Olivia de Havilland is “The Heiress”

The Heiress (1949) is an American drama produced and directed by William Wyler and starring Olivia de Havilland, Montgomery Clift, and Ralph Richardson. The supporting cast included Miriam Hopkins, Mona Freeman, Selena Royle, and Vanessa Brown.

The film takes place in New York City in 1849 and concerns one Catherine Sloper (de Havilland), a shy young woman, who lives with her wealthy father Dr. Austin Sloper (Richardson). Dr, Sloper and Catherine live in the prestigious Washington Square neighborhood.

When Catherine is introduced to Morris Townsend (Clift) at a ball, she is charmed by the handsome young man. Catherine falls madly in love with Morris. He seems gracious and caring…and loving. However, Catherine’s stern father disapproves of the relationship, concerned that Morris is only interested in Catherine because of her wealth.

Will Catherine and Morris’s relationship thrive or die over her father’s objections?

 

Montgomery Clift, Olivia de Havilland, and Ralph Richardson

William Wyler (1902 - 1981) was an American (born in Mulhouse, Alsace, then part of Germany) film director and producer. He won the Academy Award for Best Direction three times: Mrs. Miniver (1942), The Best Years of Our Lives (1946), and Ben-Hur (1959). Wyler was nominated 12 times for Best Director, an Academy Award history. Wyler started working in the movie business during the silent era, eventually making a name for himself as a director in the early 1930s. He would go on to direct Wuthering Heights (1939), The Westerner (1940), and The Little Foxes (1941). Actress Bette Davis received three Oscar nominations under Wyler’s direction, winning her second Oscar for her performance in Jezebel (1938). Other popular films directed by Wyler include The Heiress (1949), Roman Holiday (1954), Friendly Persuasion (1956), The Big Country (1958), and Funny Girl 1968).

Olivia de Havilland (1916 – 2020) was a British-American actress and two-time Best Actress Academy Award winner. De Havilland’s career spanned more than five decades. She was one of the leading actresses of the 1940s and was the last major surviving star from Hollywood’s Golden Age. Some of de Havilland’s classic films include The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), Gone with the Wind (1939), Hold Back the Dawn (1941), To Each His Own (1946), The Snake Pit (1948), and The Heiress (1949).

Montgomery Clift (1920 – 1966) was an American actor. He was a four-time Academy Award nominee for Best Actor. Like Marlon Brando and James Dean, Clift was considered one of the original method actors. Clift got his start on the stage as a young man and starred opposite the likes of Tallulah Bankhead, Frederic March, and Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne. Clift’s first movie role was in Howard Hawks’s Red River (1949), starring opposite John Wayne. He went on to co-star with Olivia de Havilland in William Wyler’s The Heiress (1949). He reached superstar status in the role of George Eastman in the George Stevens production of A Place in the Sun (1951), starring opposite Elizabeth Taylor. Clift would later star in Alfred Hitchcock’s I Confess (1953) and Fred Zinnemann’s From Here to Eternity (1953). Other films followed, including Raintree County (1956), The Young Lions (1958), Lonelyhearts (1958), Suddenly, Last Summer (1959), and Wild River (1960).

Ralph Richardson (1902 – 1983) was an English stage and screen actor. Along with John Gielgud and Laurence Olivier, he dominated the British theatre for most of the 20^th century. Richardson worked in movies in Britain and the United States throughout his long career. Some of his famous films include The Fallen Idol (1948), The Heiress (1949), Long Day’s Journey into Night (1962), Women of Straw (1965), and Doctor Zhivago (1965).

 

Olivia de Haviland and Ralph Richardson

The Heiress trivia

• After seeing The Heiress on the Broadway stage, de Havilland approached William Wyler about directing her in a screen adaptation.
• Wyler became a fan of de Havilland’s acting talent and was annoyed by Clift’s disdain for her performance and for Ralph Richardson’s attempt to scene-steal through improvisation.
• Clift was so disappointed by his performance that he walked out of the premiere.
• Basil Rathbone played Dr. Sloper on the stage and hoped to recreate the role for the film version.
• De Havilland won her second Best Actress Academy Award for her performance.
• Wyler originally wanted Errol Flynn to play Morris.

