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IMDbPro

Joan Fontaine(1917-2013)

  • Actress
  • Producer
  • Soundtrack
IMDbProStarmeterTop 5,0003137
Joan Fontaine "Serenade" 1956 Warner
Home Video Trailer from Anchor Bay Entertainment
Play trailer2:14
The Witches (1966)
16 Videos
99+ Photos
Born Joan de Beauvoir de Havilland on October 22, 1917, in Tokyo, Japan, in what was known as the International Settlement, to British parents, Lilian Augusta (Ruse), a former actress, and Walter Augustus de Havilland, an English professor and patent attorney. Her paternal grandfather's family was from Guernsey in the Channel Islands. Her father had a lucrative practice in Japan, but due to Joan and older sister Olivia de Havilland's recurring ailments the family moved to California in the hopes of improving their health. Mrs. de Havilland and the two girls settled in Saratoga while their father went back to his practice in Japan. Joan's parents did not get along well and divorced soon afterward. Mrs. de Havilland had a desire to be an actress but her dreams were curtailed when she married, but now she hoped to pass on her dream to Olivia and Joan. While Olivia pursued a stage career, Joan went back to Tokyo, where she attended the American School. In 1934 she came back to California, where her sister was already making a name for herself on the stage. Joan likewise joined a theater group in San Jose and then Los Angeles to try her luck there. After moving to L.A., Joan adopted the name of Joan Burfield because she didn't want to infringe upon Olivia, who was using the family surname.

She tested at MGM and gained a small role in No More Ladies (1935), but she was scarcely noticed and Joan was idle for a year and a half. During this time she roomed with Olivia, who was having much more success in films. In 1937, this time calling herself Joan Fontaine, she landed a better role as Trudy Olson in You Can't Beat Love (1937) and then an uncredited part in Quality Street (1937). Although the next two years saw her in better roles, she still yearned for something better. In 1940 she garnered her first Academy Award nomination for Rebecca (1940). Although she thought she should have won, (she lost out to Ginger Rogers in Kitty Foyle (1940)), she was now an established member of the Hollywood set. She would again be Oscar-nominated for her role as Lina McLaidlaw Aysgarth in Suspicion (1941), and this time she won. Joan was making one film a year but choosing her roles well. In 1942 she starred in the well-received This Above All (1942).

The following year she appeared in The Constant Nymph (1943). Once again she was nominated for the Oscar, she lost out to Jennifer Jones in The Song of Bernadette (1943). By now it was safe to say she was more famous than her older sister and more fine films followed. In 1948, she accepted second billing to Bing Crosby in The Emperor Waltz (1948). Joan took the year of 1949 off before coming back in 1950 with September Affair (1950) and Born to Be Bad (1950). In 1951 she starred in Paramount's Darling, How Could You! (1951), which turned out badly for both her and the studio and more weak productions followed.

Absent from the big screen for a while, she took parts in television and dinner theaters. She also starred in many well-produced Broadway plays such as Forty Carats and The Lion in Winter. Her last appearance on the big screen was The Witches (1966) and her final appearance before the cameras was Good King Wenceslas (1994). She is, without a doubt, a lasting movie icon.
BornOctober 22, 1917
DiedDecember 15, 2013(96)
BornOctober 22, 1917
DiedDecember 15, 2013(96)
IMDbProStarmeterTop 5,0003137
  • Won 1 Oscar
    • 11 wins & 5 nominations total

Photos390

Joan Fontaine and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. in Gunga Din (1939)
Joan Fontaine and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. in Gunga Din (1939)
Joan Fontaine, Rosalind Russell, and Norma Shearer in The Women (1939)
Joan Fontaine and Norma Shearer in The Women (1939)
Joan Fontaine and Norma Shearer in The Women (1939)
Joan Fontaine, Sandra Dee, and Jean Simmons in Until They Sail (1957)
Joan Fontaine, Sandra Dee, and Jean Simmons in Until They Sail (1957)
Joan Fontaine, Sandra Dee, and Jean Simmons in Until They Sail (1957)
Joan Fontaine and Edith Barrett in Jane Eyre (1943)
Joan Fontaine in Jane Eyre (1943)
Joan Fontaine in Jane Eyre (1943)
Joan Fontaine and John Sutton in Jane Eyre (1943)

Known for

Joan Fontaine and Cary Grant in Suspicion (1941)
Suspicion
7.3
  • Lina McLaidlaw
  • 1941
Joan Fontaine and Laurence Olivier in Rebecca (1940)
Rebecca
8.1
  • Mrs. de Winter
  • 1940
Joan Fontaine and Louis Jourdan in Letter from an Unknown Woman (1948)
Letter from an Unknown Woman
7.9
  • Lisa Berndle
  • 1948
Joan Fontaine, Charles Boyer, and Alexis Smith in The Constant Nymph (1943)
The Constant Nymph
6.7
  • Tessa Sanger
  • 1943

