Early years

Rowlands was born as Virginia Cathryn Rowlands in Madison, Wisconsin. Her mother, Mary Allen (Neal), was a housewife who later worked as an actress under the stage name Lady Rowlands. Her father, Edwin Myrwyn Rowlands, was a banker and state legislator. He was a member of the Wisconsin Progressive Party, and was of Welsh descent. She had a brother, David Rowlands.

Her family moved to Washington, D.C., in 1939 when Edwin was appointed to a position in the United States Department of Agriculture; moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1942 when he was appointed as branch manager of the Office of Price Administration; and later moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota. From 1947-50, she attended the University of Wisconsin, where she was a popular student already renowned for her beauty. She left for New York City to study drama at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts.

Career

Early roles (1952-1967)

In the early 1950s, Rowlands performed with repertory theatre companies and at the Provincetown Playhouse. She made her Broadway debut in The Seven Year Itch and toured in a national production of the play. Rowlands costarred with Paul Stewart in the 26-episode syndicated TV series Top Secret (1954-55), and she guest starred on such anthology television series as Robert Montgomery Presents, Appointment with Adventure, Kraft Television Theatre, and Studio One (1955). In 1956, she starred in Middle of the Night opposite Edward G. Robinson. She appeared alongside husband Cassavetes on an episode ("Fly Baby, Fly") of the 1959-60 NBC detective series Johnny Staccato. She also appeared on an episode of the NBC western series, Riverboat, starring Darren McGavin, and the ABC adventure series, The Islanders, set in the South Pacific. Rowlands made her film debut in The High Cost of Loving in 1958.

In 1961-62, she starred as Teddy Carella, the deaf-mute wife of Robert Lansing, on NBC's 87th Precinct. In that same season, she appeared on ABC's Target: The Corruptors!, starring Stephen McNally. She also guest starred in CBS's The Lloyd Bridges Show and ABC's Breaking Point. In 1963, she guest-starred in an episode on the NBC western series, Bonanza and The Virginian, and "The Lonely Hours" and "Ride The Nightmare" on CBS's The Alfred Hitchcock Hour. In 1967, she was cast as socialite Adrienne Van Leyden in the prime time ABC soap opera Peyton Place.

Cassavetes era (1968-1984)

Rowlands and Cassavetes made ten films together: A Child is Waiting (1963), Faces (1968), Machine Gun McCain (1969), Minnie and Moskowitz (1971), A Woman Under the Influence (1974; nomination for Academy Award for Best Actress), Two-Minute Warning (1976), Opening Night (1977), Gloria (1980; nomination for Academy Award for Best Actress), Tempest (1982), and Love Streams (1984).

According to Boston University film scholar Ray Carney, Rowlands sought to suppress an early version of Cassavetes' first film, Shadows, that Carney says he rediscovered after decades of searching. Rowlands also became involved in the screenings of Husbands and Love Streams, according to Carney. The UCLA Film and Television Archive mounted a restoration of Husbands, as it was pruned down (without Cassavetes' consent, and in violation of his contract) by Columbia Pictures several months after its release, in an attempt to restore as much of the removed content as possible. At Rowlands' request, UCLA created an alternative print with almost ten minutes of content edited out, as Rowlands felt that these scenes were in poor taste. The alternative print is the only one that has been made available for rental.

Late career (1985-present)

In 1985, Rowlands played the mother in the critically acclaimed made-for-TV movie An Early Frost. She won an Emmy for her portrayal of former First Lady of the United States Betty Ford in the 1987 made-for-TV movie The Betty Ford Story.

In 1988, Rowlands starred in Woody Allen's dramatic film Another Woman. She played Marion Post, a middle-aged professor who is prompted to a journey of self-discovery when she overhears the therapy sessions of another woman (Mia Farrow). The review in Time Out described the character's trajectory: "Marion gets to thinking, and is appalled to realise that so many assumptions about her own life and marriage are largely unfounded: in her desire for a controlled existence, she has evaded the emotional truth about relationships with her best friend (Sandy Dennis), brother (Harris Yulin) and husband (Ian Holm)." Time Out praised the "marvellous" performances in the film, adding, "Rowlands' perfectly pitched approach to a demanding role is particularly stunning." Film4 called her performance "sublime", while Roger Ebert noted that it marked a considerable change in tone from her work with Cassavetes, thus showing "how good an actress Rowlands has been all along."

In 2002, Rowlands appeared in Mira Nair's HBO movie Hysterical Blindness, for which she won her third Emmy. She was later seen in The Notebook (2004), which was directed by her son Nick Cassavetes. The same year, she won her first Daytime Emmy for her role as Mrs. Evelyn Ritchie in The Incredible Mrs. Ritchie. In 2005, she appeared opposite Kate Hudson, Peter Sarsgaard, and John Hurt in the gothic thriller The Skeleton Key.

In 2007, she played a supporting role opposite Parker Posey and Melvil Poupaud in Broken English, an independent American feature written and directed by her daughter Zoe Cassavetes. In 2009, she appeared on an episode of Monk ("Mr. Monk and the Lady Next Door"). On March 2, 2010, she appeared on an episode of NCIS as lead character Leroy Jethro Gibbs's former mother-in-law, who is embroiled in a murder investigation.

Personal life

Rowlands was married to John Cassavetes from April 9, 1954, until his death on February 3, 1989. They met at the American Academy at Carnegie Hall where they were both students. They had three children, all actor-directors: Nick, Alexandra, and Zoe.

