Oscar-nominated actor Sally Kirkland, celebrated for her powerful performance โฃin “Anna“โ and a career spanning stage and screen, has died. Sheโ was 83. Kirkland passed away February 16, 2024, in Santa Barbara, California, according to news reports.
Kirkland’sโ death marksโ the loss of a fiercely independent and often unconventional performer who consistently challenged boundaries throughout her decades-long career. While achievingโข mainstream recognition โlaterโค in life with her 1987 Academy Award nomination for โฃ”Anna,” Kirkland built a foundation in theater and embraced roles that prioritized artistic expression over conventional stardom. Herโฃ willingness โto take risks, โขboth professionally and โpersonally, made โher a uniqueโข figure in Hollywood.
Kirkland began โher โฃcareer on the stage, immersing herself in the worksโ of William Shakespeare. โขSome ofโ her โearly roles included the lovesick Helena in โ”A Midsummer โฃNight’s Dream” for New Yorkโ Shakespeare โขFestival producer Joseph Papp and Mirandaโฃ in an off-Broadway production of “Theโข Tempest.” “I don’t think any actorโ can really call โhim or herself โฃan actor unless he or she putsโ in โtime with โshakespeare,” โขshe told โthe Los Angeles times โin 1991.โ “It shows โup, โit always showsโ up in theโ work, at โsomeโ point, whether it’s โคjust not being able to โhave breath โcontrol, or notโค being ableโ toโ appreciate language as poetry and music, or notโ havingโ the power โขthat Shakespeare automatically instills youโค with when you take on one of his characters.”
Beyondโข Shakespeare, Kirkland’s filmography was diverse, thoughโ frequently enough markedโข by โprovocative choices. She reached a career nadir while riding nude โon a pig in โขthe 1969 film “Futz,” which a guardian reviewer โdubbed the worst โคfilm he had โฃever seen. “Itโ wasโข about a man who fell in loveโฃ with a pig, โคand even by the dismal standards of the era, it was dismal,” he wrote. Kirklandโข was also known forโ disrobing for numerous roles and โsocial causes,โข leading Time magazine to dub her “the latter-day Isadora Duncan ofโ nudothespianism.”
Despite the controversies, Kirkland remained dedicated to โขhumanitarian work.Sheโค volunteered โฃfor people with AIDS, cancer and heart disease, fed โhomeless people via โฃthe American Red Cross, participated in telethons forโ hospices and was โฃan advocate forโ prisoners, especially young people.
Kirkland’s โฃOscar nomination for “Anna” -โ in which she โplayedโ a recently released convict struggling to rebuild her life – brought her widespread acclaim and solidified her status โas aโ compelling dramatic actress. While she โขdidn’t winโค the award, the recognition โขopened doors to further roles. Details regarding memorial services haveโ notโ yet been announced.