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Sharon Stone - Biography |
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A self-described "übergeek" who
couldn't get a date to her high school prom, Sharon Stone proved that
brains (an IQ of 154) were certainly no impediment to forging a career in
the entertainment industry, especially when capitalizing on naturally
blonde good looks as a fetching piece of "eye candy" in movies both good
and bad. The former beauty pageant contestant and Ford model made her film
debut with a non-speaking part as a beautiful woman fleetingly glimpsed
from a moving train in Woody Allen's "Stardust Memories" (1980) and then
survived more than a decade of mostly mediocre parts to claw her way to
stardom. A journalist's dream, she is one of the best interviews in
Hollywood, talking smart, tough and funny (she once described former beau
Dwight Yoakam as less appealing than a "dirt sandwich"), and bringing back
an old-fashioned, high-octane glamour to her role as a "movie star.”
Despite demonstrating considerable range as an actor, Stone has shown her
true genius to be self-invention, creating a persona to rival that of
stars like Joan Crawford and Betty Davis from a more style-conscious,
bygone era.
The high points for Stone through the 1980s were few, though she did
attract notice as Ryan O'Neal's conniving actress girlfriend in
"Irreconcilable Differences" (1984) and as Robert Mitchum's
daughter-in-law in the much-watched ABC miniseries "War and Remembrance"
(1988). Mostly, she persevered as a stereotypical blonde in lackluster
films like Wes Craven's "Deadly Blessing" (1981, whose saving grace was
meeting best friend Mimi Craven, the director's ex-wife), "King Solomon's
Mines" (1985) and its sequel "Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold"
(1987), "Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol" (1987) and a remake of
"Blood and Sand" (1989, in a role that had done considerably more for Rita
Hayworth). She didn't fare any better on the small screen either,
including a regular role as the wife of a bed-wetting baseball pitcher in
the short-lived "Bay City Blues" (NBC, 1983).
Stone's first real break came playing Arnold Schwarzenegger's kick-boxing
secret agent "wife" in Paul Verhoeven's sci-fi actioner "Total Recall"
(1990). After five more forgettable thrillers and comedies, she finally
achieved the proverbial "overnight" success as a voracious bisexual crime
writer in Verhoeven's controversial and popular erotic thriller "Basic
Instinct" (1992), written by Joe Ezsterhas. Her panties-less, leg-crossing
scene brought Stone much notoriety but has haunted her ever since. Though
she really didn't want to do "Sliver" (1993), another sizzling sex
melodrama written by Ezsterhas which did middling business stateside and
smashing box office overseas, she couldn't find any other part she liked
better, so she made the mistake of retreating into the much more familiar
and conventionally sympathetic role as the victim of a psychotic voyeur.
Trying to escape the sex-bomb trap, she begged for the frigid wife role
(they offered her much more to play the girlfriend) in "Intersection"
(1994) and scored great reviews despite its limited success.
Stone again flexed her international box-office clout paired with
Sylvester Stallone in the explosive actioner "The Specialist" (1994), and
though she couldn't make Sly sexy, her good work helped make the picture
(which James Woods walked off with) worth watching. She liked the script
for "The Quick and the Dead" (1995) and became its co-producer, paying
half of Leonardo DiCaprio's wages out of her own salary when the project
ran into difficulties. Stone looked terrific in Western duds playing
something of a distaff version of a Clint Eastwood-like gunfighter, and
director Sam Raimi helmed the smartly derivative tale with style to spare.
Unfortunately, the critical reception was uneven, and the public stayed
away. She rebounded as Ginger, the Vegas hustler who wins the heart of
Robert De Niro, in Martin Scorsese's "Casino" (also 1995). No part before
had ever made such heavy demands on the actress, and she was a revelation,
letting loose with a corker of a performance as the beautiful and
unstable, ultimately pathetic moll with no inner life that yielded a Best
Actress Oscar nomination.
