Carroll Baker (born May 28, 1931) is an American actress of film, stage, and television. Spanning a career of fifty years, Baker appeared in 66 feature and television films, as well as 16 television appearances and over 15 stage credits, including 3 Broadway productions. Her most prolific role was in Elia Kazan's 1956 film Baby Doll, which earned her a Golden Globe and an Oscar nomination for Best Actress.[1][2] Throughout her career, she became an established movie sex symbol.

Baker in a promotional photo, ca. 1956
Carroll Baker filmography
Feature films 65
Television series 16
Theater 15
Short films 2

Baker began her acting career in New York City as a member of the Actors Studio, and starred in Broadway productions before her screen debut in Easy to Love (1953). After the critical success of Baby Doll, Baker worked consistently throughout the 1960s, starring in westerns such as How the West Was Won (1962), as well as independent films such as Something Wild (1961) and melodramas The Carpetbaggers (1964) and Sylvia (1965). After portraying Jean Harlow in 1965's Harlow, Baker initiated a legal dispute over her contract with Paramount Pictures, which ultimately led to her being blacklisted in Hollywood. Baker moved to Europe in the late 1960s, where she starred in multiple Italian horror and giallo films.

She saw a return to American cinema in Andy Warhol's Bad in 1977, and later received critical acclaim for her performance in Ironweed (1987) alongside Jack Nicholson and Meryl Streep. Baker worked in both television and film into the 1990s, and had supporting roles in the critically acclaimed Hollywood films Kindergarten Cop (1990) and David Fincher's The Game (1997). She formally retired from acting in 2003.

