Sue Lyon facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Sue Lyon
Lyon in the film Tony Rome (1967)
Born	Suellyn Lyon (1946-07-10)July 10, 1946 Davenport, Iowa, U.S.
Died	December 26, 2019(2019-12-26) (aged 73) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Alma mater	Los Angeles City College Santa Monica College
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1959–1980
Spouse(s)	Hampton Fancher ​ ​ (m. 1963; div. 1965)​ Roland Harrison ​ ​ (m. 1971; div. 1972)​ Cotton Adamson ​ ​ (m. 1973; div. 1974)​ Edward Weathers ​ ​ (m. 1983; div. 1984)​ Richard Rudman ​ ​ (m. 1985; div. 2002)​
Children	1

Suellyn Lyon (July 10, 1946 – December 26, 2019) was an American actress. She joined the entertainment industry as a model at the age of 13. She gained prominence and won a Golden Globe for playing the title role in the film Lolita (1962). Her other film appearances included The Night of the Iguana (1964), 7 Women (1966), Tony Rome (1967), and Evel Knievel (1971).

Life and career

Suellyn Lyon, called Sue, was born on July 10, 1946, in Davenport, Iowa. She was the youngest of five children of Sue (Karr) Lyon and her husband; the father died before the girl's first birthday. Sue worked as a child model in Dallas. Her mother soon took the family to Los Angeles, where she thought there would be more opportunity.

With only two acting credits, at the age of 14, Lyon was cast in the role of Dolores "Lolita" Haze in Stanley Kubrick's film Lolita (1962). She starred with James Mason, then aged 53. In Nabokov’s novel, the character Lolita is 12-years-old. Lyon was 14-15 during most of production, and 15 when the film premiered.

She was chosen for the role from 800 teenagers. The film makers raised the age of the character to 15 to avoid violating the Hollywood Production Code.

According to her interview with German TV in 1962, Lyon said she was accompanied while filming in England by her mother and a teacher, as she continued in school. It was still a strange period, especially after she was praised for her role.

Lyon was 15 when the film premiered in June 1962, too young to watch the film in a theater. She became an instant celebrity and won a Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer—Female.

Personal life

In California Lyon was a childhood friend of Michelle Phillips, who sang with the Mamas and Papas. According to Vanity Fair, Phillips shared the controversial Lolita with Lyon after it was published, years before she auditioned for the part. In a 1962 interview with German TV as part of the film's promotion, Lyon said she and her mother had read it and discussed it after she was cast.

Early in her career, starting in 1965, Lyon had a relationship with Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan, starting in 1965.

Lyon was married five times: briefly to Hampton Fancher, actor and filmmaker; photographer and football coach Roland Harrison, with whom she had a daughter; Gary D. Cotton Adamson, a convicted murderer; and Edward Weathers. She married Richard Rudman, an engineer, in 1985. Their marriage ended in divorce in 2002.

Her third marriage, in 1973, to Adamson, took place in a Colorado state prison, where he was incarcerated. He had been convicted of robbery and second-degree murder. The union was contentious and ended in 1974. She said at the time that people in the film industry had told her he had a negative effect on her career.

Her daughter Nona Merrill Harrison was born in Los Angeles in 1972.

Death

Lyon died in West Hollywood on the morning of December 26, 2019, at the age of 73. While no specific cause of death was given, she was reported to have been in poor health "for some time".

"To be pretty and to stay pretty are two different things. You can’t take anything for granted, and it’s foolish to think you can. You have to think ahead of how to build health and happiness. You have to learn to avoid what is going to hurt you or someone else." — Sue Lyon, 1967

Filmography

Film

Television

See also

In Spanish: Sue Lyon para niños