Tuesday Weld facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Tuesday Weld
Weld c. 1960
Born	Susan Ker Weld (1943-08-27) August 27, 1943 (age 81) Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1955–2001
Spouse(s)	Claude Harz ​ ​ (m. 1965; div. 1971)​ Dudley Moore ​ ​ (m. 1975; div. 1980)​ Pinchas Zukerman ​ ​ (m. 1985; div. 2001)​
Children	2

Tuesday Weld (born Susan Ker Weld; August 27, 1943) is an American former actress. She started acting when she was a child. By the late 1950s, she began playing more grown-up roles. In 1960, she won a Golden Globe Award for being a "Most Promising Female Newcomer."

Over the next ten years, she became known for her dramatic film roles. Tuesday Weld often played characters who were impulsive and adventurous. She was nominated for several awards, including a Golden Globe for Play It as It Lays (1972). She also received an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress nomination for Looking for Mr. Goodbar (1977). Her acting appearances became less frequent after the late 1980s. Her last credited role was in Chelsea Walls in 2001.

Early Life and Family Background

Tuesday Weld was born Susan Ker Weld in Manhattan, New York, on August 27, 1943. Her father, Lathrop Motley Weld, was from the well-known Weld family in Massachusetts. He passed away in 1947 when Tuesday was almost four years old.

Her mother, Yosene Balfour Ker, was the daughter of artist William Balfour Ker. William Balfour Ker was a Canadian-born artist with Scottish roots. His mother, Lily Florence Bell Ker, was a first cousin of the famous inventor Alexander Graham Bell.

Tuesday Weld had two siblings, Sarah King Weld and David Balfour Weld. She officially changed her name to Tuesday Weld on October 9, 1959.

Tuesday Weld's Acting Career

Starting Out in Acting

After her father's death, Tuesday's family faced financial challenges. Her mother encouraged Tuesday to work as a model to help support the family. Tuesday shared that she felt a lot of pressure to help her family.

Her nickname "Tu-Tu" given by a young cousin, who couldn't say "Susan," eventually became "Tuesday." She officially adopted this name in October 1959.

Tuesday's mother helped her get an agent using her modeling experience. She made her television acting debut at age 12. Her first movie role was a small part in the 1956 Alfred Hitchcock film The Wrong Man.

In 1956, Weld played the main character in Rock, Rock, Rock. This movie featured music stars like Chuck Berry and Frankie Lymon. In the film, Connie Francis sang for Tuesday Weld's character.

She also appeared on TV shows like Goodyear Playhouse. She was an understudy for a play on Broadway called The Dark at the Top of the Stairs.

Weld had a supporting role in the comedy Rally Round the Flag, Boys! (1958). She also appeared in The Five Pennies (1959), playing the daughter of Danny Kaye. She was a guest star many times on The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet (1958–59).

Becoming a Star

Her acting in Rally 'Round the Flag, Boys! impressed movie studio executives. They signed her to a long-term contract with 20th Century Fox. She was cast in the TV series The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis. Weld played Thalia Menninger, who was Dobie Gillis's love interest. Even though she was only on the show for one season, it made her very famous. She won a "Most Promising Newcomer" award at the Golden Globe Awards.

She played a free-spirited college student named Joy Elder in High Time (1960), starring Bing Crosby. She also sang a song with Fabian Forte on a TV show.

For Fox, Weld had a supporting role in Return to Peyton Place (1961). She also acted alongside Elvis Presley in Wild in the Country (1962). She had a romance with Elvis Presley off-screen.

Weld in 1964, with David Janssen in the TV series The Fugitive.

Tuesday Weld was the first choice for the role of Lolita in the 1962 film Lolita. However, she turned down the role, saying she felt she was already like the character in real life.

She took a break to study herself in New York. Then she starred with Jackie Gleason and Steve McQueen in Soldier in the Rain (1963). She received great reviews for an episode of Naked City in 1962. She played a troubled blind woman in an episode of The Fugitive in 1964.

Rising to Fame

In 1965, Weld appeared in the successful film The Cincinnati Kid with Steve McQueen. She then had a starring role in Lord Love a Duck (1966). She received excellent reviews for her performance.

She also played Abigail in a TV version of The Crucible (1967). After a guest role on Cimarron Strip (1967), Weld starred in Pretty Poison (1968) with Anthony Perkins. This film became a cult classic, meaning it gained a dedicated following over time.

Tuesday Weld became known for turning down roles in movies that later became very successful. These included Bonnie and Clyde and Rosemary's Baby. She explained that she sometimes turned down roles because she thought they would be too commercially successful.

The films she did make included I Walk the Line (1970) with Gregory Peck. She also starred in Play It as She Lays (1972), for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award.

Years of Success

Weld started working in television again. She starred in TV films like Reflections of Murder (1974) and F. Scott Fitzgerald in Hollywood (1975). In the latter, she played Zelda Fitzgerald, a famous writer's wife.

She gained a lot of attention for her role as Katherine in Looking for Mr. Goodbar (1977). For this role, she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. She also appeared in Who'll Stop the Rain (1978) and the comedy Serial (1980).

Tuesday Weld said she preferred working in television because of the faster pace. She found it helpful to finish a role quickly without overthinking it.

She played the main character in TV films such as A Question of Guilt (1978) and a new version of The Rainmaker (1982).

In movies, Weld had a strong supporting role in Michael Mann's film Thief (1981). She played Al Pacino's wife in Author! Author! (1982). She also co-starred with Donald Sutherland in the TV film The Winter of Our Discontent (1983). This performance earned her an Emmy nomination.

In 1984, she appeared in Sergio Leone's epic gangster film Once Upon a Time in America. She played a jeweler's secretary involved in a diamond heist. This role earned her a BAFTA nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

She continued to appear in TV films like Scorned and Swindled (1984) and Circle of Violence (1986). She also had a supporting role in the film Heartbreak Hotel (1988).

Later Career Roles

Weld worked again with Anthony Perkins in an episode of Mistress of Suspense (1990).

In 1993, she played a police officer's wife in Falling Down, starring Michael Douglas. She had smaller supporting roles in Feeling Minnesota (1996) and Chelsea Walls (2001).

Personal Life

Tuesday Weld has been married three times. Her first marriage was to screenwriter Claude Harz from 1965 to 1971. They had a daughter named Natasha, born in 1966.

Her second marriage was to British actor and musician Dudley Moore in 1975. They had a son named Patrick in 1976. They divorced in 1980.

In 1985, she married Israeli concert violinist and conductor Pinchas Zukerman. She became a stepmother to his two daughters. They divorced in 2001.

Weld sold her beach house in Montauk, New York, in the late 2000s. She then moved to Carbondale, Colorado. In 2018, she moved from Colorado and bought a home in the Hollywood Hills.

Filmography

Television Roles

See also

In Spanish: Tuesday Weld para niños