Death at 94 of American actress Gena Rowlands
Gena Rowlands, wife of John Cassavetes and mother of Nick Cassavetes, known especially for the film “A Woman Under the Influence,” died on Wednesday.
Gena Rowlands at the Oscars on February 28, 2016.
AFP
American actress Gena Rowlands, the muse of her husband, director John Cassavetes, died on Wednesday at the age of 94, reported the American site TMZ and the “New York Times”.
Gena Rowlands, who distinguished herself particularly in “A Woman Under the Influence” (1974), had been suffering from Alzheimer’s disease for five years, according to statements from her son Nick Cassavetes to “New York Times” in June. She passed away at her home in Indian Wells, California, according to TMZ.
A figure in independent American cinema, the blonde and radiant Gena Rowlands established herself in about sixty eclectic roles, directed by her husband John Cassavetes but also by Woody Allen or Jim Jarmusch. She said of her husband that he had written her “the most beautiful roles an actress could dream of,” from the call girl in “Faces” (1968) to a housewife on the verge of madness in “A Woman Under the Influence” (1974).
Three children, all actors and directors
Working with someone who rejected the dictates of major Hollywood studios was “very exciting because all the responsibility of the role rested on your shoulders,” the actress said.
Cinema devoured their 35 years of marriage with often home shoots, for economical reasons – with loyal actors like Peter Falk, Ben Gazzara, Seymour Cassel – Gena making spaghetti for everyone, amid swirls of smoke and whiskey vapors.
Their three children could not escape the family business: Nick, Xan (Alexandra), and Zoe are all actors and directors. John Cassavetes showcased the talents of his muse, her haunting beauty and smoky voice, not hesitating to use elements from their private life.
Gena Rowlands and Gérard Depardieu, in the gardens of the Hotel Normandy, in Deauville, on September 2, 1996.
AFP
Gena always identified with her characters before the first clap: “We all have (within us) a little piece of each other. Acting is simply opening a door.”
Only once did she refuse a role from Cassavetes: that of Mabel in “A Woman Under the Influence,” originally intended for the stage, which she found “too emotionally intense to be performed every night.” He rewrote it for cinema, and Mabel earned her a Golden Globe for Best Actress (1975).
No to Hollywood
The childhood of Virginia Cathryn Rowlands, born on June 19, 1930, in Cambria (Wisconsin) to a banker and senator father and a painter mother, predisposed her to a more conventional life.
But at 20, a fan of Bette Davis, she interrupted her studies at the University of Wisconsin for drama classes in New York. There she began her “real life” on stage (“The Seven Year Itch” by George Axelrod) and charmed a young and handsome actor, John Cassavetes, whom she married in 1954 just four months after meeting him.
Born in New York to Greek parents, he was captivated by this electric blonde who, like him, gorged on French and Italian films. However, theater remained Gena’s passion, and two years later, she was revealed in “Middle of the Night” by Paddy Chayefsky, starring for 18 months alongside Edward G. Robinson.
In 1958, after TV series that financed John’s transition to filmmaker, Gena gained attention on the big screen (“The Thin Red Line” by José Ferrer, “Only the Lonely” by David Miller, with Kirk Douglas). However, she refused Hollywood and returned to New York: “I have always followed what my heart dictated and have no regrets.”
Honorary Oscar in 2015
Cassavetes, who “touched on things that women think about but you wouldn’t expect from a man,” she would tell AFP, had her play strong characters in seven films, including “Opening Night” (Silver Bear for Best Actress at the Berlin Festival, 1978), “Gloria” (1980), and “Love Streams” with Ben Gazzara (Golden Bear 1984 at the Berlin Festival).
When John Cassavetes died of cirrhosis of the liver at 59 years old in 1989, Gena, who had just filmed “Another Woman” by Woody Allen, continued to be in high demand for the big screen and television series.
She also starred for Nick Cassavetes, her son. After notably “The Wishing Tree” (1996) with Gérard Depardieu (actor and co-producer), “The Notebook” (2004) earned her the 2005 Golden Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress.
Gena also accepted a role as a mother in her daughter Zoe’s first film, “Broken English” (2007), and was one of the three heroines in “Parts per billion” by Brian Horiuchi (2013). Remarried to businessman Robert Forrest in 2012, she received an honorary Oscar in 2015, the year she retired, for her entire career.
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