Born in Birmingham, AL, to Episcopal minister Robert Fletcher and his wife Estelle, both of whom were deaf, Louise Fletcher was introduced to performing at a young age by the aunt who taught her to speak. After graduating from the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill, she took a trip out west with her roommates, finding herself in Los Angeles without enough money to return home. She took a temporary job as a receptionist and signed up for acting classes at night. Soon she was working regularly in television and film, but after marrying producer Jerry Bick and having two sons, the actress took a long hiatus to raise her children. Returning to work in 1974 in Robert Altman's THIEVES LIKE US, Fletcher came to the attention of director Milos Forman, who was casting the difficult role of the nurse in ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST. She won the role - and then the Academy Award - portraying deadly, inflexible Nurse Ratched -- a role reportedly turned down by Jane Fonda, Anne Bancroft and Ellen Burstyn -- who has since become a cultural icon. It is said that Lily Tomlin's role in Altman's NASHVILLE was originally written for, and in part by, Fletcher, whose then-husband, Jerry Bick, had been Altman's producer. When the two men had a falling-out, Altman chose to cast another actress in the role. Numerous film roles followed, including co-starring turns with Richard Burton in THE EXORCIST II: THE HERETIC (1977) and with Peter Falk in THE CHEAP DETECTIVE (1978). After her divorce from Bick in the late 70s she caused a stir when she, then in her 40s, began dating 21 year-old Morgan Mason, the son of actor James Mason. She was a leading choice to play the mother in TERMS OF ENDEARMENT (1983), a role that eventually won Shirley MacLaine an Oscar®. Fletcher appeared in a number of science fiction and horror classics such as FIRESTARTER (1984), BRAINSTORM (1983), and FLOWERS IN THE ATTIC (1987). Though she earned an Emmy® nomination for her recurring role on "Picket Fences," Fletcher is perhaps best known to recent television audiences as Kai Winn from "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" and as Nora Bloom from the cult classic TV series "VR5." She also had a recurring role on "ER." She has worked extensively in television, both on series and in made-for-TV movies. Other film credits include TWO MOON JUNCTION (1988), SHADOWZONE (1990), THE PLAYER (1992), VIRTUOSITY (1995), MULHOLLAND FALLS (1996, uncredited), 2 DAYS IN THE VALLEY (1996), LOVE KILLS (1998), MANNA FROM HEAVEN (2002), FINDING HOME (2003), CLIPPING ADAM (2004), DANCING IN TWILIGHT, FAT ROSE AND SQUEAKY and AURORA BOREALIS (all 2005), FAT ROSE AND SQUEAKY (2006), and THE LAST SIN EATER (2007).  Actress 1975: ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST 1 nomination, 1 Award