The Actress

The Actress is a 1953 American comedy-drama film based on Ruth Gordon's autobiographical play Years Ago. Gordon herself wrote the screenplay. The film was directed by George Cukor and stars Jean Simmons, Spencer Tracy, and Teresa Wright, and features Anthony Perkins in his film debut.

The film is basically a series of vignettes involving Ruth, her parents, her best friends, and the college boy romantically pursuing her. Although Gordon did in fact become an accomplished Academy Award-winning actress and a successful writer, the film ends without the audience seeing Gordon achieve her goals.

The Actress was nominated for an Oscar for Best Costume Design, Black-and-White. Tracy won the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture Actor in a Drama and was nominated for a BAFTA for Best Foreign Actor. Simmons was named Best Actress by the National Board of Review, and Gordon's screenplay was nominated Best Written American Comedy by the Writers Guild of America, despite being far more dramatic than comedic.

The Actress (1953)

Plot

In 1913 Boston, teenager Ruth Gordon Jones (Jean Simmons) wants nothing more than to be a famous actress. Her father, Clinton (Spencer Tracy), who recently lost his job as a sailor and became a factory worker, however expresses his desire that Ruth train to be a teacher. Between managing a blossoming romance with a Harvard student (Anthony Perkins) and trying to get a foothold in the theatrical world, Ruth must convince her family to support her dreams.