Screen

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Films

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Film
Year Film Role Director(s) Box office
(USD)
Notes Ref.
1953 Easy to Love Clarice Charles Walters [3]
1956 Giant Luz Benedict II George Stevens 39,000,000 [4] [3]
1956 Baby Doll Baby Doll Meighan Elia Kazan 2,300,000 [5] Won – Golden Globe for Most Promising Newcomer (female)*
*shared with Jayne Mansfield and Natalie Wood
Nominated – Academy Award for Best Actress
Nominated – Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama
Nominated – BAFTA for Best Foreign Actress
[3]
1958 The Big Country Patricia Terrill William Wyler 4,000,000 [6] [7]
1959 But Not for Me Ellie Brown/Borden Walter Lang 2,500,000 [8] [9]
1959 The Miracle Teresa Irving Rapper [10]
1961 Bridge to the Sun Gwen Terasaki Étienne Périer [11]
1961 Something Wild Mary Ann Robinson Jack Garfein [12]
1962 How the West Was Won Eve Prescott John Ford
Henry Hathaway
George Marshall
50,000,000 [13] [13]
1963 Station Six-Sahara Catherine Seth Holt [14]
1964 The Carpetbaggers Rina Marlowe Cord Edward Dmytryk 13,000,000 [15] Golden Laurel — Dramatic Performance, Female (2nd place) [16]
1964 Cheyenne Autumn Deborah Wright John Ford 3,500,000 [17] [18]
1965 Sylvia Sylvia: West (Karoki, Kay, Carlyle) Gordon Douglas 1,500,000 [19] [20]
1965 The Greatest Story Ever Told Veronica George Stevens 15,473,333 [21] [22]
1965 Mister Moses Julie Anderson Ronald Neame 1,250,000 [23] [24]
1965 Harlow Jean Harlow Gordon Douglas 3,400,000 [17] [25]
1967 Her Harem Margherita Marco Ferreri [26]
1967 Jack of Diamonds Herself Don Taylor [26]
1968 The Sweet Body of Deborah Deborah Romolo Guerrieri 1,600,000 [27] [26]
1969 Paranoia Kathryn West Umberto Lenzi Also known as: Orgasmo [26]
1969 So Sweet... So Perverse Nicole Perrier [26]
1970 A Quiet Place to Kill Helen Also known as: Paranoia [26]
1971 The Fourth Victim Julie Spencer/Lillian Martin Eugenio Martín Also known as: Death at the Deep End of the Swimming Pool [26]
1971 Captain Apache Maude Alexander Singer Also known as: Deathwork [26]
1971 The Devil Has Seven Faces Julie Harrison/Mary Harrison Osvaldo Civirani [26]
1972 Knife of Ice Martha Caldwell Umberto Lenzi Also known as: Silent Horror [26]
1973 Baba Yaga Baba Yaga Corrado Farina Also known as: Baba Yaga: Devil Witch, and Kiss Me, Kill Me [26]
1973 The Flower with the Deadly Sting Evelyn Gianfranco Piccioli [26]
1974 The Body Madeleine Luigi Scattini [26]
1975 Private Lessons Laura Formenti Vittorio De Sisti [26]
1975 At Last, at Last Lucia Marino Girolami [26]
1976 As of Tomorrow Polly Pott François Legrand Also known as: Blackmail Chase [26]
1976 My Father's Wife Laura Andrea Bianchi Also known as: Confessions of a Frustrated Housewife [26]
1976 Bait [de] Carol Peter Patzak Also known as: Shattered Dreams [26]
1977 Andy Warhol's Bad Hazel Aiken Jed Johnson 1,500,000 Also known as: Bad [26]
1978 Cyclone Sheila René Cardona Jr. Also known as: Terror Storm [26]
1979 The World Is Full of Married Men Linda Cooper Robert Young [26]
1979 The Sky is Falling Treasure Silvio Narizzano Also known as: Bloodbath [26]
1980 The Watcher in the Woods Helen Curtis John Hough 5,000,000 [28] [26]
1983 Star 80 Nelly Hoogstraten Bob Fosse 6,472,990 [29] [26]
1983 Red Monarch Brown Jack Gold [30]
1984 The Secret Diary of Sigmund Freud Mama Freud Danford B. Greene [26]
1985 Hitler's SS: Portrait in Evil Gerda Hoffman Jim Goddard TV movie [31]
1985 What Mad Pursuit? Louise Steinhauser Tony Smith TV movie [32]
1986 Native Son Mrs. Dalton Jerrold Freedman 1,301,121 [33] [34]
1987 On Fire Maureen Robert Greenwald TV movie [35]
1987 Ironweed Annie Phelan Héctor Babenco 7,393,346 [36] [26][37]
1990 Gipsy Angel Phoebe Al Festa [26]
1990 Kindergarten Cop Eleanor Crisp Ivan Reitman 201,957,688 [38] [26][39]
1991 Blonde Fist Lovelle Summers Frank Clarke [26]
1992 Jackpot Madame Mario Orfini 174,000,000 Also known as: Cyber Eden [26]
1993 Judgment Day: The John List Story Alma List Bobby Roth TV movie [26]
1993 Men Don't Tell Ruth Harry Winer TV movie [26]
1993 A Kiss to Die For Mrs. Graham Leon Ichaso TV movie [26]
1995 In the Flesh [de] Elaine Mitchelson Nikolai Müllerschön [26]
1996 Dalva Naomi Ken Cameron TV movie [26]
1996 Witness Run Martha Shepard Beppe Cino TV movie [26]
1996 Just Your Luck Momie Gary Auerbach [26]
1997 Skeletons Nancy Norton David DeCoteau TV movie [26]
1997 North Shore Fish Arlyne Steve Zuckerman TV movie [26]
1997 The Game Ilsa David Fincher 109,400,000 [40] [26]
1998 Nowhere to Go Nana John Caire [26]
1998 Rag and Bone Sister Marie, Tony's Aunt James D. Parriott TV movie [26]
1998 Heart Full of Rain Edith Pearl Dockett Roger Young TV movie [26]
2000 Another Woman's Husband Laurel's Mom Noel Nosseck TV movie [26]

Television series

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Television
Year Series Role Notes Ref.
1952 Monodrama Theater Clarice Late-night show on DuMont Television Network
1954 The Web Episode: "The Treadmill"
1955 Studio One Jennie Episode: "A Stranger May Die" Danger Episode: "Season for Murder"
1963 Armchair Theatre Lena Roland Episode: "The Paradise Suite" [41]
1970 W. Somerset Maugham Sadie Thompson Episode: "Rain" [42]
1975 The Wide World of Mystery Sandy Marshall Episode: "The Next Victim"; was produced for Series 6 of Thriller
1984 Sharing Time Fran Episode: "Oceans Apart"
1990 Grand Viva Episodes: "The Well", "Wolf Boy", "The Mother Load"
1991 Tales from the Crypt Mother Paloma Episode: "The Trap" [43]
1991 P.S. I Luv U Victoria Episode: "The Honeymooners"
1992 Davis Rules Episode: "Everybody Comes to Nick's"
1993 Murder, She Wrote Sibella Stone Episode: "Love's Deadly Desire" [44]
L.A. Law Rae Morrison Episodes: "How Much Is That Bentley in the Window",
"Leap of Faith", "Book of Renovation, Chapter 1"
1995 Chicago Hope Sylvie Tannen Episode: "Informed Consent"
1999 Roswell Grandma Claudia Episode: "Leaving Normal" [45]
2003 The Lyon's Den Jack's Mother Episode: "The Quantum Theory"