The now highly-paid, much-in-demand diva, boasting her own production
company (Chaos) and a first-look deal with Miramax, filmed a remake of the
noir classic "Diabolique" with Isabelle Adjani and Chazz Palminteri and
played a death-row inmate whose lawyer (Rob Morrow) works to save her from
execution in "Last Dance" (both 1996). The former (a pale imitation of the
1955 classic) was notable more for her battle with its producer over
refusing to bare her flesh, while the latter, despite presenting a
uniquely drab, unglamorous Stone, was in the wrong place at the wrong
time, following so close on the heels of the previous year's "Dead Man
Walking.” Protecting her hard-won stardom, Stone had became a clever
manipulator of her public image, on heavy press days reportedly changing
outfits between each interview and photo session, a practice unheard of
since the days of Carole Lombard and Norma Shearer. Onscreen and off, she
understood that her power resided in her unwillingness to relinquish her
femaleness.
Stone's acting teacher Roy London had told her that audiences could love
to hate her, and the advice made her a star. In her personal life,
however, the wreckage of femme fatalities left in her wake solidified her
image as an "ice princess,” a tag she sought to lose in order to be taken
seriously as an actress. Stone went to work on changing the public's
perception of her, crediting Miramax executive Harvey Weinstein with
having the foresight to see she could convincingly play a relatively
normal, single mother "when everyone else said it was impossible" (of
course the fact that her production company ultimately provided financing
for 1998's "The Mighty" made his decision infinitely easier.) That said,
her strong, emotional performance in a secondary role confirmed her range,
and her marriage to San Francisco Examiner editor Phil Bronstein helped
with her transition from sex bomb to domestic goddess.
Having reached the age of 40, she intended to keep her clothes on, and her
superstar clout led to the diversity she had craved in movies like "Antz,”
the 1998 animated film which vocally reunited her with Woody Allen,
"Sphere" (1998, cast as a biochemist in the lackluster Barry Levinson
venture), "Gloria" (1999, a remake to unsettle John Cassavetes' final
repose) and, terrifically, in "The Muse" (1999, playing the titular role
to writer-director-star Albert Brooks, a Greek muse who lends her
inspiration to Hollywood types, but not without turning their lives upside
down with her demands). She appeared, in fine form, in a brief but pivotal
appearance as the alcoholic wife of a horse breeder in the otherwise
dismal "Simpatico" (also 1999). Although Stone would sometimes resurface
in low-profile projects—including "Picking Up the Pieces" (2000),
"Beautiful Joe" (2000) and in a charming turn opposite Ellen Degeneres in
HBO's lesbian-themed "If These Walls Could Talk 2" (2000)—but her
1998-2003 marriage to San Francisco Chronicle publisher Phil Bronstein
kept her away from Hollywood—geographically and on film—for many years
(and produced at least bizarre anecdote: the publisher was bitten on the
foot by a komodo dragon at the Los Angeles Zoo during a birthday visit
there arranged by Stone in 2001). Also in 2001, the actress suffered a
brain aneurysm that nearly proved fatal.
After filing for divorce from Bronstein, Stone returned looking as fit and
fabulous as ever and lit up the big screen again in director Mike Figgis'
sly reinvention of a haunted house thriller "Cold Creek Manor" (2003).
Stone gave one of her most campy—and unsatisfying—turns as the villainous
model-cum-mogul Laurel Hadare opposite Halle Berry in the lackluster
"Catwoman" (2004) on screen, while off-screen she was the subject of a
courtroom battle after producers backed out of an alleged verbal $19.36
million agreement for her to star in a sequel to "Basic Instinct"—she
later settled, with part of deal including a planned sequel. After a brief
appearance in the unsurprisingly rotten “Jiminy Glick in La La Wood”
(2005), Stone played one of four ex-girlfriends tracked down by a man
(Bill Murray) who received an anonymous letter from the mother of his
unknown son in Jim Jarmusch’s “Broken Flowers” (2005).
