Biography
Karen Blanche Black (née Ziegler; July 1, 1939 – August 8, 2013) was an American actress, screenwriter, singer, and songwriter. She gained recognition in the 1970s for her roles in both studio and independent films, often portraying quirky and unconventional characters, becoming a notable figure of New Hollywood. Her career, spanning over five decades, includes nearly 200 credits across independent and mainstream cinema. Black earned multiple honors, including two Golden Globe Awards and an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
Born in a Chicago suburb, Black studied theater at Northwestern University before leaving to move to New York City. She appeared on Broadway in 1965 and made her significant film debut in Francis Ford Coppola's You're a Big Boy Now (1966). After relocating to California, she played an acid-tripping prostitute in Dennis Hopper's Easy Rider (1969). This role led to a starring part in Five Easy Pieces (1970) as a troubled beautician, earning her an Academy Award nomination and a Golden Globe win for Best Supporting Actress. Black's first major commercial film was the disaster movie Airport 1975 (1974), and her portrayal of Myrtle Wilson in The Great Gatsby (1974) garnered her a second Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress.
She played a glamorous country singer in Robert Altman's ensemble musical Nashville (1975), contributing two songs to the soundtrack, which won a Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack. Her role as an aspiring actress in John Schlesinger's The Day of the Locust (1975) brought her a third Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress. Black then starred in four roles in Dan Curtis' anthology horror film Trilogy of Terror (1975), followed by Curtis's supernatural horror Burnt Offerings (1976). That same year, she appeared as a con artist in Alfred Hitchcock’s final film, Family Plot.
In 1982, Black took on the role of a trans woman in Robert Altman’s Broadway debut Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean, which she later reprised in the film adaptation. She then starred in the comedy Can She Bake a Cherry Pie? (1983) and Tobe Hooper's Invaders from Mars remake (1986). Throughout the late 1980s and 1990s, Black appeared in numerous arthouse, independent, and horror films, while also writing screenplays. She played a villainous mother in Rob Zombie's House of 1000 Corpses (2003), solidifying her status as a cult horror icon. Black continued acting in smaller films and working as a playwright until her death from ampullary cancer in 2013.
11 wins and 6 nominations
