Beth Porter: Difference between revisions
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{{Short description|American actress (1942–2023)}} |
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{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}} |
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{{Infobox person <!-- See [[Template:Infobox actor]] for more --> |
{{Infobox person <!-- See [[Template:Infobox actor]] for more --> |
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| name = Beth Porter |
| name = Beth Porter |
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| image |
| image = File:Bethporterselfphoto.png |
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| caption = |
| caption = Self-portrait in 1974 |
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| birth_name = Beth Jane Porter |
| birth_name = Beth Jane Porter |
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| birth_date = {{birth date |
| birth_date = {{birth date|1942|5|23}} |
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| birth_place |
| birth_place = New York City, U.S. |
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| death_date = {{death date and age|2023|8|1|1942|5|23}} |
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| spouse = Peter Reid (m. 1969 separated 1974 divorced 1979) |
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| death_place = England |
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| partner = [[Jack Clayton]] (1974-1979) film director; Kerry Lee Crabbe (1979-1985) - English playwright/director |
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| spouse = {{Marriage|Peter Reid|1969|1974|end=sep}} |
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| partner = {{unbulleted list| |
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*[[Jack Clayton]] (1974–1979) |
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*Kerry Lee Crabbe (1979–1985)}}| |
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==Early life== |
==Early life== |
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Beth Porter made her first professional appearance at age 12 in a [[Westchester County, New York|Westchester County]] touring company. She studied acting on scholarship at the [[Stratford, Connecticut|Stratford]] [[Connecticut]] Shakespeare Festival and with [[Helen Menken]] at the [[American Theatre Wing]] before completing dramatic studies at Bard College, New York University, and Hunter College at The City University of New York |
Beth Porter made her first professional appearance at age 12 in a [[Westchester County, New York|Westchester County]] touring company. She studied acting on scholarship at the [[Stratford, Connecticut|Stratford]] [[Connecticut]] Shakespeare Festival and with [[Helen Menken]] at the [[American Theatre Wing]] before completing dramatic studies at Bard College, New York University, and Hunter College at The City University of New York (CUNY). |
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==Career== |
==Career== |
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After appearing in the American premiere of [[Jules |
After appearing in the American premiere of [[Jules Romains]]'s ''Donogoo'' in 1961 at the Greenwich Mews Theatre,<ref>{{cite web| title=Donogoo |url=http://minttheater.org/production/donogoo/ |publisher=Mint Theatre.org |access-date=2019-01-08}}</ref> [[Isaac Babel]]'s Sunset at the [[Chelsea Theater Center]] in 1966, and later that year as the star of [[David Starkweather]]'s Ascent at The Playwrights Workshop, Porter was chosen as a member of original [[Obie Award]]-winning New York [[La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club|LaMaMa Troupe]] under director [[Tom O'Horgan]] (''[[Hair (play)|Hair]]''), where she starred in the play and later film of ''Futz!'', and featured in [[Paul Foster (playwright)|Paul Foster]]'s ''[[Tom Paine]]'' and ''Melodrama Play'' by [[Sam Shepard]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Playlist 1967 |url=http://www.lamama.org/archives/year_lists/1967page.htm |publisher=LaMaMa.org |access-date=2009-08-14}}</ref> A critic declared of her co-starring role in ''Futz!'': "Beth Porter makes the Whore of Babylon look like the Singing Nun."<ref>{{cite journal|journal=Hollywood Reporter|title=Futz! Review|date=1969}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=Entertainment World Volume 2, Part 1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lEtOAQAAIAAJ&q=Beth |date=1970 |volume=2, Part 1|page=v}}</ref> |
