Karen Black
Born
July 1, 1939
Died
August 8, 2013 (74 years old)
Known For
Acting
Place of Birth
Park Ridge, Illinois, USA
Karen Blanche Black (née Ziegler; July 1, 1939 – August 8, 2013) was an American actress, screenwriter, singer, and songwriter. She rose to prominence for her work in various studio and independent films in the 1970s, frequently portraying eccentric and offbeat characters, and established herself as a figure of New Hollywood. Her career spanned over 50 years and includes nearly 200 credits in both independent and mainstream films. Black received numerous accolades throughout her career, including two Golden Globe Awards, as well as an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
A native of suburban Chicago, Black studied theater at Northwestern University before dropping out and relocating to New York City. She performed on Broadway in 1965 before making her major film debut in Francis Ford Coppola's You're a Big Boy Now (1966). Black relocated to California and was cast as an acid-tripping prostitute in Dennis Hopper's road film Easy Rider (1969). That led to a lead in the drama Five Easy Pieces (1970), in which she played a hopeless beautician, for which she was nominated for an Academy Award and won a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress. Black made her first major commercial picture with the disaster film Airport 1975 (1974), and her subsequent appearance as Myrtle Wilson in The Great Gatsby (1974) won her a second Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress.
Black starred as a glamorous country singer in Robert Altman's ensemble musical drama Nashville (1975), also writing and performing two songs for the soundtrack, which won a Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack. Her portrayal of an aspiring actress in John Schlesinger's drama The Day of the Locust (also 1975) earned her a third Golden Globe nomination, this time for Best Actress. She subsequently took on four roles in Dan Curtis' anthology horror film Trilogy of Terror (1975), followed by Curtis's supernatural horror feature, Burnt Offerings (1976). The same year, she starred as a con artist in Alfred Hitchcock's final film, Family Plot.
In 1982, Black starred as a trans woman in the Robert Altman-directed Broadway debut of Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean, a role she also reprised in Altman's subsequent film adaptation. She next starred in the comedy Can She Bake a Cherry Pie? (1983), followed by Tobe Hooper's remake of Invaders from Mars (1986). For much of the late 1980s and 1990s, Black starred in a variety of arthouse, independent, and horror films, as well as writing her own screenplays. She had a leading role as a villainous mother in Rob Zombie's House of 1000 Corpses (2003), which cemented her status as a cult horror icon. She continued to star in low-profile films throughout the early 2000s, as well as working as a playwright before her death from ampullary cancer in 2013.
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Known For

Deadly Dolls: Deepest Cuts
(archive footage)
2018
Bottomless Pit
Karen Black
2015

Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief
Self (archive footage)
2015

Wild in Blue
Justine
2014

Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia
Self (archive footage)
2013

She Loves Me Not
Karla
2013

Ooga Booga
Mrs. Allardyce
2013

Dark Blood
Motel Woman
2012
Maria My Love
Maria
2012

OowieWanna
The Donna
2012
Mommy's Little Monster
Mrs. Melnick
2012

Hawk Warrior of the Wheelzone
Tarot
2012

Letters from the Big Man
Sean's Colleague
2011

Some Guy Who Kills People
Ruth Boyd
2011

BBStory: An American Film Renaissance
Self
2010

Henry Jaglom Finds 'A Safe Place'
Self
2010

Nothing Special
May
2010

Double Duty
Annabelle
2009

Stuck!
The Neighbor Lady
2009

Repo Chick
Aunt De La Chasse
2009

Irene in Time
Sheila Shivvers
2009

Wamego: Ultimatum
Self
2009

No Subtitles Necessary: Laszlo & Vilmos
Self
2009

A Single Woman
Storyteller
2008

Watercolors
Mrs. Martin
2008

Contamination
Mavis
2008

Hollywood Dreams
Luna
2007

One Long Night
Barbara
2007

Suffering Man's Charity
Renee
2007

Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!
Jennifer · (1 episode)
2007

Read You Like a Book
Kate
2006

Wanderlust
Herself
2006

Whitepaddy
Mrs. Leider
2006

America Brown
Marianne Brown
2005

Firecracker
Sandra / Eleanor
2005

Trailer for a Remake of Gore Vidal's Caligula
Agrippina
2005

My Suicidal Sweetheart
Grace's Mom
2005

Dr. Rage
Molly
2005

Jack Nicholson: The Joker Is Wild
Self
2004

WAMEGO: Making Movies Anywhere
Self
2004

Paris
Chantelle
2003

Harold Buttleman: Daredevil Stuntman
Mrs. Buttleman
2003

House of 1000 Corpses
Mother Firefly
2003

Easy Riders, Raging Bulls: How the Sex 'n' Drugs 'n' Rock 'n' Roll Generation Saved Hollywood
Self
2003

Curse of the Forty-Niner
Aunt Nelly
2002

Best of Tromadance Film Festival: Volume 1
("Los Vampirios Moronious" short)
2002

Teknolust
Dirty Dick
2002

A Light in the Darkness
Mrs. Melnick
2002

Gypsy 83
Bambi LeBleau
2001

Soulkeeper
Martha la Magnifica
2001

Law & Order: Criminal Intent
Vera Morgan · (1 episode)
2001

The Donor
Mrs. Springle
2001

Plotting 'Family Plot'
Self
2001

The Independent
Karen Black
2000

Red Dirt
Aunt Summer
2000

Fallen Arches
Lucy Romano
2000

Oliver Twisted
Mrs. Mary Happ
2000

Altman on His Own Terms
Self
2000

Easy Rider: Shaking the Cage
Self
1999

The Underground Comedy Movie
Mother
1999

Mascara
Aunt Eloise
1999

Conceiving Ada
Lady Byron / Mother Coer
1999

Paradise Cove
Ma
1999

Charades
Jude
1998

Bury the Evidence
The Mother
1998

Angel Blue
Social Worker
1998

I Woke Up Early the Day I Died
Whip Lady
1998

Invisible Dad
Courtney Whitmer
1998

Malaika
Jessica Martin
1998
Light Speed
High Priestess
1998

Mythos Hollywood - Das Geheimnis des Erfolgs
Self
1998

Men
Alex
1997

Menage a Trois
Miss Gati
1997

The Hunger
Miss Gati / Landlady · (1 episode)
1997

Who Is Henry Jaglom?
Self
1997

Stir
Dr. Gabrielle Kessler
1997

New York Crossing
Mrs. Tender
1996

Children of the Corn IV: The Gathering
June Rhodes
1996

Dogtown
Rose Van Horn
1996

E! True Hollywood Story
(1 episode)
1996

Crimetime
Millicent
1996

Cries of Silence
Rose Walsh
1996

The Wacky Adventures of Dr. Boris and Nurse Shirley
Evelyn
1995

Plan 10 from Outer Space
Nehor
1995

Dinosaur Valley Girls
Ro-Kell
1995

Starstruck
Bertha
1995

The Voluptuous Horror Of Karen Black: Teather Penumbra
1994
Too Bad About Jack
1994