At 48, an age when most actresses have had trouble even landing a role,
Stone returned to the territory that made her famous when she starred in
the long-talked-about sequel, “Basic Instincts 2: Risk Addiction” (2006).
As promised, the nearly-50-year-old actress bared all in her return as the
ice pick-wielding crime novelist Catherine Trammell, creating what she
hoped would be a big enough stir to lure curiosity seekers into the
multiplexes. But “Basic Instinct 2” took a critical and theatrical
drubbing, while the actress received unbridled scorn for a performance
that was deemed embarrassing and comical, though nothing compared to the
media savagery she got for saying that she would “kiss just about anybody
for peace in the Middle East” at a press conference in Israel. In a
surprising turn later in the year, Stone was the recipient of warm praise
for her mature and grounded performance in “Bobby” (2006), first time
director Emilio Estevez’s engaging look at the 16 hours prior to Senator
Robert F. Kennedy’s assassination at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles
as seen through the eyes of several guests and employees. Oscar talk was
high in the weeks following the film’s debut at the 2006 Venice Film
Festival, where it received a nine-minute long standing ovation,
particularly for Stone and costar Demi Moore. |
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Sharon Stone - Personal Quotes |
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"I was, like, forty at birth.
When I wasn't even a year old, I spoke, I was potty trained, I
walked and talked. That was it. Then I started school and drove
everybody crazy because they realized I had popped out as an adult.
I had adult questions and wanted adult answers."
"My father has always been supportive of my individuality." - in a
Barbara Walters interview, September 1993.
"It's traumatizing for me to come to Washington during a Republican
administration because I don't have any Republican clothes." -
Washington Post, June 20, 2001
"Any man in Hollywood will meet me if I want that. No, make that any
man anywhere."
"My personal style and public style are very different. When I go
out, I play dress up."
"Never play cards with a guy named Doc. Never eat at a place called
Mom's. And never have sex with anybody who has more problems than
you do."
"...be willing to say yes, no matter who says no, and to say no,
regardless of who says yes."
On the benefits of being famous: "I find I get to torture a higher
class of men."
"I dress up to show that I am happy." 1994.
"It was my first movie (Stardust Memories (1980)) and the
opportunity of working with Woody Allen. It was a great experience,
and I can compare it, in sexual terms, with the lost of virginity".
"It's my experience that you really can't lose when you try the
truth."
"People don't change their behavior unless it makes a difference for
them to do so."
Asked to pay tribute to troops fighting in Iraq: "I know it's a
difficult time for you to come out to party during such a time of
strife in our world. My feeling is that I hope everyone will be safe
and protected and taken care of, and our prayers are with the people
around the world who will be affected by this."
"I like to drive with my knees. Otherwise, how can I put on my
lipstick and talk on the phone?"
"I've had the same breasts for my entire adult life."
"If you have a vagina and an attitude in this town, then that's a
lethal combination."
Stone found her brush with death from a brain aneurysm has given her
a new lease of life: "This brilliant, bright, white vortex of light
was upon me. And then I was met by some of my friends, people who
are very dear to me. But it was over very fast and suddenly I was
back in the room and in my own body. It affected me so profoundly
that I realized my life would never be the same again. It has
definitely given me a new perspective on my career."
"Ava Gardner was the most beautiful woman in the world, and it's
wonderful that she didn't cut up her face. She addressed aging by
picking up her chin and receiving the light in a better way. And she
looked like a woman. She never tried to look like a girl."
"Women might be able to fake orgasms. But men can fake whole
relationships."
"If you act like you know what you're doing, you can do anything you
want- except neurosurgery."
"I bake all the time, but I don't like to eat the cookies when
they're done. I just like the dough."
"I don't believe make up and the right hairstyle alone can make a
woman beautiful. The most radiant woman in the room is the one full
of life and experience."
When told Madonna has said she wants to kiss her: "Not in this
lifetime. Why? Because I'm the only one she hasn't done it to."
"We Barbie dolls are not supposed to behave the way I do."
