Kim Hunter

Actress
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The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Foundation Presents

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About
About this interview

In her three-hour Archive interview, Kim Hunter (1922-2002) discusses her Broadway debut in "A Streetcar Named Desire," in the role of "Stella Kowalski." She talks about reprising the role in the feature film and earning an Academy Award for that part. She speaks frankly of the effects of the "Red Scare" and how she had found herself blacklisted from the industry. She recalls her emergence from the blacklist with appearances on television series, including Climax!, Studio One, and Playhouse 90. Hunter details her roles in such classic Playhouse 90 episodes as "Requiem for a Heavyweight" and "The Comedian." She outlines her work on the "Planet of the Apes" films, playing the role of "Dr. Zira." She discusses her many other television appearances, including her regular role on the daytime serial The Edge of Night. Marc Wallace conducted the interview on October 27, 1999 in New York, NY.

"Live television was me dashing from one set to another, hoping I'd make it in time and stop panting when it was a quiet love scene. Changing clothes in the middle of the set down to the nude, and back into clothes with nobody paying attention because everybody had his own job to do and get to the next scene. It was wild work, but very, very exciting."

People Talking About ...
Kim Hunter
Highlights
Kim Hunter on the film version of "A Streetcar Named Desire"
Kim Hunter on being blacklisted in the 1950s
Kim Hunter on learning of the Kennedy assassination while shooting The Alfred Hitchcock Hour
Kim Hunter on the Actors Studio anthology series
Kim Hunter on various television shows she was on after she got off the blacklist
Kim Hunter on how she'd like to be remembered 
Full Interview

Chapter 1
On her early life and influences; on acting in plays in high school and her first acting teacher; on her professional acting debut and acting at the Old Mill Playhouse in North Carolina
On acting in plays at the Pasadena Playhouse; on being discovered by David O. Selznick; on being in the early Hollywood publicity machine and being released from her Selznick contract

Chapter 2
On changing her name from Janet Cole in 1942; on working with Alfred Hitchcock as a stand-in for the feature "Spellbound"; on various feature films
On playing "Stella Kowalski" in "A Streetcar Named Desire" on Broadway and on film; on working with "A Streetcar Named Desire" director Elia Kazan; on the character of "Stella Kowalski" in "A Streetcar Named Desire"

Chapter 3
On working with Marlon Brando and Jessica Tandy in the stage version of "A Streetcar Named Desire"; on the Actors Studio anthology series; on appearing on various live television broadcasts in the 1950s
On the film version of "A Streetcar Named Desire"; on winning an Oscar for "A Streetcar Named Desire"; on being blacklisted in the 1950s

Chapter 4
On acting on live television in the 1950s; on appearing in various productions on Playhouse 90
On appearing on Person to Person with Edward R. Murrow; on appearing on The Edge of Night; on appearing in the feature film "Planet of the Apes"; on being ubiquitous on television in the 1970s

Chapter 5
On working with Rod Serling; on working with Clint Eastwood on Rawhide; on guest-starring on The Defenders and Columbo
On learning of the Kennedy Assassination while shooting The Alfred Hitchcock Hour; on appearing on That Was the Week that Was; on receiving various Emmy Award nominations
On appearing in various made-for-television movies, and then-current projects; on appearing in "The Belle of Amherst"

Chapter 6
On the made-for-television movie Out of the Cold; on advice to aspiring actors; on the impact of the Hollywood Blacklist on television
On how she would like to be remembered; on various people she encountered in her career; on her family
Shows

Actors Studio

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Kim Hunter on the Actors Studio anthology series

Alfred Hitchcock Presents aka The Alfred Hitchcock Hour

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Kim Hunter on learning of the Kennedy Assassination while shooting The Alfred Hitchcock Hour

Columbo

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Kim Hunter on working with Peter Falk on Columbo

Defenders, The

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Kim Hunter on guest-starring on The Defenders

Edge of Night, The

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Kim Hunter on appearing on The Edge of Night

Emmy Awards, The (Primetime and Daytime)

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Kim Hunter on receiving various Emmy nominations

Murder, She Wrote

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Kim Hunter on guest starring on Murder, She Wrote

Person to Person

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Kim Hunter on appearing on Person to Person with Edward R. Murrow

Playhouse 90

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Kim Hunter on appearing on the Playhouse 90 production of "The Comedian" directed by John Frankenheimer and starring Mickey Rooney
Kim Hunter on appearing on the Playhouse 90 production of "Requiem for a Heaveyweight"

Playhouse 90: "Requiem for a Heavyweight"

