Mary Louise Streep was born on June 22, 1949, in Summit, New Jersey. Popular and easygoing, she was a star cheerleader and the homecoming queen at Bernardsville High School before enrolling at Vassar College in 1967. It was there that she was bit by the acting bug after taking her first of many drama classes. Professor Clinton Atkinson still recalls being blown away by her early performances. “Her acting was hair-raising, absolutely mind-boggling,” he says. “I don’t think anyone ever taught Meryl acting, she really taught herself.”
Meryl Streep tony nomination
Following her graduation from Vassar in 1971, Meryl enrolled at the prestigious Yale School of Drama. Once again, she took little time to set herself apart from her classmates. According to fellow student Christopher Durang, “Meryl was Yale’s leading lady. The school recognized her remarkable talent and worked her unmercifully.” Fortunately, the work paid off, transforming Meryl into a seasoned performer by the time she received her Masters in fine arts in 1975.
Equipped with her degree, Meryl instantly established herself in the industry by landing coveted roles on stage in Arthur Miller’s A Memory of Two Mondays and Tennessee Williams’ 27 Wagons Full of Cotton, for which she received the Outer Critics Circle Award, the Theater World Award and a Tony nomination.
Meryl Streep’s first emmy award
Having become one of New York’s hottest young actresses, Meryl expanded into television with roles in Secret Service (1977), The Deadliest Season (1977) and Holocaust (1978), a riveting mini-series for which she won her very first Emmy. Meryl also received her first of 13 Oscar nominations later that year when she starred in The Deer Hunter with Robert De Niro, a brutal look at the lasting effects of the Vietnam War.
In addition to being a big year professionally, 1978 was a big year on the personal front for Meryl, as she married prominent sculptor Don Gummer on September 15, 1978. The happy couple had their first child, Henry, a year later.
Meryl Streep wins an oscar
Meryl truly cemented her reputation as America’s most promising young actress in 1979 when she starred in The Seduction of Joe Tynan and Woody Allen’s Manhattan. As impressive as those two performances may have been, they were ultimately overshadowed by her tour-de-force role in Kramer vs. Kramer (1979), for which she won Best Supporting Actress Awards from the Academy Awards, the Golden Globes, the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, the New York Film Critics Circle, and the National Society of Film Critics.
Meryl Streep’s french lieutenant’s woman
Tired of playing contemporary roles, Meryl asked her agent to find her something challenging. “I said to [him], ‘I’ve got to do something outside of Manhattan, outside of 1981, outside of my experience,” she recalls. “Put me on the moon, I want to be someplace else. I want to be held in the boundaries of a different time and place.” Meryl got her wish with 1981’s The French Lieutenant’s Woman, a lavish period piece set in 19th-century England. In addition to satisfying Meryl’s needs, the film also satisfied critics, who awarded her Best Actress statuettes from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, the Golden Globes and the Los Angeles Film Critics Association.
Meryl Streep wins oscar no. 2
Not content to rest on her laurels, Meryl turned in another dazzling performance in Sophie’s Choice (1982). Her role as a Nazi concentration camp survivor ultimately netted her a second Oscar, as well as a slew of Best Actress honors from the National Society of Film Critics, the Golden Globes, the New York Film Critics Circle, and the Los Angeles Film Critics Association.
Now free to pick and choose her projects, Meryl appeared in a string of critically acclaimed films over the next decade, including Silkwood (1984) starring Cher, Out of Africa (1985), A Cry in the Dark (1988), and Postcards from the Edge (1990). The decade was also punctuated with the births of three more children, as Meryl and Don gladly welcomed Mary Willa Gummer, Grace Jane Gummer and Louisa Jacobson Gummer into the world.
Meryl Streep in bridges of madison county
Despite the incredible success she enjoyed during the previous two decades, Meryl’s career began to decline during the early ‘90s due to a lack of quality roles. Luckily, she bounced back in a big way in 1995 with The Bridges of Madison County, a powerful romance starring Clint Eastwood. The intimate role put Meryl back in the spotlight once again with Best Actress nominations from the Academy Awards, the Screen Actors Guild and the Golden Globes.
Meryl Streep’s lifetime achievement award
Additional Academy Award nominations came in 1999 for One True Thing starring Renee Zellweger and in 2000 for Music of the Heart. Indeed, the new millennium has been kind to Meryl, who has starred in blockbuster hits such as The Hours (2002) alongside Julianne Moore, and Nicole Kidman, The Manchurian Candidate (2004) with Denzel Washington and Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004) with Jim Carrey.
