Karen Black

Biography

Karen Blanche Black (née Ziegler; July 1, 1939 – August 8, 2013) was an American actress, screenwriter, singer, and songwriter. She rose to prominence for her work in various studio and independent films in the 1970s, frequently portraying eccentric and offbeat characters, and established herself as a figure of New Hollywood. Her career spanned over 50 years and includes nearly 200 credits in both independent and mainstream films. Black received numerous accolades throughout her career, including two Golden Globe Awards, as well as an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. A native of suburban Chicago, Black studied theater at Northwestern University before dropping out and relocating to New York City. She performed on Broadway in 1965 before making her major film debut in Francis Ford Coppola's You're a Big Boy Now (1966). Black relocated to California and was cast as an acid-tripping prostitute in Dennis Hopper's road film Easy Rider (1969). That led to a lead in the drama Five Easy Pieces (1970), in which she played a hopeless beautician, for which she was nominated for an Academy Award and won a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress. Black made her first majo…

Movies & TV Shows

1. Easy Rider (1969) — Karen
2. House of 1000 Corpses (2003) — Mother Firefly
3. The Player (1992) — Karen Black
4. Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief (2015) — Self (archive footage)
5. Five Easy Pieces (1970) — Rayette Dipesto
6. Miami Vice (1984) — Helen Jackson
7. The Great Gatsby (1974) — Myrtle Wilson
8. Capricorn One (1977) — Judy Drinkwater
9. Saturday Night Live (1975) — Self - Host
10. Family Plot (1976) — Fran
11. Nashville (1975) — Connie White
12. Murder, She Wrote (1984) — Dr. Sylvia Dunn
13. Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2001) — Vera Morgan
14. Airport 1975 (1974) — Nancy Pryor
15. Invaders from Mars (1986) — Linda Magnusson
16. Burnt Offerings (1976) — Marian Rolf
17. Trilogy of Terror (1975) — Julie / Millicent Larimore / Therese Larimore / Amelia
18. Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films (2014) — Linda Magnusson (archive footage) (uncredited)
19. Children of the Corn IV: The Gathering (1996) — June Rhodes
20. Party of Five (1994) — Doreen Jablonsky
21. Some Guy Who Kills People (2011) — Ruth Boyd
22. The Day of the Locust (1975) — Faye Greener
23. The Outfit (1973) — Bett Harrow
24. Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! (2007) — Jennifer
25. The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962) — Self
26. It's Alive III: Island of the Alive (1987) — Ellen Jarvis
27. E! True Hollywood Story (1996)
28. Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean (1982) — Joanne
29. Profiler (1996) — Evie Long
30. Killer Fish (1979) — Kate
31. Cut and Run (1985) — Karin
32. The Last Horror Film (1982) — Karen Black (uncredited)
33. The Carol Burnett Show (1967) — Self - Guest / Various Characters
34. Easy Riders, Raging Bulls: How the Sex 'n' Drugs 'n' Rock 'n' Roll Generation Saved Hollywood (2003) — Self
35. The Invaders (1967) — Claudia Stone
36. Mirror Mirror (1990) — Susan Gordon
37. The Big Valley (1965) — Carla
38. Homer and Eddie (1989) — Belle
39. Mannix (1967)
40. You're a Big Boy Now (1966) — Amy Partlett