Nina Foch
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Nina Foch | |
---|---|
Born | Nina Consuelo Maud Fock April 20, 1924 Leiden, South Holland, Netherlands |
Died | December 5, 2008 Los Angeles, California, U.S. | (aged 84)
Occupation(s) | Actress, drama teacher |
Years active | 1943–2007 |
Spouses | Dennis de Brito
(m. 1959; div. 1964)Michael Dewell
(m. 1967; div. 1993) |
Children | 1 |
Parent |
|
Nina Foch (
Born in Leiden, Netherlands in 1924, Foch immigrated to the United States with her mother while still a toddler, and was raised in New York City. After signing a contract with Columbia Pictures at age 19, Foch became a regular in the studio's horror pictures and film noirs, starring in such films as The Return of the Vampire (1943), Escape in the Fog, and My Name Is Julia Ross (1945). She concurrently embarked on a stage career, making her Broadway debut as the titular Mary in 1947's John Loves Mary. She subsequently starred in several Broadway productions of William Shakespeare plays, including Twelfth Night (1949), King Lear (1950), and Measure for Measure (1955).
Foch gained widespread notice for her role as Milo Roberts in the musical film
Beginning in the 1960s, Foch began a concurrent career as an educator, teaching courses in drama and film directing at the American Film Institute and at the University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts, where she was a faculty member for over 40 years. Among her students were directors Randal Kleiser and Edward Zwick. and performer Julie Andrews. Foch continued to teach until the end of her life, up until her death in December 2008 of myelodysplastic syndrome.[2]
Biography
1924–1942: Early life
Nina Foch was born Nina Consuelo Maud Fock in 1924[3] in Leiden, South Holland, Netherlands, to American actress and singer Consuelo Flowerton and Dutch classical music conductor Dirk Fock.[4] Her parents divorced when she was a toddler, and she and her mother moved to the United States, settling in New York City.[5]
Throughout Foch's childhood, her mother encouraged her artistic talents; she learned piano and enjoyed art but was more interested in acting.[6] After graduating from the Lincoln School, Foch attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, studying method acting under Lee Strasberg and Stella Adler.[7]
1943–1950: Early films and theater
After signing a contract with
Next, Foch appeared in
Foch made her Broadway debut in the 1947 production of John Loves Mary, playing the titular Mary.[12] She subsequently starred in Stratford and Broadway productions of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night (1949) and King Lear (1950).[12]
1951–1980: Critical recognition
In 1951, Foch appeared with
Foch received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as a secretary in the boardroom drama Executive Suite (1954), starring William Holden, Fredric March, and Barbara Stanwyck.[14] The same year Executive Suite was released, Foch married her first husband, actor James Lipton; their marriage spanned five years before ending in divorce in 1959.[15] The same year, she married television writer Dennis de Brito, with whom she gave birth to one son, Dirk.[7]
In Spartacus (1960), starring Kirk Douglas and Laurence Olivier, she played a woman who chooses gladiators to fight to the death in the ring simply for her entertainment. In 1961, she guest-starred in the NBC series about the family divisions from American Civil War entitled The Americans. In 1963, she appeared on the NBC game show Your First Impression. In 1964, she played the title role in the episode "Maggie, Queen of the Jungle" of Craig Stevens's short-lived CBS drama series, Mr. Broadway. Also in 1964, Foch divorced her second husband, De Brito.[7] Foch was next cast as Eva Frazier in the Outer Limits episode "The Borderland". She appeared in an episode of Gunsmoke as the widowed matriarch of a lawless town, and played in an episode on Combat! titled episode "The Casket". In 1967, Foch married her third husband, Michael Dewell, in 1967.[7]
Also beginning in the 1960s, Foch began working as an instructor, teaching "Directing the Actor" classes at the School of Cinematic Arts at the University of Southern California (USC), as well as at the American Film Institute.[7][16]
She was subsequently cast as the first murder victim of the
1981–2008: Later work and teaching
Later in her career, Foch appeared in
In her final years, Foch appeared on the television series
Foch also continued to work as an instructor at USC during this period, and also worked as an independent script-breakdown consultant for many Hollywood directors.[7]