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[[Ellen Stewart]] and [[Tom O'Horgan]] invited Porter and her Scots husband Peter Reid to co-found the first foreign branch of [[La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club]], based in the UK. Known as The Wherehouse La MaMa with Porter as its administrative director, it operated as a touring company throughout Europe and guest appearing at La MaMa New York. Porter featured in their plays, including ''Groupjuice'', ''Little Mother'' by [[Ross Alexander]],<ref>{{IBDB name|29587|name=Ross Alexander}}</ref> ''The Hilton Keen Show'',<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/Beth-Porter/e/B001K88N1Y/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0|title=Amazon.com: Beth Porter: Books, Biography, Blog, Audiobooks, Kindle|website=Amazon.com|access-date=26 January 2018}}</ref> ''Hump'', a dramatization of the novel by [[David Benedictus]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.davidbenedictus.co.uk/the_works.html |title=David Benedictus - The Works |publisher=Davidbenedictus.co.uk |access-date=2009-08-14 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091013164353/http://www.davidbenedictus.co.uk/the_works.html |archive-date=2009-10-13 }}</ref> |
[[Ellen Stewart]] and [[Tom O'Horgan]] invited Porter and her Scots husband Peter Reid to co-found the first foreign branch of [[La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club]], based in the UK. Known as The Wherehouse La MaMa with Porter as its administrative director, it operated as a touring company throughout Europe and guest appearing at La MaMa New York. Porter featured in their plays, including ''Groupjuice'', ''Little Mother'' by [[Ross Alexander]],<ref>{{IBDB name|29587|name=Ross Alexander}}</ref> ''The Hilton Keen Show'',<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/Beth-Porter/e/B001K88N1Y/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0|title=Amazon.com: Beth Porter: Books, Biography, Blog, Audiobooks, Kindle|website=Amazon.com|access-date=26 January 2018}}</ref> ''Hump'', a dramatization of the novel by [[David Benedictus]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.davidbenedictus.co.uk/the_works.html |title=David Benedictus - The Works |publisher=Davidbenedictus.co.uk |access-date=2009-08-14 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091013164353/http://www.davidbenedictus.co.uk/the_works.html |archive-date=2009-10-13 }}</ref> |
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U.S. television guest spots included ''[[Baretta]]'' and ''[[Kojak]]''. |
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U.K. television roles include Thames Television's [[Armchair Theatre]] play, ''Verité'' (1973) with [[Richard Morant]] and [[Tim Curry]], co-starring in ''[[Rock Follies of '77]]'' (1977) and ''[[The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (TV series)|Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy]]'', in which she reprised her role as The Marketing Girl from the original radio series. Her television films include ''Blue Money,'' again with Tim Curry, and ''Pleasure'' (1994), part of the ''Alan Bleasdale Presents'' series. She guest starred with [[Bill Nighy]] in ''The Men's Room'' (1991). |
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Feature film roles include ''[[Reds (film)|Reds]]'' (1981), Mrs. McKee in ''[[The Great Gatsby (1974 film)|The Great Gatsby]]'' (1974), sister-in-law Anna to [[Woody Allen]]’s Boris in ''[[Love and Death]]'' (1975),<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PnuGAAAAIAAJ |title=Woody: Movies From Manhattan |first=Julian |last=Fox |publisher=BT Batsford Books |year=1996 |isbn=0-87951-692-5}}</ref> and ''[[Yentl (film)|Yentl]]'' (1983), in which she worked as [[Barbra Streisand]]'s understudy and played Sophie, [[Amy Irving]]'s maid in an uncredited role. She appeared in several saucy UK comedies in the 1970s including ''[[Eskimo Nell (film)|Eskimo Nell]]'' (1975), an early feature film by [[Martin Campbell]].<ref>{{cite book |title=Keeping the British End Up: Four Decades of Saucy Cinema |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kAVEAAAACAAJ |first=Simon |last=Sheridan |publisher=Reynolds & Hearn Books |edition=3 |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-905287-54-3}}</ref> |
Feature film roles include ''[[Reds (film)|Reds]]'' (1981), Mrs. McKee in ''[[The Great Gatsby (1974 film)|The Great Gatsby]]'' (1974), sister-in-law Anna to [[Woody Allen]]’s Boris in ''[[Love and Death]]'' (1975),<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PnuGAAAAIAAJ |title=Woody: Movies From Manhattan |first=Julian |last=Fox |publisher=BT Batsford Books |year=1996 |isbn=0-87951-692-5}}</ref> and ''[[Yentl (film)|Yentl]]'' (1983), in which she worked as [[Barbra Streisand]]'s understudy and played Sophie, [[Amy Irving]]'s maid in an uncredited role. She appeared in several saucy UK comedies in the 1970s including ''[[Eskimo Nell (film)|Eskimo Nell]]'' (1975), an early feature film by [[Martin Campbell]].<ref>{{cite book |title=Keeping the British End Up: Four Decades of Saucy Cinema |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kAVEAAAACAAJ |first=Simon |last=Sheridan |publisher=Reynolds & Hearn Books |edition=3 |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-905287-54-3}}</ref> |
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==Voice acting== |
==Voice acting== |
