Why do we love Kate? The product of good Yankee stock, Kate was always encouraged to speak her mind, develop it fully, and exercise her body to its full potential. Traits that through the years ruffled a few feathers but would ultimately propel her to the heights of her profession. After several successes on the Broadway stage, Hollywood came calling. Her films were hits and she was awarded her first Oscar for her second film; her third film, Little Women (1934) broke all previous box office records. But the laws of gravity and Hollywood would catch up with her. After several flops and never being one to shy away from giving her opinion coupled with her unconventional manner and wardrobe (like her penchant for wearing pants), Kate was soon branded "Box Office Poison." Not one to lie down and take it, Kate returned to New York and the stage where she starred in the Broadway version of The Philadelphia Story. A smash hit on Broadway, Kate snapped up the film rights and returned to Hollywood on her own terms, which included choosing her director and costars. The film version was a hit and Kate was awarded her third Oscar nomination. Paired with many of the leading actors of her day, including Cary Grant, James Stewart, Humphrey Bogart, and Sir Anthony Hopkins, her collaboration with Spencer Tracy was one of the all-time great partnerships in film. Their verbal battle of the sexes and underlying affection over the course of nine films together put them in a class by themselves. She was a star in the Golden Age of Hollywood, who found some of her greatest success after the age of sixty and is, to this day, considered by many to be the best actress to ever grace the silver screen. Biography: Born - May 12, 1907 Hartford, Connecticut Died - June 29, 2003 Old Saybrook, Connecticut Achievements: Named the best female star by the American Film Institute. Ranked #1 woman in the AFI's 50 Greatest Movie Legends (1999). In her career, which spans more than six decades, her twelve Academy Award nominations and four wins are more than any other actor (male or female). Four-time Oscar winner as Best Actress -- Morning Glory (1933), Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967), The Lion in Winter (1969), On Golden Pond (1982) – three of her Oscars were awarded after the age of sixty. Nominated for five Emmy Awards, won for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Special Program - Drama or Comedy, Love Among the Ruins (1975). New York Film Critics' Award for Best Actress for The Philadelphia Story (1940). People's Choice Award for Favorite Motion Picture Actress (1976 & 1983). Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award (1980). Venice Film Festival - Golden Medal for Best Actress for Little Women (1933). Cannes Film Festival Best Actress award for Long Day's Journey Into Night (1962). Nominated for five BAFTA awards. Three times as Best Foreign Actress, and won twice as Best Actress, in 1969 for Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967) and The Lion in Winter (1968), and in 1983 for On Golden Pond (1981). Nominated for a Tony Award in 1970 for Best Actress in a Musical for Coco; and in 1980 for Best Actress in a Play for West Side Waltz. Four-time Golden Globe nominee. Named Woman of the Year by the Hasty Pudding Society of Harvard University in 1958. American Comedy Awards Lifetime Achievement Award in Comedy (1989). Author of two best-selling books, Me: The Story of My Life (1991) and The Making of the African Queen: Or How I Went to Africa With Bogart, Bacall and Huston and Almost Lost My Mind (1987). Graduated from Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr, PA in 1928, with a BA in Drama. In her own words -- Understatement: "With all the opportunities I had, I could have done more. And if I'd done more, I could have been quite remarkable. "   March 9   •   March 11 Home