Hackett, Joan (1942–1983)

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Hackett, Joan (1942–1983)

American actress and activist. Born Joan Ann Hackett on May 1, 1942, in New York City; died of cancer on October 8, 1983, in Encino, California; daughter of John (a postal clerk) and Mary (Esposito) Hackett; graduated from St. Jean Baptiste School, New York City; married Richard Mulligan (an actor), on January 3, 1966 (divorced 1973).

Theater:

New York debut in A Clearing in the Woods (Sheridan Square Playhouse, February 12, 1959); in stock, appeared in The Play's the Thing (Princeton University Playhouse, Princeton, NJ, June 1959); understudy for Hero in Much Ado About Nothing (Lunt-Fontanne, New York City, September 1959); Marguerite in a pre-Broadway tryout of Laurette (Shubert Theater, New Haven, CT, September 1960); Chris in Call Me by My Rightful Name (One Sheridan Square, NYC, January 1961); appeared in stock productions of Two Queens of Love and Beauty (Bucks County Playhouse, New Hope, PA, July 1961), and Journey to the Day (Westport County Playhouse, CT, August 1961); Pat in Peterpat (Longacre, NYC, January 1965); appeared in Young Woman in the Park (Center Stage, Baltimore, MD, February 1970, and John Golden Theater, NYC, April 1970); Elaine Wheeler in Night Watch (Morosco Theater, NYC, February 1972).

Filmography:

The Group (1966); Will Penny (1968); Assignment to Kill (1968); Support Your Local Sheriff (1969); Rivals (1972); The Last of Sheila(1973); The Terminal Man (1974); Mackintosh and T.J. (1975); Treasure of Matecumbe (1976); Mr. Mike's Mondo Video (1978); One Trick Pony (1980); Only When I Laugh (1981); The Escape Artist (1982); Flicks (release delayed from 1981 to 1987).

Admired for her intelligence and versatility, Joan Hackett studied acting with Mary Welch and was also an alumna of Lee Strasberg's Actors' Studio. She worked in stock and held a variety of jobs before making her New York debut in A Clearing in the Woods (1958). She later distinguished herself on stage with her portrayal of Chris in Call Me by My Rightful Name (1961), for which she received an Obie and the Vernon Rice Award, and in film as Dottie Renfrew in the movie adaptation of Mary McCarthy 's The Group. Hackett successfully combined her stage career with films, numerous television appearances, and political activism, especially in regard to the women's rights movement of the 1960s and '70s. She received an Academy Award nomination for her work in the movie Only When I Laugh (1981) and was also nominated for an Emmy for an episode of "Ben Casey" (1962). Hackett was married to actor Richard Mulligan from 1966 to 1973. Her career was cut short when she died of cancer in 1983, at the age of 41.