View source for Karen Black

{{short description|American actress, screenwriter, and singer-songwriter (1939–2013)}}
{{pp|small=yes}}
{{for multi|the Australian paleontologist|Karen H. Black|the lead singer of The Voluptuous Horror of Karen Black|Kembra Pfahler}}
{{COI|date=February 2024}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2025}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Karen Black
| image = Karen Black 1977.jpg
| caption = Black in 1977
| birth_name = Karen Blanche Ziegler
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1939|07|01}}
| birth_place = [[Park Ridge, Illinois]], U.S.
| death_date = {{Death date and age|2013|8|08|1939|07|01|mf=y}}
| death_place = Los Angeles, California, U.S.
| resting_place = Eternal Hills Memorial Park, [[Oceanside, California]], U.S.
| occupation = {{hlist|Actress|screenwriter|singer|composer}} 
| years_active = 1960–2013
| education = [[Northwestern University]] <br/> (dropped out)
| works = [[List of Karen Black performances|Filmography]]
| awards = [[List of awards and nominations received by Karen Black|Full list]]
| spouse = Charles Black<br />(divorced){{efn|The timeline is hazy as Black neglected to acknowledge this marriage in press interviews. She is pictured as a high school sophomore in the 1955 yearbooks of two different institutions, Maine East High School in Park Ridge, Illinois, and Jefferson High School in Lafayette, Indiana. In the Main East yearbook she is listed as Karen Ziegler,<ref name="Lens">''1955 Lens''. Maine Township High School. Park Ridge - Des Plaines Illinois. p. [https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/1265/images/1265_b699047-00094 93].</ref> while in the Jefferson yearbook she is listed as K. Black,<ref name="Nautilus">''1955 Nautilus''. Jefferson High School. Lafayette, Indiana. p. [https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/1265/images/sid_5712_1955_0155 151].</ref> indicating the marriage occurred sometime during the 1954-1955 school year, during which she transferred schools. Multiple sources relay that Black married at age 15, but do not provide an exact date.{{sfn|Bay|2022|page=109}}<ref name="Tauke">{{cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/journal-and-courier-journalcourier18may1/24010600|title=Karen Fibbed on Weddings, Investigation Here Reveals|date=May 18, 1973|first=M.S.|last=Tauke|work=Journal & Courier}}</ref>}}<br />{{Marriage|Robert Burton|1973|1975|reason=divorced}}<br />{{Marriage|[[L. M. Kit Carson]]|1975|1983|reason=divorced}}<br />{{Marriage|Stephen Eckelberry<br />|1987}}
| children = 3, including [[Hunter Carson]]
| relatives = [[Gail Brown]] (sister)
}}

'''Karen Blanche Black''' (née '''Ziegler'''; July 1, 1939&nbsp;– August 8, 2013) was an American actress, screenwriter, singer, and songwriter. She rose to prominence for her work in various studio and independent films in the 1970s, frequently portraying eccentric and offbeat characters, and established herself as a figure of [[New Hollywood]]. Her career spanned over 50 years and includes nearly 200 credits in both independent and mainstream films. Black received numerous accolades throughout her career, including two [[Golden Globe Awards]], as well as an [[Academy Award]] nomination for [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress|Best Supporting Actress]].

A native of suburban Chicago, Black studied theater at [[Northwestern University]] before dropping out and relocating to New York City. She performed on Broadway in 1965 before making her major film debut in [[Francis Ford Coppola]]'s ''[[You're a Big Boy Now]]'' (1966). Black relocated to California and was cast as an [[LSD]]-tripping prostitute in [[Dennis Hopper]]'s road film ''[[Easy Rider]]'' (1969). That led to a co-starring role in the drama ''[[Five Easy Pieces]]'' (1970), in which she played a hopeless waitress, for which she was nominated for an Academy Award and won a Golden Globe for [[Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture|Best Supporting Actress]]. Black made her first major commercial picture with the disaster film ''[[Airport 1975]]'' (1974), and her subsequent appearance as Myrtle Wilson in [[The Great Gatsby (1974 film)|''The Great Gatsby'']] (1974) won her a second Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress.

