Hayley Mills
Hayley Mills | |
---|---|
Hayley Mills with Firdous Bamji at the Kennedy Center, 1997 | |
Born | Hayley Catherine Rose Vivien Mills (1946-04-18) 18 April 1946 Marylebone, London, England |
Education | Elmhurst Ballet School |
Occupation | Actress, singer |
Years active | 1959–present |
Spouse(s) | Roy Boulting (m. 1971; div. 1977) |
Partner(s) | Leigh Lawson (1975–84) Firdous Bamji (1997–present) |
Children | 2, including Crispian Mills |
Parent(s) | Sir John Mills Mary Hayley Bell |
Relatives | Juliet Mills (sister) |
Hayley Catherine Rose Vivien Mills (born 18 April 1946) is an English actress. The daughter of Sir John Mills and Mary Hayley Bell, and younger sister of actress Juliet Mills, Mills began her acting career as a child and was hailed as a promising newcomer, winning the BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer for her performance in the British crime drama film Tiger Bay (1959), the Academy Juvenile Award for Disney's Pollyanna (1960) and Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actress in 1961. During her early career, she appeared in six films for Walt Disney, including her dual role as twins Susan and Sharon in the Disney film The Parent Trap (1961). Her performance in Whistle Down the Wind (a 1961 adaptation of the novel written by her mother) saw Mills nominated for BAFTA Award for Best British Actress.
During the late 1960s Mills began performing in theatrical plays, and played in more mature roles. The age of contracts with studios soon passed. For her success with Disney she received the Disney Legend Award. Although she has not maintained the box office success or the Hollywood A-list she experienced as a child actress, she has continued to make films and TV appearances, including a starring role in the UK television mini-series The Flame Trees of Thika in 1981, the title role in Disney's television series Good Morning, Miss Bliss in 1988, and as Caroline, a main character in Wild at Heart (2007–2012) on ITV in the UK.
Contents
1 Early life and career
1.1 Disney
2 Post-Disney film career
2.1 Roy Boulting
3 Television resurgence and reception
4 Stage career
5 Personal life
6 Filmography
6.1 Film
6.2 Box office ranking
6.3 Television
7 Theatre
8 Awards and nominations
9 References
10 Further reading
11 External links
Early life and career
Mills was born in Marylebone, London. She was 12 when she was discovered by J. Lee Thompson, who was initially looking for a boy to play the lead role in Tiger Bay, which co-starred her father, veteran British actor Sir John Mills. The movie was popular at the box office in Britain.[1]
Disney
Bill Anderson, one of Walt Disney's producers, saw Tiger Bay and suggested that Mills be given the lead role in Pollyanna.[2] The role of the orphaned "glad girl" who moves in with her aunt catapulted Mills to stardom in the United States and earned her a special Academy Award (the last person to receive the Juvenile Oscar). Because Mills could not be present to receive the trophy, Annette Funicello accepted it for her.[3]
Disney subsequently cast Mills as twins Sharon and Susan who reunite their divorced parents in The Parent Trap. In the film, Mills sings "Let's Get Together" as a duet with herself. The film was a huge hit around the world.[4]
Mills received an offer to make a film in Britain for Bryan Forbes, Whistle Down the Wind (1961), about some children who believe an escaped convict is Jesus. It was a big hit at the British box office and Mills was voted the biggest star in Britain for 1961.[5]
Mills returned to Disney for an adventure film, In Search of the Castaways (1962) based on a novel by Jules Verne. It was another popular success and Mills would be voted the fifth biggest star in the country for the next two years.[6]
In 1963 Disney announced plans to film I Capture the Castle, from the novel by Dodie Smith, with Hayley Mills in the role of Cassandra.[7] However, Disney never produced the film.
Her fourth movie for Disney did less well though was still successful, Summer Magic (1963), an adaptation of the novel Mother Carey's Chickens.
