Kate Capshaw is an American actress. She is known for her role as Willie Scott in
Indiana Jones and the Temple of DoomIndiana Jones and the Temple of Doom is a 1984 American adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg. It is the second film in the Indiana Jones franchise and prequel to Raiders of the Lost Ark . After arriving in India, Indiana Jones is asked by a desperate village to find a mystical stone...
. She is married to
Steven SpielbergSteven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
.
Early life
Capshaw was born
Kathleen Sue Nail in
Fort Worth, TexasFort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...
, the daughter of Beverley Sue (
néeA married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....
Simon), a travel agent and beautician, and Edwin Leon Nail, an airline employee. She moved to
St. Louis, MissouriSt. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
at the age of five, and graduated from Hazelwood Senior High, now called
Hazelwood Central High SchoolHazelwood Central High School is located at 15875 New Halls Ferry Road in unincorporated St. Louis County, adjacent to the current northeast boundary of Florissant, MO. The school is one of three high schools in the district, the others being Hazelwood West High School and Hazelwood East High School...
in 1972. Capshaw earned a degree in education from the
University of MissouriThe University of Missouri System is a state university system providing centralized administration for four universities, a health care system, an extension program, five research and technology parks, and a publishing press. More than 64,000 students are currently enrolled at its four campuses...
, where she was a member of
Alpha Delta PiAlpha Delta Pi is a fraternity founded on May 15, 1851 at Wesleyan College in Macon, Georgia. The Executive office for this sorority is located on Ponce de Leon Avenue in Atlanta, Georgia. Alpha Delta Pi is one of the two "Macon Magnolias," a term used to celebrate the bonds it shares with Phi Mu...
. She taught Special Education at Southern Boone County High School in
Ashland, MissouriAshland is a city in Boone County, Missouri, United States. Ashland is part of the Columbia, Missouri Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,869 at the 2000 census. The population in 2006 was about 3,000, according to the city's website.-Geography:Ashland is located at...
and
Rock Bridge High SchoolRock Bridge High School is a public high school located in southern Columbia, Missouri. The school serves grades 10 through 12, and is a part of the Columbia Public Schools...
in
Columbia, MissouriColumbia is the fifth-largest city in Missouri, and the largest city in Mid-Missouri. With a population of 108,500 as of the 2010 Census, it is the principal municipality of the Columbia Metropolitan Area, a region of 164,283 residents. The city serves as the county seat of Boone County and as the...
. She took the surname Capshaw upon her marriage to Robert Capshaw in January 1976; they had one child, actress
Jessica CapshawJessica Brooke Capshaw is an American actress. She is known for her role as Jamie Stringer in The Practice and for her role as Dr...
, and eventually divorced in 1980.
Career
Capshaw moved to
New YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
to pursue her dream of acting, landing her first role on the
soap operaA soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
The Edge of NightThe Edge of Night is an American television mystery series/soap opera produced by Procter & Gamble. It debuted on CBS on April 2, 1956, and ran as a live broadcast on that network until November 28, 1975; the series then moved to ABC, where it aired from December 1, 1975, until December 28, 1984...
. She starred in
DreamscapeDreamscape is a 1984 science fiction horror film directed by Joseph Ruben and written by David Loughery, with Chuck Russell and Ruben co-writing...
in 1984. She met film director
Steven SpielbergSteven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
upon winning the female lead (from a pool of 120 actresses) for the
Raiders of the Lost ArkRaiders of the Lost Ark is a 1981 American action-adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg, produced by George Lucas, and starring Harrison Ford. It is the first film in the Indiana Jones franchise...
sequel,
Indiana Jones and the Temple of DoomIndiana Jones and the Temple of Doom is a 1984 American adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg. It is the second film in the Indiana Jones franchise and prequel to Raiders of the Lost Ark . After arriving in India, Indiana Jones is asked by a desperate village to find a mystical stone...
(1984). In addition, she appeared as Andie Bergstrom, a camp instructor in the 1986 film
SpaceCampSpaceCamp is a 1986 American film based on a book by Patrick Bailey and Larry B. Williams and inspired by the U.S. Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama. Directed by Harry Winer from a screenplay by Clifford Green and Casey T. Mitchell, the film stars Kate Capshaw, Kelly Preston, Larry B...
.
Capshaw also starred in the spy film/romance,
Code Name Dancer. Capshaw was featured in films throughout the late '80s into the '90s including
Black Rain,
Just CauseJust Cause is a 1995 film directed by Arne Glimcher and starring Sean Connery and Laurence Fishburne. It is based on John Katzenbach's novel of the same name.-Plot:...
and
The Love Letter, and was also featured in the 1997 film
The Alarmist with
David ArquetteDavid Arquette is an American actor, film director, producer, screenwriter, fashion designer, and occasional professional wrestler. A member of the Arquette acting family, he first became known during the mid 1990s after starring in several Hollywood films, such as the Scream series, Wild Bill and...
and
Stanley TucciStanley Tucci is an American actor, writer, film producer and film director. He has been nominated for several notable film awards, including an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, for his performance in The Lovely Bones...
. In 2001, she starred in the Showtime Cable Network
miniseriesA miniseries , in a serial storytelling medium, is a television show production which tells a story in a limited number of episodes. The exact number is open to interpretation; however, they are usually limited to fewer than a whole season. The term "miniseries" is generally a North American term...
A Girl Thing with
Elle MacphersonElle Macpherson is an Australian model, actress, and businesswoman nicknamed "The Body". She is perhaps best known for her record five cover appearances for the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue beginning in the 1980s...
.
Personal life
Capshaw, originally an Episcopalian, converted to
JudaismJudaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
before marrying director
Steven SpielbergSteven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
on October 12, 1991.
There are seven children in the Spielberg-Capshaw family:
- Jessica Capshaw
Jessica Brooke Capshaw is an American actress. She is known for her role as Jamie Stringer in The Practice and for her role as Dr...
(born August 9, 1976) – daughter from Kate Capshaw's previous marriage to Robert Capshaw
- Max Samuel Spielberg (born June 13, 1985) – son from Spielberg's previous marriage to actress Amy Irving
Amy Davis Irving is an American actress, known for her roles in the films Crossing Delancey, The Fury, Carrie, and Yentl as well as acclaimed roles on Broadway and Off-Broadway. She has been nominated for an Academy Award, two Golden Globes, and has won an Obie award...
- Theo Spielberg (born 1988) – son adopted by Capshaw before her marriage to Spielberg, who later also adopted him
- Sasha Rebecca Spielberg
Sasha Rebecca Spielberg is an American actress.Spielberg is the daughter of film director Steven Spielberg and actress Kate Capshaw...
(born May 14, 1990, Los Angeles)
- Sawyer Avery Spielberg (born March 10, 1992, Los Angeles)
- Mikaela George (born February 28, 1996) – adopted with Kate Capshaw
- Destry Allyn Spielberg (born December 1, 1996)
External links