Demure British beauty Jean Simmons was born January 31, 1929 in Crouch End, London. As a 14-year-old dance student, she was plucked from her school to play 玛格丽特·洛克伍德's precocious sister in Give Us the Moon (1944), and she went on to make a name for herself in such major British productions as 凯撒与克里奥佩特拉 (1945), 远大前程 (1946) (as the spoiled, selfish Estella), 黑水仙 (1947) (as a sultry native beauty), 王子复仇记 (1948) (playing Ophelia to 劳伦斯·奥利弗's great Dane and earning a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination), The Blue Lagoon (1949) and 逆旅惊魂 (1950), among others.
In 1950, she married actor 斯图尔特·格兰杰, and that same year, starred in the 弗兰克·辛纳特拉/马龙·白兰度 musical 红男绿女 (1955); she used her own singing voice and earned her first Golden Globe Award. Simmons divorced Granger in 1960 and almost immediately married writer-director Richard Brooks, who cast her as Sister Sharon opposite 伯特·兰卡斯特 in Elmer Gantry (1960), a memorable adaptation of the 辛克莱·刘易斯 novel. That same year, she co-starred with 柯克·道格拉斯 in 斯坦利·库布里克's 斯巴达克斯 (1960) and played a would-be homewrecker opposite 加里·格兰特 in 绿苑春浓 (1960).
Off the screen for a few years, Jean captivated moviegoers with a brilliant performance as the mother in All the Way Home (1963), a literate, tasteful adaptation of 詹姆斯·艾吉's "A Death in the Family". However, after that, she found quality projects somewhat harder to come by, and took work in 金屋藏娇 (1965), 长相忆 (1966), 美国式离婚 (1967), Rough Night in Jericho (1967), The Happy Ending (1969) (a Richard Brooks film for which she was again Oscar-nominated, this time as Best Actress).
Jean continued making films well into the 1970s. In the 1980s, she appeared mainly in television miniseries, such as North and South, Book I (1985) and The Thorn Birds (1983). She made a comeback to films in 1995 in 恋爱编织梦 (1995) co-starring 薇诺娜·瑞德 and Anne Bancroft, and most recently played the elderly Sophie in the English version of 宫崎骏's 哈尔的移动城堡 (2004). She now resided in Santa Monica, California, with her dog, Mr. Gates, and her two cats, Adisson and Megan. Jean Simmons died of lung cancer on January 22, 2010, nine days before her 81st birthday.
Simmons had two daughters: Kate Brooks (by Richard Brooks) and Tracy Granger (by 斯图尔特·格兰杰). Both daughters survived their mother, along with a grandson, Ty Saville..
Turned down the role of Jean Pargetter on the British television series 往事随风 (1992), which went to 朱迪·丹奇.
Becoming depressed at the lack of quality parts being offered her, Jean became addicted to alcohol. In 1986, she sought professional treatment.
She was awarded the OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the 2003 Queen's New Year Honours List for her services to drama.
In America from the early 1950s, Jean found out that RKO head 霍华德·休斯 had purchased the remaining six months of her Rank Studio contract. When Hughes claimed that an oral agreement with Rank precluded her from being loaned out to any other studio, she sued RKO. The legal battle raged for over a year. When the suit was finally settled, RKO had a three-year contract for Jean's services, but was obligated to pay her $250,000 in addition to her legal fees. Furthermore, she won the right to work on loan to other studios at a substantial salary.
In 1958, she accepted the Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role on behalf of 亚历克·吉尼斯, who was not present at the awards ceremony.
Even before her American debut, she was revered and beloved by both the British critics and filmgoers. By the end of 1950, she was the #4 box office attraction, American or British, in British cinema.
In the late 1970s, she and daughter Kate Brooks lived in the Litchfield County town of New Milford, Connecticut. They later returned to their longtime California home in Santa Monica.
As of 2013, she is one of six women who has received a Best Actress Oscar nomination for a performance directed by her spouse, namely for The Happy Ending (1969) directed by Richard Brooks. The other five are 伊丽莎白·伯格纳 for 永不离开我 (1935) (directed by 保罗·锡纳), 乔安娜·伍德沃德 for 巧妇怨 (1968) (directed by 保罗·纽曼), 吉娜·罗兰兹 for 醉酒的女人 (1974) and 女煞葛洛莉 (1980) (both directed by 约翰·卡萨维蒂), 朱莉·安德鲁斯 for 雌雄莫辨 (1982) (directed by 布莱克·爱德华兹), and 弗兰西斯·麦克多蒙德 for 冰血暴 (1996) (directed by 乔尔·科恩). 朱尔斯·达辛 also directed his future wife 玛丽娜·墨蔻莉 in a Best Actress Oscar nominated performance (痴汉艳娃 (1960)), but they were not married yet at the time of the nomination.