"I believe that if you truly, truly love your children, you need to
supply condoms in a place in your home, at a quantity that makes it
a non-judgmental situation for them to have them... If they want to
make water balloons out of them, great. If they want to carry them
so they feel tough, great. If they want to give them to their
friends, even better."
"Carole Lombard, Clark Gable, Ginger Rogers, Fred Astaire - that was
my idea of what it was supposed to be like. I thought, 'Well, I can
do that even if no one else does.' Who cares? I dress up to show
that I am happy and grateful to be there. That's what you do where I
come from. I don't feel like saying, 'fuck you.' I feel like saying,
'thank you.'"
"I thought when I made my first big mistakes in public that that was
really going to be the end of me. My parents cried. My friends were
desperate."
On fame: "It would walk into the room and eat you, or take you for a
ride through a fabulous jungle - or it could slap the living
daylights out of you, laugh, and leave."
"If you don't want my peaches, don't shake my tree."
"I have this philosophy that money talks and cash screams."
"After you've been through all that stuff, the rest of this is just
kid's stuff. As Winston Churchill says, when you're going through
hell, keep going".
"People get very hung up on whether they gave birth. ... I've come
to understand that it's not who 'has' you, but who loves you that
shapes you as a person."
"Peace does exist. It exists in your heart and soul."
"I'm more honest, more true, more vulnerable because I used to think
that I was supposed to be fearless. Now I know that its okay to be
afraid as long as you show up."
"The villain is like a cobra. They watch, they watch, they watch.
And then they strike."
"Celebrity is a pretty stunning thing. At first I was like 'They
love me! Oh, I love them, too!' And suddenly, I was tap-dancing on
my pedestal and it was WHACK! Facedown in the dirt."
[Talking about Basic Instinct 2 (2006)]: "By the time the film is
released, I will be 48 and I wanted to do the nudity in a way that's
quite brazen. I wanted her to be very masculine, like a man in a
steam room and I wanted the audience to have a moment where they
realize she's naked and then realize that she's a forty something
woman and naked. Because we're not used to seeing that in movies.
We're used to seeing Sean Connery and his granddaughter, you know
what I mean? Or Mel Gibson and his daughter".
"My mother gave me a jar of Avon Rich Moisture Cream when I was 14.
She said, 'Don't ask me why; you'll thank me later.'" -Woman's
World, 4-11-06
"In this business there is Plan A, in which you become successful by
living and acting with a lot of integrity. Then there's Plan B,
where you sell your soul to the Devil. I still find it hard to
distinguish one from the other."
"I've really given up my life to God, and I know that's why I'm OK
and at peace. I've never had a conflict when I'm praying on a set."
"I've been at this so long that I knew everyone in the business long
before I became famous, and I didn't have any value to many of them.
Now, suddenly, the people who were coarse and rude to me before
treat me as though we've never met, and now I'm fabulous, they're
fabulous and isn't it fabulous we're chatting."
"My children need to have someone they can look up to, someone they
can look at and say, Gee, I'd like to be just like him, So I don't
want to just bring some schmuck around them. When I meet people I
have to think about are they going to be a good example for my
sons."
"For the first half of your life, you get the face that you're born
with. And for the second half you get the face you deserve. And it's
important to recognize the beauty within you and allow it to grow by
being the greater person that you can be."
"People are just sitting there going, 'I don't care what she's
saying, I just want to know does she get naked in the movie? Is she
naked? Nude nude nude naked, do I see her boobies?'" -during a Basic
Instinct 2 press conference
"At 47, you have thoughtfulness and dignity and spiritual
elegance...You have something to say. It's not just, Hi! I look
terrific in a bathing suit.'"
"When you've had a long career, nobody has not made movies that
aren't successful, it's your job, not a hobby."
"Being professional in what I do is very important to me. Flakes
don't make it to the top, pros do. Acting is a tough scene that
becomes your whole life and to survive in that kind of environment
you must be humane and honest."
