Frances McDormand
(Sara Gaskell)
Biography
Whether playing a pregnant sheriff coolly eyeing a snow-covered corpse, acting the dull minded adulteress or struggling as a lesbian shoe salesperson, Frances McDormand is one of those actresses willing to forego glamour and ego in favor of work that adds refreshing depth and realism to even the most off-beat character. Perhaps it is her tendency to disappear inside her roles that has prevented her from attaining major star status, despite the fact that she is an Oscar-winning actress. Born the daughter of a midwestern minister, she attended West Virginia's Bethany College and Yale Drama School, afterward gaining professional experience appearing in numerous modern classic dramas across the country. McDormand made her big-screen debut in the Coen brother's Blood Simple (1984), thus beginning an association with the filmmakers that was further cemented when she married director Joel Coen. Though she received good reviews for her performance in the film, it would be four years--but for a cameo appearance in the Coen's Raising Arizona (1987) and small roles -- before she would star in another. Meanwhile, McDormand's stage career flourished and she received a Tony nomination for a Broadway production of A Streetcar Named Desire. She also started appearing periodically on television, including a co-starring role on the short-lived detective drama Legwork (1987) and a recurring role on Hill Street Blues (1981-87). In 1988, she won an Oscar nomination for her role as a wife who testifies against good ol' boy sheriff in Alan Parker's Mississippi Burning. Afterward, McDormand's film career picked up and she played in a wide variety of well-wrought dramas, including Darkman (1990) and Ken Loach's controversial Hidden Agenda (1990) and Robert Altman's Shortcuts (1993). In 1996, the versatile McDormand won an Academy Award for "Best Actress" for her portrayal of Marge Gunderson in another Coen brothers film Fargo. In 1997, she co-starred as a German doctor in Bruce Beresford's Paradise Road, off-beat true story of a group of women who survived life in a WW II era Japanese concentration camp by creating a vocal orchestra. -- Sandra Brennan, All-Movie Guide
Filmography
Untitled Cameron Crowe Project (2000) .... Elaine
Wonder Boys (unknown) .... Sara Gaskell
Talk of Angels (1998) .... Conlon
Madeline (1998) .... Miss Clavel
Johnny Skidmarks (1998) .... Alice
Paradise Road (1997) .... Dr. Verstak
Palookaville (1996) .... June
Lone Star (1996) .... Bunny
Primal Fear (1996) .... Dr. Molly Arrington
Fargo (1996) .... Marge Gunderson
Hidden in America (1996) (TV) .... Gus
Plain Pleasures (1996)
Rangoon (1995) .... Andy
Good Old Boys, The (1995) (TV) .... Eve Calloway
Short Cuts (1993) .... Betty Weathers
Luck, Trust and Ketchup (1993)
Crazy in Love (1992) (TV) .... Clare
Passed Away (1992) .... Nora Scanlan
Butcher's Wife, The (1991) .... Grace
Darkman (1990) .... Julie Hastings
Chattahoochee (1990) .... Mae Foley
Hidden Agenda (1990) .... Ingrid
Miller's Crossing (1990) (uncredited) .... Secretary
Mississippi Burning (1988) .... Mrs. Pell
"Leg Work" (1987) TV Series .... Willie Pipal
Raising Arizona (1987) .... Dot
Vengeance: The Story of Tony Cimo (1986) (TV) .... Brigette
... aka Vengeance (1986/II) (TV)
Crimewave (1985/I) .... Nun
... aka Broken Hearts and Noses (1985)
... aka XYZ Murders, The (1985)
Scandal Sheet (1985) (TV)
Blood Simple (1984) .... Abby
Notable TV guest appearances
"Twilight Zone, The" (1985) playing "Amanda" in episode: "Need to Know" (episode # 1.51) 3/21/1986
"Hill Street Blues" (1981) playing "Connie Chapman" in episode: "Queen for a Day" (episode # 5.21) 4/11/1985
"Hill Street Blues" (1981) playing "Connie Chapman" in episode: "G.Q." (episode # 5.20) 3/28/1985
"Hill Street Blues" (1981) playing "Connie Chapman" in episode: "Life and Time of Dominic Florio Jr., The" (episode # 5.19) 3/21/1985
"Hill Street Blues" (1981) playing "Connie Chapman" in episode: "Passage to Libya" (episode # 5.17) 2/14/1985
"Hill Street Blues" (1981) playing "Connie Chapman" in episode: "Washington Deceased" (episode # 5.16) 2/7/1985
"Hill Street Blues" (1981) playing "Connie Chapman" in episode: "Dr. Hoof and Mouth" (episode # 5.14) 1/24/1985
Awards:
Academy Awards:
Best Actress, "Fargo" (1996)
Nominations:
Academy Awards:
Best Supporting Actress, "Mississippi Burning" (1988)