Rowlands has stated that she was a big fan of actress Bette Davis while growing up. She played Davis's daughter in Strangers.

Awards

Rowlands has been nominated for two Academy Awards, eight Emmy Awards, one Daytime Emmy, eight Golden Globes, three Satellite Awards, and one SAG Award. Some of her notable wins include a Silver Bear for Best Actress; three Emmy Awards and one Daytime Emmy; two Golden Globes; two National Board of Review Awards; two Satellite Awards; and one Prize San Sebastián.

In January 2015, Rowlands was presented with a lifetime achievement award by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association At the 2015 Governors Awards she received an Honorary Academy Award. The press release described Rowland as "an original talent" whose "devotion to her craft has earned her worldwide recognition as an independent film icon".

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1958	The High Cost of Loving	Jenny Fry
1959	Shadows	Woman in Nightclub Audience	Uncredited
1962	Lonely Are the Brave	Jerry Bondi
1962	Spiral Road, TheThe Spiral Road	Els
1963	Child Is Waiting, AA Child Is Waiting	Sophie Widdicombe Benham
1967	Tony Rome	Rita Kosterman
1968	Faces	Jeannie Rapp
1969	Machine Gun McCain	Rosemary Scott	Also known as Gli intoccabili
1971	Minnie and Moskowitz	Minnie Moore
1974	Woman Under the Influence, AA Woman Under the Influence	Mabel Longhetti	Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress National Board of Review Award for Best Actress San Sebastián International Film Festival Prize for Best Actress Nominated — Academy Award for Best Actress
1975	Columbo: Playback	Elizabeth Van Wick
1976	Two-Minute Warning	Janet
1977	Opening Night	Myrtle Gordon	Silver Bear for Best Actress Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama
1978	Brink's Job, TheThe Brink's Job	Mary Pino
1978	A Question of Love	Linda Ray Guettner
1979	Strangers: The Story of a Mother and Daughter	Abigail Mason
1980	Gloria	Gloria Swenson	Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actress Nominated — Academy Award for Best Actress Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama
1982	Tempest	Antonia Dimitrius
1982	Faerie Tale Theatre	The Witch
1983	Thursday's Child	Victoria Alden	Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Miniseries or Television Film
1984	Love Streams	Sarah Lawson	Nastro d'Argento Best Foreign Actress
1985	Early Frost, AnAn Early Frost	Katherine Pierson	Nominated — Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress - Miniseries or a Movie Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Miniseries or Television Film
1987	Light of Day	Jeanette Rasnick
1987	Betty Ford Story, TheThe Betty Ford Story	Betty Ford	Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress - Miniseries or a Movie Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Miniseries or Television Film
1988	Another Woman	Marion Post
1989	I'm Almost Not Crazy: John Cassavetes, the Man and His Work	Herself
1990	Hollywood Mavericks	Herself
1991	Once Around	Marilyn Bella
1991	Night on Earth	Victoria Snelling
1991	Ted & Venus	Mrs. Turner
1991	Face of a Stranger	Pat Foster	Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress - Miniseries or a Movie
1992	Crazy in Love	Honora Swift	Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Miniseries or Television Film
1993	Silent Cries	Peggy Sutherland
1993	Anything for John	Herself
1994	Parallel Lives	Francie Pomerantz
1995	Something to Talk About	Georgia King
1995	Neon Bible, TheThe Neon Bible	Mae Morgan
1996	Unhook the Stars	Mildred 'Millie' Hawks	Nominated — Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
1997	She's So Lovely	Miss Jane Green
1998	Paulie	Ivy
1998	Hope Floats	Ramona Calvert	Lone Star Film & Television Award for Best Supporting Actress
1998	Mighty, TheThe Mighty	Gram
1998	Playing by Heart	Hannah
1999	Weekend, TheThe Weekend	Laura Ponti	Nominated — Seattle International Film Festival Citation of Excellence for Ensemble Cast Performance
2000	Light Keeps Me Company	Herself - interviewee
2000	The Color of Love: Jacey's Story	Georgia Porter	Nominated — Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress - Miniseries or a Movie Nominated — Satellite Award for Best Actress - Miniseries or Television Film
2001	Wild Iris	Minnie Brinn	Nominated — Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress - Miniseries or a Movie
2002	Charms for the Easy Life	Ms. Charlie Kate
2003	Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There	Herself
2003	Hysterical Blindness	Virginia Miller	Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress - Miniseries or a Movie Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress - Series, Miniseries or Television Film
2004	The Incredible Mrs. Ritchie	Evelyn Ritchie	Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in a Children/Youth/Family Special
2004	Taking Lives	Mrs. Asher
2004	The Notebook	Old Allie Calhoun	Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture
2005	Skeleton Key, TheThe Skeleton Key	Violet Devereaux	Nominated — Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress
2006	Paris, je t'aime	Gena	(segment "Quartier Latin")
2007	Broken English	Vivien Wilder-Mann
2007	Persepolis	Marjane's grandmother	Voice role, English dubbed version
2007	What If God Were the Sun?	Melissa Eisenbloom	Nominated — Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress - Miniseries or a Movie Nominated — Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie
2009	Monk	Marge Johnson	Nominated - Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series
2010	NCIS	Joann Fielding
2011	Olive	Tess M Powell
2012	Yellow	Mimi
2013	Parts Per Billion	Esther
2014	Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks	Lily Harrison

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[ Source: Wikipedia ]