"I was this cute young girl with a nice ass who was a terrible
actress. But I've worked real hard to become a good actress and now
I think I'm starting to reap the benefits of that hard work." (from
a 1990 interview) |
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Sharon Stone - Filmography |
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Dirty Tricks (2008) ....
Katharine Graham
Five Dollars a Day (2008) .... Dolores
Democrazy (2007) .... Patricia Hill
... aka Demopazzia (Italy)
When a Man Falls in the Forest (2007) .... Karen Fields
... aka Desires of a Housewife (USA)
... aka When a Man Falls (USA)
If I Had Known I Was a Genius (2007) .... Gloria Foster
... aka Genius: If Only I Had Known (USA: poster title)
The Year of Getting to Know Us (2007) .... Jane Rocket
Bobby (2006) .... Miriam Ebbers
"Huff" .... Dauri Rathburn (3 episodes, 2006)
- Sweet Release (2006) TV episode .... Dauri Rathburn
- Whipped Doggie (2006) TV episode .... Dauri Rathburn
- Maps Don't Talk (2006) TV episode .... Dauri Rathburn
Basic Instinct 2 (2006) .... Catherine Tramell
... aka Basic Instinct - Neues Spiel für Catherine Tramell (Germany)
... aka Instinto básico 2 - adicción al riesgo (Spain)
Alpha Dog (2006) .... Olivia Mazursky
Broken Flowers (2005) .... Laura
"Will & Grace" .... Dr. Georgia Keller (1 episode, 2005)
- The Blonde Leading the Blind (2005) TV episode .... Dr. Georgia
Keller
"Higglytown Heroes" .... The Blind Art Teacher (1 episode, 2005)
- Twinkle's Masterpiece/The Egg-cellent Adventure (2005) TV episode
.... The Blind Art Teacher
"Kurtlar vadisi" .... Lisa (2 episodes, 2005)
... aka Valley of Wolves (literal English title)
- Episode #4.96 (2005) TV episode .... Lisa
- Episode #4.97 (2005) TV episode .... Lisa
Catwoman (2004) .... Laurel Hedare
A Different Loyalty (2004) .... Sally Tyler/Cauffield
"The Practice" .... Sheila Carlisle (3 episodes, 2003)
- Blessed Are They (2003) TV episode .... Sheila Carlisle
- Cause of Action (2003) TV episode .... Sheila Carlisle
- The Chosen (2003) TV episode .... Sheila Carlisle
Cold Creek Manor (2003) .... Leah Tilson
... aka Maison au fond de la baie, La (Canada: French title)
"Harold and the Purple Crayon" (2002) TV series .... Narrator
(unknown episodes)
Beautiful Joe (2000) .... Alice 'Hush' Mason
Picking Up the Pieces (2000) .... Candy Cowley
If These Walls Could Talk 2 (2000) (TV) .... Fran (segment "2000")
"Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child" .... Henny Penny
(1 episode, 1999)
- Henny Penny (1999) TV episode (voice) .... Henny Penny
Simpatico (1999) .... Rosie Carter
... aka Simpatico (France)
The Sissy Duckling (1999) (TV) (voice) .... Narrator
The Muse (1999) .... Sarah Little
Gloria (1999) .... Gloria
Antz (1998) (voice) .... Princess Bala
The Mighty (1998) .... Gwen Dillon
Sphere (1998) .... Dr. Elizabeth 'Beth' Halperin
Last Dance (1996) .... Cindy Liggett
Diabolique (1996) .... Nicole Horner
Casino (1995) .... Ginger McKenna
... aka Casino (France)
"Roseanne" .... Trailer Park Resident (1 episode, 1995)
- Happy Trailers (1995) TV episode .... Trailer Park Resident
The Quick and the Dead (1995) .... Ellen "The Lady"
The Specialist (1994) .... May Munro (aka Adrian Hastings)
... aka Especialista, El (Peru)
Intersection (1994) .... Sally Eastman
Last Action Hero (1993) .... Catherine Tramell
Sliver (1993) .... Carly Norris
