“I was never an ingénue. I’ve always just been a character actor. When I was younger, it was a real problem, because I was never pretty enough. It was hard, not just for the lack of work, but because you have to face up to how people are looking at you.’’ Kathy Bates
Happy Birthday to the Beautiful Kathy Bates
‘‘Just a character actor?” Ms. Bates, you’re one of our finest, most nuanced actors. Period. You’ve been Oscar-nominated three times, took the gold for Misery although my favorite will always be the Fried Green Tomatoes. Beyond the films I’m highlighting here, you have a slew of memorable roles including About Schmidt, Primary Colors and the hit TV show American Horror Story. Ingenues are boring, Ms. Bates and boring, that was never you. Happy Birthday and Many More.
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| Dolores Claiborne |
It’s painful to think that a woman, as accomplished as an actress as Kathy Bates, had to come face to face with the fact that once upon a time she wasn't pretty enough to take on the young ingenue roles. And that it mattered. Is it true that pretty faces are a dime a dozen? We all want to be pretty but there has to be much more than surface shimmer to make a career that lasts a lifetime. Bates, turning seventy, has been working continuously for the past fifty years. Because she wasn't that ingenue type, she's taken on a lifetime of more interesting parts. I hope her career has provided as much satisfaction and happiness for her as it has to us.
