Jessica Phyllis Lange is an American actress who first appeared on the screen in 1976 in one of the screen versions of King Kong. At that time, she was already 27 years old, but she was not afraid to start a career in cinema. Today she has many prestigious awards, including Oscar, Emmy, Golden Globe, Tony, BAFTA.
Biography and career of Jessica Lange
Jessica Phyllis Lange (Lange in some pronunciations) was born on April 20, 1949 in Clokey, Minnesota, to Albert Lange and Dorothy Florence Salman. His father was a traveling salesman, his work involved constant moving from place to place, so Jessica and her family as a child managed to live in more than 10 different cities of her native state. This did not stop her from studying and in 1967 she received a scholarship to study art and photography. While studying at the university, she met her first husband, the Spanish-born photographer Francisco Grande. Having traveled around the USA and Mexico, the couple decided to go to Europe - first to Madrid and then to Paris. Relationship with her husband did not work out, but Jessica did not leave Paris, but entered the pantomime theater. At the same time she danced at the National Comic Opera Theater.
By 1973, Jessica managed to try herself as a model, having worked for some time with the agency "Wilhelmina Models". In the same year, she decided to return to New York. Her fate was largely predetermined by her meeting with Dino De Laurentiis - it was he who recommended her to audition for the lead role in the film King Kong. Beating the casting of Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn, Jessica Lange appeared on the big screen in 1976. Critics did not appreciate the film and the constantly screaming blonde (that's how they dubbed Jessica Lange). It could have made the film the first and last of Jessica Lange's career, but the public was in awe of King Kong, turning it into one of the highest-grossing films of 1976 and making it an incredible commercial success. The devastating reviews from critics did not prevent Jessica from receiving her first Golden Globe in 1977.
After "King Kong" the rapid ascent to the cinematic Olympus began. Soon Jessica starred in two Oscar-winning films - "Francis" (1982) and "Tootsie" (1982). This allowed her to add two Oscar nominations to her personal piggy bank at once. For an actress under 40, this was a huge success and proof of her talents.
Until 1995, Jessica Lange actively starred and appeared not only on the big screen, but also in mini-series and television films. Then she decided to take a short break in her career to devote herself entirely to her husband Sam Shepard and raising children, but it did not last long - already in 1998 the actress returned to the cinema. She began to be attracted to auteur films, not commercial cinema ("Big Fish" by Tim Burton, "Broken Flowers" by Jim Jarmusch), and Jessica starred in the TV movie "Gray Gardens" (2007), for which she was awarded an Emmy.
Among the works of recent years, one can single out the sensational series "American Horror Story". In it, the actress tried herself in a variety of roles - from a domineering nun who worked in a hospital for psychos, to the head of the witch's coven and the owner of a freak circus. These roles have impressed critics and the public alike, winning several awards. In general, it seems that any film with Jessica Lange is literally doomed to the fact that he will be awarded this or that prize.
After American Horror Story, another series was released, in which Jessica Lange played alongside Susan Sarandon - "Feud" (2016). For this role, the actress received another prestigious nomination - the Screen Actors Guild Award.
Personal life
The first husband of Jessica Lange was the photographer Francisco Grande. They married in 1970 while Jessica was still at university, but broke up soon after. In the next relationship with Mikhail Baryshnikov, the actress gave birth to a daughter, Alexandra, but this did not save the couple from parting.
The longest (1982-2009) was a civil marriage with Sam Shepard, an outstanding actor and film director, from whom Jessica gave birth to two children.
Jessica Lange belongs to unique personalities who are constantly developing and improving themselves. Having achieved certain heights in cinema, she tries herself in other areas - theater, music, photography, literature, politics and charity. In 2009, she even published an illustrated children's book It's About a Little Bird.
The actress is a vegetarian and has a Buddhist outlook on life. She loves to travel and does not part with her camera. Many of her photographs periodically appear at exhibitions in various galleries, museums and art venues.
Interesting fact
If Jessica Lange, in addition to the awards she has received, also received a Grammy award, she would be one of the 15 lucky ones who received the most prestigious awards in her career - Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony (Abbreviated as EGOT - Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony).
