Elizabeth Hartman

Born: Youngstown, Ohio, December 23rd 1943
Died: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, June 10th 1987

Elizabeth 'Biff' Hartman began her acting career at the Youngstown playhouse as a teenager, before moving to Broadway sometime in the early 1960s. In 1964, she made her film debut as Selina in 'A Patch of Blue', opposite Sydney Poitier. In 1966, she was nominated for an Oscar for this role, and at 22 years old, was the youngest ever nominee at the time. Following this, she went on to star in 'The Group' (1966) 'Your a Big Boy Now' (1966) and 'The Beguiled' (1971). Unfortunately, by the 1970s, she began to suffer from crippling depression, and her acceptance of film roles became less frequent.
Her marriage to screenwriter Gill Dennis broke down in 1979 (they divorced 5 years later), and she moved to Pittsburgh to be closer to her family, whilst receiving psychiatric treatment for her depression. She took on one last film role as the principle character Mrs Brisby in the 1982 classic 'The Secret of NIMH', Don Bluth's debut animated film. This film was considered by many of her fans to be one of her best performances, alongside that of her role as Selina in 'A Patch of Blue'.
Sadly, her mental health deteriorated still further and she slowly withdrew from acting altogether. On June 10th, 1987 at the age of 43, Elizabeth Hartman was found dead upon the pavement outside her 5th floor apartment in Pittsburgh, from injuries sustained in a fall, having phoned her psychiatrist to tell her she was feeling low (she had made at least one earlier suicide attempt). She was subsequently buried in her native town of Youngstown.



Filmography

Elizabeth Hartman - filmography

5 most recent films

Walking Tall - 3.0 stars
You're a Big Boy Now - 3.5 stars
A Patch of Blue - 4.0 stars

5 highest-rated films

A Patch of Blue - 4.0 stars
You're a Big Boy Now - 3.5 stars
Walking Tall - 3.0 stars

5 lowest-rated films

Walking Tall - 3.0 stars
You're a Big Boy Now - 3.5 stars
A Patch of Blue - 4.0 stars

Most frequent co-stars

Tony Bill - 1 times - show films
Gene Evans - 1 times - show films
Shelley Winters - 1 times - show films
Len De Carl - 1 times - show films
Julie Harris - 1 times - show films

Most frequent directors

Phil Karlson - 2 times - show films
Guy Green - 1 times - show films
Francis Ford Coppola - 1 times - show films