 

Click HERE to watch the film at the Internet Archive

Click HERE to learn more about the film and preview the discussion questions. Once you RSVP, you will receive an email with a link to the discussion on Zoom.

 

Discussion questions

1. Many consider Olivia de Havilland’s performance as one of the greatest of the 20^th century. Do you agree?
2. When do you think Catherine’s personality began to become imbittered?
3. Montgomery Clift was unhappy with his performance. What did you think? Was he wrong to be unhappy about it?
4. What did you think of Ralph Richardson’s characterization as Dr. Sloper? Do you think he loved Catherine?
5. Do you think Morris was interested in Catherine only for her money?
6. Would Catherine have been happy with Morris if they had married?

John Wayne and Montgomery Clift clash in Howard Hawks's "Red River"

Red River (1948) is an American western film directed by Howard Hawks and starring John Wayne, Montgomery Clift, Walter Brennan, and Joanne Dru. The movie is based on The Chisholm Trail, first published in The Saturday Evening Post by Borden Chase. Chase co-wrote the screenplay with Charles Schnee. The cinematography was by Russell Harlan (To Kill a Mockingbird) and the music was by Dimitri Tiomkin (Mr. Smith Goes to Washington).

Thomas Dunson (Wayne) wants to start his own cattle drive and establish a ranch in Texas. As he begins his journey, he learns that his girlfriend Fern (Colleen Gray) has been killed in an Indian attack. Dunson convinced Fern to remain with the wagon train to California instead of traveling with him which was her desire.

Dunson and Nadine Groot (Brennan) successfully fend off an Indian attack. Dunson finds his late mother’s bracelet on the writs of one of the Indians. The one he gave to Fern. The next day, they come across a boy named Matthew Garth (Mickey Kuhn) the only survivor of the wagon train, the same wagon that Fern was traveling with. Dunson adopts Matthew and the two work on the cattle drive together.

Time marches on and an older Matthew (Clift) and Dunson don’t always agree with each other and clash over their affection for Tess Millay (Dru).

Will the two men be able to come to terms with their differences and continue to work together raising cattle?

John Wayne and Montgomery Clift

Howard Hawks (1896 - 1977) was an American director, producer, and screenwriter. He is considered one of the great directors from the classic Hollywood era. Hawks excelled in directing films in all genres. His films were famous for featuring strong women characters. These tough-talking “Hawksian women” helped to define the director’s work. Some of Hawks’ popular films include Scarface (1932) Bringing Up Baby (1938), Only Angels Have Wings (1939), His Girl Friday (1940), To Have and Have Not (1944), The Big Sleep (1946), Red River (1948), and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953). Gary Cooper won a Best Actor Academy Award for his performance in Sergeant York (1941) under Hawks’ direction.

John Wayne (1907 - 1979) was an American actor and filmmaker. Nicknamed Duke, Wayne was a pop culture icon and one of the most popular movie stars of all time. During the end of the silent era, Wayne worked on movie sets and played bit parts in movies. He got the chance to play the lead in director Raoul Walsh’s The Big Trail (1930). The Western was an early widescreen epic and a box office disaster, which relegated Wayne to roles in a string of B Westerns. It wasn’t until his role as the Ringo Kid in Stagecoach that he became a star of A films who was now paired with some of the top actresses of the day. Wayne played a variety of roles in the movies but he is most identified with the Western genre and the movies he made with director John Ford. Some of Wayne’s popular films include Red River (1948), The Quiet Man (1952), Rio Bravo (1959), The Searchers (1956), and The Longest Day (1962). Wayne won his one and only Best Actor Academy Award for his role in Tue Grit (1969).

Montgomery Clift (1920 – 1966) was an American actor. He was a four-time Academy Award nominee for Best Actor. Like Marlon Brando and James Dean, Clift was considered one of the original method actors. Clift got his start on the stage as a young man and starred opposite the likes of Tallulah Bankhead, Frederic March, and Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne. Clift’s first movie role was in Howard Hawks’s Red River (1949) starring opposite John Wayne. He went on to co-star with Olivia de Havilland in William Wyler’s The Heiress (1949). He reached superstar status in the role of George Eastman in the George Stevens production of A Place in the Sun (1951) staring opposite Elizabeth Taylor. Clift would later star in Alfred Hitchcock’s I Confess (1953), and Fred Zinnemann’s From Here to Eternity (1953). Other films followed including Raintree County (1956), The Young Lions (1958), Lonelyhearts (1958), Suddenly, Last Summer (1959), and Wild River (1960).

