Joan de Beauvoir de Havilland (October 22, 1917 â€" December 15,
2013), known professionally as Joan Fontaine, was a British-American
actress who is best known for her starring roles in Hollywood films
during the "Golden Age". Fontaine appeared in more than 45 films in a
career that spanned five decades. She was the younger sister of
actress Olivia de Havilland. Their rivalry was well-documented in the
media at the height of Fontaine's career.She began her film career in
1935, signing a contract with RKO Pictures. Fontaine received her
first major role in The Man Who Found Himself (1937) and in 1939 with
Gunga Din. Her career prospects improved greatly after her starring
role in Alfred Hitchcock's Rebecca (1940), for which she received her
first of three nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actress. The
following year, she won that award for her role in Hitchcock's
Suspicion (1941). A third nomination came with The Constant Nymph
(1943). She appeared mostly in drama films through the 1940s,
including Letter from an Unknown Woman (1948), which is now considered
a classic. In the next decade, after her role in Ivanhoe (1952), her
film career began to decline and she moved into stage, radio and
television roles. She appeared in fewer films in the 1960s, which
included Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1960), and her final film
role in The Witches (1966).She released an autobiography, No Bed of
Roses, in 1978, and continued to act until 1994. Having won an Academy
Award for her role in Suspicion, Fontaine is the only actor to have
won an Academy Award for acting in a Hitchcock film. She and her
sister remain the only siblings to have won major acting Academy
Awards.
2013), known professionally as Joan Fontaine, was a British-American
actress who is best known for her starring roles in Hollywood films
during the "Golden Age". Fontaine appeared in more than 45 films in a
career that spanned five decades. She was the younger sister of
actress Olivia de Havilland. Their rivalry was well-documented in the
media at the height of Fontaine's career.She began her film career in
1935, signing a contract with RKO Pictures. Fontaine received her
first major role in The Man Who Found Himself (1937) and in 1939 with
Gunga Din. Her career prospects improved greatly after her starring
role in Alfred Hitchcock's Rebecca (1940), for which she received her
first of three nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actress. The
following year, she won that award for her role in Hitchcock's
Suspicion (1941). A third nomination came with The Constant Nymph
(1943). She appeared mostly in drama films through the 1940s,
including Letter from an Unknown Woman (1948), which is now considered
a classic. In the next decade, after her role in Ivanhoe (1952), her
film career began to decline and she moved into stage, radio and
television roles. She appeared in fewer films in the 1960s, which
included Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1960), and her final film
role in The Witches (1966).She released an autobiography, No Bed of
Roses, in 1978, and continued to act until 1994. Having won an Academy
Award for her role in Suspicion, Fontaine is the only actor to have
won an Academy Award for acting in a Hitchcock film. She and her
sister remain the only siblings to have won major acting Academy
Awards.
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