Fertile La Toyah Video Magazine #2: The Kinky Issue!
1994

Bound and Gagged: A Love Story
Carla
1993

Tales of the City
Self · (1 episode)
1993

Moon Over Miami
(1 episode)
1993

Legend of The Roller Blade Seven
Tarot
1993

The Trust
Maria Vandermeer
1993

Return of the Roller Blade Seven
Tarot
1993

Auntie Lee's Meat Pies
Auntie Lee
1992

The Double 0 Kid
Mrs. Elliot
1992

Judgement
Tiffany Powers
1992

Final Judgement
Mrs. Sorrel
1992

Tuesday Never Comes
Michelle
1992

Rubin & Ed
Rula
1992

The Player
Karen Black
1992

Dead Girls Don't Tango
Insp. Wilson
1992

Quiet Fire
Kim Martino
1991

Evil Spirits
Ella Purdy
1991

Children of the Night
Karen Thompson
1991

The Roller Blade Seven
Tarot
1991

Caged Fear
Blanche
1991

Blood Money
Barrett
1991

Ralph S. Mouse
Miss Kuchenbacker
1991

Mirror Mirror
Susan Gordon
1990

Club Fed
Sally Rich
1990

Haunting Fear
Dr. Julia Harcourt
1990

Night Angel
Rita
1990

The Children
Sybil Lullmer
1990

Zapped Again!
Homeroom Teacher
1990

Twisted Justice
Mrs. Granger
1990

Overexposed
Mrs. Trowbridge
1990

Fatal Encounter
Joan Caldwell
1990

Homer and Eddie
Belle
1989

Out of the Dark
Ruth Wilson
1988

Dixie Lanes
Zelma Putnam
1988

The Invisible Kid
Mom
1988

The Legendary Life of Ernest Hemingway
Martha Gelhorn
1988

On the tracks of a filmmaker
Karen Black
1988

Hostage
Laura Lawrence
1987

It's Alive III: Island of the Alive
Ellen Jarvis
1987

The Little Mermaid
Sea Witch
1987

Invaders from Mars
Linda Magnusson
1986

Flight of the Spruce Goose
Gloria
1986

Savage Dawn
Rachel
1985

Cut and Run
Karin
1985

Martin's Day
Karen
1985

Eternal Evil
Janus
1985

Bad Manners
Gladys Fitzpatrick
1984

Murder, She Wrote
Dr. Sylvia Dunn · (1 episode)
1984

Miami Vice
(1 episode)
1984

E/R
(3 episodes)
1984

The Hitchhiker
Kay Mason · (1 episode)
1983

Can She Bake a Cherry Pie?
Zee
1983

Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean
Joanne
1982

Faerie Tale Theatre
Guest Interviewee · (1 episode)
1982

Faerie Tale Theatre
Sea Witch · (1 episode)
1982

The Last Horror Film
Karen Black (uncredited)
1982

Miss Right
Amy
1982

Chanel Solitaire
Emilienne d'Alençon
1981

The Grass Is Singing
Mary Turner
1981

Separate Ways
Valentine Colby
1981

Police Story: Confessions of a Lady Cop
Investigator Evelyn Carter
1980

Where the Ladies Go
Helen
1980

Power
Rose Vanda-Buchanan
1980

Killer Fish
Kate
1979

The Last Word
Paula Herbert
1979

Mr. Horn
Ernestina Crawford
1979

The Squeeze
Clarisse Saunders
1978

In Praise of Older Women
Maya
1978

Because He's My Friend
Anne
1978

Capricorn One
Judy Drinkwater
1977

The Strange Possession of Mrs. Oliver
Miriam Oliver / Sandy
1977

Burnt Offerings
Marian Rolf
1976

Family Plot
Fran
1976

Crime and Passion
Susan Winters
1976

Saturday Night Live
Self - Host · (2 episodes)
1975

Nashville
Connie White
1975

The Day of the Locust
Faye Greener
1975

Trilogy of Terror
Julie / Millicent Larimore / Therese Larimore / Amelia
1975

Airport 1975
Nancy Pryor
1974

Law and Disorder
Gloria
1974

The Great Gatsby
Myrtle Wilson
1974

Rhinoceros
Daisy
1974

The Outfit
Bett Harrow
1973

The Pyx
Elizabeth Lucy
1973

Little Laura and Big John
Laura
1973

Police Story
(1 episode)
1973

Ghost Story
Barbara Sanders · (1 episode)
1972

Portnoy's Complaint
Mary Jane Reid a.k.a. Monkey
1972

Born to Win
Parm
1971

Cisco Pike
Sue
1971

A Gunfight
Jenny Simms
1971

Drive, He Said
Olive
1971

Five Easy Pieces
Rayette Dipesto
1970

Easy Rider
Karen
1969

Hard Contract
Ellen
1969

Adam-12
Susan Decker · (1 episode)
1968

The Name of the Game
Monica Garrison · (1 episode)
1968

Mannix
(1 episode)
1967

The Carol Burnett Show
Self - Guest / Various Characters · (1 episode)
1967

Judd for the Defense
(1 episode)
1967

The Invaders
Claudia Stone · (1 episode)
1967

You're a Big Boy Now
Amy Partlett
1966

The F.B.I.
Lorraine Chapman · (1 episode)
1965

The Big Valley
Carla · (1 episode)
1965

Run for Your Life
Jennifer Palmer · (1 episode)
1965

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
Self · (2 episodes)
1962

The Mike Douglas Show
Self · (2 episodes)
1961

The Prime Time
Betty
1960

Science Fiction Film Awards
Herself · (1 episode)