Walter Brennan (1894 – 1974) was an American character actor and three-time Academy Award winner for Best Supporting Actor. Brennan is the only actor male or female to win three awards in the supporting actor category. He got his start as an extra in silent films and eventually made the transition to talking pictures. By the late-1930s, Brennan was one of Hollywood's most sought-after and highest-paid character actors. Some of Brennan’s movies include Three Godfathers (1936), Kentucky (1938), The Westerner (1940), Meet John Doe (1941), The Pride of the Yankees (1942), My Darling Clementine (1946), Rio Bravo (1959), and How the West Was Won (1962).

Joanne Dru (1922 – 1996) was an American film and television actress. She was a popular leading actress in the late-1940s and early 1950s in films like Red River (1949), She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949), All the King’s Men, and Wagon Master (1950). Other films include The Pride of St. Louis (1952) and Thunder Bay (1953) opposite James Stewart.

Red River trivia

• This was Montgomery Clift’s first film role although The Search (1948) was released first. Red River’s release was held up for two years.
• Upon seeing John Wayne’s performance in this film, director John Ford supposedly said, “I never knew the big son of a bitch could act.” Ford went on to cast Wayne in more complex roles in films like The Searchers (1956).
• Red River was Howard Hawks’s first western film.

Burt Lancaster was offered the Clift role but had to turn it down because he was committed to star in The Killers (1946).

To watch the film on YouTube, click on the link below.

To join the discussion on May 1, 2023, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time, click here. Once you RSVP, you will receive an email with a link to join the discussion on Zoom.

Discussion questions

1. This is considered one of the best western ever made. Would you agree? Did you enjoy this western?
2. What did you think of the performance of John Wayne? Did you think his performance was better than his performance in Stagecoach (1939)?
3. Did you think that Wayne and Clift worked well together? 
4. Was there an overall theme to this film? If so, what was it?
5. What did you think of Joanne Dru’s character? Was she the typical Hawksian heroine?

Screening of Hitchcock’s “I Confess” at Daystar Center May 12, 2015

When: Tuesday, May 12, 2015 6:30 p.m.
Where: The Venue 1550 at the Daystar Center, 1550 S. State Street

Father Michael William Logan, a Catholic priest (Montgomery Clift) has a crisis of faith when he hears the confession of Otto Keller, the caretaker at his residence. Otto confesses to Logan that he accidentally killed a lawyer during a robbery. By keeping Keller’s secret as part of his priestly duties, suspicion for murder falls on Logan. Will he keep Keller’s confession a secret, even if it means jeopardizing his own freedom and destroying the marriage of Ruth Granfort (Anne Baxter), a woman Logan once loved?

I Confess (1953) was released two years after Strangers on a Train and was the only time Alfred Hitchcock worked with Clift. Still in her teens, Baxter was in the running for the role of the second Mrs. DeWinter in Rebecca (1940), which eventually went to Joan Fontaine. 

Have some Joe and Enjoy the Show!
Before the movie, grab a cup of coffee from Overflow Coffee Bar, located within the Daystar Center. You can bring food and beverages into the auditorium; we even have small tables set up next to some of the seats. General Admission: $5 Students and Senior Citizens: $3.

Anne Baxter and Montgomery Clift in I Confess

Join the Chicago Film club; join the discussion
Once a month we screen a classic film and have a brief discussion afterward. For more information, including how to join (it’s free), click here. To purchase your ticket in advance, click here. The Venue 1550 is easily accessible by the CTA. Please visit Transit Chicago for more information on transportation options.


Daystar Center located at 1550 S. State St. works through a grassroots network of collaborations and partnerships with individuals and other nonprofit organizations. Through this web, they’re able to provide educational, cultural, and civic activities that enrich and empower their clients, guests, and community members. To learn more about classes and events offered at the Daystar Center, please visit their Web site.

