Sondra Locke

Sondra Locke
Locke in 1969
Born
Sandra Louise Smith

(1944-05-28)May 28, 1944
DiedNovember 3, 2018(2018-11-03) (aged 74)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Other names
  • Sandra Elkins
  • Sandra Locke
  • Sondra Anderson
Alma materMiddle Tennessee State University
Occupations
  • Actress
  • director
Years active
  • 1962–1999
  • 2016
Spouse
Gordon Anderson
(m. 1967)
Partner(s)Clint Eastwood (1975–1989)
Scott Cunneen (1990–?)
Signature

Sandra Louise Anderson (née Smith; May 28, 1944 – November 3, 2018), professionally known as Sondra Locke, was an American actress and director.

An alumna of Middle Tennessee State University, Locke broke into regional show business with assorted posts at the Nashville-based radio station WSM-AM, then segued into television as a promotions assistant for WSM-TV. She performed in the theater company Circle Players Inc. while employed at WSM. In 1968, she made her film debut in The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter, for which she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress and earned dual Golden Globe Award nominations for Best Supporting Actress and New Star of the Year.

Locke went on to appear in such box office successes as Willard (1971), The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976), The Gauntlet (1977), Every Which Way but Loose (1978), Bronco Billy (1980), Any Which Way You Can (1980), and Sudden Impact (1983). She worked regularly with Clint Eastwood, who was her companion from 1975 to 1989 despite their marriages to other people. She also directed four films, notably Impulse (1990). She published an autobiography, The Good, the Bad, and the Very Ugly: A Hollywood Journey, in 1997.

Locke's persona belied her age. She claimed to have been born several years later than 1944, often playing roles written for women far younger than herself, and kept her true age a secret throughout her career.[1] For reasons never made clear, her death was not publicly announced and was only confirmed by vital statistics six weeks after she died of cardiac arrest at the age of 74.[2] From 1967 until her death, Locke was the wife of sculptor Gordon Leigh Anderson, in a mixed-orientation union they reputedly never consummated.[3][4]

  1. ^ Stecher, Raquel (March 18, 2022). "Starring Sondra Locke". Turner Classic Movies.
  2. ^ "Actress Sondra Locke Dies Unpublicized in November at Age 74". CBS News. December 13, 2018.
  3. ^ A Fond Farewell to Sondra Locke (1944 – 2018) Harrison, John (December 16, 2018). Filmink.
  4. ^ Sandra Locke appeared with Clint Eastwood in hit films Telegraph Retrieved December 18, 2018