Grace Zabriskie

Grace Zabriskie Headshot

Actress

Birth Date: May 17, 1941

Age: 82 years old

Birth Place: New Orleans, Louisiana

A character actress given to tasty bit parts, Grace Zabriskie vacillates between erotic exhibitionists and colorful, brassy mothers. Since making her feature debut in "Norma Rae" (1978), the New Orleans-born actress has gone on to leave an indelible mark on both the small and big screens. She has been particularly effective in movies playing mothers, albeit not the kind that would be embraced by June Cleaver. In "An Officer and a Gentleman" (1982), Zabriskie portrayed Debra Winger's mom while in "Drugstore Cowboy" (1989), she was the rejecting parent of Matt Dillon. The actress drew on her roots as Dennis Quaid's Cajun mom in "The Big Easy" (1986) and was another Southern mother, this time to Sissy Spacek, in "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues" (1994). Two of her most memorable feature parts were as a crazed killer (in a role tailored specifically for her) in David Lynch's "Wild at Heart" (1990) and as Malcolm McDowall's wife in "Chain of Desire" (1993), for which she donned a maid's uniform and wig for a softly sadistic sex scene. Along with a steady string of low-profile indie films, Zabriskie has appeared in "A Family Thing" (1996), "Armageddon" (1998), "Gone In Sixty Seconds" (2001), "The House on Turk Street" (2002) and, in a particularly effective turn, as the near-catatonic victim of "The Grudge" (2004). On the small screen, the actress has lent her unique talents to a variety of memorable roles. Zabriskie was effective as a snake-handler who attempts to romance a detective in a two-part 1986 installment of NBC's "Hill Street Blues" and as the supportive wife of Admiral Elmo Zumwalt in the CBS biopic "My Father, My Son" (1988). Zabriskie went on to play the grandmother of a child stricken with AIDS in "The Ryan White Story" (ABC, 1989), and the therapist of a sexually abused teen in "A Deadly Silence" (ABC, 1989). The following year, David Lynch tapped her to portray the excessively sobbing mother of murder victim Laura Palmer in the quirky primetime serial "Twin Peaks" (ABC), which she reprised in the confusing 1993 feature prequel "Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me." Zabriskie had the recurring role of the mother of Susan Ross, George Costanza's ill-fated fiancee in several episodes of "Seinfeld." She also offered an effective supporting turn as Jennifer Jason Leigh's mother in the controversial but critically-praised "Bastard Out of Carolina" (Showtime, 1996). She also had a recurring stint as Yellow Teeth on the sci-fi series "John Doe" (UPN, 2002-2003) and appeared as The Crone on the popular WB witchcraft-lite series "Charmed."

Credits

MikeStream

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Miniseries
2022
43%

Cryptozoo

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Joan
Movie
2021

Polaroid

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Movie
2019

Joe Frank: Somewhere Out There

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Movie
2018

Twin PeaksStream

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Sarah Palmer
Series
2017

FREE CINEMAX - Outcast

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Show
2016

The 50 Worst Movies Ever Made

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Show
2015

Rosemont

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Josephine
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2015

폴라로이드

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2015

The JudgeStream

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Mrs. Blackwell
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2014
48%

Blind Malice

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2014

Ray DonovanStream

Guest Star
Series
2013
72%

Wrong Cops

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Donna
Movie
2013

Bob Funk

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Mrs. Funk
Movie
2009

My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done

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Mrs. McCullum
Movie
2009

Brothel

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Madam
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2008

License to Wed

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2007

Big LoveStream

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Lois Henrickson
Series
2006
80%

Inland Empire

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Visitor #1
Movie
2006

Spooks and Creeps

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Movie
2004

The Last Letter

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Mrs. Allison
Movie
2004

The GrudgeStream

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Emma Williams
Movie
2004
40%

Chrystal

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Gladys
Movie
2004

John Doe

Guest Star
Series
2002
73%

The House on Turk Street

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Mrs. Quarre
Movie
2002

They Crawl

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Mrs. Gage
Movie
2002

R.S.V.P.

