Who is Nancy Allen?
Nancy Allen is an American actress. She rose to prominence with her performances in many films directed by Brian De Palma in the 1970s and early 1980s. His accolades include a Golden Globe Award nomination and three Saturn Award nominations.
His first major role was as Chris Hargensen in Brian De Palma’s Carrie (1976). Allen next starred in the Robert Zemeckis-directed comedy I Want to Hold Your Hand (1978), followed by a supporting role in Steven Spielberg’s 1941 (1979). Allen married De Palma in 1979, and her subsequent portrayal of a prostitute who witnesses a murder in the feature Dressed to Kill (1980) earned her a Golden Globe nomination for New Star of the Year. She next played a woman involved in an assassination in De Palma’s neo-noir film Blow Out (1981). Allen and De Palma divorced in 1984.
He appeared in the science fiction films Strange Invaders (1983) and The Philadelphia Experiment (1984) and in Abel Ferrara’s television film The Gladiator (1986). Allen rose to mainstream fame with her role as Anne Lewis in Paul Verhoeven’s RoboCop (1987); She reprised this role in two sequels. His other works include Poltergeist III (1988), Limit Up (1990), Les Trophyrs (1994), and Steven Soderbergh’s Out of Sight (1998).
Allen retired from acting in 2008 and became involved in cancer support; In 2010, she was named executive director of the weSPARK Cancer Support Center in Los Angeles.
Nancy Allen Wiki – Nancy Allen Biography
Allen was born on June 24, 1950, in the Bronx borough of New York City, the youngest of Eugene and Florence Allen’s three children. His father was a police lieutenant. Allen grew up on 196th Street in the Pelham Bay section of the Bronx.
Allen was a very shy child, so his mother enrolled him in dance lessons when he was four years old. The family moved to Mount St. in the Bronx before moving to Yonkers. He attended Ursula Academy. Interested in modern dance, the artist went to the Performing Arts High School for a year and received training for her dance career there. She stated that the experience of studying dance “ruined everything” for her because it “became all about grades.” Even though I loved dancing, I discovered that it wasn’t my life. She then enrolled in Jose Quintano’s School for Young Professionals.
Name | Nancy Allen |
DOB | Born June 24, 1950 |
Full Name | Nancy Allen |
Net Worth | $15 Million |
Age | 73 Years Old |
Currently, Live In | The Bronx, New York, U.S |
Birth Place | The Bronx, New York, U.S |
Profession | Actress |
Years Active | 1962–2008, 2012–present |
Debut | Chris Hargensen in Brian De Palma’s film Carrie |
Famous Role | Jack Nicholson |
Religion | Christian |
Nationality | American |
Ethnicity | N/A |
Zodiac Sign | Aries |
School/High School | High School of Performing Arts |
College/University | Academy of Mount St. Ursula |
Education Qualification | Graduate |
Nancy Allen Career beginnings
Allen’s first major film role was as Jack Nicholson’s uptight date Nancy in Hal Ashby’s The Last Detail (1973). This inspired him to move to Los Angeles to pursue his acting career. Initially, Allen struggled to find acting work, and an agent told him that because he was 25, “it was over for him.” However, in November 1975, she auditioned for the role of sassy and popular bad girl Christine Hargensen as the title character’s nemesis in director Brian De Palma’s horror film Carrie (1976). After a lengthy casting process (Allen was nearly recast at the producers’ direction), he was officially given the role.
Allen next starred as Pam Mitchell in Steven Spielberg’s I Wanna Hold Your Hand (1978), director Robert Zemeckis’ feature film debut. She next played Donna Stratton in the Spielberg-directed comedy 1941 (1979).
She married “Carrie” director Brian De Palma on January 12, 1979, and appeared in three more of his films over the next few years: She played Kristina in Home Movies (1980) opposite Kirk Douglas and then played prostitute Liz. Blake appeared in the thriller Dressed to Kill (1980). She was nominated for a Golden Globe for New Star of the Year for her performance. She next starred in her final collaboration with De Palma, the neo-noir Blow Out (1981), playing a woman involved in an assassination that is audibly recorded by a sound engineer. While filming Blow Out, he had to overcome his lifelong fear of being trapped in a water-filled car.
In 1983, Allen starred as supermarket tabloid reporter Betty Walker in Strange Invaders, written by Bill Condon and starring Paul LeMat, Michael Lerner, and Oscar winner Louise Fletcher.
He and De Palma divorced in 1984. In the same year, two of Allen’s films were released: The Buddy System, opposite Richard Dreyfuss and Susan Sarandon, and The Philadelphia Experiment, opposite Michael Paré. For her role in the second film, Allen was nominated for a Saturn Award for Best Actress. Following production, Allen began dating Paré. She also hosted the documentary Terror in the Halls (1984), which featured clips from various horror films such as Dressed to Kill and Carrie. This was followed by Paul Bartel’s Not for Publication and Sweet Revenge, an action film about white slavery with Gina Gershon and Martin Landau.
Read Also: Caroline Aaron Bio, Net Worth, Wiki, Age, Family, Height, Facts