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IMDbPro

Nancy Parsons(1942-2001)

  • Actress
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Nancy Parsons in Porky's II: The Next Day (1983)
Official Home Video Trailer
Play trailer2:35
Motel Hell (1980)
1 Video
17 Photos
Nancy Parsons was born in Lake Minnetonka, Minnesota, to Mary Margaret née Samsa and Charles Walter Parsons. She had two siblings -- Mary Jean Parsons and Theresa Mae Macrae née Parsons. When she was seventeen, her father remarried Genevieve Stack and moved with the three girls to South Pasadena, California. It was here that the acting bug first bit, when she appeared in the senior play and was subsequently given a full scholarship to the famed Pasadena Playhouse; 1960-1962. In her two years there, she appeared in some of the great works of Edward Albee, Clifford Odets, Tennessee Williams, Max Bollinger, and William Shakespeare, among others. Nancy married Alan Hipwell immediately after graduation and gave birth to Elizabeth Hipwell, on November 3, 1964, and to Margaret Hipwell, on October 7, 1969.

She returned to acting after divorcing her husband. While at UCLA, completing a theatre degree, she won the Hugh O'Brien Award; an event that launched her career. This award drew her to her lifelong friend and agent Susan Smith. Throughout her career, she garnered a Family Film Award for Best Actress in Porky's Revenge (1985), an Academy of Science Fiction and Fantasy nomination for Best Supporting Actress in Motel Hell (1980), a Dramalogue Award for the play "Dead End At Sunset," and a woman of the year award from the Alumni Association of her alma mater, The Pasadena Playhouse.

These are all her career achievements, but we would say the greatest legacy she has left us is the ability to live passionately, as individuals. Nancy always believed that art was the noblest of paths one could follow -- that it took an immense amount of courage, stamina and chutzpah (one of her favorite words). Nancy is survived by Margot Hipwell and her children Cassidy Coulson, and Jasper Coulson, and me, Elizabeth Hipwell. Thank you Mom! You will never be forgotten!
BornJanuary 17, 1942
DiedJanuary 5, 2001(58)
BornJanuary 17, 1942
DiedJanuary 5, 2001(58)
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
  • Awards
    • 1 nomination total

Photos16

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Known for

Porky's (1981)
Porky's
6.2
  • Beulah Balbricker
  • 1981
Clint Eastwood in Sudden Impact (1983)
Sudden Impact
6.6
  • Mrs. Kruger
  • 1983
Rory Calhoun and Nancy Parsons in Motel Hell (1980)
Motel Hell
6.0
  • Ida Smith
  • 1980
Julia Roberts, Sally Field, Daryl Hannah, Shirley MacLaine, Dolly Parton, and Olympia Dukakis in Steel Magnolias (1989)
Steel Magnolias
7.3
  • Janice Van Meter
  • 1989

Credits

Edit
IMDbPro

Actress



  • Andrea Parker and Michael T. Weiss in The Pretender (1996)
    The Pretender
    7.5
    TV Series
    • Martha Bowman
    • 1998
  • Days of Our Lives (1965)
    Days of Our Lives
    5.3
    TV Series
    • Mary Brooke
    • Nurse Jackson
    • 1994–1996
  • Lakota Woman: Siege at Wounded Knee (1994)
    Lakota Woman: Siege at Wounded Knee
    7.1
    TV Movie
    • Sister Mary Margaret
    • 1994
  • Winter Heat (1994)
    Winter Heat
    8.1
    TV Movie
    • Nurse Jackson
    • 1994
  • L.A. Law (1986)
    L.A. Law
    7.1
    TV Series
    • Mary Hennepin
    • 1992
  • Quin Kessler, Paul Le Mat, and Geoffrey Lewis in Wishman (1992)
    Wishman
    2.2
    • Miss Crabbe
    • 1992
  • Rodney Dangerfield in Ladybugs (1992)
    Ladybugs
    5.5
    • Coach Annie
    • 1992
  • Death Falls (1991)
    Death Falls
    5.4
    • Nurse
    • 1991
  • William Hurt in The Doctor (1991)
    The Doctor
    6.9
    • Laurie
    • 1991
  • Hull High (1990)
    Hull High
    7.8
    TV Series
    • 1990
  • Faye Dunaway in Silhouette (1990)
    Silhouette
    5.3
    TV Movie
    • Hotel Proprietor
    • 1990
  • Dan Aykroyd and Gene Hackman in Loose Cannons (1990)
    Loose Cannons
    4.9
    • Nurse
    • 1990
  • Kelly Rutherford, Anthony Addabbo, and Kristoff St. John in Generations (1989)
    Generations
    7.4
    TV Series
    • Hilda
    • 1989
  • Michael Dorn, Jonathan Frakes, Gates McFadden, Marina Sirtis, Brent Spiner, LeVar Burton, and Patrick Stewart in Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987)
    Star Trek: The Next Generation
    8.7
    TV Series
    • Sovereign Marouk
    • 1989
  • Julia Roberts, Sally Field, Daryl Hannah, Shirley MacLaine, Dolly Parton, and Olympia Dukakis in Steel Magnolias (1989)
    Steel Magnolias
    7.3
    • Janice Van Meter
    • 1989

Videos1

Motel Hell
Trailer 2:35
Motel Hell

Personal details

Edit
  • Alternative name
    • Nancy Anne Parsons
  • Height
    • 5′ 6″ (1.68 m)
  • Born
    • January 17, 1942
    • St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
  • Died
    • January 5, 2001
    • LaCrosse, Wisconsin, USA(congestive heart failure)
  • Spouse
    • Alan Raymond HipwellJanuary 1964 - April 1972 (divorced, 2 children)

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    Mother of Margaret Hipwell and Elizabeth Hipwell.
  • Trademark
      Frequently played nurses
  • Nicknames
    • Nannie
    • Nance

FAQ

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  • When did Nancy Parsons die?
    January 5, 2001
  • How did Nancy Parsons die?
    Congestive heart failure
  • How old was Nancy Parsons when she died?
    58 years old
  • Where did Nancy Parsons die?
    LaCrosse, Wisconsin, USA
  • When was Nancy Parsons born?
    January 17, 1942

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