Born Frances Margaret Anderson-Anderson, February 10, 1898, in Adelaide, South Australia; died of pneumonia, January 3, 1992, in Santa Barbara, CA. Actress. Best known for her portrayal of villains, Anderson had a long career in film, stage, and television. She received an Academy Award nomination for her role as a malignant housekeeper in director Alfred Hitchcock's 1940 film, Rebecca. She also appeared in The Ten Commandments, directed by Cecille B. DeMille, as well as film adaptations of Macbeth and Cat ona Hot Tin Roof. Anderson appeared in numerous stage productions, including Mourning Becomes Electra, and she was particularly acclaimed for herwork in the title role of a Broadway production of the classical Greek tragedy Medea in 1947. She also played Gertrude in a 1937 production of Hamlet that starred John Gielgud, and she appeared--at seventy-two yearsof age--in the title role of another production of Hamlet in 1970. Anderson won Emmy Awards for her portrayals of Lady Macbeth in television productions of Macbeth in 1954 and 1960; her television credits also included appearances in Caesar and Cleopatra, The Bridge of San Luis Rey, The Underground Man, and the soap opera Santa Barbara. She made her lastfilm appearance in 1984, in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. In 1960 she received the title of Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire.
Books