Jessica Lange celebrates 76 today
Her screen debut came in 1976’s blockbuster “King Kong,” in which her portrayal of Ann Darrow—equal parts vulnerable and resilient—announced her as a star overnight. Over the next decade she delivered a string of powerhouse performances: as the troubled actress Frances Farmer in “Frances” (1982), a role that earned her first Academy Award nomination
Jessica Lange celebrates 76 today
Jessica Lange was born on April 20, 1949, in Cloquet, Minnesota. The daughter of a high‑school principal and a building contractor, she grew up in a small Midwestern town before moving to Paris in her early twenties to work as a fashion model. It was there that a chance encounter with photographer Herb Ritts ignited her passion for the camera, and she returned to New York to study photography before fate steered her toward acting.
Her screen debut came in 1976’s blockbuster “King Kong,” in which her portrayal of Ann Darrow—equal parts vulnerable and resilient—announced her as a star overnight. Over the next decade she delivered a string of powerhouse performances: as the troubled actress Frances Farmer in “Frances” (1982), a role that earned her first Academy Award nomination; as the earnest Sandra in “Tootsie” (1982), for which she won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress; and as the tormented wife in “Blue Sky” (1994), which brought her a second Oscar, this time for Best Actress.
Never content to rest on her laurels, Lange embraced television in the 2000s, winning Emmy Awards for her work in the HBO biopic “Grey Gardens” (2009) and multiple seasons of the anthology series “American Horror Story,” where her chameleon‑like ability to inhabit wildly different characters—from a grieving matriarch to a sinister cult leader—garnered both critical acclaim and a new generation of fans. Alongside her screen achievements, she has returned repeatedly to the stage, starring on Broadway in productions of “Long Day’s Journey into Night” and “Mother of the Maid,” and she continues to explore photography, publishing monographs of her own evocative portraits.
Across nearly fifty years in the spotlight, Jessica Lange has proven herself one of her generation’s most fearless and versatile performers, celebrated for bringing depth, intelligence and unflinching honesty to every role she undertakes.
Watch: Jessica Lange Breaks Down Her Career, from King Kong to American Horror Story
Images and photographs can be from different ranges of sources such as Pinterest, Tumblr etc. except when/where noted. If you are the copyright holder and would like them removed or credited, please get in touch.