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Porter featured on [[Roger Waters]]' album ''[[The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking]]'' as The Wife.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rogerwatersonline.com/discography.html |title=The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking. (1984) |publisher=Roger Waters Online |access-date=2009-08-14 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100203041833/http://www.rogerwatersonline.com/discography.html |archive-date=2010-02-03 }}</ref> Her voice has been heard on re-voices and dubbings of many films. She was the [[White Witch]] in the animated version of ''[[The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (1979 film)|The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe]]''. She and [[John Ratzenberger]] did all the post-synch voices in [[John Schlesinger]]'s ''[[Honky Tonk Freeway]]'' (1981 |
Porter featured on [[Roger Waters]]' album ''[[The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking]]'' as The Wife.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rogerwatersonline.com/discography.html |title=The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking. (1984) |publisher=Roger Waters Online |access-date=2009-08-14 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100203041833/http://www.rogerwatersonline.com/discography.html |archive-date=2010-02-03 }}</ref> Her voice has been heard on re-voices and dubbings of many films. She was the [[White Witch]] in the animated version of ''[[The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (1979 film)|The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe]]''. She and [[John Ratzenberger]] did all the post-synch voices in [[John Schlesinger]]'s ''[[Honky Tonk Freeway]]'' (1981). |
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==Later career== |
==Later career== |
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A number of her radio plays and short stories have been broadcast on [[BBC Radio 4]]. |
A number of her radio plays and short stories have been broadcast on [[BBC Radio 4]]. |
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Porter first became a [[journalist]] at age 12 when she was hired as a weekly columnist for ''The Patent Trader'', a Westchester County newspaper chain. Years later, she served as a relief theatre critic for ''[[The Times]]'', and contributed media-related articles to ''The Listener'', ''The Guardian'',<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/profile/beth-porter|title=Beth Porter|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=26 January 2018}}</ref> and ''The Independent''. In 1988 she became a film critic, joining [[The Critics' Circle]] and served for 10 years as London Editor for ''[[Film Journal International]]'', with supplementary pieces for ''The Morning Star''. |
Porter first became a [[journalist]] at age 12 when she was hired as a weekly columnist for ''The Patent Trader'', a Westchester County newspaper chain. Years later, she served as a relief theatre critic for ''[[The Times]]'', and contributed media-related articles to ''The Listener'', ''The Guardian'',<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/profile/beth-porter|title=Beth Porter|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=26 January 2018}}</ref> and ''The Independent''. In 1988 she became a film critic, joining [[The Critics' Circle]] and served for 10 years as London Editor for ''[[Film Journal International]]'', with supplementary pieces for ''The Morning Star''. Until May 2020,<ref>{{Cite web|title=outRageous! : London Progressive Journal|url=https://londonprogressivejournal.com/author/bethporterwomenstuff-org/|access-date=2021-09-11|website=Londonprogressivejournal.com}}</ref> she continued to provide online columns for ''The London Progressive Journal'' under the byline outRageous! |
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⚫ | Porter subsequently became a senior Web Producer for leading web-house Online Magic, part of the Omnicom Group, and she was asked to contribute to various web-related magazines including [[.net (magazine)|.net]] for Future Publishing. This led to the publication of her book, ''The Net Effect'', for which [[David Puttnam]] contributed the foreword.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Net effect |first=Beth |last=Porter |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bYiqlL4lAfoC |publisher=Intellect Books |year=2001 |isbn=1-84150-039-9}}</ref> 2018 was her 21st year as a nominating judge for the International [[Webby Awards]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iadas.net/membership.php?filterType%3DALL#P |title=IADAS Membership |access-date=2016-04-12 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160419144251/http://www.iadas.net/membership.php?filterType=ALL |archive-date=2016-04-19 }}</ref> and she has served as a contributor to policy advisers on [[eDemocracy]] issues. She was an elected Lifetime voting member of [[BAFTA]].<ref>BAFTA number LBT084</ref> |
