Anderson, Dame Judith

orig. Frances Margaret Anderson

born Feb. 10, 1898, Adelaide, S.Aus., Australia

died Jan. 3, 1992, Santa Barbara, Calif., U.S.

Australian-born U.S. actress.

She made her stage debut in Sydney in 1915 and first appeared in New York City in 1918. She was noted for roles such as Lavinia in Mourning Becomes Electra (1932), Gertrude in Hamlet (1936), Lady Macbeth in Macbeth (1937, 1941), and the title role in Medea (1947). She appeared in over 25 films, usually playing an evil or sinister figure, including Mrs. Danvers in Rebecca (1940) and Ann Treadwell in Laura (1944).

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▪ Australian actress

original name  Frances Margaret Anderson  

born Feb. 10, 1898, Adelaide, S.Aus., Australia

died Jan. 3, 1992, Santa Barbara, Calif., U.S.

 Australian-born stage and motion-picture actress.

      Anderson was only 17 years old when she made her stage debut in 1915 in Sydney and 20 when she first appeared in New York City. After her first major success in New York in 1924 in Cobra, she went on to appear as Nina Leeds in Eugene O'Neill's Strange Interlude (1928) and as Lavinia in O'Neill's Mourning Becomes Electra (1932), among other productions. Her interpretation of Gertrude opposite John Gielgud as Hamlet (1936), of Lady Macbeth in the London (1937) and New York (1941) productions of Macbeth, and in the title role of Robinson Jeffers' version of Medea (1947) are considered the pinnacles of her stage career. Anderson specialized in character portrayals and was at her best in roles of great dramatic intensity.

      Anderson also appeared in almost 30 motion pictures, typically playing an evil or sinister matriarchal figure. Among her best-known roles are Mrs. Danvers in Rebecca (1940) and Ann Treadwell in Laura (1944). Her other films include King's Row (1941), Edge of Darkness (1943), and The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946). In 1960 she was made Dame Commander of the British Empire.

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