Short subjects

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Short films
Year Title Role Director Notes
1965 Flashes Festival Herself Charles Gérard Documentary
1970 The Spider

Documentaries

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Documentary subjects
Year Title Role Notes
1975 James Dean: The First American Teenager Herself TV documentary
1987 Sex Symbols; Past, Present and Future TV documentary
1987 Hollywood Uncensored
1997 Big Guns Talk: The Story of the Western TV documentary
2002 Cinerama Adventure
2003 Time Machine: When Cowboys Were King TV documentary
2009 Western Legenden – Made in Hollywood TV documentary

Stage credits

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Baker in the Broadway production of Come on Strong, September 26, 1962
Stage performances [1][46][47]
Year Title Role Location Notes
1953 Escapade Molly 48th Street Theatre, New York City Broadway production; 13 performances
1953 A Hatful of Rain Actors Studio Workshop, New York City [47]
1954 All Summer Long Ruth Booth Theatre, New York City
Coronet Theatre, Los Angeles
Broadway; 60 performances
1958 Arms and the Man Chicago [47]
1962 Come on Strong Virginia Karger Morosco Theatre, New York City Broadway; 36 performances
1966 Anna Christie Anna Christopherson Los Angeles [47]
1967 Gentlemen Prefer Blondes Los Angeles [47]
1977 Rain Sadie Thompson London, England [47]
1978 Bell, Book and Candle Atlanta, Georgia [47]
1978 13 Rue de l'Amour Jacksonville, Florida [47]
1979 Forty Carats Ann Stanley [47]
1979 Lucy Crown Lucy London, England [47]
1979 Goodbye Charlie Virginia Mason Chicago, Illinois [47]
1980 Motive London, England [47]
1981 Little Hut Canada [47]