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⚫ | In 2013 she published ''Resident Aliens'', a collection of her short fiction for Kindle.<ref>{{cite book |last=Porter |first=Beth |date=2013 |title=Resident Aliens: stories of NYC in the 1960s |url=https://www.amazon.com/s?search-alias=stripbooks |publisher=Womenstuff Publishing |isbn=9780957627208 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://www.amazon.co.uk/RESIDENT-ALIENS-ebook/dp/B00CE2LDVC/ref=sr_1_18?ie=UTF8&qid=1366224568&sr=8-18&keywords=resident+aliens |title=RESIDENT ALIENS: stories of nyc in the 1960s eBook: BETH PORTER: Amazon.co.uk: Kindle Store |date=16 April 2013 |publisher=Amazon.co.uk |access-date=2014-06-30}}</ref> This was followed in 2014 by a collection of her original scripts and screenplays under the umbrella title ''Drama Queen''<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/Drama-Queen-Porters-Collection-Screenplays-ebook/dp/B00O1H8RGW/ref=la_B001K88N1Y_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1460468747&sr=1-3|title=Drama Queen: Beth Porter's Collection of Scripts & Screenplays|first=Beth|last=Porter|date=29 September 2014|publisher=Womenstuff Publishing|access-date=26 January 2018|via=Amazon}}</ref> and in April 2016 of her autobiography entitled ''Walking on my Hands: how I learned to take responsibility for my life with the help of Woody Allen, Barbra Streisand, Greta Garbo, Harvey Milk, Idi Amin, Guy The Gorilla, and Frank Sinatra, among others''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/Walking-My-Hands-responsibility-Streisand-ebook/dp/B01DUWNSRQ/ref=la_B001K88N1Y_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1460468747&sr=1-1|title=Walking On My Hands: how I learned to take responsibility for my life with the help of Woody Allen, Barbra Streisand, Greta Garbo, Harvey Milk, Idi Amin, Guy the Gorilla, & Frank Sinatra among others|first=Beth|last=Porter|date=4 April 2016|publisher=Womenstuff Publishing |access-date=26 January 2018|via=Amazon}}</ref> Its foreword is by noted author and screenplay writer [[Shane Connaughton]] (''[[My Left Foot]]''). |
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Also in 2016 Porter published both Kindle and paperback versions of ''Settling Beyond the Pale'', a novella and six short stories about freedom and flight.<ref>{{cite book |title=Settling Beyond the Pale |first=Beth |last=Porter |url=https://www.amazon.com/Settling-Beyond-Pale-Beth-Porter-ebook/dp/B01EP4HY64/ref=sr_1_11?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1550481821&sr=1-11 |publisher=Womenstuff Publishing |year=1988–2016|isbn=095762722X}}</ref> |
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In 2018 Porter released both Kindle and paperback versions of a horror/fantasy novella titled ''Feeding the Twins''<ref>{{cite book |title=Feeding the Twins |first=Beth |last=Porter |url=https://www.amazon.com/Feeding-Twins-novella-Beth-Porter-ebook/dp/B076BT9NM2/ref=sr_1_10?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1550480817&sr=1-10 |publisher=Kindle |year=2017|isbn=978-0957627253}}</ref> as well as her first novel ''ScreenSaver!''<ref>{{cite book |title=ScreenSaver! |first=Beth |last=Porter |url=https://www.amazon.com/ScreenSaver-Beth-Porter-ebook/dp/B076K64PL6/ref=sr_1_5?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1550481564&sr=1-5 |publisher=Kindle |year=2017|isbn=978-0957627260}}</ref> |
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⚫ | In 2013 she published ''Resident Aliens'', a collection of her short fiction for |
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Porter's second novel, ''Becca’s Providing'', was published in both Kindle and paperback during the spring of 2019; it explores themes of identity and family. Porter's 3rd collection of short fiction was published in December 2019, under the title ''Painted Ladies''.<ref>{{cite book |title=Painted Ladies |first=Beth |last=Porter |url=https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0957627289/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i |year=2019 |publisher=Womenstuff Publishing |isbn=978-0957627284}}</ref> |
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In |
In March 2021, Porter published ''Locks: a quartet of short fiction'' in paperback<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.waterstones.com/book/locks/beth-porter//9798724783484|title=Locks by Beth Porter|website=Waterstones.com|access-date=18 September 2023}}</ref> and Kindle.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Porter|first=Beth|url=https://www.amazon.com/LOCKS-quartet-fiction-Beth-Porter-ebook/dp/B08ZDKCVSF|title=LOCKS: a quartet of short fiction|website=Amazon.com}}</ref> Her Amazon profile further stated that she was working on a collection of short and flash fiction featuring female protagonists for publication in early 2022, and was also preparing a new book promo website.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Beth Porter|url=https://www.amazon.com/Beth-Porter/e/B001K88N1Y|access-date=2021-09-11|website=Amazon.com|language=en-us}}</ref> |
