Elia Kazan, in his autobiography "A Life," said that he was grateful to have Harris on the set of East of Eden (1955) because she had a calming influence on James Dean. Kazan praised Harris as both an actress and as a human being.
Daughter of William Pickett Harris and wife Elsie Stivers Smith.
Fell backstage in Stamford, Connecticut, USA, requiring surgery to drain fluid from her head. [3 April 1999]
First directed by Tony Abatemarco in Lucifer's Child (1995) (TV) on Broadway, for which she received a Tony nomination.
Friends with 'Charles Nelson Reilly (I)', Michele Lee, Steven Hill, Shelley Winters, Jason Robards, Ruby Dee, Marlon Brando and James Dean.
Her future "Knots Landing" (1979), co-star, Joan Van Ark, had interviewed as a student reporter, when she was fifteen years old. Harris later recommended Van Ark to attend the Yale School of Drama. Harris is the youngest student ever to attend the college on a scholarship.
Julie Harris is the daughter of Elsie L. (Smith), a nurse, and William Pickett Harris, an investment banker.
Julie Harris is the most honored performer in Tony history with ten nominations and five victories. She won the award as Best Actress (Dramatic) for "I Am A Camera" (1952), "The Lark" (1956), "Forty Carats" (1969), and "The Last of Mrs. Lincoln" (1973); and as Best Actress (Play) for "The Belle of Amherst" (1977). Her five additional nominations were: for Best Actress (dramatic), "Marathon '33" (1964) and "The Au Pair Man" (1974); for Best Actress (musical), "Skyscraper" (1966); and for Best Actress (play), "Lucifer's Child" (1991), and "The Gin Game" (1997).
Recipient of the 2005 Kennedy Center Honors. Other recipients were Robert Redford, Tina Turner, Tony Bennett, and Suzanne Farrell.
She and producer Robert Whitehead, were named two recipients of Special Tony Awards for Lifetime Achievement in the Theater, May 2002. It was her sixth Tony award.
She has one son named Peter with her second husband Manning Gurian.
She was awarded the American National Medal of the Arts in 1994 by the National Endowment of the Arts in Washington D.C.
Suffered a stroke. [30 May 2001]
Won a 2002 Special Tony Award (New York City) lifetime achievement award.