References

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  1. ^ a b Slifkin, Irv (May 3, 2015). "Fabulous Baker: A Consideration of Carroll". Movies Unlimited. Archived from the original on February 26, 2015. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
  2. ^ Brennan, Patricia (January 3, 1987). "Carroll Baker". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 2, 2015.
  3. ^ a b c "Overview for Carroll Baker". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved April 9, 2015.
  4. ^ Miller, Frank. ".:: TCM Presents: The Essentials – Article::". Turner Classic Movies. Archived from the original on January 13, 2015. Retrieved March 29, 2015.
  5. ^ "Top Grosses of 1957", Variety, 8 January 1958: 30
  6. ^ "All-Time Top Grossers", Variety, 8 January 1964. p. 69
  7. ^ Crowther, Bosley (October 2, 1958). "War and Peace on Range in 'Big Country'; Gregory Peck Stars in Wyler's Western Action-Packed Film Scores Violence". The New York Times. Retrieved November 1, 2015.
  8. ^ "1959: Probable Domestic Take", Variety, 6 January 1960. p. 34
  9. ^ Crowther, Bosley (October 3, 1959). "Age Before Beauty; Gable, Carroll Baker Appear in Comedy But Not For Me' Opens at the Capitol". The New York Times. Retrieved October 31, 2015.
  10. ^ Crowther, Bosley (November 13, 1959). "Screen: 'The Miracle' at Music Hall; Warner Film Is Based on Reinhardt Show". The New York Times. Retrieved May 30, 2015.
  11. ^ Barrett, Michael (May 25, 2015). "Calling Out to Carroll Baker: 'Bridge to the Sun'". Pop Matters. Retrieved April 9, 2015.
  12. ^ "Practice for an Actress". LIFE. November 28, 1960. pp. 41–2.
  13. ^ a b Susman, Gary (February 13, 2013). "'How the West Was Won': 25 Things You Didn't Know About the Classic Western". MovieFone. Archived from the original on April 12, 2015. Retrieved April 6, 2015.
  14. ^ Thompson, David. "Lost and found: Station Six Sahara". British Film Institute (BFI). Sight & Sound. Archived from the original on August 3, 2012. Retrieved April 9, 2015.
  15. ^ Steinberg, Cobbett (1980). Film Facts. New York: Facts on File, Inc. p. 23. ISBN 0-87196-313-2.
  16. ^ Crowther, Bosley (July 2, 1964). "Screen: 'The Carpetbaggers' Opens:Adaptation of Book by Robbins in Debut". The New York Times. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
  17. ^ a b This figure consists of anticipated rentals accruing distributors in North America. See "Big Rental Pictures of 1965", Variety, 5 January 1966. p. 6
  18. ^ McBride, Joseph (2001). Searching for John Ford. St. Martin's Press. p. 63. ISBN 9780312242329.
  19. ^ Anticipated rentals accruing distributors in North America. See "Top Grossers of 1965", Variety, 5 January 1966 p 36.
  20. ^ "Sylvia (1965) – Overview". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved April 9, 2015.
  21. ^ "The Greatest Story Ever Told – Box Office Information". The Numbers. Retrieved March 31, 2015.
  22. ^ Crowther, Bosley (February 16, 1965). "Screen: 'The Greatest Story Ever Told':Max von Sydow Stars in Biblical Film". The New York Times. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
  23. ^ Anticipated rentals accruing distributors in North America. See "Top Grossers of 1965", Variety, 5 January 1966. p. 36
  24. ^ Weiler, A.H. (May 13, 1965). "Robert Mitchum Stars as 'Mister Moses'". The New York Times. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  25. ^ Kael, Pauline (15 May 1991). 5001 Nights at the Movies. Holt. p. 319. ISBN 978-0805013672.
  26. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq ar Monush, Barry (2003). Encyclopedia of Hollywood Film Actors: From the Silent Era to 1965. Vol. 1. Applause. pp. 36–37. ISBN 978-1557835512.
  27. ^ Friendly, Alfred Jr (29 June 1969). "What Ever Happened to Baby Doll?: An American in Rome". The New York Times. p. D11.
  28. ^ "The Watcher in the Woods (1981)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved April 5, 2015.
  29. ^ "Star 80 Box Office Data". The Numbers. Retrieved April 5, 2015.
  30. ^ Thomson, David. "Red Monarch". San Francisco International Film Festival. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
  31. ^ Hal Erickson (2016). "Hitler's SS: Portrait in Evil (1985)". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016. Retrieved October 31, 2015.
  32. ^ Haynes, J.; Archibald, J.F. (1986). "This Week in Television". The Bulletin. 108. Sydney, Australia: 98.
  33. ^ "Native Son (1986)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved June 2, 2013.
  34. ^ Ebert, Roger (December 25, 1986). "Native Son Movie Review". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved February 3, 2015.
  35. ^ Brennan, Patricia (January 3, 1987). "'Best Thing I've Had For Ages' : 'baby Doll' Baker Is Catching 'fire' For ABC". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 9, 2015.
  36. ^ "Ironweed (1987)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved April 6, 2015.
  37. ^ Ebert, Roger (February 12, 1988). "Ironweed Movie Review & Film Summary". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
  38. ^ Broeske, Pat H. (January 8, 1991). "WEEKEND BOX OFFICE : Moviegoers Go for the Laughs". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 5, 2015.
  39. ^ "Kindergarten Cop". Oregon Film Museum. Retrieved April 10, 2015.
  40. ^ "The Game". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2015-04-05.
  41. ^ White, Leonard (2003). Armchair Theatre: The Lost Years. Kelly Publications. p. 86. ISBN 978-1903053188.
  42. ^ Roberts, Jerry (2009). Encyclopedia of Television Film Directors. Scarecrow Press. p. 356. ISBN 978-0810861381.
  43. ^ Diehl, Digby (1997). Tales From The Crypt: The Official Archives Including the Complete History of EC Comics and the Hit Television Series. St. Martin's Griffin. p. 5. ISBN 978-0312170400.
  44. ^ Parish, James (1997). The Unofficial Murder, She Wrote Casebook. Kensington. p. 311. ISBN 978-1575662107.
  45. ^ Jones, Stephen, ed. (2000). The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror. Vol. 11. Carroll & Graf. p. 58. ISBN 978-0786707928.
  46. ^ "Carroll Baker – Broadway Theater Credits". Playbill Vault. Retrieved November 11, 2012.
  47. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Carroll Baker Biography (1931-)". Film Reference. Retrieved February 2, 2012.