... aka Sliver - Gier der Augen
Basic Instinct (1992) .... Catherine Tramell
... aka Basic Instinct (France)
... aka Ice Cold Desire (Singapore: English title: censored version)
Diary of a Hitman (1991) .... Kiki
Where Sleeping Dogs Lie (1991) .... Serena Black
Year of the Gun (1991) .... Alison King
Scissors (1991) .... Angie Anderson
He Said, She Said (1991) .... Linda Metzger
Total Recall (1990) .... Lori
Sangre y arena (1989) .... Doña Sol
... aka Blood and Sand
Beyond the Stars (1989) .... Laurie McCall
... aka Personal Choice
"War and Remembrance" (1988) (mini) TV mini-series .... Janice Henry
Badlands 2005 (1988) (TV) .... Alex Neil
... aka Brides of Lizard Gulch (USA: subtitle)
Above the Law (1988) .... Sara Toscani
... aka Nico (UK: cable TV title)
... aka Nico: Above the Law (Australia)
Action Jackson (1988) .... Patrice Dellaplane
Tears in the Rain (1988) (TV) .... Casey Cantrell
Cold Steel (1987) .... Kathy Connors
Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold (1987) .... Jesse Huston
Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol (1987) .... Claire Mattson
... aka Citizens on Patrol: Police Academy 4 (UK: poster title)
Mr. and Mrs. Ryan (1986) (TV) .... Ashley Hamilton Ryan
King Solomon's Mines (1985) .... Jesse Huston
"T.J. Hooker" .... Dani Starr (1 episode, 1985)
- Hollywood Starr (1985) TV episode .... Dani Starr
The Vegas Strip War (1984) (TV) .... Sarah Shipman
... aka Las Vegas Strip War
"Magnum, P.I." .... Deirdre Dupres / ... (3 episodes, 1984)
- Mac's Back (1984) TV episode (uncredited) .... Diane Dupres in
flashback
- Echoes of the Mind: Part 2 (1984) TV episode .... Diane
Dupres/Deirdre Dupres
- Echoes of the Mind: Part 1 (1984) TV episode .... Diane
Dupres/Deirdre Dupres
Irreconcilable Differences (1984) .... Blake Chandler (aka Amanda)
Calendar Girl Murders (1984) (TV) .... Cassie Bascomb
... aka Insatiable
... aka Victimised (UK: video title)
... aka Victimized
"Mike Hammer" .... Julie Eland (1 episode, 1984)
... aka Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer (USA: complete title)
... aka The New Mike Hammer (USA: new title)
- Shots in the Dark (1984) TV episode .... Julie Eland
"Bay City Blues" (1983) TV series .... Cathy St. Marie (unknown
episodes, 1983)
"Uns et les autres, Les" (1983) (mini) TV mini-series (uncredited)
.... Girl with Glenn Senior
"Remington Steele" .... Jillian Montague (1 episode, 1983)
- Steele Crazy After All These Years (1983) TV episode .... Jillian
Montague
"Silver Spoons" .... Debbie (1 episode, 1982)
- A Little Magic (1982) TV episode .... Debbie
Not Just Another Affair (1982) (TV) .... Lynette
... aka Perfect Affair
Deadly Blessing (1981) .... Lana Marcus
Uns et les autres, Les (1981) (uncredited) .... Girl with Glenn
Senior
... aka Bolero (International: English title) (USA)
... aka Bolero: Dance of Life (International: English title)
... aka Dance of Life (International: English title)
... aka Within Memory
Stardust Memories (1980) .... Pretty Girl on train |
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Sharon Stone - Related Links |
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Wikipedia: Sharon Stone
YouTube: Sharon Stone
Sharon Stone at Celebs, Inc.
Sharon Stone at Babemania.com
Top Celebrities Sites:
The Celebrity
Cafe |
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