Photo: Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America / CC BY-SA 2.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Kathy Bates is my favorite kind of star: one who got there on pure craft. She studied theater at Southern Methodist University, paid her dues on New York stages, and then detonated into film stardom with a Best Actress Oscar in 1991. What I love is that Hollywood never quite knew how to package her, so she simply out-acted everyone instead. Decades later she was still collecting Emmys and even directing, proof that her curiosity never dulled. Character actors are the load-bearing walls of cinema, and Bates is the strongest of them all. When she enters a scene, the temperature changes, and that is a power no amount of glamour can buy.
Overview
Kathleen Doyle Bates (born June 28, 1948) is an American actress. Her work spans over five decades, and her accolades include an Academy Award, two Emmy Awards, and two Golden Globe Awards, in addition to nominations for a Tony Award and two BAFTA Awards. Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Bates studied theater at Southern Methodist University before moving to New York City to pursue an acting career.
Summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Kathy Bates
- Name (Japanese)
- キャシー・ベイツ
- Reading
- きゃしー・べいつ
- Born
- June 28, 1948 (age 77)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Cancer / Rat
- Origin
- Memphis, Tennessee, United States
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- film actor / film director / character actor / stage actor / television actor
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- White Station High School
- University
- Southern Methodist University
Awards & achievements
- 1991 Academy Award for Best Actress
- Golden Globe Awards
- Actor Awards
- 2014 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie
- 2012 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series
- star on Hollywood Walk of Fame
- Mary Pickford Award
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
Film actor — see all → · Film director — see all → · More people from United States →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-11
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.