Tuesday Weld

Overview

Born
August 27, 1943 · New York City, New York, USA
Birth name
Susan Ker Weld
Nickname
- Tuesday Wild
Height
5′ 3½″ (1.61 m)

Biography

Susan Ker Weld was born on August 27, 1943 (Friday), in New York City. When her father, Lathrop Motley Weld, died three years later at the age of 49, the cute little girl, whose name by then had somehow been transmogrified into "Tuesday", took over the role of the family breadwinner. She became a successful child model, posing for advertisements and mail-order catalogs. Her work and the burden of responsibility estranged her from her mother Aileen, her two elder siblings, and catapulted the preteen girl into adulthood. At nine years of age, she suffered a nervous breakdown; at ten, she started heavy drinking; one year later, she began to have love affairs, all of which led to a suicide attempt at age twelve. In 1956 she debuted in the low-budget exploitation movie Rock Rock Rock! (1956) and decided to become an actress. After numerous TV appearances in New York she went to Hollywood in 1958 and was cast for Rally 'Round the Flag, Boys! (1958), something of a breakthrough for her. Over the next few years Tuesday became Hollywood's queen of teen, playing mainly precocious sex kittens. Her wild private life added to the entertainment of her fans. Critics acknowledged her talent, directors approved of her professionalism, and in the mid-1970s she even managed to grow out of her child/woman image and find more demanding roles - she had been "sweet little 16" for about 16 years. However, Tuesday Weld didn't achieve first-magnitude stardom. Maybe she was just unlucky with her selection of jobs (she turned down Lolita (1962), Bonnie and Clyde (1967), True Grit (1969), Cactus Flower (1969), among others); maybe her independence-loving mind made her instinctively shrink back from the restraints of super stardom. In any case, she kept on performing well in films that had either not much flair or not much success. From the early '80s on she focused more and more on made-for-TV movies, which was ironic in that the best (Once Upon a Time in America (1984)) and the most successful (Falling Down (1993)) films that came her way happened as her big-screen career was already petering out.
- IMDb mini biography by: Anonymous

Family

Spouses
Children
Parents
Relatives

Trademarks

Platinum blonde hair and green eyes
Often plays reckless, out-of-control characters

Trivia

When asked by a reporter what drove her into seclusion after having such a public adolescence, she answered, "I think it was a Buick".
Turned down the role of Bonnie in Bonnie and Clyde (1967).
She was director Roman Polanski's first choice for the leading role in Rosemary's Baby (1968) because he thought her pure American looks would contrast well with the film's dark undertones. The studio preferred Mia Farrow, however, who had become a star on the enormously popular nighttime soap opera Peyton Place (1964). A few years later Polanski wanted her to star in his film version of Macbeth (1971). She lost the part when she refused to do a nude sleepwalking scene. The role was eventually played by Francesca Annis.
Was considered for the title roles in Lolita (1962) and Norma Rae (1979).
Graduated from Hollywood Professional School in 1960 and was the class valedictorian.

Quotes

I do not ever want to be a huge star. Do you think I want a success? I refused Bonnie and Clyde (1967) because I was nursing at the time but also because deep down I knew that it was going to be a huge success. The same was true of "Bob and Carol and Fred and Sue" or whatever it was called [Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969)]. It reeked of success.
[about Elvis Presley] He walked into a room and everything stopped. Elvis was just so physically beautiful that even if he didn't have any talent . . . just his face, just his presence. And he was funny, charming, and complicated, but he didn't wear it on his sleeve. You didn't see that he was complicated. You saw great needs.
It seems the brighter you are, the deeper the hole you get into.
[on her reputation as a "wild child"] As a teenager, I was a wreck. I drank so much I can't remember anything.
[on Sue Lyon] I don't think of her as an actress or otherwise. She just doesn't occupy that much of my mind. I don't know her.