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Jennifer Jones(1919-2009)

  • Actress
  • Soundtrack
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Jennifer Jones
The homely daughter of a rich, vain woman gets mixed up with a kinky, menacing pop singer and his weird friends.
Play trailer1:38
Angel, Angel, Down We Go (1969)
15 Videos
99+ Photos
One of the world's most underrated Academy Award-winning actresses, Jennifer Jones was born Phylis Lee Isley on 2 March 1919 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, to Flora Mae (Suber) and Phillip Ross Isley, who ran a travelling stage show. As a young aspiring actress, she met and fell for young, handsome, aspiring actor Robert Walker. They soon married, and moved to Chicago in order to fulfill their dreams of becoming film stars. Though their plans (initially) fell through, Phyllis began working as a model; sporting mainly hats, gloves and jewelry, and also occasionally found some work on local radio stations, where she provided the voice for various characters in radio programmes, along with her husband.

In a last-ditch attempt to pursue her dream, Phyllis traveled to Selznick studios for a reading which would ultimately change her life. It was that day where she met David O. Selznick, and after that, her career began to take shape. Initially, Phyllis thought the audition went terribly and stormed out of the studios in tears, only to be chased by Selznick, who assured her she had been fine. Although she didn't get that particular part (which was for the iconic character, Scarlett O'Hara, which would ultimately go to Vivien Leigh, in one of the most famous castings in Hollywood's history), Phyllis was given a contract with Selznick studios. In short order, Phyllis was 'renamed' to the alliterative Jennifer Jones, and was cast over thousands of other hopefuls in the role of Bernadette Soubirous in Bernadetten laulu (1943).

For her moving portrayal of the sickly teenager who sees a vision of the Virgin Mary at Lourdes and devotes her life to her by becoming a nun, Jones won the Academy Award for best actress in a leading role on 2 March 1944 (coincidentally her 25th birthday) beating out stiff competition such as Ingrid Bergman (who later became a close friend of hers), Greer Garson, Joan Fontaine and Jean Arthur.

Now, considered a 'true' star, Jones' career was marked out and moulded for her by Selznick, who would become the love of her life. They began an affair and eventually she left her husband and two sons for the producer, which ultimately led Walker to an untimely death, attributed to alcohol and drug abuse instigated due to their separation. As for her career, Jones took on the supporting role of Jane Hilton, a headstrong teenage girl who grows up fast when her fiance is killed in action during WWII, in Kunnes palaat (1944). For her performance Jones received a best supporting actress Oscar nomination, but lost out to Ethel Barrymore for Yksinäinen sydän (1944). Jennifer continued to deliver strong performances, receiving further best actress Oscar nominations for Kohtalokkaat kirjeet (1945) (she lost to Joan Crawford for Mildred Pierce - amerikkalainen nainen (1945)) and Kaksintaistelu auringossa (1946), (she lost to Olivia de Havilland for Kuolematon rakkaus (1946)) which saw her cast against type as the seductive biracial beauty Pearl Chavez.

Jones continued to produce memorable performances throughout the 1940s , including Unelma Jennystä (1948). In the 1950s she received her fifth and final Oscar nomination for Päivien kimallus (1955), losing out to Anna Magnani for Tatuoitu ruusu (1955).

Despite her success within the film industry, Jones was a very private person and managed to stay out of the spotlight that dominated so many other performers' lives. But a lack of publicity led to a lack of roles, a trend that amplified when Selznick died in 1965. She appeared in fewer and fewer films, and after a moderately successful supporting performance in Liekehtivä torni (1974) Jones decided to make that role her swan song, bowing out of the film industry. She did, however, try to revive her film career in later years by campaigning for the role of Aurora Greenway in Hellyyden ehdoilla (1983), but Shirley MacLaine was cast instead and as a result, won the Oscar for best actress.

Jennifer Jones died 17 December, 2009, in Malibu, California. In the 21st century, Jones may not be as well known as other actresses of her time such as Ingrid Bergman, Katharine Hepburn, Greer Garson, Bette Davis etc. But for those who know of her and her extraordinary talent, she is alluring to watch and her acting abilities extended far greater than most of her contemporaries.
BornMarch 2, 1919
DiedDecember 17, 2009(90)
BornMarch 2, 1919
DiedDecember 17, 2009(90)
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
  • Won 1 Oscar
    • 7 wins & 6 nominations total

Photos298

Gregory Peck, Jennifer Jones, and Al St. Hilaire
Humphrey Bogart, Peter Lorre, Ivor Barnard, Jennifer Jones, Gina Lollobrigida, Robert Morley, and Marco Tulli in Afrikan aarre (1953)
Humphrey Bogart and Jennifer Jones in Afrikan aarre (1953)
Humphrey Bogart and Jennifer Jones in Afrikan aarre (1953)
Jennifer Jones in Afrikan aarre (1953)
Humphrey Bogart and Jennifer Jones in Afrikan aarre (1953)
Jennifer Jones and Edward Underdown in Afrikan aarre (1953)
Jennifer Jones and Gina Lollobrigida in Afrikan aarre (1953)
Jennifer Jones and Gina Lollobrigida in Afrikan aarre (1953)
Jennifer Jones and Gina Lollobrigida in Afrikan aarre (1953)
Jennifer Jones in Afrikan aarre (1953)
Humphrey Bogart and Jennifer Jones in Afrikan aarre (1953)

Known for:

