On September 23, at the age of 88, actress Louise Fletcher passed away at her home in Montdurausse, France. David Shaul, on behalf of Fletcher’s family, told Deadline of her passing.
David stated that she died in the home she built from a 300-year-old farmhouse, surrounded by her family. The cause of death was not divulged. The next day, Fletcher told her family about her home, saying she couldn’t believe she had made something so vital to her survival.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest garnered Louise Fletcher an Academy Award for her performance.
Louise Fletcher portrayed Nurse Ratched, aka Mildred Ratched, in the 1975 film adaptation of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Her performance garnered her the Academy Award for Best Actress, a BAFTA, and a Golden Globe.
Nurse Ratched is the director of nursing administration at Salem State Hospital. She has power over convicts’ access to drugs, privileges, and basic necessities such as food and restrooms at Salem State Hospital, a psychiatric facility. When she is offended, she revokes these privileges.
To maintain order and prevent patients from acting out, she employs antipsychotic and anticonvulsant medications and her psychotherapy brand, which involves humiliating patients into doing her bidding.
As a result, her superiors overlook her. The character is considered one of the greatest female antagonists in cinematic history. Milos Forman’s One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest won five Academy Awards and received positive reviews from critics.
All About Louise Fletcher
Louise Fletcher was born to deaf parents on July 22, 1934, and her father established more than 40 deaf churches in Alabama. Her three siblings were Roberta, John, and Georgianna, and she learned to speak through her aunt.
Louise debuted on television in programs including Lawman, Maverick, and Untouchables, among others. Due to her height, she was cast in Westerns and rose to fame.
Louise stated that because she was 5 feet 10 inches tall, no television producer believed that a tall woman could be sexually alluring. She went on,
“I received roles in westerns because the actors were taller than me.”
Louise Fletcher was featured twice as a guest on the Perry Mason episode of the CBS courtroom drama. In a 1960 episode of the Western television series Tate, she portrayed Roberta McConnell. Her husband co-produced the 1974 crime film Thieves Like Us, in which she also appeared.
After starring in the 1975 psychiatric comedy-drama One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Louise rocketed to stardom. She continued to appear in films, some of which were box-office successes and others that were not.
On the list are films such as The Cheap Detective, Brainstorm, Invaders from Mars, Blue Steel, Cruel Intentions, and Exorcist II: The Heretic.
She played Bajoran religious leader Kai Winn Adami in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and then featured in Picket Fences and Joan of Arcadia.
John Dashiell and Andrew Wilson Bick are the sons of Louise Fletcher. She was married to a literary agent and producer Jerry Bick from 1960 to 1977.
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