'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest' actress, Louise Fletcher, dies at 88

[BetteDavisEyes]

'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest' star Louise Fletcher dies at 88

The Oscar-winning actress died in her sleep surrounded by her family in France, her agent said

www.nbcnews.com

Louise Fletcher, a late-blooming star whose riveting performance as the cruel and calculating Nurse Ratched in “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” set a new standard for screen villains and won her an Academy Award, has died at age 88.

Fletcher died in her sleep surrounded by family at her home in Montdurausse, France, her agent David Shaul told The Associated Press on Friday. No cause was given.

After putting her career on hold for years to raise her children, Fletcher was in her early 40s and little known when chosen for the role opposite Jack Nicholson in the 1975 film by director Milos Forman, who had admired her work the year before in director Robert Altman’s “Thieves Like Us.” At the time, she didn’t know that many other prominent stars, including Anne Bancroft, Ellen Burstyn and Angela Lansbury, had turned it down...

 

[fred&edna]

Oscar night acceptance speech by Fletcher...

But that night, people watching the Oscars saw a very un-Ratched expression of emotion from the stage. Fletcher delivered one of the all-time great Oscar acceptance speeches. In barely more than a minute, she moved from bright, self-deprecating humor to tearful tribute, as the actress honored her mother and father, who were both deaf. Fletcher, her voice breaking, spoke to her parents in American Sign Language.

“I wanted to say thank you for teaching me to have a dream,” she said on stage, as her finger made a curling motion next to her head with the word dream. “You are seeing my dream come true.”

Louise Fletcher Explains Why She Accepted Her Oscar in Sign Language 45 Years Ago

The 86-year-old actress talks about her emotional acceptance speech after winning for "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest"

www.thewrap.com

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

Louise Fletcher - IMDb

Louise Fletcher, Actress: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. Born in Birmingham, Alabama, to Episcopal minister Robert Fletcher and his wife Estelle, both of whom were deaf, Louise Fletcher was introduced to performing at a young age by the aunt who taught her to speak. After graduating from the...

www.imdb.com