Dyan Cannon - Biography

Dyan Cannon (born Samille Diane Friesen on January 4, 1937) is an American film and television actress, director, screenwriter, editor, and producer.

Early life

Cannon was born in Tacoma, Washington. Her mother Claire (née Portnoy) was a homemaker; Cannon's father Ben sold life insurance. Cannon was raised in the Jewish faith of her mother, who had emigrated from Russia; Dyan's father was Baptist. She attended West Seattle High School.

Career

Cannon made her screen debut in 1960 in The Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond, however her small screen debut was in the late 1950s including a guest appearance on Bat Masterson in 1959, in the episode entitled "Lady Luck". Another role was as Mona Elliott, with fellow guest star Franchot Tone, in the episode "The Man Behind the Man" of the 1964 CBS drama, The Reporter, with Harry Guardino in the title role. She also made appearances on 77 Sunset Strip, the perennial western series Gunsmoke, The Untouchables and the syndicated Two Faces West in the 1960 episode entitled "Sheriff of the Town".

In 1969, Cannon starred with an ensemble cast led by Natalie Wood in Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice, a film about sexual revolution in which she played Alice. She received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the film, as well as two Golden Globe nominations. Most of Cannon's later roles in the 1970s were less successful, although she did receive a Best Actress Golden Globe nomination for Such Good Friends (1971). In addition, she became the first Oscar-nominated actress to be nominated in the Best Short Film, Live Action Category for Number One (1976), a project which Cannon produced, directed, wrote and edited. It was a story about adolescent sexual curiosity. In 1978, Cannon starred in Revenge of the Pink Panther. That same year, she appeared opposite Warren Beatty, Julie Christie and James Mason in Heaven Can Wait. This performance earned her a second Oscar nomination and also won her a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress.

In 1976, she hosted Saturday Night Live during its first season. She was a guest in the fourth season of The Muppet Show in 1979.

In the 1980s, Cannon, who is also a singer/songwriter, appeared in Honeysuckle Rose (1980) with Willie Nelson, Deathtrap (1982) with Christopher Reeve and Michael Caine, Caddyshack II (1988) and has starred in several TV movies.

In the 1990s, she appeared on the popular television shows Diagnosis: Murder and The Practice, as well as being a semi-regular on Ally McBeal. She made appearances in films such as That Darn Cat (1997), 8 Heads in a Duffel Bag (1997), Out to Sea (1997) with the duo Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon, and Kangaroo Jack (2003). She also starred on the short-lived sitcom Three Sisters (2001–2002). In 2005, she appeared in Boynton Beach Club, a movie about aging Floridians who have just lost their spouses.

Personal life

On July 22, 1965, she married Cary Grant, who was 33 years her senior. They had one daughter, Jennifer (born February 26, 1966), also an actress. They were divorced on March 21, 1968, but the custody disputes over their daughter went on for years. In 1972, she told an interviewer that she was involved in Primal therapy. Cannon married real estate investor Stanley Fimberg in 1985. They divorced in 1991.

Her brother is jazz bassist David Friesen. She has one grandchild, Cary Benjamin Grant, born on August 12, 2008.

Cannon is now a devout Christian.

Filmography

External links