theOscarSite Facts:
Birth Name:
  • Patricia Davies Clarkson
Birth Date:
  • 29 December 1959
Birthplace:
  • New Orleans, LA
Quote:
  • "Unfortunately, those [housewife, mother] are the parts. There are very, very few parts for women 35 and older that are not token. If they're not, they're usually going to be played by a star. They're not stupid. They're going to seize those parts. If they're a lead, they're the reason that movie's going to be made. But sometimes, even they're playing the wife." (Gambit Weekly, April 15, 2003)
Education:
  • Louisiana State University (Baton Rouge, majored in speech pathology)
  • Fordham University (The Bronx, NY; majored in liberal arts--BA 1982)
  • School of Drama, Yale University (New Haven, CT; MFA); studied under Earle Gister
Claim to Fame:
  • One of her best screen parts was the role of a washed-up, drug-addicted German actress whose lesbian lover (Ally Sheedy) pulls away from her in HIGH ART (1998)
Family:
  • Father: Arthur Clarkson (aka Buzz Clarkson), school administrator; worked at Department of Medicine of Louisiana State University
  • Mother: Jacquelyn B. Clarkson, politician; represented the French Quarter of New Orleans as district councilwoman
  • Sisters: Has four, all older
Significant Other(s):
  • Campbell Scott: Actor, screenwriter
Factoid:
  • Clarkson has appeared in more than 30 stage productions
Feature Film
Credits:
  • 2009: Shutter Island
    2008: Hurricane Mary, Vicky Christina Barcelona, Elegy, Pheobe in Wonderland, Blind Date
    2007: Married Life, Lars and the Real Girl, No Reservations
    2006: All the King's Men, The Woods
    2005: Good Night, and Good Luck, The Dying Gaul
    2004: Miracle
    2003: Dogville, The Station Agent, All the Real Girls, Pieces of April
    2002: The Baroness and the Pig, Heartbreak Hospital, Far from Heaven, Welcome to Collinwood
    2001: The Safety of Objects, Wendigo, The Pledge
    2000: Falling Like This, Joe Gould's Secret
    1999: The Green Mile, Wayward Son, Simply Irresistible
    1998: Playing by Heart, High Art
    1995: Pharaoh's Army, Jumanji
    1990: Tune In Tomorrow...
    1988: Everybody's All-American, Rocket Gibraltar, The Dead Pool
    1987: The Untouchables
  • TV credits include "Murder One," "Queen", "Davis Rules" and "Six Feet Under"
Academy Awards®: