominated
1955	Emmy Award	Best Actress in a Single Performance	The Philco Television Playhouse (Episode: "Middle of the Night")	Nominated
1956	Emmy Award	Best Actress - Single Performance	Producers' Showcase (Episode: "Our Town")	Nominated
1958	BAFTA Award	Best Foreign Actress	Hatful of Rain	Nominated
1958	Golden Globe Award	Best Motion Picture Actress - Drama	A Hatful of Rain	Nominated
1958	Laurel Awards	Top Female Dramatic Performance	A Hatful of Rain	3rd Place
1977	Emmy Award	Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series	How the West Was Won	Nominated
1978	Emmy Award	Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama or Comedy Special	Taxi!!!	Nominated
1990	Emmy Award	Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Special	People Like Us	Won
1999	Ft. Lauderdale International Film Festival	Lifetime Achievement Award	-	Won
2000	Savannah Film and Video Festival	Lifetime Achievement Award	-	Won
2004	San Luis Obispo International Film Festival	King Vidor Memorial Award	-	Won
2007	Golden Boot Awards	-	-	Won

See also

• List of American actresses
• List of Bowling Green State University alumni

External links

• Eva Marie Saint at the Internet Broadway Database
• Eva Marie Saint at the Internet Movie Database
• Idol Chatter: Eva Marie Saint
• On Life Between Brando's Babe and Superman's Mom (Moving Pictures Magazine interview)