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==Death== |
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Porter's second novel, ''Becca’s Providing'', was published in both kindle and paperback during the spring of 2019; it explores themes of identity and family. Porter's 3rd collection of short fiction was published in December 2019, under the title ''Painted Ladies''.<ref>{{cite book |title=Painted Ladies |first=Beth |last=Porter |url=https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0957627289/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i |year=2019 |publisher=Womenstuff Publishing |isbn=0957627289}}</ref> |
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Porter became a British citizen in 2014. She died on August 1, 2023, at the age of 81.<ref>{{cite news |title=Beth Porter, actress who helped to establish the fringe theatre scene in London – obituary |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2023/09/15/beth-porter-actress-london-fringe-rock-follies-obituary/ |access-date=15 September 2023 |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |date=15 September 2023}}</ref> |
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==Filmography== |
==Filmography== |
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===Films=== |
===Films=== |
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===Television=== |
===Television=== |
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{| class="wikitable |
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! style="background:#B0C4DE;" | Year |
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*{{IMDb name|0692037}} |
*{{IMDb name|0692037}} |
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* {{cite web |url=https://www.bethporterbooks.womenstuff.org/ |title=Beth Porter's Books}} |
* {{cite web |url=https://www.bethporterbooks.womenstuff.org/ |title=Beth Porter's Books}} |
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* {{cite web |
* {{cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/Beth-Porter/e/B001K88N1Y/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201030223408/https://www.bethporterbooks.womenstuff.org/|archive-date=30 October 2020|title=Beth Porter on Amazon|website=Amazon }} |
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{{Authority control}} |
{{Authority control}} |
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Porter, Beth}} |
{{DEFAULTSORT:Porter, Beth}} |
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[[Category:1942 births]] |
[[Category:1942 births]] |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:2023 deaths]] |
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[[Category:Actresses from New York City]] |
[[Category:Actresses from New York City]] |
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[[Category:American film actresses]] |
[[Category:American film actresses]] |
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[[Category:American stage actresses]] |
[[Category:American stage actresses]] |
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[[Category:American television actresses]] |
[[Category:American television actresses]] |
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[[Category:American expatriate actresses |
[[Category:American expatriate actresses]] |
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[[Category:American expatriates in the United Kingdom]] |
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[[Category:American emigrants to England]] |
[[Category:American emigrants to England]] |
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[[Category:Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom]] |
[[Category:Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom]] |
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[[Category:BBC television producers]] |
[[Category:BBC television producers]] |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:American women television producers]] |
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[[Category:British film actresses]] |
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[[Category:British stage actresses]] |
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[[Category:British television actresses]] |
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[[Category:British women television producers]] |
Revision as of 18:31, 20 April 2024
Beth Porter | |
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Self-portrait in 1974 | |
Born | Beth Jane Porter May 23, 1942 New York City, U.S. |
Died | August 1, 2023 England | (aged 81)
Spouse |
Peter Reid
(m. 1969; sep. 1974) |
Partner |
|
Beth Jane Porter (May 23, 1942 – August 1, 2023) was an American stage, film and television actress and writer, who worked in Britain for most of her career. She became a British citizen in 2014.