Black played a glamorous country singer in [[Robert Altman]]'s ensemble musical drama ''[[Nashville (film)|Nashville]]'' (1975), also writing and performing two songs for the soundtrack, for which she received a nomination for a [[Grammy Award]]. Her portrayal of an aspiring actress in [[John Schlesinger]]'s drama ''[[The Day of the Locust (film)|The Day of the Locust]]'' (also 1975) earned her a third Golden Globe nomination, this time for [[Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama|Best Actress]]. Black subsequently took on four roles in [[Dan Curtis]]' anthology horror film ''[[Trilogy of Terror]]'' (1975), followed by Curtis' supernatural horror feature, ''[[Burnt Offerings (film)|Burnt Offerings]]'' (1976). The same year, she played a kidnapping accomplice in [[Alfred Hitchcock]]'s final film, ''[[Family Plot]]''.

In 1982, Black played a transsexual in the Robert Altman-directed Broadway debut of ''[[Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean (play)|Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean]]'', a role she also reprised in Altman's subsequent [[Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean (film)|film adaptation]]. She next starred in the comedy ''[[Can She Bake a Cherry Pie?]]'' (1983), followed by [[Tobe Hooper]]'s remake of ''[[Invaders from Mars (1986 film)|Invaders from Mars]]'' (1986). For much of the 1990s and 2000s, Black starred in a variety of [[arthouse film|arthouse]], independent, and horror films, as well as writing her own screenplays. She had a leading role as a villainous mother in [[Rob Zombie]]'s ''[[House of 1000 Corpses]]'' (2003), which cemented her status as a [[cult film|cult]] horror icon. Black continued to star in low-profile films throughout the early 2010s, as well as working as a playwright before her death from [[ampullary cancer]] in 2013.

==Early life==
[[File:Karen Black and Gail Brown.jpg|thumb|upright=.9|right|Black with sister Gail Brown]]
Black was born Karen Blanche Ziegler on July 1, 1939, in [[Park Ridge, Illinois]],{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=85}} the third child of Elsie Mary (née Reif), a writer of several prize-winning children's novels, and Norman Arthur Ziegler, an engineer and businessman.{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=85}}<ref name=mit>{{cite news| last=Frisbie| first=Thomas| title=Elsie "Peggy" Ziegler: Wrote history-based books for young adults| newspaper=[[Chicago Sun-Times]]| date=June 18, 2008| url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1N1-1216323741E85B88.html| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121106001031/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1N1-1216323741E85B88.html| url-status=dead| archive-date=November 6, 2012}} {{subscription required}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tglaAAAAYAAJ&q=karen%20black%20father%20engineer| title=Current Biography Yearbook| year=1977| publisher=H. W. Wilson Co.| via=Google Books}} {{subscription required}}</ref> Her paternal grandfather was Arthur Charles Ziegler, a classical musician and first violinist for the [[Chicago Symphony Orchestra]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://movies.yahoo.com/movie/contributor/1800014448/bio |title=Karen Black Biography |work=[[Yahoo! Movies]]|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110522100544/http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/contributor/1800014448/bio |archive-date=May 22, 2011}}</ref> She had a brother and a sister, [[Gail Brown]]. Black was of German, Czech, and Norwegian descent.<ref>{{cite interview|series=Conversations with Coco|title=An Evening with Karen Black, Part 1|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzjX-YsdXGU| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211030/QzjX-YsdXGU| archive-date=October 30, 2021|date=October 23, 2010|location=[[Los Angeles LGBT Center|Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center]]|author1=Peru, Coco|author1-link=Miss Coco Peru|author2=Black, Karen|quote=[My sister Gail] took after the Norwegian side...&nbsp; and I took after the Czech side.|time=13:30}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.zellnerfamily.com/genealogy//getperson.php?personID=I8415&tree=01 |title=Karen Blanche Ziegler: Zellner Family Genealogy |work=The Zellners of Birmingham, Alabama, USA and associated families |archive-url=https://archive.today/20190823214234/http://www.zellnerfamily.com/genealogy/getperson.php?personID=I8415&tree=01 |archive-date=August 23, 2019 |access-date=March 4, 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The Zieglers came to the United States from [[Neukirch, Baden-Württemberg|Neukirch]], [[Kingdom of Württemberg|Württemberg]], Germany.

