Spent much of her childhood on family farm in Blackstone, IL

Began career on radio while still in college

Starred on radio series, "Big Sister"

Supplied all female voices for radio series, "I Love a Mystery"

Co-starred with Orson Welles on "Ford Theater" radio program for two years

Stage debut, "Hope for the Best"

Broadway debut, "A Place of Our Own"

Film debut, "All the King's Men"; won Academy Award as Best Supporting Actress

TV debut in "The Voice of the Cricket" on NBC's "Tele-Theatre"

Hosted own radio program

Traveled for Adlai Stevenson's presidential election campaign

Sparred onscreen and off with Joan Crawford in "Johnny Guitar"

Garnered second Oscar nomination for her performance as Rock Hudson's older sister in "Giant"

Again campaigned for Stevenson

Played Mrs. Holly, the mother of Catherine (Elizabeth Taylor) in "Suddenly, Last Summer"

Led the crowd that stormed the Los Angeles Democratic convention to draft Adlai Stevenson

Returned to Broadway as replacement in "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?"

Earned a Tony nomination for her performance in "The Love Suicide at Schofield Barracks"

TV-movie debut, "Killer by Night" (CBS)

Provided vocals used for the possessed Regan in "The Exorcist"

Portrayed the family matriarch in the NBC miniseries "The Sacketts"

Final film (to date) "Echoes"

Starred in national tours of "Agnes of God" (1983) and "'night, Mother" (1984)

Replaced Irene Worth as the grandmother in the Broadway production of Neil Simon's "Lost in Yonkers"; later toured in the role