The popular, Academy Award-winning actress, Olympia Dukakis, proves Alzheimer’s doesn’t care who you are or where you come from. Thankfully, it became clear to me that when I compete, I lose my connection to the passion I have for my work. 5,013, © 2020 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved 5,168, This story has been shared 5,013 times. Over the duration of their marriage, she and her husband have experienced shared successes, appearing together in "Long Day's Journey Into Night," "Camino Real, "The Three Sisters" and "The Seagull," among many others. Her adaptability to various ethnicities (Greek, Italian, Jewish, Eastern European, etc. She also became a master instructor at New York University for fourteen years. Her beloved mother lost her life to this progressive, neurodegenerative disease. So I constantly play women who are damaged and out of touch, who are seeking without knowing, or knowing without the skills to transform their lives. Discover what to watch this November including a Marvel docu-series, a '90s reboot, and a Star Wars holiday celebration. You don't stay married for thirty-nine years because of sex or even because of love, but because your partner is a real friend to you, because they respect and regard you. ), as well her chameleon-like versatility in everything from cutting edge comedy to stark tragedy, has kept her in high demand for the past 30 years as of one of Hollywood's topnotch character players.Olympia Dukakis was born on June 20, 1931, in Lowell, Massachusetts, the daughter of Greek immigrants, Alexandra (Christos), from the Peloponnese, and Constantine S. Dukakis, from Anatolia. Since then movie (and TV) fans have discovered what the East coast theater-going audiences had uncovered decades before -- an acting treasure. Post was not sent - check your email addresses! This work is among more than 40 other series, mini-series and guest starring roles she has accumulated over her long career.The septuagenarian hardly slowed down and continued strongly into the millennium with top supporting film credits including The Intended (2002), The Event (2003), the title role in the mystery Charlie's War (2003), The Thing About My Folks (2005), Jesus, Mary and Joey (2005), Away from Her (2006), Day on Fire (2006), In the Land of Women (2007), a co-lead with Brenda Fricker in the adventure dramedy Cloudburst (2011), The Last Keepers (2013), A Little Game (2014), 7 Chinese Brothers (2015), The Infiltrator (2016), Broken Links (2016) and Change in the Air (2018). She played mom to such leads as Dustin Hoffman in John and Mary (1969), Joseph Bologna in the cult comedy Made for Each Other (1971) and Ray Sharkey in The Idolmaker (1980). The burglar left only her nameplate. Check out some of the IMDb editors' favorites movies and shows to round out your Watchlist. The rest of us are still trying to find ways to live in the world with spiritual values. The fear of not being accepted, of being different, of not having a man, all make it hard for a woman to do what she really believes is right for her. We try to be happy by staying in the status quo. 's production of "Vigil" (2011) and as "Prospera" in "The Tempest" (2012) at Shakespeare & Co. She has performed in over 130 productions Off-Broadway and regionally at theatres including the Public Theatre, A.C.T., Shakespeare in the Park, Shakespeare & Co., and the Williamstown Summer Theatre Festival, where she also served as Associate Director. Gary Brumburgh / gr-home@pacbell.net, Other Works Stories about the ongoing dramas in our lives as we age are not being told because women find it difficult to be honest about what's going on - about, for example, our heightened sexuality as we age or about living in a society that only values youth. Olympia Dukakis turned 89 on Saturday, and the Oscar winner was fêted in Astoria, Queens when the local Bel Aire Diner hosted a drive-in screening of a new documentary on the star, “Olympia… She was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Live Theater at 6233 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on May 24, 2013. She practiced as a physical therapist during the polio epidemic. This story has been shared 6,950 times. She was seen again at Shakespeare & Co. in the summer of 2013 as the title role in "Mother Courage and Her Children. 14 wins & 20 nominations. A reel of starry well-wishers appeared on-screen ahead of the film to say happy birthday, including Laura Dern, Diane Ladd, Laura Linney, Shirley MacLaine and Victor Garber. She made her Broadway debut as an understudy in "The Aspern Papers" at age 30, followed by very short runs in the plays "Abraham Cochrane" (1964) and "Who's Who in Hell" (1974). Olympia Dukakis full list of movies and tv shows in theaters, in production and upcoming films. Publicity Listings Coming in November: The 'Smackdown' Season Finale, Maureen Lipman: 'I'd have to be stark raving mad to support Boris Johnson', Oldest living winners of Best Supporting Actress Oscar. Grandmother of Isabella, Sofia, Luka and Erlinda. Her Best Supporting Actress Oscar statuette was stolen from her home kitchen in 1989. Returned to work 6 months after giving birth to her daughter. Another Myself included. Born on exactly the same date as James Tolkan (of "Amityville Horror", "Back to the Future", "Masters of the Universe", and "Top Gun" fame). My husband is a fall-away Catholic, but with a vengeance. In 1999, she premiered a one-woman play "Rose", at the National Theatre in London and subsequently on Broadway in 2000. OLYMPIA DUKAKIS Olympia Dukakis was born June 20th, 1931 in Lowell, Massachusetts, the daughter of Greek immigrants. Olympia Dukakis, Actress: Moonstruck. She scored theater triumphs in "A Man's a Man," for which she won an Off-Broadway Obie Award in 1962; several productions of "The Cherry Orchard" and "Mother Courage"; "Six Characters in Search of an Author"; "The Rose Tattoo"; "The Seagull"; "The Marriage of Bette and Boo" (another Obie Award); and, more notably, her many performances as the title role in "Hecuba." That's hard to do. Your California Privacy Rights She has received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Greek America Foundation and the National Arts Club Medal of Honor and is set to receive her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame later this year. Do Not Sell My Personal Information, Your California Privacy Rights Daughter of Greek immigrants Constantine "Costa" (1899-1975) and Alexandra "Alec" (née Christos) Dukakis (1901-1994). Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email. Olympia Dukakis was born on June 20, 1931, in Lowell, Massachusetts, under the birth sign Gemini. Part 3, The Most Wonderful Hollywood Actress Aged 55+ Part II, Oscar Winning Roles in the Same Movie (Part 2), The Librarian: Return to King Solomon's Mines.