Kathleen Turner
Kathleen Turner became a star with her sultry 1981 film debut as a scheming wife in the noir thriller Body Heat. Her smoky voice and screen presence made her a top box-office draw, winning a Golden Globe for 1984's Romancing the Stone.
Missouri to Hollywood
Born in Springfield, Missouri, she grew up partly abroad as a diplomat's daughter. Her smoldering Body Heat debut in 1981 made her an instant star.
Box-Office Star
Romancing the Stone and Prizzi's Honor brought back-to-back Golden Globes. Peggy Sue Got Married earned her an Oscar nomination, and she voiced Jessica Rabbit in 1988.
Stage Turn
Rheumatoid arthritis limited her film work in the 1990s. She reinvented herself on Broadway, earning Tony nominations for The Graduate and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf.
Career Timeline
- 1981Sizzling film debut in Body Heat
- 1984Golden Globe for Romancing the Stone
- 1985Second Golden Globe for Prizzi's Honor
- 1986Oscar nomination for Peggy Sue Got Married
- 1988Voices Jessica Rabbit in Roger Rabbit
- 1989Stars in dark comedy War of the Roses
- 1991Title role in V.I. Warshawski
- 2002Tony-nominated on Broadway in The Graduate
- 2005Tony nod for Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf
- 2010Recurring role on Californication
Biggest Hits
- She provided the unmistakable voice of cartoon bombshell Jessica Rabbit in Who Framed Roger Rabbit, though she was uncredited.
- Rheumatoid arthritis, diagnosed in the early 1990s, sharply limited her film roles and shifted her focus toward the stage.
Portrait: ShashiBellamkonda from Potomac, USA · CC BY 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons