Katy Jurado
About
Biography
Filmography
Family & Companions
Notes
Some sources list 1927 as the year of Ms. Jurado's birth.
Biography
A fiery, long-faced, Mexican-born actress with limpid-pool eyes and full thick lips, Katy Jurado is perhaps best recalled for a handful of roles in American films in the 1950s. After making her acting debut in 1943's "Nos Maturas" in her homeland, she continued to find occasional roles in local productions. To supplement her income, Jurado wrote a column on movies and was on assignment when she landed her first American film role. The actress offered a fine performance as the wife of an aging matador in Budd Boetticher's superior "The Bullfighter and the Lady" (1951). While Hollywood didn't know how to fully exploit her gifts, sometimes hamstringing her in stereotypical roles, Jurado did find the occasional plum. One such role was as the former mistress of Gary Cooper's laconic sheriff in "High Noon" (1952) while another was as Spencer Tracy's dignified but placating wife in "Broken Lance" (1954). The latter earned her a Best Supporting Actress Academy Award nomination. For much of the rest of the decade the versatile Jurado was saddled with less than stellar roles (i.e., the mother of a defendant in the socially-relevant "Trial" 1955) or shone in unchallenging material (e.g., "Trapeze" 1956).
After her 1959 marriage to actor Ernest Borgnine, Jurado curtailed her film work, appearing in only two films, the Marlon Brando-directed Western "One-Eyed Jacks" (1961) and the biblical epic "Barabbas" (1962). After her divorce from Borgnine, the actress resumed her career but now undertook character roles in efforts like "A Covenant With Death" (1967) and NBC TV-movie "Any Second Now" (1969). She lent authenticity to her small role in John Huston's "Under the Volcano" (1984) and made her US TV series debut as Paul Rodriguez's mother in the short-lived ABC sitcom "a.k.a. Pablo" (also 1984). Following "The Fearmaker" (1989), Jurado all but disappeared from screens for nearly a decade emerging in a cameo as a fortune teller in "The Hi-Lo Country" and starring opposite Francisco Rabal as leaders of a cult in the Spanish-language comedy drama "El Evangelio de las Maravillas/Divine" (both 1998).
Filmography
Cast (Feature Film)
Cast (TV Mini-Series)
Life Events
1943
Feature acting debut in the Mexican film "No Maturas"
1951
First US film, "The Bullfighter and the Lady"
1952
Delivered fine performance as Gary Cooper's former mistress in the acclaimed Western "High Noon"
1954
Earned a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination for her turn as Spencer Tracy's wife in "Broken Lance"
1960
Early TV credit, a guest appearance on "The Westerner"
1961
Co-starred in "One-Eyed Jacks", directed by Marlon Brando
1962
Had featured role in the biblical epic "Barabbas"
1969
Made American network TV-movie debut in "Any Second Now" (NBC)
1971
Co-starred in the ABC TV-movie "A Little Game"; last American TV dramatic appearance for ten years
1973
Appeared in Sam Peckinpah's Western "Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid"
1977
Returned to Mexican films in "El Elegidio" and "Los Albaniles"
1981
Had featured role in the NBC miniseries "Evita Peron" (NBC), first American network role in a decade
1984
Acted in "Under the Volcano", helmed by John Huston
1984
Portrayed Paul Rodriguez's mother on the short-lived ABC sitcom "a.k.a. Pablo"
1989
Last film for nearly a decade, "The Fearmaker"
1998
Returned to features in a cameo appearances as a fortune teller in "The Hi-Lo Country" and the Spanish-language "Divine"
Photo Collections
Videos
Movie Clip
Trailer
Family
Companions
Bibliography
Notes
Some sources list 1927 as the year of Ms. Jurado's birth.