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Mary Franklin
Movie
2002

The GuardianStream

Guest Star
Series
2001

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Movie
2000
25%

A Texas Funeral

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2000

Home: The Horror Story

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Movie
2000

The West WingStream

Guest Star
Isabel
Series
1999
81%

Trash

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Movie
1999

CharmedStream

Guest Star
Series
1998

The King of QueensStream

Guest Star
Series
1998

Sparkler

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Sherri
Movie
1998

ArmageddonStream

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Dottie
Movie
1998
43%

Houdini

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Mrs. Weiss
Movie
1998

Me & Will

Actor
Edith
Movie
1998

Dante's View

Actor
Geraldine
Movie
1998

Dharma & Greg

Guest Star
Series
1997

George B.

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The Mother
Movie
1997

Dead Men Can't Dance

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Brig. Gen. Burke
Movie
1997

Devil's Child

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Movie
1997

The Burning Zone

Guest Star
Show
1996

High Incident

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Show
1996

Second Noah

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Show
1996

A Promise to Carolyn

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Francie Harper
Movie
1996

Bastard Out of Carolina

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Movie
1996

Murder at My Door

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Grandma
Movie
1996

A Family ThingStream

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Ruby
Movie
1996
73%

La Muerte Toca Mi Puerta

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Movie
1996

Children of the Dust

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Show
1995

Annie's Garden

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Movie
1995

Jardín de Annie

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Movie
1995

Desert Winds

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Jackie's Mother
Movie
1995

The Passion of Darkly Noon

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1995

A Good Day to Die

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Movie
1995

Crucero de la Muerte

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Movie
1994

The Crew

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Gloria Pierce
Movie
1994

Drop ZoneStream

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Movie
1994
39%

NYPD BlueStream

Guest Star
Wanda Padzik
Series
1993
83%

Angel Falls

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Cuema
Show
1993

Fallen Angels

Actor
Virna
Series
1993

Chain of Desire

Actor
Linda Bailey
Movie
1993

Bonds of Love

Actor
Emma Smith
Movie
1993

Black Widow Murders: The Blanche Taylor Moore Story

Actor
Ethel
Movie
1993

Even Cowgirls Get the Blues

Actor
Mrs. Hankshaw
Movie
1993
17%

Miracle Child

Actor
Adeleine Newberry
Movie
1993

The Waterdance

Actor
Pat
Movie
1992

FernGully ... the Last Rainforest

Voice
Magi Lune
Movie
1992

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me

Actor
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Movie
1992

A House of Secrets and Lies

Actor
Ruby
Movie
1992

Siervos Del Crepúsculo

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1991

Prison Stories: Women on the Inside

Actor
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Movie
1991

Intimate Stranger

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Dana P. Ashley
Movie
1991

The Servants of Twilight

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Grace Spivey
Movie
1991

Ambition

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Mrs. Merrick
Movie
1991

My Own Private IdahoStream

Actor
Alena
Movie
1991
80%

People Like Us

Actor
Show
1990

Twin PeaksStream

Actor
Sarah Palmer
Series
1990
77%

Twin PeaksStream

Voice
Sarah Palmer
Series
1990
77%

Sailor et Lula

Actor
Juana
Movie
1990

Twin Peaks

Actor
Sarah Palmer
Movie
1990

Wild at Heart

Actor
Juana Durango
Movie
1990
65%

Megaville

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Movie
1990

Hometown Boy Makes Good

Actor
Helen Geary
Movie
1990

Child's Play 2Stream

Actor
Grace Poole
Movie
1990
40%

SeinfeldStream

Guest Star
Mrs. Ross
Series
1989
89%

Tales From the Crypt

Actor
Series
1989
82%

The Ryan White Story

Actor
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Movie
1989

The Boost

Actor
Sheryl
Movie
1988

Rampage

Actor
Naomi Reece
Movie
1987

The Big Easy

Actor
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Movie
1986

Shadow Chasers

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1985

Paper Dolls

Guest Star
Soap
1984

The Burning BedStream

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1984

M.A.D.D.: The Candy Lightner Story

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Movie
1983

Hill Street BluesStream

Guest Star
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Series
1981
97%

Galaxy of Terror

Actor
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Movie
1981

The Private Eyes

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Movie
1980

Hart to HartStream

Guest Star
Series
1979

Norma RaeStream

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Movie
1979
91%