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Jill Ireland
British actress (1936–1990) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Jill Dorothy Ireland (24 April 1936 – 18 May 1990) was an English actress and singer.
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Early life
Ireland was born in Hounslow, South West London, England. She was the daughter of a wine importer.[1][2] She was educated at Chatsworth Junior School in Hounslow. She lived at 'Chertsey' on Maswell Park Road in Hounslow.[3]
Career
Ireland began acting in the mid-1950s with small roles in films such as Simon and Laura (1955) and Three Men in a Boat (1956). She appeared with first husband David McCallum in Robbery Under Arms[4] and five episodes of The Man from U.N.C.L.E.: "The Quadripartite Affair" (season 1, episode 3, 1964), "The Giuoco Piano Affair" (season 1, episode 7, 1964), "The Tigers Are Coming Affair" (season 2, episode 8, 1965),[5] and a two-parter "The Five Daughters Affair" (season 3, episodes 28 & 29, 1967).
She appeared in 16 films with second husband Charles Bronson between 1970 and 1987, and was involved in two of Bronson’s other films as a producer. The last of these films, Assassination (1987), was her biggest role in terms of screen time, with Ireland playing the First Lady of the United States and Bronson a Secret Service agent assigned to protect her. During her marriage to Bronson, Ireland appeared in only one TV episode, one made-for-TV movie and one theatrical film that didn't star her husband.
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Personal life
In 1957, Ireland married actor David McCallum, whom she met while working on Hell Drivers.[6] They had two sons, Paul and Valentine, and adopted a third, Jason. McCallum and Ireland separated in 1965 and divorced in 1967. Jason McCallum died of a drug overdose in 1989.[7]
Villa Rides marked the first of many appearances by Ireland in films with her future husband Charles Bronson. In 1968, Ireland married Bronson.[6] She had met him when he and McCallum were filming The Great Escape (1963) some years earlier. Together they had a daughter, Zuleika, and adopted a daughter, Katrina. They remained married until Ireland's death in 1990.[8]
Death and legacy
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Ireland was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1984.[6] After her diagnosis, Ireland wrote two books, chronicling her battle with the disease. At the time of her death, she was writing a third book and became a spokeswoman for the American Cancer Society.[6] In 1988, she testified before the U.S. Congress about medical costs and was given the American Cancer Society's Courage Award by Ronald Reagan then US president.[9]
In 1990, Ireland died of breast cancer at her home in Malibu, California.[9] She was cremated and her ashes were placed in a walking cane which Charles Bronson had buried with him at Brownsville Cemetery in Vermont[10] when he died in 2003.[11]
For her contribution to the film industry, Jill Ireland has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6751 Hollywood Boulevard.[12]
In 1991, Ireland was portrayed by Jill Clayburgh in the made-for-television film Reason for Living: The Jill Ireland Story. The film, which was based on Ireland's memoir Lifelines and listed her posthumously as an executive producer, received mixed reviews from critics.[13] To prepare for the role, Clayburgh, who had never met Ireland, read Lifelines and listened to Ireland's recorded interviews.[14]
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Filmography
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Books
- Life Wish: a Personal Story of Survival (1987) ISBN 0-515-09609-1, ISBN 0-316-10926-6
- Lifeline: My Fight to Save My Family (1989) ISBN 0-7126-2531-3, ISBN 0-446-51480-2
References
External links
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