Ross Hunter hired her for a British-American production, The Chalk Garden (1964), playing a girl who torments governess Deborah Kerr. Back at Disney she was in a film about jewel thieves, The Moon-Spinners (1964), getting her first on screen kiss from Peter McEnery.[8][9]
Mills had a change of pace with Sky West and Crooked (1965), set in the world of gypsies, written by her mother and directed by her father.[10] It was not very popular. In contrast, her last film with Disney, the comedy That Darn Cat!, did very well at the box office.[11]
During her six-year run at Disney, Mills was arguably the most popular child actress of the era. Critics noted that America's favourite child star was, in fact, quite British and very ladylike. The success of "Let's Get Together" (which hit No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, No. 17 in Britain and No. 1 in Mexico) also led to the release of a record album on Disney's Buena Vista label, Let's Get Together with Hayley Mills, which also included her only other hit song, "Johnny Jingo" (Billboard No. 21, 1962). In 1962 British exhibitors voted her the most popular film actress in the country.[12]
Post-Disney film career
For Universal, Mills made another movie with her father, The Truth About Spring (1965), co-starring Disney regular James MacArthur as her love interest. It was mildly popular. However The Trouble with Angels (1966), was a huge hit; Mills played as a prankish Catholic boarding school girl with "scathingly brilliant" schemes, opposite screen veteran Rosalind Russell, and directed by another Hollywood veteran, Ida Lupino. She then provided a voice for The Daydreamer (1966).
Roy Boulting
Shortly thereafter, Mills appeared alongside her father and Hywel Bennett in director Roy Boulting's critically acclaimed film The Family Way (1966), a comedy about a couple having difficulty consummating their marriage, featuring a score by Paul McCartney and arrangements by Beatles producer George Martin. She began a romantic relationship with Roy Boulting, and they eventually married in 1971.[13]
She then starred as the protagonist of Pretty Polly (1968), opposite famous Indian film actor Shashi Kapoor in Singapore.
Mills made another movie for Boulting, the controversial horror thriller Twisted Nerve in 1968, along with her Family Way co-star Hywel Bennett. She made a comedy, Take a Girl Like You (1970) with Oliver Reed, and made her West End debut in The Wild Duck in 1970.[14] She worked for Boutling again on Mr. Forbush and the Penguins (1971), replacing the original female lead.[15]
In 1972 Mills again acted opposite Hywel Bennett in Endless Night along with Britt Ekland, Per Oscarsson and George Sanders. It is based on the novel Endless Night by Agatha Christie. She made two films for Sidney Hayers, What Changed Charley Farthing? (1974) and Deadly Strangers (1975). After The Kingfisher Caper in 1975, co-written by Boulting, Mills dropped out of the film industry for a few years.[16]
Television resurgence and reception
In 1981 Mills returned to acting with a starring role in the UK television mini-series The Flame Trees of Thika, based on Elspeth Huxley's memoir of her childhood in East Africa. The series was well received, prompting Mills to accept more acting roles. She then returned to America and made two appearances on The Love Boat.
Always welcomed at Disney, Mills narrated an episode of The Wonderful World of Disney, sparking renewed interest in her Disney work. In 1985, Mills was originally considered to voice Princess Eilonwy in Disney's 25th animated feature film The Black Cauldron but was later replaced by the veteran British voice actress Susan Sheridan. Later, Mills reprised her roles as twins Sharon and Susan for a trio of Parent Trap television films: The Parent Trap II, Parent Trap III, and Parent Trap: Hawaiian Honeymoon. Mills also starred as the title character in the Disney Channel-produced television series Good Morning, Miss Bliss in 1987. The show was cancelled after 13 episodes and the rights were acquired by NBC, which reformatted Good Morning, Miss Bliss into Saved by the Bell. In recognition of her work with The Walt Disney Company, Mills was awarded the Disney Legends award in 1998.[17]
Mills recalled her childhood in the 2000 documentary film Sir John Mills' Moving Memories which was directed by Marcus Dillistone and written by her brother Jonathan. In 2005 Mills appeared in the acclaimed short film, Stricken, written and directed by Jayce Bartok. In 2007 she began appearing as Caroline in the ITV1 African vet drama, Wild at Heart; her sister Juliet Mills was a guest star in series 4 of the drama.
In 2010 Mills appeared in Mandie and the Cherokee Treasure, based on one of the popular Mandie novels of Lois Gladys Leppard.
