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Actor · Acting

Anne Bancroft

Born 1931-09-17
Died 2005-06-06
📍 The Bronx, New York City, New York, USA

Anne Bancroft (born Anna Maria Louisa Italiano; September 17, 1931 – June 6, 2005) was an American actress. Respected for her acting prowess and versatility, Bancroft received an Academy Award, three BAFTA Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, two Tony Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Cannes Film Festival Award. She is one of only 24 thespians to achieve the Triple Crown of Acting.

Bancroft was born Anna Maria Louisa (or Luisa) Italiano on September 17, 1931, in the Bronx, New York City, the middle of three daughters of Mildred (née Di Napoli), a telephone operator, and Michael G. Italiano, a dress pattern maker. Both of her parents' surnames were toponymic. Her parents were Italian immigrants from Southern Italy. In an interview, she stated that her family was originally from Muro Lucano, in the province of Potenza. She was raised in the Roman Catholic faith. Bancroft was raised in Little Italy, in the Belmont neighborhood of the Bronx, attended P.S. 12, later moving to 1580 Zerega Ave.

Bancroft's Broadway debut in the two-character drama Two for the Seesaw (1958), brought her wide recognition for the depth of her talent and garnered her a Tony Award for best supporting actress. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance as Annie Sullivan in The Miracle Worker (1962), and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance as Mrs. Robinson in The Graduate (1967).

Bancroft continued to have a successful career in film and television. She starred in a number of other films, including The Elephant Man (1980), 84 Charing Cross Road (1987), and Agnes of God (1985), for which she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress.

Bancroft was married to director Mel Brooks from 1964 until her death in 2005. They had one son, Max Brooks.

Filmography 97

Hollywood: No Sex, Please!
2018
Mel Brooks: Unwrapped
as Self (archive footage)
2018
Mel Brooks: Make a Noise
as Self
2013
Hollywood Singing & Dancing: A Musical History - 1980s, 1990s and 2000s
as Self (archive)
2009
Delgo
as Sedessa (voice)
2008
Legends
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
2006
Celebrity Naked Ambition
as Self (archive footage)
2003
The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone
as Contessa
2003
In Search of Peace
as Golda Meir (voice)
2001
Heartbreakers
as Gloria Vogal
2001
Haven
as Mama Gruber
2001
Curb Your Enthusiasm
as Anne Bancroft
2000
Keeping the Faith
as Ruth Schram
2000
Up at the Villa
as Princess San Ferdinando
2000
Deep in My Heart
as Gerry Cummins
1999
Antz
as Queen (voice)
1998
Mark Twain's America in 3D
as Narrator
1998
Great Expectations
as Ms. Dinsmoor
1998
Critical Care
as Nun
1997
G.I. Jane
as Senator Lillian DeHaven
1997
The Sunchaser
as Dr. Renata Baumbauer
1996
Shirley Maclaine: Kicking Up Her Heels
as Self (archive footage)
1996
Homecoming
as Abigail Tillerman
1996
Dracula: Dead and Loving It
as Madame Ouspenskaya
1995
Home for the Holidays
as Adele Larson
1995
How to Make an American Quilt
as Glady Joe Cleary
1995
The Mother
as Mrs. Fanning
1994
Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All
as Lucy Marsden (age 99-100)
1994
Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All
as Old Lucy Marsden
1994
Mr. Jones
as Dr. Catherine Holland
1993
Malice
as Mrs. Kennsinger
1993
Point of No Return
as Amanda
1993
Love Potion No. 9
as Madame Ruth
1992
Honeymoon in Vegas
as Bea Singer
1992
Broadway Bound
as Kate Jerome
1992
Performance
as Mrs. Fanning
1991
The Simpsons
as Dr. Zweig (voice)
1989
Bert Rigby, You're a Fool
as Meredith Perlestein
1989
Torch Song Trilogy
as Ma Beckoff
1988
84 Charing Cross Road
as Helene Hanff
1987
'night, Mother
as Thelma Cates
1986
Agnes of God
as Mother Miriam Ruth
1985
Garbo Talks
as Estelle Rolfe
1984
An Audience with Mel Brooks
as Self
1984
James Mason: The Star They Loved to Hate
as Jo Armitage (archive footage) (uncredited)
1984
To Be or Not to Be
as Anna Bronski
1983
Marco Polo
as Madre di Marco
1982
The Elephant Man
as Mrs Kendal
1980
Fatso
as Antoinette
1980
The Muppets Go Hollywood
as Self
1979
Mickey's 50
as Self
1978
An Audience with...
as Self
1978
The Turning Point
as Emma
1977
Jesus of Nazareth
as Mary Magdalene
1977
Silent Movie
as Self
1976
Lipstick
as Carla Bondi
1976
The Hindenburg
as Ursula
1975
The Prisoner of Second Avenue
as Edna Edison
1975
Flick Flack
1974
Young Winston
as Lady Jennie Churchill
1972
Great Performances
as Mrs. Fanning
1971
Annie: The Women in the Life of a Man
as Various
1970
The Graduate
as Mrs. Robinson
1967
ABC Stage 67
as Virginia
1966
The Slender Thread
as Inga Dyson
1965
7 Women
as Dr. D.R. Cartwright
1965
The Pumpkin Eater
as Jo Armitage
1964
The Miracle Worker
as Annie Sullivan
1962
The Girl in Black Stockings
as Beth Dixon
1957
The Restless Breed
as Angelita
1957
Invitation to a Gunfighter
as Julie Bickford
1957
So Soon to Die
as Isobel Waring
1957
Nightfall
as Marie Gardner
1956
Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre
as Isabelle Rutledge
1956
Walk the Proud Land
as Tianay
1956
Tony Awards
as Self - Presenter
1956
The Last Frontier
as Corinna Marston
1955
The Naked Street
as Rosalie Regalzyk
1955
A Life in the Balance
as María Ibinia
1955
New York Confidential
as Kathy Lupo
1955
Climax!
as Audrey
1954
Climax!
as Elena Vallejo
1954
The Raid
as Katy Bishop
1954
Demetrius and the Gladiators
as Paula
1954
Gorilla at Large
as Laverne Miller
1954
The Kid from Left Field
as Marian Foley
1953
The Oscars
as Self
1953
Treasure of the Golden Condor
as Marie, Comtesse de St. Malo
1953
Tonight We Sing
as Emma Hurok
1953
Don't Bother to Knock
as Lyn Lesley
1952
The Man Who Had Influence
as Maria Cassini
1950
What's My Line?
as Self - Mystery Guest
1950
Suspense
1949
Studio One
as Maria Cassini
1948
Studio One
as Czechoslovakian Girl
1948
Studio One
as Lisa Berzins
1948
Mel Brooks: The Genius Entertainer
as Herself