[32] In her autobiography, Locke noted that "although Momma would not admit it, I knew Mr. Smith never married my mother. [172] In November 1990, the parties reached a private settlement wherein Eastwood set up a $1.5 million multiyear film development/directing pact for Locke at Warner Bros. in exchange for dropping the suit. AGE 74 Obituary Sondra Locke (1944 - 2018) was an Academy Award-nominated actress and frequent co-star of Clint Eastwood. [91] She was up for a big part in Earthquake (1974), but lost out to Genevive Bujold. [246] "[She] lied so much during her brief but colorful career that when she lost her battle with cancer at age 74, I wondered if it was a publicity stunt," Reed wrote in an essay for Observer. [88] Both films were shelved for two years before finally opening in arthouse cinemas, attracting little attention at first. [41] She also asked Judge Dana Senit Henry to bar Eastwood from the Bel-Air house "because I know him to have a terrible temper and he has frequently been abusive to me. [99] She took a pay cut just to be in the film; her salary for Josey Wales was $18,000, less than half of what she'd earned for her previous job. Terry Semel, then the C.E.O. Actress. [224] Cunneen moved in with her in the spring of 1991. She starred with him in The Gauntlet (1977), as a prostitute escorted by a cop to testify in a mafia trial, and in the redneck comedies Every Which Way But Loose (1978) and its sequel Any Which Way You Can (1980) though they were both upstaged in those movies by their co-star, Clyde the orangutan. Verify and try again. or don't show this againI am good at figuring things out. [137][138] Locke also dated a sculptor (she did not name him) prior to marrying Anderson. [31] Locke's parents separated before her birth. From 1990 to 1993, her lawyer Peggy Garrity claimed, Locke proposed 30 films to the studio, all of which were turned down. In the meantime, she accepted some television offers, co-starring with an all-female ensemble cast in Friendships, Secrets and Lies (1979) and portraying big band era vocalist Rosemary Clooney in Rosie: The Rosemary Clooney Story (1982). Try again. Locke is remembered as an early pioneer for women in Hollywood. [91] The San Francisco-set drama was to be directed by Mal Karman and shot by cinematographer Robert Primes, who did camerawork for Gimme Shelter, but it was scrapped for lack of funds. [33], Hoping to shed the plain image she accentuated in her screen debut, in January 1969 Locke posed for a semi-nude pictorial by photographer Frank Bez,[76] which was published in the December issue of Playboy. Ultimately, Locke made two films during that period: Ratboy (1986) and Impulse (1990). Vernon Scott. [236] By the time of Trading Favors (1997), her fourth effort, still only eight percent of all films were made by women, per the Directors Guild of America. [180][s] "I'd feel sorry for any child that had me for a mother," she previously told columnist Dick Kleiner in 1969. I was Clints girl. Year should not be greater than current year. Elkins. Failed to report flower. [42] She also played on the girls' basketball team, served as PTSA representative and was president of the French club. [183], Eastwood and Locke were still cohabiting when, in the latter half of the 1980s, he secretly fathered another woman's two children[184][185] a fact that did not come to light for almost 20 years. [46], In or around 1963,[47] Locke essentially broke off contact with her family, concluding: "It made no sense for any of us to spend our lives pretending to have relationships that did not really exist. Oops, we were unable to send the email. Locke starred as a bitter heiress who joins a traveling Wild West show in Bronco Billy (1980), her only film with Eastwood not to reach blockbuster status, though it still ranked among the annual box office top 25. Unfortunately she had cancer and so she plays that card. [81][82] Locke was offered Barbara Hershey's role in Last Summer (1969), but her management turned it down without telling her. But according to Alanna Nashwho spent time with the real Colonel in the 90sthere were times when he was just as scary as what you see onscreen. "[205] According to Locke, "in this business, people get so accustomed to being abused, they just accept the abuse and say, 'Well, that's just the way it is.' Roderick Mann. "Locke Feels Vindicated After Lawsuit". They ultimately settled the suit, with Locke securing a three-year, $1.5 million deal with Warner Bros. to develop directing projects. To use this feature, use a newer browser. [236], Locke's influence as a feminist icon was duly acknowledged by the mainstream press. One April day while she was filming Impulse, she returned to their shared home to find that Eastwood had changed the locks and boxed up her clothes, the Post notes. [128] She reflected in 2012: "Clint has said so many bad things about me to the media since we split up, and he has so much more access and power to do that. [192][193] Locke sought half of Eastwood's earnings and an equal division of property,[194] requesting title to the house in Bel-Air and to the Gothic-style West Hollywood place Eastwood had leased to Gordon Anderson since 1982. Which is your favorite movie produced or executive produced by Albert S. Ruddy? [202] Locke said that she "was stunned and outraged at the way I had been tricked and cheated a second time. [92], Locke guested on top-rated television drama series throughout the first half of the 1970s, including The F.B.I., Cannon (as two different characters), Barnaby Jones and Kung Fu. Remove advertising from a memorial by sponsoring it for just $5. Pauline Locke interviewed by Leon Wagener, 1989. It was only when she tried to step away from Clint's s Continue Reading 22 2 Savannah Thompson Shelbyville, Bedford County, Tennessee, USA, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, USA. SONDRA Locke, who has died of cancer aged 74, was the long-time partner and regular co-star of Clint Eastwood in such movies as the classic 1976 western The Outlaw Josey Wales and the 1978. This browser does not support getting your location. Sorry! [127] She was also bumped from The Oprah Winfrey Show and, in her words, "shut out of most venues to promote the book, in particular the networks. 