Credits

Edit
IMDbPro

Actress

  • Good King Wenceslas (1994)
    Good King Wenceslas
    • Queen Ludmilla
    • TV Movie
    • 1994
  • Joan Fontaine, Melissa Sue Anderson, Lois Chiles, Nicollette Sheridan, Michael York, Steve Inwood, Linda Purl, and Paul Shenar in Dark Mansions (1986)
    Dark Mansions
    • Margaret Drake
    • TV Movie
    • 1986
  • Anne Baxter, James Brolin, and Connie Sellecca in Hotel (1983)
    Hotel
    • Ruth Easton
    • TV Series
    • 1986
  • Crossings (1986)
    Crossings
    • Alexandra Markham
    • TV Mini Series
    • 1986
  • Genie Francis in Bare Essence (1983)
    Bare Essence
    • Laura
    • TV Series
    • 1983
  • Fred Grandy, Bernie Kopell, Ted Lange, Gavin MacLeod, and Lauren Tewes in The Love Boat (1977)
    The Love Boat
    • Jennifer Langley
    • TV Series
    • 1981
  • Kate Mulgrew, Bernard Barrow, Helen Gallagher, Malcolm Groome, and Michael Hawkins in Ryan's Hope (1975)
    Ryan's Hope
    • Paige Williams
    • TV Series
    • 1980
  • The Users (1978)
    The Users
    • Grace St. George
    • TV Movie
    • 1978
  • Cannon (1971)
    Cannon
    • Thelma Cain
    • TV Series
    • 1975
  • The Witches (1966)
    The Witches
    • Gwen Mayfield
    • 1966
  • The Bing Crosby Show (1964)
    The Bing Crosby Show
    • Mrs. Taylor
    • TV Series
    • 1965
  • Alfred Hitchcock in The Alfred Hitchcock Hour (1962)
    The Alfred Hitchcock Hour
    • Alice Pemberton
    • TV Series
    • 1963
  • John McIntire in Wagon Train (1957)
    Wagon Train
    • Naomi Kaylor
    • TV Series
    • 1963
  • The Dick Powell Theatre (1961)
    The Dick Powell Theatre
    • Valerie Baumer
    • TV Series
    • 1962
  • Jason Robards and Jennifer Jones in Tender Is the Night (1962)
    Tender Is the Night
    • Baby Warren
    • 1962

Producer

  • Joan Fontaine and Louis Jourdan in Letter from an Unknown Woman (1948)
    Letter from an Unknown Woman
    • producer (uncredited)
    • 1948

Soundtrack

  • Saturday Night Live (1975)
    Saturday Night Live
    • performer: "The Emperor Waltz" (uncredited)
    • TV Series
    • 1988
  • Joan Fontaine, Charles Boyer, and Alexis Smith in The Constant Nymph (1943)
    The Constant Nymph
    • performer: "Tomorrow" (uncredited)
    • 1943
  • Joan Fontaine and Laurence Olivier in Rebecca (1940)
    Rebecca
    • Soundtrack ("Love's Old Sweet Song (Just a Song at Twilight)" (1884), uncredited)
    • 1940
  • Joan Fontaine and Derrick De Marney in Blond Cheat (1938)
    Blond Cheat
    • performer: "It Must Be Love" (1938)
    • 1938
  • Fred Astaire, Joan Fontaine, Gracie Allen, and George Burns in A Damsel in Distress (1937)
    A Damsel in Distress
    • performer: "Things Are Looking Up" (1937) (uncredited)
    • 1937
  • Joan Fontaine and Nino Martini in Music for Madame (1937)
    Music for Madame
    • performer: "King of the Road" (1937), "I Want the World to Know" (1937)
    • 1937

Videos16

Trailer
Trailer 1:52
Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 3:10
Official Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 3:26
Official Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 0:46
Trailer
Original Theatrical Trailer
Trailer 3:32
Original Theatrical Trailer
Original Theatrical Trailer
Trailer 2:41
Original Theatrical Trailer
Darling, How Could You!
Trailer 2:06
Darling, How Could You!
Letter From An Unknown Woman
Trailer 1:37
Letter From An Unknown Woman
Gunga Din
Trailer 2:12
Gunga Din
Jane Eyre
Trailer 2:14
Jane Eyre
Ivanhoe
Trailer 1:52
Ivanhoe
Island In The Sun
Trailer 3:31
Island In The Sun

Personal details

Edit
  • Alternative name
    • Joan Burfield
  • Height
    • 5′ 4″ (1.63 m)
  • Born
    • October 22, 1917
    • Tokyo, Japan
  • Died
    • December 15, 2013
    • Carmel, California, USA(natural causes)
  • Spouses
      Alfred Wright, Jr.January 27, 1964 - June 1969 (divorced)
  • Children
      Martita Pareja
  • Parents
      Walter Augustus de Havilland
  • Relatives
      Gisèle Galante(Niece or Nephew)
  • Other works
    Unsold pilot: Hosted a pilot for a romantic TV series called "The Ways of Love". It was produced by Collier Young, her husband at the time.
  • Publicity listings
    • 4 Print Biographies
    • 2 Interviews
    • 9 Articles
    • 2 Pictorials
    • 7 Magazine Cover Photos

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    She and sister Olivia de Havilland worked tirelessly as nurses' aides during WWII and made numerous appearances at the Hollywood Canteen in support of American troops.
  • Quotes
    Marriage, as an institution, is as dead as the dodo bird.
  • Trademarks
      Often played delicate women put through emotional turmoil

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