Millie Perkins facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Millie Perkins
Publicity photo (1959)
Born	(1936-05-12) May 12, 1936 (age 89) Passaic, New Jersey, U.S.
Education	Fair Lawn High School
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1959–2006
Known for	The Diary of Anne Frank The Shooting Ride in the Whirlwind Wild in the Country Wild in the Streets
Spouse(s)	Dean Stockwell ​ ​ (m. 1960; div. 1962)​ Robert Thom ​ ​ (m. 1964, died 1979)​
Children	2

Millie Perkins (born May 12, 1936) is an American actress who is now retired. She became famous for her first movie role as Anne Frank in the 1959 film The Diary of Anne Frank. She also played important parts in Western movies like The Shooting and Ride in the Whirlwind in 1966.

Early Life and First Roles

Millie Perkins was born on May 12, 1936, in Passaic, New Jersey. She grew up in Fair Lawn and went to Fair Lawn High School. Her father was a captain in the merchant marine.

Before becoming an actress, Millie worked as a receptionist in New York City. A photographer noticed her, and she soon became a successful model. By 1958, her face was on magazine covers around the world.

Millie Perkins as Anne Frank (1959)

Soon after, Millie was chosen to play Anne Frank in the 1959 movie The Diary of Anne Frank. Anne Frank was a young Jewish girl who wrote a diary during World War II. Millie had never planned to be an actress. But the movie's director, George Stevens, saw her photo and wanted her for the part. She flew to Hollywood for an audition and got the role. Many people praised her acting as Anne Frank.

Millie Perkins visiting Israel in 1959

After The Diary of Anne Frank, Millie signed a contract with 20th Century Fox. She was seen as a rising star in Hollywood. However, the studio system was changing, and it wasn't a good fit for Millie. She was suspended for not wanting to star in the 1960 film Tess of the Storm Country. She felt it was not a good step for her career.

In 1961, 20th Century Fox cast her in Wild in the Country. She played the girlfriend of the main character, played by Elvis Presley. Later, she played Elvis's mother, Gladys Presley, in a TV series about him in 1990. After Wild in the Country, the studio ended her contract.

Millie also starred in two movies directed by Monte Hellman in 1966: The Shooting and Ride in the Whirlwind. In 1968, she co-starred in Wild in the Streets. Her husband at the time, Robert Thom, wrote this movie.

Later Acting Career

In 1976, Millie Perkins moved to Jacksonville, Oregon. She lived there with her two daughters, Lillie and Hedy. She taught drama workshops and spoke to high school drama groups. In 1982, she taught drama at Southern Oregon University.

In 1983, Millie returned to movies. She played Jon Voight's ex-wife in Table for Five. For the next 20 years, she often played "mother roles." She was Sean Penn's mother in At Close Range. She played the mother of Charlie Sheen's character in the 1987 movie Wall Street. She was also in The Chamber (1996) and The Lost City (2005).

Television Roles

Millie Perkins first appeared on television in 1961 on Wagon Train. Her TV roles were not very frequent until the 1980s. From then on, she appeared in many TV shows. She was in seven episodes of Knots Landing between 1983 and 1990. She also appeared in fourteen episodes of Any Day Now from 1998 to 2002.

She played Glenda Vandervere in an episode of Murder, She Wrote in 1986. Millie Perkins stopped acting after a six-episode role on the TV soap opera The Young and the Restless in 2006.

Personal Life

Millie Perkins married actor Dean Stockwell on April 15, 1960. They divorced on July 30, 1962.

In December 1964, she married writer and director Robert Thom. He wrote the movie Wild in the Streets, in which Millie appeared. They had two daughters, Lillie and Hedy. Robert Thom passed away in 1979.

Filmography

Movies

Television Series

This list includes TV series where Millie Perkins had a role in more than one episode.

• Knots Landing (1983-84; 1990) - Jane Sumner
• A.D. (1985, TV miniseries) - Mary
• Elvis (1990, TV miniseries) - Gladys Presley
• Any Day Now (1998-2002) - Irene O'Brien Otis
• The Young and the Restless (2006) - Rebecca Kaplan

See also

In Spanish: Millie Perkins para niños