Brenda Vaccaro facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Brenda Vaccaro
Vaccaro in Where It's At (1969)
Born	Brenda Buell Vaccaro (1939-11-18) November 18, 1939 (age 85) Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Education	Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1961–present
Spouse(s)	Martin Fried ​ ​ (m. 1965; div. 1970)​ William Bishop ​ ​ (m. 1977; div. 1978)​ Charles Cannizzaro ​ ​ (m. 1981; div. 1982)​ Guy Hector ​ (m. 1986)​
Partner(s)	Michael Douglas (1971–1976)

Brenda Buell Vaccaro (born November 18, 1939) is an American actress. She has worked in plays, movies, and TV shows for over 50 years. During her long career, she has been nominated for many important awards. These include an Academy Award, three Golden Globe Awards (winning one), four Primetime Emmy Awards (winning one), and three Tony Awards.

Early Life and Acting Start

Brenda Vaccaro was born in Brooklyn, New York. Her parents were Christine M. and Mario A. Vaccaro. Her father was a restaurant owner. She grew up in Dallas, Texas, where her parents opened Mario's Restaurant in 1943. Brenda went to Thomas Jefferson High School there.

When she was 17, Brenda moved back to New York City. She wanted to study acting. She learned from Sanford Meisner at the Neighborhood Playhouse. In 1961, she made her first appearance on Broadway. It was in a comedy play called Everybody Loves Opal. For this role, she won a Theatre World Award.

A Career on Stage and Screen

Brenda Vaccaro has had many roles on Broadway. Some of her famous plays include Cactus Flower (1965) and How Now, Dow Jones (1967). She was also in The Goodbye People (1968). She was nominated for a Tony Award three times for her work in these plays. The Tony Award is a very important award for theater actors.

Brenda also became well-known in movies. She acted with Dustin Hoffman and Jon Voight in the 1969 film Midnight Cowboy. For this movie, she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award. In 1975, she starred in Once Is Not Enough. Her performance earned her an Academy Award nomination and she won the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress. The Academy Award is one of the highest honors in film.

She appeared in many other movies, such as Airport '77, Capricorn One, and Supergirl. She also played a role in The Mirror Has Two Faces.

Brenda has also had a busy career in television. She played the main role in the 1976 TV series Sara. She also appeared in many TV movies. She was a regular on the show Paper Dolls in 1984. You might have seen her in guest roles on popular shows like The Love Boat, The Golden Girls, and Friends. In Friends, she played Joey's mother. She won an Emmy Award in 1974 for her performance in a TV special called The Shape of Things. The Emmy Award is a top honor for television.

Brenda is also known for her voice acting. She was the voice of Bunny Bravo, Johnny Bravo's mother, in the cartoon series Johnny Bravo. She also voiced characters in The Critic and The Smurfs. More recently, she played Gloria Marquette in the TV show And Just Like That....

Personal Connections

Brenda Vaccaro was in a relationship with actor Michael Douglas for almost seven years, starting in 1971. She even appeared in two episodes of The Streets of San Francisco, a TV show where Michael Douglas was a main actor.

She has been good friends with singer and actress Barbra Streisand since they both started on Broadway in the early 1960s. Barbra Streisand even directed Brenda in the movie The Mirror Has Two Faces.

Filmography

Film

Television

Stage Performances

See also

In Spanish: Brenda Vaccaro para niños