MacLaine, Shirley (1934-…), is an American motion-picture actress known for her portrayals of lovable eccentrics. MacLaine began her career as a singer and dancer on the stage. She played comic roles in most of her early films and gained respect as a dramatic actress later in her movie career. She won the 1983 Academy Award as best actress for her performance in Terms of Endearment.
MacLaine was born in Richmond, Virginia. Her real name was Shirley MacLean Beaty. Her brother is movie star Warren Beatty . MacLaine began performing as a child and danced in the chorus of Broadway musicals as a teenager. She got her big break when she stepped into the leading role in the Broadway musical Pajama Game in 1954 after the star of the show was injured. A Hollywood producer saw her performance and signed her to a movie contract.
MacLaine made her movie debut in the Alfred Hitchcock film The Trouble with Harry (1955). MacLaine’s other movies include Some Came Running (1959), The Apartment (1960), Irma la Douce (1963), Sweet Charity (1969), The Turning Point (1977), Being There (1979), Madame Sousatzka (1988), Used People (1992), Guarding Tess (1994), The Evening Star (1996), In Her Shoes and Rumor Has It… (both 2005), Bernie (2011), and Elsa & Fred (2014). She also wrote, co-directed, and producedThe Other Half of the Sky (1975), a documentary about China.
MacLaine has received much publicity because of her personal life, especially her belief in spiritualism. She has campaigned vigorously for liberal causes and political candidates. MacLaine has written several autobiographies, including Don’t Fall Off the Mountain (1970), You Can Get There from Here (1975), Out on a Limb (1983), and My Lucky Stars: A Hollywood Memoir (1995). In 2008, MacLaine portrayed the French fashion designer Coco Chanel in the cable television miniseries Coco Chanel. She acted in the British television series “Downton Abbey” from 2012 to 2013. MacLaine became a Kennedy Center Honoree in 2013.