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Kim Hunter on appearing on the Playhouse 90 production of "Requiem for a Heaveyweight"

Playhouse 90: "The Comedian"

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Kim Hunter on appearing on the Playhouse 90 production of "The Comedian" directed by John Frankenheimer and starring Mickey Rooney

Rawhide

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Kim Hunter on working with Clint Eastwood on Rawhide

That Was the Week that Was

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Kim Hunter on appearing on That Was the Week that Was
Topics

Advice

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Kim Hunter on advice to aspiring actors

Anthology Drama

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Kim Hunter on appearing on various live television broadcasts in the 1950s
Kim Hunter on acting on live television in the 1950s
Kim Hunter on appearing on various Playhouse 90  productions

Emmy Awards

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Kim Hunter on receiving various Emmy nominations

First Big Break

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Kim Hunter on playing "Stella Kowalski" in "A Streetcar Named Desire" on Broadway in on film

Historic Events and Social Change

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Kim Hunter on learning of the Kennedy assassination while shooting The Alfred Hitchcock Hour

Hollywood Blacklist

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Kim Hunter on being blacklisted in the 1950s
Kim Hunter on the impact of the Hollywood Blacklist on television

Industry Crossroads

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Kim Hunter on being blacklisted in the 1950s
Kim Hunter on the impact of the Hollywood Blacklist on television

JFK Assassination and Funeral

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Kim Hunter on learning of the Kennedy assassination while shooting The Alfred Hitchcock Hour

Pivotal Career Moments

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Kim Hunter on playing "Stella Kowalski" in "A Streetcar Named Desire" on Broadway in on film

TV's Golden Age (1940s & '50s)

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Kim Hunter on appearing on various live television broadcasts in the 1950s
Kim Hunter on acting on live television in the 1950s
Kim Hunter on appearing on various Playhouse 90  productions

Television Industry

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Kim Hunter on being blacklisted in the 1950s
Kim Hunter on advice to aspiring actors
Kim Hunter on the impact of the Hollywood Blacklist on television
Professions

Actress

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Kim Hunter on advice to aspiring actors

Performers

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Kim Hunter on advice to aspiring actors
Genres

Classic Anthology Series

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Kim Hunter on the Actors Studio anthology series
Kim Hunter on appearing on various Playhouse 90 productions

Comedy Series

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Kim Hunter on appearing on That Was the Week that Was

Cop/Detective/Mystery Series

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Kim Hunter on working with Peter Falk on Columbo
Kim Hunter on guest starring on Murder, She Wrote

Daytime/Primetime Serials

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Kim Hunter on appearing on The Edge of Night

Legal Dramas

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Kim Hunter on guest-starring on The Defenders

News and Documentary

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Kim Hunter on appearing on Person to Person with Edward R. Murrow

TV Movies/Miniseries/Dramatic Specials

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Kim Hunter on the made-for-television movie Skokie
Kim Hunter on the made-for-television movie Out of the Cold

Western Series

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Kim Hunter on working with Clint Eastwood on Rawhide
People

Marlon Brando

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Kim Hunter on working with Marlon Brando and Jessica Tandy in the stage version of "A Streetcar Named Desire"

Fred Coe

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Kim Hunter on working with Fred Coe and John Frankenheimer 

Bob Cummings

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Kim Hunter on co-starring with Bob Cummings in the feature "You Came Along"

Clint Eastwood

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Kim Hunter on working with Clint Eastwood on Rawhide

John Frankenheimer

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Kim Hunter on working with Fred Coe and John Frankenheimer 

Alfred Hitchcock

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Kim Hunter on working with Alfred Hitchcock as a stand-in for the feature "Spellbound"

Elia Kazan

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Kim Hunter on working with "A Streetcar Named Desire" director Elia Kazan

Richard Kiley

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Kim Hunter on the Playhouse 90 production of "Before I Die" with Richard Kiley

Edward R. Murrow

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Kim Hunter on appearing on Person to Person with Edward R. Murrow

Mickey Rooney

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Kim Hunter on appearing on the Playhouse 90 production of "The Comedian" directed by John Frankenheimer and starring Mickey Rooney

David O. Selznick

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Kim Hunter on being discovered by David O. Selznick
Kim Hunter on being in the early Hollywood publicity machine and being released from her Selznick contract
Kim Hunter on the end of her contract with David O. Selznick

Rod Serling

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Kim Hunter on working with Rod Serling

Jessica Tandy

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Kim Hunter on working with Marlon Brando and Jessica Tandy in the stage version of "A Streetcar Named Desire"

All Interviews

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