This Day in Horror: Happy Birthday Sissy Spacek
Born on this day in 1949: Sissy Spacek
Spacek played the title role in Brian de Palma’s seminal Carrie, based on the novel by Stephen King. The film follows meek, telekinetic Carrie, daughter of an abusive bible-thumper, as she is taunted and tortured in high school before she finally takes fiery, bloody revenge on those who hurt her. Many actresses auditioned for the role of Carrie, but Spacek really wanted it. She backed out of a TV commercial she had booked, rubbed Vaseline in her hair, and showed up for her audition dressed in an old sailor dress her mom made for her. She booked the role, and was nominated for a Best Actress Academy Award.
Spacek would later return to Stephen King territory when, in 2005, she recorded the audiobook version of Carrie. In 2018, she played Ruth Deaver in Castle Rock, based on characters in the Stephen King universe.
In other genre work, Spacek has appeared as Samara’s biological mother in The Ring Two and appeared as Lucy Bell in An American Haunting, based on the legend of The Bell Witch. Her husband, art director Jack Fisk, has known David Lynch since childhood. He worked on Eraserhead and it has been said that Spacek clapped the slate between takes.
Categorized:News This Day in Horror
