Lee Grant

Biography

Lee Grant, born Lyova Haskell Rosenthal on October 31, in the mid-1920s, is a distinguished American actress and director. She made her cinematic debut in 1951, portraying a young shoplifter in William Wyler's *Detective Story*, alongside Kirk Douglas and Eleanor Parker. This role garnered her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress and led to her winning the Best Actress Award at the 1952 Cannes Film Festival.

In 1952, Grant faced a setback when she was blacklisted from acting for over a decade, which limited her opportunities to sporadic stage work and teaching. This challenging period also contributed to her divorce. However, in 1962, Grant emerged from the blacklist and successfully revived her acting career. She became well known for her role in the television series *Peyton Place* (1965–1966), followed by significant performances in films such as *Valley of the Dolls* and *In the Heat of the Night* (both 1967), and *Shampoo* (1975), for which she received an Oscar. Grant also won an Obie Award in 1964 for her performance in *The Maids*.

Throughout her career, she earned seven Emmy nominations from 1966 to 1993, winning twice. In 1986, she directed *Down and Out in America*, which shared the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature, and she also received a Directors Guild of America Award for *Nobody's Child* that same year.