Stage career
Mills made her stage debut in a 1966 West End revival of Peter Pan. In 2000 she made her Off-Broadway debut in Sir Noël Coward's Suite in Two Keys, opposite American actress Judith Ivey, for which she won a Theatre World Award. In 1991 she appeared as Anna Leonowens in the Australian production of The King and I. In December 2007, for their annual birthday celebration of "The Master", The Noël Coward Society invited Mills as the guest celebrity to lay flowers in front of Coward's statue at New York's Gershwin Theatre, thereby commemorating the 108th birthday of Sir Noel.
In 2012 Mills starred as Ursula Widdington in the stage production of Ladies in Lavender at the Royal & Derngate Theatre, before embarking on a national UK tour.
In 2015, Mills toured Australia with sister Juliet Mills and Maxwell Caulfield in the comedy Legends! by James Kirkwood.
Mills starred[18] in the 2018 Off-Broadway run of Isobel Mahon's Party Face at City Center.
Personal life
In 1966 while filming The Family Way, the 20-year-old Mills met 53-year-old director Roy Boulting. The two married in 1971, and owned a flat in London's Chelsea. They later purchased Cobstone Windmill in Ibstone, Buckinghamshire.[19] Their son, Crispian Mills, is the lead singer and guitarist for the raga rock band Kula Shaker. The couple divorced in 1977.
Mills later had a second son, Jason Lawson,[20] during a relationship with British actor Leigh Lawson.[21]
Mills' partner since 1997 is actor and writer Firdous Bamji, who is 20 years her junior.[22]
Mills had involvement with the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (the "Hare Krishna" movement).[23] She wrote the preface to the book, The Hare Krishna Book of Vegetarian Cooking, published in 1984. However, in a 1997 article of People magazine, Mills stated that "she is 'not a part of Hare Krishna', though she delved into Hinduism and her own Christianity for guidance."[24]
In 1988 Mills co-edited, with Marcus Maclaine, the book My God, which consisted of brief letters from celebrities on their beliefs, or lack thereof, regarding God and the afterlife.
Mills has been a pescetarian since the late 1990s.[25]
On 18 April 2008, Mills was diagnosed with breast cancer. She had surgery and started, but quickly abandoned, chemotherapy after only three sessions due to the severity of side effects. Mills credits her survival to the alternative treatments she tried out. She told Good Housekeeping magazine in January 2012 that she had fully recovered.[22]
Mills is a trustee of the children's arts charity Anno's Africa.
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1959 | Tiger Bay | Gillie Evans | Won BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles |
1960 | Pollyanna | Pollyanna Whittier | Won an Academy Juvenile Award |
1961 | The Parent Trap | Susan Evers / Sharon McKendrick | |
1961 | Whistle Down the Wind | Kathy Bostock | |
1962 | In Search of the Castaways | Mary Grant | |
1963 | Summer Magic | Nancy Carey | |
1964 | The Chalk Garden | Laurel | |
1964 | The Moon-Spinners | Nikky Ferris | |
1965 | The Truth About Spring | Spring Tyler | Alternate titles: The Pirates of Spring Cove and Miss Jude |
1965 | Sky West and Crooked | Brydie White | Alternate title: Gypsy Girl |
1965 | That Darn Cat! | Patricia "Patti" Randall | |
1966 | The Trouble with Angels | Mary Clancy | |
1966 | The Daydreamer | The Little Mermaid | Voice role |
1966 | The Family Way | Jenny Fitton | |
1967 | Pretty Polly | Polly Barlow | Alternate title: A Matter of Innocence |
1968 | Twisted Nerve | Susan Harper | |
1970 | Take a Girl Like You | Jenny Bunn | |
1971 | Mr. Forbush and the Penguins | Tara St. John Luke | Alternate title: Cry of the Penguins |
1972 | Endless Night | Fenella 'Ellie' Thomsen | |
1975 | Deadly Strangers | Belle Adams | |
1975 | The Kingfisher Caper | Tracey Van Der Byl | Alternate title: Diamond Hunters and Diamond Lust |