Early life
Beth Porter made her first professional appearance at age 12 in a Westchester County touring company. She studied acting on scholarship at the Stratford Connecticut Shakespeare Festival and with Helen Menken at the American Theatre Wing before completing dramatic studies at Bard College, New York University, and Hunter College at The City University of New York (CUNY).
Career
After appearing in the American premiere of Jules Romains's Donogoo in 1961 at the Greenwich Mews Theatre,[1] Isaac Babel's Sunset at the Chelsea Theater Center in 1966, and later that year as the star of David Starkweather's Ascent at The Playwrights Workshop, Porter was chosen as a member of original Obie Award-winning New York LaMaMa Troupe under director Tom O'Horgan (Hair), where she starred in the play and later film of Futz!, and featured in Paul Foster's Tom Paine and Melodrama Play by Sam Shepard.[2] A critic declared of her co-starring role in Futz!: "Beth Porter makes the Whore of Babylon look like the Singing Nun."[3][4]
Ellen Stewart and Tom O'Horgan invited Porter and her Scots husband Peter Reid to co-found the first foreign branch of La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club, based in the UK. Known as The Wherehouse La MaMa with Porter as its administrative director, it operated as a touring company throughout Europe and guest appearing at La MaMa New York. Porter featured in their plays, including Groupjuice, Little Mother by Ross Alexander,[5] The Hilton Keen Show,[6] Hump, a dramatization of the novel by David Benedictus.[7]
U.S. television guest spots included Baretta and Kojak.
U.K. television roles include Thames Television's Armchair Theatre play, Verité (1973) with Richard Morant and Tim Curry, co-starring in Rock Follies of '77 (1977) and Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, in which she reprised her role as The Marketing Girl from the original radio series. Her television films include Blue Money, again with Tim Curry, and Pleasure (1994), part of the Alan Bleasdale Presents series. She guest starred with Bill Nighy in The Men's Room (1991).
Feature film roles include Reds (1981), Mrs. McKee in The Great Gatsby (1974), sister-in-law Anna to Woody Allen’s Boris in Love and Death (1975),[8] and Yentl (1983), in which she worked as Barbra Streisand's understudy and played Sophie, Amy Irving's maid in an uncredited role. She appeared in several saucy UK comedies in the 1970s including Eskimo Nell (1975), an early feature film by Martin Campbell.[9]
Voice acting
Porter featured on Roger Waters' album The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking as The Wife.[10] Her voice has been heard on re-voices and dubbings of many films. She was the White Witch in the animated version of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. She and John Ratzenberger did all the post-synch voices in John Schlesinger's Honky Tonk Freeway (1981).
Later career
Porter later trained as a television script editor and producer. For BBC Television, she produced The Husband, The Wife and The Stranger, starring Adam Faith and Derrick O'Connor, and for Channel 4 Television, Unusual Ground Floor Conversion, a short film directed by Mark Herman, Little Voice. She later joined BBC Television Drama as a development executive for new drama series.
A number of her radio plays and short stories have been broadcast on BBC Radio 4.
Porter first became a journalist at age 12 when she was hired as a weekly columnist for The Patent Trader, a Westchester County newspaper chain. Years later, she served as a relief theatre critic for The Times, and contributed media-related articles to The Listener, The Guardian,[11] and The Independent. In 1988 she became a film critic, joining The Critics' Circle and served for 10 years as London Editor for Film Journal International, with supplementary pieces for The Morning Star. Until May 2020,[12] she continued to provide online columns for The London Progressive Journal under the byline outRageous!
