The Young Gena Rowlands Was a Hollywood Stunner and an Iconic Star: Look Back at Her Life and Career

Gena Rowlands blew the roof off in her starring roles like A Woman Under the Influence (1974) and The Notebook (2004), but the star was also beloved for her gorgeous looks. The actress, who served as the muse for her filmmaker husband, John Cassavetes, was a Hollywood stunner and an inspiration, now celebrated after her death at the age of 94.

The dedicated actress was a vision on the screen — and off. Famed author, Tennessee Williams, once compared Rowlands to a work of art, saying, “You place yourself in front of as if they were paintings in a museum, or sunsets, or mountains, or lovers walking slowly away from you.”

But Rowlands wasn’t simply just an actress or a vision: she was a force on the screen. Portraying roles that were far outside her comfort zone but bringing eloquence and passion to her characters, her performances were believable and compelling, and audiences wanted to watch her.

Gena Rowlands always wanted to be an actress

Her acting career  was a given from the very beginning. Rowlands knew from a young age she wanted to be on stage or on the screen, but it couldn’t have been predicted how much of an inspiration she would become.

It may have had something to do with the encouragement she received from her parents. Rowlands shared in an interview that her parents were thrilled by the idea of her being an actress, if it made her happy.

“ I think I have the only parents in the world who would not have said something against that [becoming an actress] ... I just couldn’t wait anymore to go be an actress. I’d wanted to be one all my life… I told my father and he literally said, ‘I don’t care if you want to be an elephant trainer if it makes you happy.’”

Gena Rowlands’ many accolades

Her astounding career left an extreme mark on Hollywood and her legacy will live on. For her amazing work over the years, the actress received an Honorary Academy Award in 2016, as well as three Primetime Emmy awards and two Golden Globes.

“ You know what’s wonderful about being an actress? ” Rowlands once said. “You don’t just live one life,” she said at the podium. “You live many lives.”

And so, she did. Rowlands portrayed intense characters like her role in A Woman Under the Influence and often she filled the role of a mother, something she loved to do.

“ As an actress, I've played a lot of mothers . People ask me, ‘Don't you get sick of it?’ And I think, Why would I get sick of it? Mothers are the most powerful people in the world.”

Gena Rowlands thanked John Cassavetes for much of her success

Rowlands began working with John Cassavetes in 1963, when she starred in a film he directed, A Child is Waiting . Cassavetes wrote many of his films with his wife in mind. In 1974, Cassavetes wrote the film, A Woman Under the Influence , with the role of Mabel specifically for Rowlands.

The actress had to portray a woman suffering from a mental illness but felt unready to perform in that capacity. Cassavetes, however, gave Rowlands what she considers the best advice she ever received.

“ I said, ‘John, I don’t want to disappoint you but I’m not quite sure how to do this. How? How would you want me to do this? How deeply do we go into this?’ He said, ‘Gena, you read the script. You liked it. You liked your part. You wanted to do it. Do it.’”

Rowlands always had nothing but love for her husband and the kind of director he was. “ John was one of a kind , the most totally fearless person I’ve ever known. He had a very specific view of life and the individuality of people.”

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