1974 | What Changed Charley Farthing? | Jenny | Alternate title: The Bananas Boat |
1988 | Appointment with Death | Miss Quinton | |
1990 | After Midnight | Sally Ryan | |
1994 | A Troll in Central Park | Hillary | Voice role |
2004 | 2BPerfectlyHonest | Terri | |
2005 | Stricken | Hildy | Short film |
2010 | Mandie and the Cherokee Treasure | Mary Elizabeth Taft | |
2011 | Foster | Mrs. Lange | Alternate title: Angel in the House |
Box office ranking
- 1961 – most popular star at the UK box office
- 1962 – 20th most popular star in the US, 5th most popular in the UK
- 1963 – 5th most popular star in the UK
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1974 | Thriller | Samantha Miller | Episode: "Only a Scream Away" |
1979 | The Love Boat | Cheryl Tyson | Episode: "Designated Lover" |
1980 | Saturday Night At The Mill | Herself as guest host | |
1980 | The Love Boat | Leila Stanhope | Episode: "Haven't We Met Before?" |
1981 | The Flame Trees of Thika | Tilly Grant | Miniseries |
1983 | Tales of the Unexpected | Claire Hawksworth | Episode: "A Sad Loss" |
1984 | The Storybook Series with Hayley Mills | Herself - Host | 13 episodes |
1985 | The Love Boat | Dianne Tipton | Episodes: "The Perfect Divorce" (Parts 1 & 2) |
1986 | The Parent Trap II | Susan Carey / Sharon Ferris | Movie |
1986 | Murder, She Wrote | Cynthia Tate | Episode: "Unfinished Business" |
1986 | Amazing Stories | Joan Simmons | Episode: "The Greibble" |
1987–89 | Good Morning, Miss Bliss | Miss Carrie Bliss | Main role (14 episodes) |
1989 | Parent Trap III | Susan Evers / Sharon Grand | Movie |
1989 | Parent Trap: Hawaiian Honeymoon | Susan Wyatt / Sharon Grand | Movie |
1990 | Back Home | Mrs. Peggy Dickinson | Movie |
2007–12 | Wild at Heart | Caroline Du Plessis | Regular role (39 episodes) |
2014 | Midsomer Murders | Lizzy Thornfield | Episode: "Wild Harvest" |
2014 | Moving On | Madge | Episode: "Madge" |
Theatre
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1969 | Peter Pan | Peter Pan | |
1970 | Three Sisters | Irina | |
1970 | The Wild Duck | Hedvig | |
1972 | Trelawny of the 'Wells' | Rose Trelawny | |
1975 | A Touch of Spring | Alison | |
1977 | Rebecca | Mrs. De Winter | |
1978 | My Fat Friend | ||
1979 | The Importance of Being Earnest | Gwendolina | |
1980 | The Summer Party | ||
1982 | Tally's Folly | Sally | |
1983 | Dial M for Murder | Margot Wendice | |
1985 | Toys in the Attic | Carrie | |
1991 | The Kidnap Game | ||
1991 | The King and I | Anna | |
1992 | Fallen Angels | ||
1994 | A Midsummer Night's Dream | ||
1994 | Hamlet | Gertrude | |
1994 | The Card | Countess of Chell | |
1995 | Dead Guilty | Margaret | |
1997 | The King and I | Anna | |
2000 | Two Can Play | ||
2015 | Cinderella-Pantomime | Fairy Godmother | |
2015 | Legends![26] | Leatrice Monsee | With Juliet Mills |
2018 | Party Face | Carmel |
Awards and nominations
Year | Association | Category | Work | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
1959 | Berlin International Film Festival | Silver Bear Extraordinary Prize of the Jury | Tiger Bay | Won |
1959 | BAFTA Awards | Most Promising Newcomer to Film | Tiger Bay | Won |
1961 | BAFTA Awards | Best British Actress | Pollyanna | Nominated |
1961 | Laurel Awards | Top Female New Personality[citation needed] | Won | |
1961 | Academy Award | Juvenile Award[3] | Pollyanna | Won |
1961 | Golden Globe Award | Most Promising Newcomer – Female[citation needed] | Won | |
1962 | Golden Globe Award | Best Motion Picture Actress – Musical/Comedy | The Parent Trap | Nominated |
1962 | BAFTA Awards | Best British Actress | Whistle Down the Wind | Nominated |
1964 | Golden Globe Award | Best Motion Picture Actress – Musical/Comedy | Summer Magic | Nominated |
References
^ J. LEE THOMPSON DISCUSSES CAREER: 'GUNS OF NAVARONE' DIRECTOR TOOK DEVIOUS PATH TO FILMS By MURRAY SCHUMACH Special to The New York Times.. New York Times (1923–Current file) [New York, N.Y] 25 July 1961: 18.
