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Piper Laurie's career didn't break out after Carrie.

posted 8 years ago by jody_curvey
15 replies | jump to latest

It's terrible that Piper Laurie's career didn't become as successful as Sissy Spacek
or John Travolta after Carrie. Amy Irving is another actress whose career didn't reach
extreme success. But, I believe Amy's career is superior to that of Piper. Excluding The Faculty,
which I thought was good, Piper's career didn't really take off. The only cast members
from the film that are doing well in their careers is Sissy, John, and to a lesser extent Amy.

[–] KingTrump 8 years ago

Nancy Allen was in Dressed to Kill

P.J. Soles was in Halloween and Stripes?

Amy Irving was in some movie with Dudley Moore I think.

William Pratt played in Greatest American Hero and The House.

Helen played in Ferris Bueller's Day Off, was in the sitcom Valerie aka Hogan's Family as the neighbor.

[–] Adster (262) 3 years ago

Robocop as well don't forget that really made Nancy Allen (I know this post was 5 years ago)

[–] dlynch843 8 years ago

But Piper was already successful from the movie 'The Hustler' with Paul Newman back in the early 60s. She was pretty good later in 'Twin Peaks'.

[–] freeist 8 years ago

Actually, she already had a very successful acting career in Hollywood that stretched back to 1950, when--at age 17--she played opposite Ronald Reagan. In 1962, she played costar to Paul Newman in The Hustler, where they were both nominated for Oscars. She got married and left show business in 1962 to raise her daughter. Carrie was her comeback film.

She was also nominated for one other Oscar after Carrie and if you look at her list of credits, she's been very active since. You just haven't recognized her in anything else.

She was pretty much of a legend by the time she was in Carrie. Not to0 many people can taste fame and simply walk away from it. If anything, she was the name star that gave the project credibility.

[–] InherentlyYours 8 years ago

She was also nominated as Matlin's mom in Children of a Lesser God

[–] freeist 8 years ago

Yes, long after Carrie. The point is she already had quite a career a decade before Carrie. People were very happy she came back. She was the name-caliber star who sold Carrie. Everybody else, with the possible exception of Travolta, were unknowns.

[–] InherentlyYours 8 years ago

I'm aware of Piper's career, though she wasnt' really considered a legend. Spacek did have earlier success with the well-known appraised "Katherine", and "Prime Cut"; Allen (to a lesser degree) in some of DePalma's films since 1970.

[–] freeist 8 years ago

Not considered a legend, but respected enough, and remembered.

You forgot Badlands playing opposite to Martin Sheen, and considered much better than Prime Cut. It's okay, I didn't even know about Katherine. The fact that I'm a Spacek fan and didn't know about that TV movie is a big embarrassment.

Spacek had barely made a blip on the radar before Carrie. Yes, she had some parts and she was on her way to becoming a workhorse character actress. Outside of Hollywood, though, nobody knew who she was. She was beautiful, but not in the Hollywood stereotype. There was nothing before Carrie that indicated Spacek would become a star. She definitely didn't have anywhere near the name of Piper Laurie.

Though I'm probably wrong as I haven't seen Katherine. (It sounds pretty standard for the time. TV movies then liked to scare audiences about sex, drugs and rock n roll.)

[–] sbrooks839 7 years ago

Uh, "Carrie" was the first De Palma film Nancy Allen starred in. She later went on to star in three other De Palma films, "Home Movies" (1979), "Dressed To Kill" (1980), and "Blow Out" (1981).

[–] CastleH908 8 years ago

Didn't Piper come out of retirement to play Margaret?

[–] Druff (1447) 6 months ago

That's what I heard.

[–] TheOldGuyFromHalloween3 7 years ago

Edie McClurg is the only actress who really had a successful career after this movie

[–] phillindholm 7 years ago

Yeah, not much to say about Amy Irving, compared to McClurg, is there?.

[–] Anthropos1962 7 years ago

...or Sissy Spacek

[–] Druff (1447) 6 months ago

William Katt was The Greatest American Hero!