Elizabeth Taylor: Born To Be a Star

Storybook Childhood

Elizabeth Taylor (1932-2011) was born to be a star. Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor was born to American parents in Hampstead Garden Suburb, just northwest of London, England. Her early life was idyllic. On the family’s farm, Taylor developed a love for animals, especially horses. Taylor’s father was a successful art dealer and had planned to remain in England, but when war clouds appeared over Europe in the late 1930s, the Taylors decided to move back to the United States, eventually settling in California.

Elizabeth Taylor had a genetic mutation that gave her a double set of eyelashes.

Hollywood Calling
It didn’t take long for little Elizabeth to get noticed by Hollywood. Taylor signed a contract with Universal Studios and made her movie debut at nine years old alongside Carl “Alfalfa” Switzer in There’s One Born Every Minute (1942). Taylor was a natural on screen, but Universal decided not to renew her contract. However, it didn’t take long for M-G-M to sign her up just one year later.

Taylor with Lassie; Lassie made more money than her human costar.

Child Star
M-G-M cast Taylor opposite another child star under contract, Roddy McDowall, in Lassie Come Home (1943). The film was enough of a box office success for the studio to groom Taylor for movie stardom. Next, M-G-M loaned her out to Twentieth Century Fox to play the doomed Helen in the 1943 production of Jane Eyre. She was unbilled in the Gothic classic, but she didn’t go unnoticed.

Mickey Rooney, Taylor, and Anne Revere in National Velvet

National Velvet brings International Fame
Taylor’s career moved into high gear after she fought to secure the role of Velvet Brown in National Velvet. Like the title character, she loved horses and she could ride. National Velvet opened at Radio City Hall on December 14, 1944. The Clarence Brown production was a showcase for Taylor. Bosley Crowther of The New York Times had this to say: “Mr. Brown has also drawn some excellent performances from his cast, especially from little Elizabeth Taylor, who plays the role of the horse-loving girl. Her face is alive with youthful spirit, her voice has the softness of sweet song and her whole manner in this picture is one of refreshing grace.” And like Crowther,  America fell in love with the beautiful young actress.

From Girl to Woman
Moving from child to adult roles seemed to be effortless for Taylor. Although many of her early “adult” roles were in forgettable films, the public couldn’t get enough of Taylor and M-G-M capitalized on her growing popularity. Taylor starred in two pictures meant to make her a major adult star, Conspirator (1949) costarring Robert Taylor (no relation) and The Big Hangover (1950) opposite Van Johnson. Both films were not well received and flopped at the box office. Her next film, Father of the Bride (1950) would prove to be a breakthrough. Spencer Tracy and Joan Bennett played Taylor’s parents who are overwhelmed with the wedding plans of their only daughter. As the soon-to-be-married Kay Banks, Taylor was radiant. The movie was a huge hit, big enough to warrant a sequel the following year, Father’s Little Dividend (1951).

Hollywood Wedding
In real life, Taylor, still a teenager, married hotel heir Nicky Hilton in 1950, in a wedding to rival anything Hollywood had seen before or since. But the marriage would barely last a year, with allegations that Hilton was abusive and a womanizer. Although her personal life was far from perfect, superstardom for Taylor was on the horizon.

George Stevens used extreme closeups of both Taylor and Montgomery Clift in A Place in the Sun.

A Place in Movie History
On loan to Paramount, Taylor played Angela Vickers in the George Stevens production of A Place in the Sun (1951). The movie costarred Montgomery Clift and Shelley Winters. Many thought Taylor would be out of her league amongst such acting talent. But when Taylor showed up on screen wearing a form-fitting Edith Head gown to watch Clift’s character, George Eastman, shoot pool, she became a movie icon. The gown she wore in the film was copied and worn by countless young girls at senior proms across the country. Taylor’s beauty, never questioned, was now coupled with a dramatic acting technique that surprised the critics. A.H Weller in his review of the film for The New York Times said, “Elizabeth Taylor's delineation of the rich and beauteous Angela also is the top effort of her career. It is a shaded, tender performance and one in which her passionate and genuine romance avoids the bathos common to young love as it sometimes comes to the screen.” In spite of the film’s success, Taylor’s home studio continued to put her in films that were merely showcases for her beauty.

Taylor in the Edith Head designed dress that every girl had to have for her senior prom from A Place in the Sun

A "Giant" Role
In 1952, Taylor married for the second time to British actor, Michael Wilding. From 1952 to 1954, Taylor starred in seven movies and gave birth to two children. In 1955, director George Stevens would come calling once again and cast Taylor in one of her best film roles: Leslie Benedict in Giant (1956).