^ Leonard Mosley (1990). Disney's World. Scarborough House. pp. 257–8. ISBN 9781589796560..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
^ ab "The 33rd Academy Awards". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved 12 April 2014.
^ "Hayley Mills busily happy". The Australian Women's Weekly. 30, (8). 25 July 1962. p. 3 (Teenagers Weekly). Retrieved 15 September 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
^ Bryan Forbes, A Divided Life, Mandarin, 1993 p29
^ "Most Popular Films Of 1963." Times [London, England] 3 Jan. 1964: 4. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 11 July 2012.
^ "THE AUSTRALIAN WOMEN'S WEEKLY Presents Teenagers WEEKLY". The Australian Women's Weekly. 30, (38). 20 February 1963. p. 1 (Teenagers' Weekly). Retrieved 15 September 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
^ "The Day Hayley got in a Hearse", Photoplay, August 1964
^ "WORK AND FUN ON A LOVELY ISLAND". The Australian Women's Weekly. 31, (32). 8 January 1964. p. 9 (Teenagers' Weekly). Retrieved 15 September 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
^ "AS ENGLISH AS MARMALADE". The Australian Women's Weekly. 34, (52). 24 May 1967. p. 5. Retrieved 15 September 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
^ "misslennon2.tripod.com". misslennon2.tripod.com. 20 March 1964. Retrieved 29 July 2010.
^ "THE AUSTRALIAN WOMEN'S WEEKLY Presents Teenagers WEEKLY". The Australian Women's Weekly. National Library of Australia. 20 February 1963. p. 65 Supplement: Teenagers' Weekly. Retrieved 10 July 2012.
^ ""He's just like a big, warm peach"". The Australian Women's Weekly. 40, (37). 14 February 1973. p. 4. Retrieved 15 September 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
^ "Hayley on stage". The Canberra Times. 45, (12, 746). 12 November 1970. p. 40. Retrieved 15 September 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
^ Bryan Forbes, A Divided Life, Mandarin Paperbacks, 1993 p 221-222
^ "infoplease.com/biography". Infoplease.com. 18 April 1946. Retrieved 29 July 2010.
^ "Hayley Mills". D23. (Subscription required (help)).
^ "Party Face, Starring Oscar Winner Hayley Mills, Opens Off-Broadway - Playbill". Playbill.
^ "HAYLEY MILLS... MOTHER OF CRISPIAN". The Australian Women's Weekly. 41, (3). 20 June 1973. p. 8. Retrieved 15 September 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
^ Rebecca Fletcher. "Actress Hayley Mills: where is she now - Life - Life & Style". Daily Express.
^ "THE END OF TWO MARRIAGES". The Australian Women's Weekly. 44, (8). 28 July 1976. p. 30. Retrieved 15 September 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
^ ab Elisa Roche Showbusiness Editor. "My secret triumph over breast cancer by actress Hayley Mills". Express.co.uk.CS1 maint: Extra text: authors list (link)
^ Daily Mail 19 June 1984
^ Foege, Alec. "Pollyanna at 50", People, 7 April 1997. Retrieved on 14 August 2014.
^ Rachel Corcoran (8 March 2012). "Hayley Mills: My father was an inspiration to me". Mail Online. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
^ Blake, Jason (24 June 2015). "Legends! review: Hayley and Juliet Mills shine but this star vehicle fades fast".
Further reading
- Dye, David. Child and Youth Actors: Filmography of Their Entire Careers, 1914-1985. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co., p. 158.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Hayley Mills. |
Hayley Mills on IMDb
Hayley Mills at the TCM Movie Database
Hayley Mills at the Internet Broadway Database
- Hayley Comes Back to Her Richmond Roots