Porter subsequently became a senior Web Producer for leading web-house Online Magic, part of the Omnicom Group, and she was asked to contribute to various web-related magazines including .net for Future Publishing. This led to the publication of her book, The Net Effect, for which David Puttnam contributed the foreword.[13] 2018 was her 21st year as a nominating judge for the International Webby Awards[14] and she has served as a contributor to policy advisers on eDemocracy issues. She was an elected Lifetime voting member of BAFTA.[15]
In 2013 she published Resident Aliens, a collection of her short fiction for Kindle.[16][17] This was followed in 2014 by a collection of her original scripts and screenplays under the umbrella title Drama Queen[18] and in April 2016 of her autobiography entitled Walking on my Hands: how I learned to take responsibility for my life with the help of Woody Allen, Barbra Streisand, Greta Garbo, Harvey Milk, Idi Amin, Guy The Gorilla, and Frank Sinatra, among others.[19] Its foreword is by noted author and screenplay writer Shane Connaughton (My Left Foot).
Also in 2016 Porter published both Kindle and paperback versions of Settling Beyond the Pale, a novella and six short stories about freedom and flight.[20]
In 2018 Porter released both Kindle and paperback versions of a horror/fantasy novella titled Feeding the Twins[21] as well as her first novel ScreenSaver![22]
Porter's second novel, Becca’s Providing, was published in both Kindle and paperback during the spring of 2019; it explores themes of identity and family. Porter's 3rd collection of short fiction was published in December 2019, under the title Painted Ladies.[23]
In March 2021, Porter published Locks: a quartet of short fiction in paperback[24] and Kindle.[25] Her Amazon profile further stated that she was working on a collection of short and flash fiction featuring female protagonists for publication in early 2022, and was also preparing a new book promo website.[26]
Death
Porter became a British citizen in 2014. She died on August 1, 2023, at the age of 81.[27]
Filmography
Films
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1967 | The Naked Witch | Beth | |
1969 | Me and My Brother | ||
Futz! | Majorie Satz | ||
1971 | Long Drawn-Out Trip: Sketches from Los Angeles | Various | Short, Voice |
1974 | The Great Gatsby | Mrs. McKee | |
1975 | Eskimo Nell | Billie Harris | |
Love and Death | Anna | ||
Dick Deadeye, or Duty Done | Yum-Yum | Voice | |
1976 | Feelings | Mrs. Lustig | |
1978 | The Ballad of the Daltons | Miss Worthlesspenny | Voice |
What's Up Superdoc! | Melanie | ||
On a Paving Stone Mounted | American Woman | ||
1980 | Superman II | Football Fan | Uncredited |
1981 | Reds | ||
1983 | Yentl | Sophie |
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1973 | Thirty Minute Theatre | Joanna | Episode "The Baby's Name Being Kitchener" |
Armchair Theatre | Barbara | Episode "Verite" | |
1974 | Mousey | Sandra | aka Cat and Mouse |
1975 | Baretta | Doreen | Episode "Nobody in a Nothing Place" |
1976 | Kojak | Clara | Episode "By Silence Betrayed" |
1977 | Seven Faces of Woman | Anne Liebowitz | Episode "She: Anxious Anne" |
Rock Follies of '77 | Kitty Schreiber | 6 episodes, 1977 | |
1978 | Crown Court | Betty Lou | Episode "Scalped" |
1979 | The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe | Jadis, The White Witch | (voice) |
The Deep Concern | Carrie Stone | (6 episodes) | |
1980 | Tales of the Unexpected | Joanna Bligh | Episode "Taste" |
1981 | The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy | Marketing Girl | Episode #1.6 |
1982 | Blue Money | Barmaid | |
1988 | Floodtide | American Woman | Season 2 Episodes 4 and 5 |
1988 | Square Deal | Hannah | Episodes #1.1 and #1.7 |
1990 | Ruth Rendell Mysteries | Davina Ilbert | Episode "Put on by Cunning" |
1994 | Pleasure | Amber | aka Alan Bleasdale Presents Pleasure |
References
- ^ "Donogoo". Mint Theatre.org. Retrieved 8 January 2019.