Fred Astaire, William Holden, Paul Newman, Richard Chamberlain, Steve McQueen, Faye Dunaway, O.J. Simpson, Robert Vaughn, Robert Wagner, Susan Blakely, and Jennifer Jones in Liekehtivä torni (1974)
Liekehtivä torni
7.0
  • Lisolette
  • 1974
Jennifer Jones in Bernadetten laulu (1943)
Bernadetten laulu
7.6
  • Bernadette Soubirous
  • 1943
William Holden and Jennifer Jones in Päivien kimallus (1955)
Päivien kimallus
6.4
  • Dr. Han Suyin
  • 1955
Shirley Temple, Claudette Colbert, Joseph Cotten, and Jennifer Jones in Kunnes palaat (1944)
Kunnes palaat
7.5
  • Jane Hilton
  • 1944

Credits

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IMDbPro

Actress

  • Fred Astaire, William Holden, Paul Newman, Richard Chamberlain, Steve McQueen, Faye Dunaway, O.J. Simpson, Robert Vaughn, Robert Wagner, Susan Blakely, and Jennifer Jones in Liekehtivä torni (1974)
    Liekehtivä torni
    7.0
    • Lisolette
    • 1974
  • Angel, Angel, Down We Go (1969)
    Angel, Angel, Down We Go
    4.3
    • Astrid Steele
    • 1969
  • Kovakasvo (1966)
    Kovakasvo
    5.4
    • Carol
    • 1966
  • Jason Robards and Jennifer Jones in Yö on hellä (1962)
    Yö on hellä
    6.0
    • Nicole Diver
    • 1962
  • Jäähyväiset aseille (1957)
    Jäähyväiset aseille
    5.8
    • Catherine Barkley
    • 1957
  • Elämän unelma (1957)
    Elämän unelma
    6.5
    • Elizabeth Barrett
    • 1957
  • Gregory Peck, Jennifer Jones, and Fredric March in Harmaapukuinen mies (1956)
    Harmaapukuinen mies
    7.1
    • Betsy Rath
    • 1956
  • Robert Douglas, Kipp Hamilton, Jennifer Jones, Peggy Knudsen, and Robert Stack in Hyvää huomenta, miss Dove (1955)
    Hyvää huomenta, miss Dove
    7.0
    • Miss Dove
    • 1955
  • William Holden and Jennifer Jones in Päivien kimallus (1955)
    Päivien kimallus
    6.4
    • Dr. Han Suyin
    • 1955
  • Afrikan aarre (1953)
    Afrikan aarre
    6.4
    • Gwendolen Chelm
    • 1953
  • Montgomery Clift and Jennifer Jones in Kohtalokas laituri (1953)
    Kohtalokas laituri
    6.2
    • Mary Forbes
    • 1953
  • Charlton Heston and Jennifer Jones in Syntinen Ruby (1952)
    Syntinen Ruby
    6.7
    • Ruby Gentry
    • 1952
  • Viattomuuden kasvot (1952)
    Viattomuuden kasvot
    7.3
    • Carrie Meeber
    • 1952
  • Lumottu veri (1950)
    Lumottu veri
    6.9
    • Hazel Woodus
    • 1950
  • James Mason, Van Heflin, Jennifer Jones, and Louis Jourdan in Madame Bovary (1949)
    Madame Bovary
    7.0
    • Emma Bovary
    • 1949

Soundtrack

  • Lumottu veri (1950)
    Lumottu veri
    6.9
    • performer: "The Mountain Ash", "Sigh No More Ladies", "Harps in Heaven" (uncredited)
    • 1950
  • Joseph Cotten and Jennifer Jones in Unelma Jennystä (1948)
    Unelma Jennystä
    7.6
    • performer: "Jennie's Song" (uncredited)
    • 1948
  • Shirley Temple, Claudette Colbert, Joseph Cotten, and Jennifer Jones in Kunnes palaat (1944)
    Kunnes palaat
    7.5
    • music: "Kaiser-Walzer (Emperor Waltz) op.437" (1889)
    • performer: "Kaiser-Walzer (Emperor Waltz) op.437" (1889), " (Oh My Darling) Clementine" (1884), "Happy Birthday to You" (1893) (uncredited)
    • 1944

Videos15

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Trailer 2:16
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Trailer 2:32
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Trailer 1:44
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Trailer 2:48
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Trailer 1:40
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Trailer 1:24
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Trailer 2:21
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Trailer 3:19
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Trailer 2:17
Official Trailer
Carrie
Trailer 1:16
Carrie

Personal details

Edit
  • Alternative names
    • Phylis Isley
  • Height
    • 1.70 m
  • Born
    • March 2, 1919
    • Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA
  • Died
    • December 17, 2009
    • Malibu, California, USA(natural causes)
  • Spouses
      Norton SimonMay 30, 1971 - June 1, 1993 (his death)
  • Children
      Mary Jennifer Selznick
  • Parents
      Phillip Ross Isley
  • Publicity listings
    • 1 Biographical Movie
    • 5 Print Biographies
    • 13 Articles
    • 1 Pictorial
    • 5 Magazine Cover Photos

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    After she reportedly tried to commit suicide and was hospitalized, and was temporarily in a coma after being found at the foot of a 400-foot cliff in Malibu, she got strongly involved in mental health issues.
  • Quotes
    My mother told me never explain, never complain. Even as a young actress, I determined I would never give personal interviews, since they made me so uncomfortable.
  • Salary
    • Kunnes palaat
      (1944)
      $9,866 .66

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