Rosemary Harris facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Rosemary Harris
Harris in 2007
Born	Rosemary Ann Harris (1927-09-19) 19 September 1927 (age 97) Ashby, Suffolk, England
Years active	1948–present
Spouse(s)	Ellis Rabb ​ ​ (m. 1959; div. 1967)​ John Ehle ​ ​ (m. 1967; died 2018)​
Children	Jennifer Ehle

Rosemary Ann Harris (born on September 19, 1927) is a famous English actress. She has won many important awards for her acting. These include an Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Tony Award. She was also nominated for an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award.

Rosemary Harris started acting on stage in 1948. She made her first appearance on Broadway in New York City in 1952. For her amazing work in theater, she has won four Drama Desk Awards. She was also nominated for nine Tony Awards, winning one for her role as Eleanor of Aquitaine in the play The Lion in Winter (1966).

She won an Emmy Award for playing George Sand in the TV show Notorious Woman (1976). She also won a Golden Globe Award for her role in the miniseries Holocaust (1978). Later, she was nominated for an Academy Award for her role in the film Tom & Viv (1994). Many people know her best as May Parker, Peter Parker's aunt, in the Spider-Man movies from 2002 to 2007.

Early Life and Training

Rosemary Ann Harris was born on September 19, 1927, in Ashby, Suffolk, England. Her parents were Enid Maude Frances and Stafford Berkeley Harris. Her father was in the Royal Air Force. Because of his job, Rosemary lived in India when she was a young child.

She went to convent schools. Later, she studied acting at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art from 1951 to 1952. This is a very famous acting school in London.

Her Acting Journey

Starting Out (1948–1965)

John Williams, Maurice Evans, and Harris in the 1958 TV show Dial M for Murder

Rosemary Harris began her acting career in English repertory theatre. This means she performed in many different plays. In 1948, she acted in plays like Kiss and Tell. After that, she trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.

In 1951, she first performed in New York City in a play called Climate of Eden. She then returned to Britain for her first big role in London's West End. This was in The Seven Year Itch, which ran for a whole year.

Harris then performed in many classic plays. She worked with the Bristol Old Vic and the Old Vic theater companies. In 1963, she played Ophelia in the very first production of Hamlet by the Royal National Theatre. She acted alongside Peter O'Toole.

Harris with Richard Burton in the 1958 TV show Wuthering Heights

Her first movie was Beau Brummell in 1954. She acted with Stewart Granger and Elizabeth Taylor. She returned to Broadway in a play called Troilus and Cressida. She met Ellis Rabb, who wanted to start his own theater company.

In 1955, she played Desdemona in a TV version of William Shakespeare's Othello. She also appeared in two episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents in 1957. In 1958, she acted in the TV show Dial M for Murder. That same year, she played Catherine Linton in a TV show based on the book Wuthering Heights. In 1959, she and Ellis Rabb got married.

In 1962, she returned to Britain to perform at the Chichester Festival Theatre. She played Elena in Uncle Vanya. She also appeared in the 1963 film version of Uncle Vanya. In 1964, she was Ophelia again in Hamlet for the Royal National Theatre. She also performed in plays like Herakles and You Can't Take It with You.

Theater Success and Awards (1966–1999)

Harris at the Chichester Festival Theatre, 1962

Rosemary Harris became very famous for her work with the APA theater group. She played Eleanor of Aquitaine in The Lion in Winter on Broadway. She won a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for this role.

In 1967, she played Natasha in War and Peace. That same year, she and Ellis Rabb divorced. A little later, Harris married the American writer John Ehle. In 1968, she acted in the film A Flea in Her Ear.

She was nominated for more Tony Awards for her roles in Old Times (1971) and The Royal Family (1975). She also played Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire (1973) and Portia in The Merchant of Venice (1973).

In 1974, Harris starred in the BBC TV show Notorious Woman. She won an Emmy Award for this role in 1976. She also won a Golden Globe Award for her role in the 1978 miniseries Holocaust. This show also starred Meryl Streep. In 1978, she was in the thriller film The Boys from Brazil.

From 1979 to 1980, she starred in the TV miniseries The Chisholms. In 1983, she played Mrs. Ramsay in the TV film To the Lighthouse. She also acted in the film The Ploughman's Lunch (1983). She appeared in films like Crossing Delancey (1988) and The Delinquents (1989). She returned to Broadway in the play Lost in Yonkers (1991).

For her role in the film Tom & Viv (1994), she won the National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actress. She was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. In 1996, she was nominated for a Tony Award for her role in A Delicate Balance. She also had a small role in the film Hamlet (1996).

In 1999, Rosemary Harris and her daughter, Jennifer Ehle, played the same character at different ages in the film Sunshine. They had done this before in the TV show The Camomile Lawn (1992). In 1999, she also starred in the film My Life So Far.

Recent Work (2000–Present)

Rosemary Harris became very well-known for playing Aunt May Parker in the Spider-Man movies. She played this role in the first film (2002) and its sequels, Spider-Man 2 (2004) and Spider-Man 3 (2007). These movies were very popular. She acted alongside Tobey Maguire as Spider-Man.

During this time, she also appeared in other films. These included the horror film The Gift (2000) and the comedy Blow Dry (2001). In 2007, she received the North Carolina Award for fine arts. Her husband, John Ehle, had won the same award earlier for literature. Also in 2007, she acted in the crime film Before the Devil Knows You're Dead.

Harris took on fewer film roles later on. She appeared in Is Anybody There? with Michael Caine and the romantic comedy This Means War. In 2010, she had a guest role in the TV show Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. In 2018, she joined the Broadway show My Fair Lady as Mrs. Higgins. More recently, she appeared in the TV series The Undoing (2020) and Search Party (2022).

Personal Life

Rosemary Harris and her husband, John Ehle, lived in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Their daughter, Jennifer Ehle, was born there in 1969. Jennifer also became a successful actress, following in her mother's footsteps.

Rosemary Harris's acting records and personal items are kept at the Harry Ransom Center. This collection includes her scripts, photos, and other special items from her career.

Filmography

Film

Television

Theatre

Video Games

Awards and Nominations

Film and Television

Theatre Awards

See also

In Spanish: Rosemary Harris para niños