- ^ "Playlist 1967". LaMaMa.org. Retrieved 14 August 2009.
- ^ "Futz! Review". Hollywood Reporter. 1969.
- ^ "Entertainment World Volume 2, Part 1". 2, Part 1. 1970: v.
{{cite journal}}
: Cite journal requires|journal=
(help) - ^ Ross Alexander at the Internet Broadway Database
- ^ "Amazon.com: Beth Porter: Books, Biography, Blog, Audiobooks, Kindle". Amazon.com. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
- ^ "David Benedictus - The Works". Davidbenedictus.co.uk. Archived from the original on 13 October 2009. Retrieved 14 August 2009.
- ^ Fox, Julian (1996). Woody: Movies From Manhattan. BT Batsford Books. ISBN 0-87951-692-5.
- ^ Sheridan, Simon (2007). Keeping the British End Up: Four Decades of Saucy Cinema (3 ed.). Reynolds & Hearn Books. ISBN 978-1-905287-54-3.
- ^ "The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking. (1984)". Roger Waters Online. Archived from the original on 3 February 2010. Retrieved 14 August 2009.
- ^ "Beth Porter". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
- ^ "outRageous! : London Progressive Journal". Londonprogressivejournal.com. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
- ^ Porter, Beth (2001). The Net effect. Intellect Books. ISBN 1-84150-039-9.
- ^ "IADAS Membership". Archived from the original on 19 April 2016. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- ^ BAFTA number LBT084
- ^ Porter, Beth (2013). Resident Aliens: stories of NYC in the 1960s. Womenstuff Publishing. ISBN 9780957627208.
- ^ RESIDENT ALIENS: stories of nyc in the 1960s eBook: BETH PORTER: Amazon.co.uk: Kindle Store. Amazon.co.uk. 16 April 2013. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
- ^ Porter, Beth (29 September 2014). "Drama Queen: Beth Porter's Collection of Scripts & Screenplays". Womenstuff Publishing. Retrieved 26 January 2018 – via Amazon.
- ^ Porter, Beth (4 April 2016). "Walking On My Hands: how I learned to take responsibility for my life with the help of Woody Allen, Barbra Streisand, Greta Garbo, Harvey Milk, Idi Amin, Guy the Gorilla, & Frank Sinatra among others". Womenstuff Publishing. Retrieved 26 January 2018 – via Amazon.
- ^ Porter, Beth (1988–2016). Settling Beyond the Pale. Womenstuff Publishing. ISBN 095762722X.
- ^ Porter, Beth (2017). Feeding the Twins. Kindle. ISBN 978-0957627253.
- ^ Porter, Beth (2017). ScreenSaver!. Kindle. ISBN 978-0957627260.
- ^ Porter, Beth (2019). Painted Ladies. Womenstuff Publishing. ISBN 978-0957627284.
- ^ "Locks by Beth Porter". Waterstones.com. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
- ^ Porter, Beth. LOCKS: a quartet of short fiction.
{{cite book}}
:|website=
ignored (help) - ^ "Beth Porter". Amazon.com. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
- ^ "Beth Porter, actress who helped to establish the fringe theatre scene in London – obituary". The Daily Telegraph. 15 September 2023. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
External links
- Beth Porter at IMDb
- "Beth Porter's Books".
- "Beth Porter on Amazon". Amazon. Archived from the original on 30 October 2020.
- 1942 births
- 2023 deaths
- Actresses from New York City
- American film actresses
- American stage actresses
- American television actresses
- American expatriate actresses
- American expatriates in the United Kingdom
- American emigrants to England
- Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom
- BBC television producers
- American women television producers
- British film actresses
- British stage actresses
- British television actresses
- British women television producers