That output, coupled with her previous accomplishments, led to the American Film Institute honoring her in 2004 with its 32nd Life Achievement Award. Trustee chair Howard Stringer summed up her career accomplishments nicely during the event’s gala ceremony when he said, “Her talent, range and determination to master her craft bring out performances that sometimes border on the ethereal. In that sense, she is truly peerless.”
Buying cigarettes is the perfect type of a perfect pleasure. It is exquisite, and it leaves one unsatisfied. What more can one want?
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | Julia | Anne Marie | |
| 1978 | The Deer Hunter | Linda | National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress
Nominated—Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture |
| 1979 | Manhattan | Jill | Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress (also for The Seduction of Joe Tynan and Kramer vs. Kramer)
National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actress (also for The Seduction of Joe Tynan and Kramer vs. Kramer) National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress (also for The Seduction of Joe Tynan and Kramer vs. Kramer) Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role |
| The Seduction of Joe Tynan | Karen Traynor | Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress (also for Manhattan and Kramer vs. Kramer)
National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actress (also for Manhattan and Kramer vs. Kramer) National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress (also for Manhattan and Kramer vs. Kramer) New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actress (also for Kramer vs. Kramer) |
|
| Kramer vs. Kramer | Joanna Kramer | Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture Kansas City Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress (also for The Seduction of Joe Tynan and Manhattan) National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actress (also for The Seduction of Joe Tynan and Manhattan) National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress (also for The Seduction of Joe Tynan and Manhattan) New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actress (also for The Seduction of Joe Tynan) Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role |
|
| 1981 | The French Lieutenant’s Woman | Sarah/Anna | BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role
Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actress |
| 1982 | Still of the Night | Brooke Reynolds | |
| Sophie’s Choice | Sophie Zawistowski | Academy Award for Best Actress
Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actress Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama Kansas City Film Critics Award for Best Actress (shared with Julie Andrews for Victor Victoria) Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress National Board of Review Award for Best Actress National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actress New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role |
|
| 1983 | Silkwood | Karen Silkwood | Kansas City Film Critics Award for Best Actress
Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actress Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama |
| 1984 | Falling in Love | Molly Gilmore | David di Donatello Award for Best Foreign Actress |
| 1985 | Plenty | Susan Traherne | |
| Out of Africa | Karen Blixen | David di Donatello Award for Best Foreign Actress
Kansas City Film Critics Award for Best Actress Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actress Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama |
|
| 1986 | Heartburn | Rachel Samstat | Valladolid International Film Festival Best Actress |
| 1987 | Ironweed | Helen Archer | Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actress |
| 1988 | A Cry in the Dark | Lindy Chamberlain | Australian Film Institute Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role
Best Actress Award (Cannes Film Festival) New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actress Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama |
| 1989 | She-Devil | Mary Fisher | Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy |
| 1990 | Postcards from the Edge | Suzanne Vale | Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actress
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy |
| 1991 | Defending Your Life | Julia | Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Actress |
| 1992 | Death Becomes Her | Madeline Ashton | Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy |
| 1993 | The House of the Spirits | Clara del Valle Trueba | |
| 1994 | The River Wild | Gail Hartman | Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama
Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role |
| 1995 | The Bridges of Madison County | Francesca Johnson | Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actress
Nominated—Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role |
| 1996 | Before and After | Dr. Carolyn Ryan | |
| Marvin’s Room | Lee | Nominated—Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actress
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture |
|
| 1998 | Dancing at Lughnasa | Kate ‘Kit’ Mundy | Nominated—Irish Film and Television Awards — Best Actor in a Female Role |
| One True Thing | Kate Gulden | Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actress
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role |
|
| 1999 | Chrysanthemum | Narrator | |
| Music of the Heart | Roberta Guaspari | Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actress
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role |
|
| 2001 | A.I. Artificial Intelligence | Blue Fairy | (voice cameo) |
| 2002 | Adaptation. | Susan Orlean | Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress
Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actress Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture Southeastern Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated—Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role Nominated—Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated—London Film Critics Circle Film Award for Actress of the Year Nominated—Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated—Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated—Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture |
