Eileen Heckart

Eileen Heckart studied at Ohio State University, Ohio University and Bexley High School. Distinctions recorded are Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, Theatre World Award, Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series and star on Hollywood Walk of Fame.

• Name — Eileen Heckart • Birth Name — Anna Eileen Herbert • Born — 29 March 1919 • Birthplace — Columbus, Ohio, U.S. • Died — 31 December 2001 • Place of death — Norwalk, Connecticut, U.S. • Occupation — Actress • Years Active — 1943–2001 • Children — 3, including Luke Yankee • Education — Ohio State University (B.A.)

Heckart was born Anna Eileen Herbert in Columbus, Ohio. Her mother Esther (Stark) wed Leo Herbert (not the child's father) at her own mother's insistence so her child would not be born with the stigma of illegitimacy. Eileen was soon after legally adopted by her maternal grandmother's wealthy second husband, J.W. Heckart, providing her with the surname by which she would be known throughout the remainder of her life. She had two stepsisters, Anne and Marilyn. She graduated from Ohio State University with a B.A. in drama. She additionally studied drama at HB Studio in New York City.

Heckart acted with the Blackfriars Guild and studied for four years at the American Theatre Wing. Heckart began her Broadway career as the assistant stage manager and an understudy for The Voice of the Turtle in 1943. Her many credits include Picnic, The Bad Seed, A View from the Bridge, A Memory of Two Mondays, The Dark at the Top of the Stairs, A Family Affair, And Things That Go Bump in the Night, Barefoot in the Park, Butterflies Are Free, You Know I Can't Hear You When the Water's Running, and The Cemetery Club. Heckart won the 1953 Theatre World Award for Picnic. Her nominations include Tony Award nominations for Butterflies Are Free, Invitation to a March, and The Dark at the Top of the Stairs. In 2000, at age 81, she appeared off-Broadway in Kenneth Lonergan's The Waverly Gallery. For this performance, she won several awards, including the Drama Desk Award, the Lucille Lortel Award, the Drama League Award and the Outer Critics Circle Award. That same year, she was inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame and received an honorary Tony Award for lifetime achievement. She was granted three honorary doctorates by Sacred Heart University, Niagara University, and Ohio State University.

In 1942, Heckart married insurance broker John Harrison Yankee Jr., her college sweetheart. They had three sons. Her son Luke Yankee is the author of her 2006 biography Just Outside the Spotlight: Growing Up with Eileen Heckart. In February 2024, Luke Yankee's play Marilyn, Mom, and Me debuted at the International City Theater. Heckart was a Democrat. She met President Lyndon B. Johnson at the White House in 1967. On December 31, 2001, Heckart died of lung cancer at her home in Norwalk, Connecticut, at the age of 82. She was cremated with her ashes scattered outside the Music Box Theatre in Manhattan, New York.

• Year — Title — Role • 1956 — Miracle in the Rain — Grace Ullman • 1956 — Somebody Up There Likes Me — Ma Barbella • 1956 — Bus Stop — Vera • 1956 — The — Hortense Daigle • 1958 — Hot Spell — Alma's Friend • 1960 — Heller in Pink Tights — Mrs. Lorna Hathaway • 1963 — My Six Loves — Ethel • 1967 — Up the Down Staircase — Henrietta Pastorfield • 1968 — No Way to Treat a Lady — Mrs. Brummel • 1969 — The — Sally Dunning • 1972 — Butterflies Are Free — Mrs. Florence Baker • 1974 — Zandy's Bride — Ma Allan • 1975 — The — Katje • 1976 — Burnt Offerings — Roz Allardyce • 1983 — Trauma Center — Amy Decker R.N. • 1986 — Seize the Day — Funeral Woman No. 1 • 1986 — Heartbreak Ridge — Little Mary Jackson • 1994 — The — Emma Buchanan • 1994 — Ultimate Betrayal — Sarah McNeil • 1996 — The — Catherine MacDuggan

• Goodyear Television Playhouse (1955) ("My Lost Saints") as housekeeper • Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1961) (Season 6 Episode 26: "Coming, Mama") as Lucy Baldwin • Hawaii Five-O (1975) (Season 8 Episode 12: "Honor is an Unmarked Grave") as Agatha Henderson • Sunshine Christmas (NBC, December 12, 1977) as "Bertha Hayden", Sam Hayden's mother • Jackie Gleason's Honeymooner's Christmas (December 10, 1978) as "Mrs. Gibson", Alice's mother • Out of the Blue (1979) (12 episodes) as The Boss Angel • Little House on the Prairie (1979) (Season 5 Episode 17: Dance with Me") as Amanda Cooper Highway to Heaven (1985) Helen Season 1

Eileen Heckart was born on 29 March 1919 in Columbus. Heckart held the nationality of United States. Heckart was educated at Ohio State University, Ohio University, Bexley High School and HB Studio.

• Association — Year — Category — Work — Result — Ref(s) Reference(s) • Academy Awards — 1957 — Best Supporting Actress — The Bad Seed • 1973 — Butterflies Are Free • Daytime Emmy Awards — 1987 — Outstanding Guest Performer in a Drama Series — One Life to Live • Drama Desk Awards — 1996 — Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play — Northeast Local • 2000 — Outstanding Actress in a Play — The Waverly Gallery • Drama League Awards — 2000 — Distinguished Performance • Golden Globe Awards — 1957 — Best Supporting Actress — The Bad Seed • National Board of Review Awards — 1997 — Best Acting by an Ensemble — The First Wives Club • Outer Critics Circle Awards — 2000 — Outstanding Actress in a Play — The Waverly Gallery • Primetime Emmy Awards — 1975 — Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie — Wedding Band • 1976 — Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series — The Mary Tyler Moore Show • 1977 • 1979 — Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie — Backstairs at the White House • 1980 — F.D.R.: The Last Year • 1988 — Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series — The Cosby Show • 1994 — Love & War • New York Emmy Awards — 1966 — Individuals — New York Television Theatre (episode "Save Me A Place At Forest Lawn") • Theatre World Award — 1953 — Theatre World Award — Picnic • Tony Awards — 1958 — Best Supporting or Featured Actress in a Play — The Dark at the Top of the Stairs • 1961 — Invitation to a March • 1970 — Butterflies Are Free • 2000 — Tony Honor for Excellence in Theatre