- published: 14 Aug 2010
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Anna Marie "Patty" Duke (born December 14, 1946) is an American actress of stage, film, and television. First becoming famous as a child star, winning an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress at age 16, and later starring in her eponymous sitcom for three years, she progressed to more mature roles upon playing Neely O'Hara in the 1967 film Valley of the Dolls. She was later elected president of the Screen Actors Guild from 1985 to 1988.
Duke was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 1982; since then she has devoted much of her time to advocating and educating the public on mental health issues.
In 1996, Patty Duke was ranked #40 on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Stars of All Time.
Duke was born in Elmhurst, Queens, New York, the daughter of Frances (née McMahon), a cashier, and John Patrick Duke, a handyman and cab driver. Her father was Irish American and her maternal grandmother was German.
Duke and her older brother Raymond experienced a childhood of hard times. Her father was an alcoholic, and her mother suffered from clinical depression and was prone to violence. When Duke was 6, her mother threw her father out; when she was 8, her mother turned Duke's care over to John and Ethel Ross, who became her managers. The Rosses recognized her talent and promoted her as a child actress.
Actors: Jane Wiedlin (director), Jane Wiedlin (actress), Susan Traylor (actress), Jane Wiedlin (producer), Jane Wiedlin (writer), Mark Booker (actor), Mark Booker (actor), Starina Johnson (actress), Pleasant Gehman (writer), Pleasant Gehman (actress), Garrett Swann (actor), Anthony Pedone (editor), Anthony Pedone (producer), Michael Maize (actor), Stephen Floyd (actor),
Genres: Sci-Fi,Actors: Kevin Spacey (producer), Greta Scacchi (actress), Henning Molfenter (producer), Caroline Aaron (actress), Peter Block (producer), Mark Damon (producer), John Goodman (actor), Bobby Darin (actor), Joost Siedhoff (actor), Bob Hoskins (actor), Brenda Blethyn (actress), Kevin Spacey (actor), Michael Byrne (actor), Ruth Myers (costume designer), Kevin Spacey (writer),
Plot: Consummate entertainer Bobby Darin (1936-1973) is making a movie about his life. He's volatile, driven by the love of performing, ambition, perfectionism, and belief that he's living on borrowed time. He begins in the Bronx: a fatherless lad learning music and dance from his mom. His career starts slowly, then "Splish Splash" puts him at the top of the charts and on "Bandstand." He wants to be an entertainer, not a pop star, so he aims for the Copacabana; then it's on to the movies, where he meets and marries Sandra Dee. After, it's balancing career, health, marriage and family life, balances he doesn't always keep. Throughout, conversations with his boyhood self give him perspective.
Keywords: 1950s, 1960s, actor, actress, african-american, backstage, band, bastard-son, bathtub, beachActors: Bruce McDonald (director), Kevin Jubinville (actor), Aron Tager (actor), Michele Lee (producer), Daniel Kash (actor), Jerry Ciccoritti (actor), Kenneth Welsh (actor), David Susskind (actor), James Farentino (actor), David Sparrow (actor), Peter Riegert (actor), Michele Lee (actress), Susan Shipton (editor), Barbara Parkins (actress), Truman Capote (actor),
Genres: Biography, Drama,