Born Susan Ker Weld in New York City. At the age of three she became the sole support of her widowed mother and two siblings, working as a child model and later also as a TV performer. She had her first nervous breakdown at the age of nine, began drinking heavily at 10, and attempted suicide at 12. Making her screen debut at 13 (THE WRONG MAN, 1956), she specialized in portraying unpredictable, cherubic-faced often predatory nymphets and sex kittens. She was often cast in low-grade exploitation films and soap operas and was largely ignored by serious critics. She drew more attention from the gossip columnists who saw in her free-wheeling style of life a "menace" to the reputation of the industry. Weld went through a long period of depression and seclusion, during which she married, had a child, divorced, and saw her house burn down. Her film career seemed all but finished when fans began to notice that she had been a first-rate actress all along but had had the misfortune and bad judgment of being cast in bad films. In the mid-60s she became the center of a growing cult. Special Tuesday Weld film festivals have since been held in Manhattan and elsewhere. Her dramatic roles from the late 60s through the 90s, both in film and television, were meatier and more varied. Other notable credits include "The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis" (1959, TV series - as Thalia Menninger), RETURN TO PEYTON PLACE (1961), SOLDIER IN THE RAIN (1963), THE CINCINNATI KID (1965), LORD LOVE A DUCK (1966), I WALK THE LINE (1970), WHO'LL STOP THE RAIN (1978), SERIAL (1980), THIEF (1981), AUTHOR! AUTHOR! (1982), ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA (1984), HEARTBREAK HOTEL (1988), FALLING DOWN (1993), FEELING MINNESOTA (1996), and CHELSEA WALLS and INVESTIGATING SEX (both 2001). From 1975 to 1980, she was married to Dudley Moore. She then married violinist Pinchas Zuckerman in 1985.  Nominated for Supporting Actress 1977: LOOKING FOR MR. GOODBAR 1 nomination