Death
Foch died on December 5, 2008, aged 84, at the
Legacy
Foch has stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, located at 6300 Hollywood Boulevard, and 7000 Hollywood Boulevard.[20] Those who studied with her include Rod Stewart, Julie Andrews,[21] John Ritter (with whom she co-starred in Skin Deep), Amy Heckerling, Randal Kleiser, Edward Zwick, Ron Underwood,[22] and Marshall Herskovitz.[16] Andrews recalled of Foch: "She was a tough teacher, but in the best sense. She was always brutally frank, she demanded one go the extra mile, and she wouldn't allow one to get away with a thing."[21] Kleiser, who studied with Foch in 1965, reflected: "She was able to take the things she learned working with directors like Vincente Minnelli and Stanley Kubrick and combine them with her own style."[16]
Foch was reportedly the inspiration for the character Nina, a washed-up actress teaching acting classes from a seedy motel, in Rufus Butler Seder's film Screamplay. Seder had studied under Foch years earlier. [23]
Filmography
Accolades
Institution | Category | Year | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Academy Awards | Best Supporting Actress | 1954 | Executive Suite | Nominated | [14] |
National Board of Review | Best Supporting Actress | 1954 | Won | ||
Primetime Emmy Awards
|
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series | 1980 | Lou Grant Episode: "Hollywood" |
Nominated | [17] |
Venice Film Festival | Grand Jury Prize | 1954 | Executive Suite | Won | [14] |
References
- ^ Gates, Anita (December 8, 2008). "Nina Foch, Actress in Sophisticated Roles, Dies at 84". The New York Times. Retrieved April 20, 2014.
- ^ Bergan, Ronald (December 5, 2008). "Obituary: Nina Foch". The Guardian. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
- ^ Bernstein, Adam (December 12, 2008). "Nina Foch; 'Executive Suite' Role Earned Actress Oscar Nomination". The Washington Post.
- ^ Aaker 2013, p. 138.
- ^ "Nina Foch". The Telegraph. December 8, 2008. Archived from the original on May 5, 2013. Retrieved April 2, 2018.
- ^ LoBianco, Lorraine. "Starring Nina Foch: 10-22". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved April 18, 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f g Woo, Elaine (December 6, 2008). "Nina Foch, actress and influential coach and teacher, dies at 84". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
- ^ Pitts 2014, pp. 197–198.
- ^ Pitts 2014, p. 50.
- ^ Blottner 2015, p. 72.
- ^ Blottner 2015, pp. 158–159.
- ^ a b c "Nina Foch". Playbill. Archived from the original on March 4, 2020.
- ^ "DeMille Honored For Bible Movie". Spokane Daily Chronicle. Spokane, Washington. Associated Press. March 19, 1957. Retrieved September 12, 2015.
- ^ a b c Keenan 2007, p. 185.
- ^ "At Home with Nina Foch". New York Daily News. New York City, New York. December 6, 1959. p. 916 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c Wire Reports (December 8, 2008). "Actress Nina Foch dies at 84". Variety. Archived from the original on March 4, 2020.
- ^ Primetime Emmy Awards. Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Archivedfrom the original on March 4, 2020.
- ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
- ^ Wilson 2016, p. 248.
- ^ Woo, Elaine. "Nina Foch". Los Angeles Times. Hollywood Star Walk. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
- ^ a b "Acting for Singers – Julie Andrews and Barry Manilow talking about Nina Foch". The Nina Foch Course. August 1, 2011. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021. Retrieved March 4, 2020 – via YouTube.
- ^ "How Did This Get Made: A Conversation With Ron Underwood, Director of 'Tremors,' 'City Slickers,' and 'The Adventures of Pluto Nash'". /Film. July 24, 2020. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
- ^ Director's Commentary, Screamplay DVD
Sources
- Aaker, Everett (2013). George Raft: The Films. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-6646-7.
- Blottner, Gene (2015). Columbia Noir: A Complete Filmography, 1940–1962. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-7014-3.
- Keenan, Richard C. (2007). The Films of Robert Wise. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-6663-8.
- Pitts, Michael R. (2014). Columbia Pictures Horror, Science Fiction and Fantasy Films, 1928–1982. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-5766-3.
- Wilson, Scott (2016). Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons (3rd ed.). Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland. ISBN 978-1-4766-2599-7.