Remembering Shirley Knight

I had watched the excellent, Sidney Lumet directed film, “The Group,’ the night before, favoring her “Polly” character and the next day, Shirley Knight, brilliant and touching in that and countless other performances, died at the age of 83.

Ms. Knight dazzled in such films as “Sweet Bird of Youth,” with Paul Newman and “Dutchman” opposite Al Freeman Jr.

On stage, Shirley Knight’s remarkable work included “Kennedy’s Children” and “The Man From Atlanta.” 

Watching “The Group” a 1966 film with a great cast, I fell for “Polly’s” sweetness as Shirley Knight conveyed it. In “As Good As It Gets,” which starred Jack Nicholson and Helen Hunt, Shirley’s humor poured out, playing Ms. Hunt’s character’s mother.

All in all, a remarkable award winning career, in which Shirley Knight’s incredible presence touched so many, in profound, good ways.

Shirley Knight, pictured above, with Paul Newman in Tennessee Williams’ “Sweet Bird of Youth.”