| The Hours | Clarissa Vaughan | Silver Bear for Best Actress (shared with Julianne Moore and Nicole Kidman)
Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama Nominated—Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated—Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture |
|
| 2003 | Stuck on You | Herself | |
| 2004 | The Manchurian Candidate | Eleanor Shaw | Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Actress |
| Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events | Aunt Josephine | ||
| 2005 | Prime | Lisa Metzger, therapist | |
| 2006 | A Prairie Home Companion | Yolanda Johnson | National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress (also for The Devil Wears Prada)
Nominated—Gotham Awards – Best Ensemble Cast |
| “The Music of Regret” | The Woman | (short musical) | |
| The Devil Wears Prada | Miranda Priestly, editor-in-chief | Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
North Texas Film Critics Award for Best Actress London Film Critics Circle Film Award for Actress of the Year National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress (also for A Prairie Home Companion) Satellite Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actress Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role Nominated—Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress Nominated—Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress Nominated—Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role Nominated—MTV Movie Award for Best Villain |
|
| The Ant Bully | Queen Ant | (voice) | |
| 2007 | Dark Matter | Joanna Silver | |
| Evening | Lila Wittenborn Ross | ||
| Rendition | Corrine Whitman, CIA official | ||
| Lions for Lambs | Janine Roth | ||
| 2008 | Mamma Mia! | Donna Sheridan | Irish Film and Television Award for Best International Actress – People’s Choice
Rembrandt Award (NL) – Best International Actress National Movie Award (UK) — Best Female Performance Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy |
| Doubt | Sister Aloysius Beauvier | Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress( tied with Anne Hathway for Rachel Getting Married)
Iowa Film Critics Award for Best Actress Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress North Texas Film Critics Award for Best Actress Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actress Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role Nominated—Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama Nominated—London Film Critics Circle Film Award for Actress of the Year Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture |
|
| 2009 | Julie & Julia | Julia Child | Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actress
North Texas Film Critics Award for Best Actress Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy New York Film Critics Online New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress( also for The Fantastic Mr. Fox) Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress San Francisco Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress Southeastern Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress Oklahoma Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress Satellite Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress ((tied with Sandra Bullock)) Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actress Nominated—Alliance of Woman Journalists Award for Best Actress Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role Nominated—Detroit Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role Nominated—San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress Nominated—Houston Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress Nominated—St Louis Gateway Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress Nominated—Toronto Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress Nominated—Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association for Best Actress |
| Fantastic Mr. Fox | Mrs. Fox[50] | (voice)
New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress (also for Julie & Julia) |
|
| It’s Complicated | Jane Adler | Irish Film and Television Award for Best International Actress – People’s Choice
National Board of Review Award for Best Cast Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy |
|
| 2010 | Mommy and Me | ||
| 2011 | The Iron Lady | Margaret Thatcher | |
| Great Hope Springs |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | Holocaust | Inga Helms Weiss | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress – Miniseries or a Movie |
| 1994 | The Simpsons | Jessica Lovejoy | Episode: “Bart’s Girlfriend” |
| 1999 | King of the Hill | Aunt Esme Dauterive | Episode: “A Beer Can Named Desire” |
| 1997 | …First Do No Harm | Lori Reimuller | Nominated—Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Television Movie
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Television Film Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actress in a Television Film |
| 2003 | Angels in America | Ethel Rosenberg
The Rabbi Hannah Pitt Angel Australia |
Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries
Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Miniseries Gracie Allen Award for Outstanding Female Lead in a Drama Special Satellite Award for Best Actress in a Miniseries Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Female Actor in a Miniseries |
Stage
| Year | Production | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | Trelawny of the Wells | Miss Imogen Parrott | |
| 1976 | 27 Wagons Full of Cotton | Flora Meighan | Theatre World Award – Debut performance, Broadway/Off-Broadway
Nominated—Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play Nominated—Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play |
| A Memory of Two Mondays | Patricia | ||
| Secret Service | Edith Varney | ||
| Henry V | Katherine | ||
| Measure for Measure | Isabella | ||
| 1977 | Happy End | Lieutenant Lillian Holiday | |
| The Cherry Orchard | Dunyasha | ||
| 1978 | Alice at the Palace | Alice | |
| The Taming of the Shrew | Kate | ||
| 1979 | Taken in Marriage | Andrea | |
| 1980–81 | Alice at the Palace | Alice | |
| 2001 | The Seagull | Irina Nikolayevna | Nominated—Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play |
| 2006 | Mother Courage and Her Children | Mother Courage | Drama League Award — Distinguished Performance Award
Nominated—Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play |