2023 Cond Nast. She was nominated for her screen debut in "The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter" (1968), based. [100][127][168], On the morning of April 3[182] or 4,[100] Eastwood complained in the kitchen that Locke was "sitting on [his] only real estate in Los Angeles" and bolted. Smith may have died before Locke learned of him. The legendary directors death this week brings, Why Margot Kidder Was the Definitive Lois Lane, The late actresss fierce, funny reporter made, Scene Stealer: The True Lies of Elisabeth Finch, Part 1, The Johnny DeppAmber Heard Defamation Trial: The Makings of a Remarkable Moment in American Celebrity. If Sudden Impact, their last film together, seemed brutal, that was nothing compared to the fallout from the couples relationship, which ended in 1989 with accusations from both sides: Locke pointed to Eastwoods infidelities and his tapping of her phone, while he complained that his generosity was being exploited by Locke and her close friend Gordon Anderson (a childhood friend whom she had married in 1967, though he was openly gay). A follow-up, Impulse (1990), a thriller starring Theresa Russell as a police officer working undercover as a prostitute, was a slicker affair. She also appeared in such television series as "Night Gallery," "Kung Fu," "Barnaby Jones," and "Cannon." However, as the years went on, Lockes deal went nowhere. Jacobs, Julia. Steve Ryfle. Watson said. Smith departed the scene before Sondra's birth. According to the Associated Press, Locke died on November 3 at her Los Angeles home of cardiac arrest stemming from bone and breast cancer. Locke was an accomplished actress, making her debut in the 1968 drama The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter alongside Alan Arkin. She told journalist Leon Wagener: "One of those children Clint made her abort could have been the grandson I've always wanted.". Ann W. O'Neill. The 42 Best Romantic Comedies of All Time, The 25 Best Shows on Netflix to Watch Right Now. After news broke that Locke had died of cancer last month, The Hollywood Reporterran an obituary on the actress with the headline Actress Sondra Locke, Embittered Ex of Clint Eastwood, Dies at 74. . Her legal name was changed four times during her first 24 years of life: from Sandra Smith to Sandra Elkins, to Sandra Locke, to Sondra Locke, to Sondra Anderson. "It's a woman's role that comes along once in a lifetime," she said. Several major publications prefaced news of her death by tagging Eastwood's name atop the article,[238] which received criticism by some who deemed it a sexist epitaph,[235][243][244] with fans online pointing out that Locke was an Oscar nominee prior to meeting Eastwood. Sondra Locke, Oscar-Nominated Actress for 'The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter,' Dies at 74. Please complete the captcha to let us know you are a real person. The Reeves children are not included in the count, for instance, at. And when I did, that was the beginning of the end.. "[33], In February 2001, Locke purchased a six-bedroom gated mansion in the Hollywood Hills, where she resided for the remainder of her life. [33], Between 1990 and 1993, Warner Bros. rejected more than 30 scripts that Locke pitched to the studio including those for Junior (1994) and Addicted to Love (1997) and refused to let her direct any of their in-house projects. "[131] Locke was nonetheless grateful to have a platform at all, stating: "It was a miracle that a major publisher took it. By 1989, it was clear the relationship was falling apart, she said. I thought you might like to see a memorial for Sondra Locke I found on Findagrave.com. "[33] Eastwood claimed Locke told him on multiple occasions that she never wanted to have children. [72] Locke's performance garnered her an Academy Award nomination, as well as a pair of Golden Globe nominations for Best Supporting Actress and Most Promising Newcomer Female. Sondra Locke (1944 - 2018) was an Academy Award-nominated actress and frequent co-star of Clint Eastwood. The suit was eventually settled in 1996 for an undisclosed sum. I can understand how stranded they must feel, how hard it is to change one's life," Locke said. Sondra Locke, an actress who received an Oscar nomination for her first film and starred in a series of movies with Clint Eastwood, with whom she had a turbulent relationship, died on Nov. 3 2018 at her home in Los Angeles. If you were in Clint Eastwood movies, you were in the Clint Eastwood movie business, she explained. Locke also later proved herself an idiosyncratic director with the curious fantasy Ratboy (1986), in which she starred. Joyce Haber (1972-11-08). She was born in Oklahoma City on April 8, 1940 to Warren and Voicey Marie Matherly. "[128] The book received a supportive rave review from New York Daily News writer Liz Smith,[129] while Entertainment Weekly's Dana Kennedy dismissed the book as a "peculiar, not terribly consequential, life story. However, their relationship ended acrimoniously, coloring both their legacies and entwining them in two ugly lawsuits. Sondra Locke, the Oscar-nominated actress who made six movies with live-in lover Clint Eastwood before . Margaret Keanes big-eyed child paintings. But it was not Eastwood who made her a star. [58] Within one year of this exposure, she decided to pursue a career in film and changed the spelling of her first name to avoid being called Sandy. Sondra Locke died at her home in Los Angeles on November 3. "[190][219], Locke underwent a double mastectomy at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, followed by chemotherapy. and co-chairman of Warner Bros., said when questioned that the deal did not guarantee any films would be produced and, because the deal was not exclusive, she was free to take projects to other studios.