Taylor, Rock Hudson, and James Dean in Giant

"A Woman of Spirit and Sensitivity"
On loan to Warner Bros., Taylor was top-billed over Rock Hudson and James Dean, two of Hollywood’s most popular leading men at the time. The epic production required Taylor to age from a young woman to a middle-aged grandmother. Once again, the critics acknowledged her acting ability and once again, The New York Times critic Bosley Crowther took notice. Crowther said, “Elizabeth Taylor as the ranchman’s lovely wife, from whose point of observation we actually view what goes on, makes a woman of spirit and sensitivity who acquires tolerance and grows old gracefully.”

Civil War Epic
After the success of Giant, M-G-M cast Taylor as Susana Drake in the Civil War epic, Raintree County (1957). Paired once again with Montgomery Clift, the studio pulled out all the stops thinking they had another  Gone with the Wind on their hands. Academy Award winner Eva Marie Saint rounded out the all-star cast. Taylor’s performance would earn her the first of five Best Actress nominations, but the film failed to connect with moviegoers and was a box office failure. In spite of this, the public was fascinated by the raven-haired beauty.

Tragedy and Triumph
Taylor’s personal life continued to fascinate the public. In 1957, she divorced Michael Wilding and married producer Mike Todd. The only one of her eight marriages that did not end in divorce, Todd was killed in a plane crash while Taylor was filming Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958). In spite of her grief (there were suicide watches on the set), she pulled herself together and received another Best Actress nomination for her role as Maggie “the Cat” Pollitt. She didn’t win the award, but the movie was a critical and box office success.

More Successes
Her next film role was in Suddenly Last Summer (1959), directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, with Taylor on loan out to Columbia. Some critics thought the movie confusing, but it was another hit for Taylor and she received her third consecutive Best Actress nomination. Soon, Taylor’s personal life was about to take a turn that no one could have expected.

Taylor at her most alluring in Suddenly Last Summer

Scandal!
After Todd’s death, his best friend, singer Eddie Fisher, consoled Taylor. Soon afterward an affair developed that created a scandal of international proportions. Fisher was married to Taylor's fellow M-G-M player, Debbie Reynolds. Reynolds and Fisher had two small children at the time, Carrie and Todd. Fisher left Reynolds to marry Taylor in 1959, which did little to quell the tabloids and the public’s outrage. Mobs picketed Fisher’s concerts and Taylor’s films. At the time of the affair, Fisher was one of the country’s most popular male vocalists. He and Reynolds were America’s sweethearts and popular subjects in fan magazines. Although the scandal was distressing for Taylor, who was labeled a “home wrecker” by the press, it all but killed Fisher’s career.

Oscar Winner
Hoping to capitalize on the scandal, M-G-M cast Taylor as Gloria Wandrous, a high-class prostitute, in BUtterfield 8 (1960). Taylor hated the part and only after the studio agreed to cast Fisher in a supporting role did she agree to star in it. In spite of Taylor’s disdain for the film, it was a critical and popular success. Even the high-minded Crowther from The New York Times admitted “Miss Taylor lends a certain fascination to the film.” The film fulfilled her contract with M-G-M. With her contract obligations complete, Taylor took some time off from the movies. For Taylor’s performance (one she supposedly despised) she won her first Academy Award for Best Actress of 1961.

Taylor in Cleopatra

Queen of the Nile
In 1960, Twentieth Century Fox was preparing a new version of Cleopatra. The male leads were cast: Peter Finch (Taylor’s costar in 1954’s Elephant Walk) as Julius Caesar and Stephen Boyd, fresh from his success in Ben-Hur as Mark Antony. The studio was searching for an actress to play the lead and the production dragged. Both Finch and Boyd dropped out. When Taylor was contacted by Fox to play the lead, she asked for $1,000,000 and a percentage of the gross, not thinking she’d be taken seriously. To Taylor’s surprise, they agreed to her terms, which made her the highest paid actress, up to that time, and she was off to England to begin shooting.