In Italy, most of her films were dubbed by Fiorella Betti. She was occasionally dubbed by Dhia Cristiani during the mid-1950s, most notably in 圣袍千秋 (1953). Other actresses like Miranda Bonansea, Rosetta Calavetta and Rina Morelli also lent their voice to Simmons at some point. From the 1960s onwards, Maria Pia Di Meo became her official Italian voice.
She was made a Fellow of the British Film Institute in recognition of her outstanding contribution to film culture.
Was 威廉·惠勒's first choice for the role of Princess Ann in 罗马假日 (1953), but 霍华德·休斯, who owned her contract, would not loan her out to Paramount to do the film.
Her mother was Winifred Aida Loveland. Her father, Charles Simmons, won a bronze medal in the Olympics for Great Britain in artistic gymnastics and died of an ulcer when Jean was age 16.
Became a United States citizen in 1956.
Director Richard Brooks claimed that he wrote The Happy Ending (1969), the filmed story of an alcoholic wife (played by Simmons) as a way to tell his wife that she herself had a problem. The marriage eventually broke up due to Simmons' drinking and Brooks' workaholic tendencies.
She and 马龙·白兰度 were originally supposed to lip-sync their songs in the musical film 红男绿女 (1955). 塞缪尔·戈尔德温 heard them during rehearsal and decided the untrained stars should do their own singing for authenticity.
Her 王子复仇记 (1948) co-star 劳伦斯·奥利弗 urged the young actress to perfect her craft on the stage; instead, she decided to follow her future husband 斯图尔特·格兰杰 to Hollywood.
She is survived by her daughters, Tracy Granger and Kate Brooks, and one grandson, Ty Saville.
According to 理查德·伯顿's biography "And God Created Burton", Simmons had an affair with the actor when they were filming 圣袍千秋 (1953) together.
She was the only guest star on the television series Murder, She Wrote (1984) to receive an Emmy Award nomination (1989).
Gave birth to her 1st child at age 27, a daughter Tracy Stewart Granger, aka Tracy Granger, on September 10, 1956. Child's father is her 1st ex-husband, 斯图尔特·格兰杰.
Is one of 20 actresses who did not receive an Oscar nomination for their Best Actress in a Comedy/Musical Golden Globe-winning performance; hers being for 红男绿女 (1955). The others, in chronological order, are: 琼·阿利森 for 彩凤瑶琴 (1951), 埃塞尔·默尔曼 for 风流贵妇 (1953), 泰娜·伊尔格 and 凯·肯戴尔 for 巴黎之恋 (1957), 玛丽莲·梦露 for 热情如火 (1959), 罗莎琳德·拉塞尔 for 萍水相逢 (1961) and 玫瑰舞后 (1962), 帕蒂·杜克 for 处女的烦恼 (1969), 崔姬 for 男朋友 (1971), 拉蔻儿·薇芝 for The Three Musketeers (1973), 芭芭拉·史翠珊 for 一个明星的诞生 (1976), 伯纳黛特·彼得斯 for 天降财神 (1981), 凯瑟琳·特纳 for 绿宝石 (1984) and 普里兹家族的荣誉 (1985), 米兰达·理查森 for 迷人的四月 (1991), 杰米·李 for 真实的谎言 (1994), 妮可·基德曼 for 不惜一切 (1995), 麦当娜 for 贝隆夫人 (1996), 蕾妮·齐薇格 for 护士贝蒂 (2000), 莎莉·霍金斯 for Happy-Go-Lucky (2008), and 艾米·亚当斯 for 大眼睛 (2014).
She has two roles in common with 海伦娜·伯翰·卡特: (1) Simmons played Ophelia in 王子复仇记 (1948) while Bonham Carter played her in 哈姆雷特 (1990) and (2) Simmons played Miss Havisham in 寄予厚望 (1989) while Bonham Carter played her in 远大前程 (2012). Simmons actually starred in two adaptations of Great Expectations: 远大前程 (1946) and 寄予厚望 (1989). She played Estella in the former and Miss Havisham in the latter.
Received her first on-screen kiss from Tony Wager in 远大前程 (1946).
Quit smoking while filming Shadows in the Sun (2009).
Was just 11 years younger than 特雷莎·怀特, who played her mother in 红伶泪 (1953) and The Happy Ending (1969).
Appears in four Oscar Best Picture nominees: 远大前程 (1946), 王子复仇记 (1948), 圣袍千秋 (1953) and Elmer Gantry (1960). Hamlet won Best Picture in 1948.
She has appeared in one film that has been selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant: 斯巴达克斯 (1960).
Often played mildly rebellious characters
Her captivating beauty
Natural brunette hair
Sparkling green eyes
Demure demeanor
Rich, formal voice
