Piper Laurie dead at 91

[greysfang]

Piper Laurie, Oscar-nominated ‘Carrie’ and ‘Twin Peaks’ actress, dies at 91

By Josh du Lac, CNN
2 minute read

Updated 10:24 PM EDT, Sat October 14, 2023

—
Piper Laurie, the celebrated actress known for her chilling portrayal of the overbearingly religious mother in “Carrie” and for playing Paul Newman’s down-in-the-dumps girlfriend in “The Hustler,” has died at 91, her manager said.

Laurie died early Saturday in Los Angeles, her manager, Marion Rosenberg, confirmed to CNN. No cause of death was provided.

Laurie will be remembered as “one of the finest actresses of her generation and a superb human being,” Rosenberg said.

Turner Classic Movies, which, like CNN, is part of Warner Brothers Discovery, called Laurie “one of the most celebrated and formidable actresses of the last half-century.” The network said she “gave full-blooded performances as flawed, often ferocious women.”

Critics and colleagues took note: Laurie received Academy Award nominations for her riveting performances in “The Hustler” and “Carrie.” She was also nominated for an Oscar for playing a remorseful mother in “Children of a Lesser God” and received a Golden Globe Award for her role in television’s “Twin Peaks.”

Born as Rosetta Jacobs in Detroit in 1932, she assumed the name Piper Laurie at the urging of a manager when she began professionally acting as a teen, she wrote in her memoir, “Learning to Live Out Loud.”

After starting a contract with Universal-International (now Universal Studios) at age 18, Laurie starred opposite actors including Ronald Reagan, Rock Hudson, Tony Curtis and Newman.

She took a 15-year hiatus from Hollywood after breaking her contract in the mid 1950s, but later returned to deliver a tormenting portrayal of the fanatically evangelical mother in “Carrie.”

www.cnn.com/2023/10/14/us/piper-laurie-actress-dead-obituary/index.html

[faithanne]

I was lucky enough to see a screening of Carrie at the Castro in SF when I was there many years ago, and Piper Laurie did a Q&A afterwards. She was amazing and funny, and the whole experience was fantastic. RIP dirty pillow lady.

[HWBL]

Aaawwww, 91 is a good age. She was so intense as Carrie's mother (which movie we just happened to watch last night). Did not watch very many things she was in, but in the few things we did see she was always solid and convincing. Twin Peaks, Tim, The Thorn Birds. On Youtube there's an interview with her from 2022: 

[tulip]

I remember "Tim" -- back when Mel was handsome and not sullied with the hate he had on the inside -- it was a good movie. 91 -- that is amazing. May she rest in peace.

[HWBL]

Oct 15, 2023 13:44:44 GMT tulip said:

I remember "Tim" -- back when Mel was handsome and not sullied with the hate he had on the inside -- it was a good movie. 91 -- that is amazing. May she rest in peace.

Yeah, before the ciggies, the booze, the religious zealousness and hate did their work.

[MsDark]

I liked her in Twin Peaks too.

[trixie]

Oh I loved her in Carrie. And Twin Peaks. She had a very recognizable voice. Can't believe she was 91, wow. RIP Margaret White.

[notoriousmkg]

I went to look up some Carrie stuff on IMDB and found out that William Katt had morphed into the unholy love child of Gary Oldman and Colonel Sanders..... .

Oh, and RIP, Piper Laurie!

[chalet]

Oct 15, 2023 13:44:44 GMT tulip said:

I remember "Tim" -- back when Mel was handsome and not sullied with the hate he had on the inside -- it was a good movie. 91 -- that is amazing. May she rest in peace.

Oh you just brought back a big memory.  Six of us young ladies went to a revival movie theatre, popcorn in hand and cat called
that entire movie.  Not exactly our style, but why not. Yes, he was pretty back then. Never was there a Mel movie that we didn't sit through twice. Anyway, the other half of the audience were gay guys and then kept telling us to be quiet.

Piper became a sort of popular name recently? I think of her in The Hustler with Paul, the Thornbirds and Carrie. 

And Mo, William Katt was beee-U-tiful! Like a baby Robert Redford.  I watched the Greatest American Hero.

[notoriousmkg]

Oct 20, 2023 4:03:42 GMT chalet said:

Oct 15, 2023 13:44:44 GMT tulip said:

I remember "Tim" -- back when Mel was handsome and not sullied with the hate he had on the inside -- it was a good movie. 91 -- that is amazing. May she rest in peace.

Oh you just brought back a big memory.  Six of us young ladies went to a revival movie theatre, popcorn in hand and cat called
that entire movie.  Not exactly our style, but why not. Yes, he was pretty back then. Never was there a Mel movie that we didn't sit through twice. Anyway, the other half of the audience were gay guys and then kept telling us to be quiet.

Piper became a sort of popular name recently? I think of her in The Hustler with Paul, the Thornbirds and Carrie. 

And Mo, William Katt was beee-U-tiful! Like a baby Robert Redford.  I watched the Greatest American Hero.

Totally agree. William Katt was a beautiful man.  I think it probably helped that in his debut in "Carrie" that he was actually kind of a prom king with a heart of gold.  He and Amy Irving looked so perfect for each other with their matching wild manes of hair.

I think peak William Katt was in the movie "Butch and Sundance - the Early Years", which he costarred in with Tom Berenger.  While I don't think anyone is going to match up with Newman and Redford, Katt and Berenger was as close as you can probably get:

[HWBL]

Oct 23, 2023 15:58:18 GMT notoriousmkg said:

Totally agree. William Katt was a beautiful man.  I think it probably helped that in his debut in "Carrie" that he was actually kind of a prom king with a heart of gold.  He and Amy Irving looked so perfect for each other with their matching wild manes of hair.

I think peak William Katt was in the movie "Butch and Sundance - the Early Years", which he costarred in with Tom Berenger.  While I don't think anyone is going to match up with Newman and Redford, Katt and Berenger was as close as you can probably get:

Tom Berenger, sigh, he (and also Matthew McConaughey) were always more or less introduced as the new/younger version of Paul Newman. I think Berenger won that contest, looks wise, but neither ever came close to Newman's status.

I also like Katt in the silly TV series Greatest American Hero, which also had Robert Culp in a hysterically funny part:

[notoriousmkg]

Oct 23, 2023 17:51:37 GMT HWBL said:

Oct 23, 2023 15:58:18 GMT notoriousmkg said:

Totally agree. William Katt was a beautiful man.  I think it probably helped that in his debut in "Carrie" that he was actually kind of a prom king with a heart of gold.  He and Amy Irving looked so perfect for each other with their matching wild manes of hair.

I think peak William Katt was in the movie "Butch and Sundance - the Early Years", which he costarred in with Tom Berenger.  While I don't think anyone is going to match up with Newman and Redford, Katt and Berenger was as close as you can probably get:

Tom Berenger, sigh, he (and also Matthew McConaughey) were always more or less introduced as the new/younger version of Paul Newman. I think Berenger won that contest, looks wise, but neither ever came close to Newman's status.

I also like Katt in the silly TV series Greatest American Hero, which also had Robert Culp in a hysterically funny part:

My best childhood friend was a huge fan of the show, so I watched it a little, too.  It was like an anti-hero take on superheroes.  I used to be able to play the theme song on the piano, LOL.  I always loved those Mike Post tv theme songs - this one, Hill Street Blues, Rockford Files.  Dude was a freaking genius.

[charmedhour]

I actually just met Tom Berenger at a 30th Anniversary of the movie "Gettysburg" celebration a few weeks ago. He's super handsome still (IMO), and Maxwell Caufield looked like hell.