Doomed from the Start
The production was plagued from the start. Sets were built, but the weather would not cooperate, so the cast and crew relocated to Italy where the climate was closer to that of Egypt. With all these stops and starts, the costs just ballooned. The film cost so much money that Fox almost went bankrupt. But the real excitement was yet to come.

Cast Shakeup
Rex Harrison replaced Peter Finch and Richard Burton replaced Stephen Boyd. During Taylor’s scenes with Burton, it was apparent that a romance was developing. As if the director, Mankiewicz didn’t have enough problems with the out-of-control production, he now had to contend with a brewing scandal. Fisher watched his marriage to Taylor crumble before him and returned to the States. Because both Taylor and Burton were married to other people, the press had a field day. The two most famous movie actors in the world were involved in a very pubic extramarital affair, causing turmoil on the set. Amidst all the publicity, the film was finally completed and ready for its premier at New York City’s Rivoli on June 12, 1963, running just over four hours, excluding intermission.

Epic or Epic Failure?
If the film hadn’t cost a reported $40,000,000 and the running time was half as long, it might have realized a profit upon its initial release. The movie was packing in the crowds, but its length impacted the number of daily showings. The reviews were mixed, with some critics calling it a colossal mess and others declaring it a masterful epic. Crowther, obviously taken with the production had this to say in his review: “Forget the fantastic sum that Cleopatra is reported to have cost. Forget the length of time it took to make it and all the tattle of troubles they had, including the behavior of two of its spotlighted stars. The memorable thing about this picture, which opened last night at the Rivoli, is that it is a surpassing entertainment, one of the great epic films of our day.”

George Segal and Taylor in Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf

Dick and Liz
In 1964 Taylor and Burton wed and became the most famous married couple in the world. Wherever they went, the press followed. They made several more films together, some more successful than others. In 1966, Taylor and Burton played combative spouses in the Mike Nichols production of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf. For the role, Taylor gained weight and played down her looks. Both she and Burton were nominated for Oscars, but only Taylor brought home the golden statue, her second, in 1967. In spite of the Oscar, better film roles didn’t come Taylor’s way.

Richard Burton and Taylor's relationship was a tabloid publisher's dream.

Divorce, Remarriage, Divorce
The tempestuous relationship between Taylor and Burton came to an end in 1974 when they divorced. But in 1975, they married once again, but it barely lasted a year and they divorced once again in 1976. Taylor and Burton went their separate ways, with both continuing to make films and appear on stage. In 1983 Taylor and Burton starred together in Private Lives, but many critics thought they had become caricatures of their former selves. Still Taylor fascinated the public with her celebrity lifestyle.

Crusader and Business Woman
Two more marriages followed: John Warner (1976-1982) and Larry Fortensky (1991-1996). The latter, she met at the Betty Ford clinic. As her film career faded, Taylor became active in the battle to find a cure for HIV/AIDS, raising millions of dollars for the cause. She also kept her name in the public eye with two popular perfume fragrances, Passion and White Diamonds, bestsellers to this day.

Fragile Health
In the last years of her life, Taylor’s health, which was always fragile, kept her out of the limelight. In spite of her poor health, she was still a champion for the causes she believed in. On March 23, 2011, Taylor left this world.

Taylor at her most glamorous, as most of us will remember her

The Last Movie Star
Often called the last movie star, Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor represented quintessential Hollywood glamour. Through her films we have a record of her extraordinary beauty and talent. With her passing, so ends our connection to Hollywood’s Golden Age. We will not see her like again in this lifetime. And she will be missed.


My Five Favorite Elizabeth Taylor Films

5. National Velvet (1944) As Velvet Brown, a young Elizabeth Taylor burst with youthful energy and excitement.
4. Father of the Bride (1950) Taylor’s portrayal of Kay Banks endeared her to the public and proved that she had the potential to be a major adult movie star.
3. A Place in the Sun (1951) This film made Taylor a certified superstar. Her portrayal of Angela Vickers amazed the public and film critics alike.
2. Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958) The role of Maggie “the Cat” Pollitt was a tough role for any actress, but Taylor pulled out all the stops and earned an Academy Award nomination.
1. Giant (1956) George Stevens’ epic film based on the Edna Ferber novel was a showcase for Taylor’s extraordinary beauty as Leslie Benedict, but also showed a dramatic range that had her age from young woman to grandmother.