Susannah York (RIP)
Sunday, January 16, 2011 at 6:03PM Sad news to report. The lovely, talented 60s star Susannah York, aka Superman's Mom (the biological one back on Krypton) has died at the age of 72. Here's why she'll live on though... They Shoot Horses Don't They? (1969)
They Shoot Horses Don't They (1969)
They Shoot Horses is my personal favorite film of 1969 and an all-time Oscar record holder (most nominations without a corresponding Best Picture citation, a grand total of Nine!) but it's sadly underdiscussed these days. Susannah was nominated for playing Jane Fonda's main dancing rival in the marathon contest at the film's center, a neat metaphorical object, human suffering as entertainment. Susannah's psychotic break in the shower rivals any femme unravelling in Black Swan.
York also holds the distinction of being the only female cast member of Best Picture winner Tom Jones (1963) to not be nominated for Best Supporting Actress. I'm exaggerating but since an incredible three women were nominated from the film (the most ever -- though that 60% of the category trick has happened twice in Best Supporting Actor) it felt like it.
Other highlights include Freud (1962) with Montgomery Clift and Robert Altman's Images (1972) for which she won Best Actress at Cannes. She was so beautiful she could play an adult version of Michelle Pfeiffer in Falling in Love Again (1980, Michelle's first large film role after a few tv series and an itty bitty movie role)
Further Reading: Moving Pictures Blog and MUBI
Reader Comments (3)
1969 oscar trivia, All the five suporting actress nominees were blondes
I liked The Killing of Sister George too, although I haven't seen it for a long time. I remember crying when the actress Beryl Reid had to play a cow on a kid's show. Another one I liked with York was The Silent Partner (written by Curtis Hanson) with an absolutely chilling Christopher Plummer as the villain, and Elliot Gould as the hapless hero.
Oh no, I just noticed the sidebar while I was reading the Globes recap; that's dampened my mood considerably. Susannah York not winning for They Shoot Horses... is one of the great Oscar missteps of all time. Love that film, love her performance.