Anne Baxter on screen and stage

A photograph of Baxter as Eve Harrington in a trailer for All About Eve
Baxter as Eve Harrington in All About Eve (1950)

Anne Baxter (1923–1985)[1] was an American actress who had an extensive career in film, television, and on stage. She made her acting debut at the age of 13 on stage in the Broadway play Seen, But Not Heard in 1936.[2][3] Four years later, Baxter starred in her first feature film, the western 20 Mule Team (1940).[4] She appeared in Orson Welles' period drama The Magnificent Ambersons (1942), with Joseph Cotten and Dolores Costello, and followed this with a lead role in Billy Wilder's Five Graves to Cairo (1943).[5] In 1946, she starred as a young woman suffering from alcoholism in the drama The Razor's Edge,[6][7] for which she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.[8] Two years later, Baxter appeared with Gregory Peck in the western Yellow Sky.[9]

For her performance as Eve Harrington, an ambitious understudy, in Joseph L. Mankiewicz's All About Eve (1950), she received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress.[10] Three years later, Baxter starred in Alfred Hitchcock's film noir I Confess (1953). In the same year, she also appeared in the Fritz Lang-directed film noir The Blue Gardenia. In 1956, Baxter appeared as Egyptian princess Nefretiri in the Cecil B. DeMille-directed biblical epic The Ten Commandments, with Charlton Heston and Yul Brynner.[11] Four years later, she received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.[12]

Her television debut was in the anthology series General Electric Theater in 1957. She went on to star in several anthology series, including The United States Steel Hour, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, and The DuPont Show with June Allyson. During the late 1960s, Baxter played two villains in the Batman television series,[13] and in 1969, she was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie for her role in The Name of the Game.[14]

In 1971, Baxter made a return to Broadway theatre by starring as Margo Channing in Applause, a musical adaptation of All About Eve.[15] Her last acting role was in the television series Hotel, where she starred as hotelier Victoria Cabot.[16][a]

  1. ^ "Actress Anne Baxter Dead at 62". Associated Press. December 13, 1985. Archived from the original on November 13, 2019. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference debut was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Barnes, Bart (December 13, 1985). "Oscar-Winner Anne Baxter Is Dead at 62". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on November 12, 2019. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
  4. ^ "Anne Baxter Dies at 62, 8 Days After Her Stroke". Los Angeles Times. December 12, 1985. Archived from the original on September 20, 2016. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
  5. ^ "Five Graves to Cairo". Turner Classic Movies. Archived from the original on May 28, 2024.
  6. ^ "The Razor's Edge". Variety. Archived from the original on November 12, 2019. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
  7. ^ Crowther, Bosley (November 20, 1946). "The Screen; 'Razor's Edge', Fox Film Based on Maugham Novel, Opens at Roxy – Tyrone Power, Gene Tierney, Anne Baxter in Cast". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 12, 2019. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
  8. ^ "The 19th Academy Awards". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on July 2, 2016. Retrieved May 13, 2017.
  9. ^ "Yellow Sky". Variety. Archived from the original on November 13, 2019. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  10. ^ Ebert, Roger (June 11, 2000). "All About Eve Movie Review & Film Summary (1950)". Roger Ebert. Archived from the original on May 10, 2017. Retrieved May 13, 2017.
  11. ^ Powers, James (October 5, 1956). "'The Ten Commandments': Read THR's 1956 Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on April 30, 2019. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
  12. ^ "Anne Baxter". Turner Classic Movies. Archived from the original on January 25, 2017. Retrieved May 13, 2017.
  13. ^ Morgan, Chris (April 14, 2016). "All 34 Batman '66 Villains, Ranked". Paste. Archived from the original on November 12, 2019. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
  14. ^ "Anne Baxter". Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Archived from the original on December 6, 2016. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
  15. ^ Gussow, Mel (July 27, 1971). "Theater: Anne Baxter". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 12, 2019. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
  16. ^ a b Sharbutt, Jay (December 25, 1985). "Anne Baxter Role in Series Dropped". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on November 12, 2019. Retrieved November 12, 2019.


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