Black and her siblings were raised at 224 N. Greenwood Ave. in Park Ridge, and often spent time on her uncle's farm near [[Green Bay, Wisconsin]].<ref name=reflects/>  As a young teenager, she aspired to have a career as a stage actress, seeking out [[summer stock]] theater job opportunities.{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=85}} "From the age of 13 I'd rush out during vacations to find work in summer stock," Black recalled. "I started by cleaning toilets and by the time I was 16 I was a prop-girl and in the chorus line singing, and at 17 I got my first real acting, paid job."{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=85}}

Black attended [[Maine East High School]] for her freshman year and part of her sophomore year.<ref name="Lens"/> She resumed her education at [[Jefferson High School (Indiana)|Jefferson High School]] in [[Lafayette, Indiana]] and attended [[Purdue University]] for one year,<ref name="Nautilus"/><ref name="Tauke"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jconline.com/viewart/20130809/ENT05/308090020/Former-Jeff-student-Five-Easy-Pieces-actress-Karen-Black-dies-74|title=Former Jeff student, 'Five Easy Pieces' actress Karen Black dies at 74|date=August 9, 2013|first=Lauren|last=Sedam|work=Journal & Courier|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130810000000/http://www.jconline.com/viewart/20130809/ENT05/308090020/Former-Jeff-student-Five-Easy-Pieces-actress-Karen-Black-dies-74|archive-date=August 10, 2013|url-status=dead|quote=Obituaries that appeared in major publications on Friday painted a different picture of her past, deleting any reference to high school years or attendance at Purdue. Instead, the Associated Press reported that 'at age 15, she enrolled in Northwestern University to study drama.' It was almost as if her time in Lafayette was erased from her memory, Lux said.}} [https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/109122307 Alt URL]</ref> then transferred to  [[Northwestern University]], where she majored in [[theatre arts]],<ref name="la"/> studying under [[Alvina Krause]].<ref name=simon/> Black completed two years of studies at NU before dropping out.{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=85}} She later reflected on her training unfavorably, stating: {{quote|I would say that the college training was very lousy, and I don't think that people learn by being invalidated...&nbsp; Acting teachers, not all of them but many, seem to think that beating up their students and invalidating them will make them better, which I think is completely wrong. And at that age, you don't realize that this sick person is really projecting all their neurosis onto you, you think that you're the one who's damaged...&nbsp; Alvina Krause would not validate and would not allow. I think she had favorites, and you could never figure out why you weren't a favorite, and it never made any sense. The thing you have to remember is that if a person is making you feel bad about yourself, that person is going to be in his or her own world. They are lost in their own universe.<ref name=simon/>}}

==Career==
===1960–1970: Stage and film beginnings===
[[File:Karen Black mirror.jpg|thumb|upright=.9|Posing by a mirror, circa 1966]]
In 1960, Black moved to New York City to pursue an acting career, residing in a [[cold water flat]] in Manhattan.{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=85}} She took odd jobs working as a secretary, a front desk person at a hotel, and at an insurance office, and lived on "thirty dollars a week."<ref>{{cite interview|series=Conversations with Coco|title=An Evening with Karen Black, Part 2|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pa7FsBpSVT8| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211030/Pa7FsBpSVT8| archive-date=October 30, 2021|date=October 23, 2010|location=[[Los Angeles LGBT Center|Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center]]|author1=Peru, Coco|author1-link=Miss Coco Peru|author2=Black, Karen|time=1:35}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Black initially began performing with the Rockefeller Players, a theater troupe in [[Westwood, New Jersey]].<ref>{{cite news|work=The Record|location=Hackensack, New Jersey|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/35158964/the_record/|title='The Playroom' Will Continue|date=December 28, 1965|page=29|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> She briefly joined at the [[Actors Studio]], but left shortly after enrolling, later commenting: "How can a man who isn't an actor teach you how to act?"{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=85}}

Black made her screen debut with a minor role in the independent film ''The Prime Time'' (1960), which she would later deem "the worst film ever made."{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=85}} Disillusioned by this foray into film, Black returned to work in theater.{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=85}} She worked as an [[understudy]] in the [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] production of ''Take Her, She's Mine'' in December 1961 under director [[George Abbott]].<ref name=pb>{{cite web|url=http://www.playbill.com/person/karen-black-vault-0000046849|work=[[Playbill]]|title=Karen Black|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160314114845/http://www.playbill.com/person/karen-black-vault-0000046849|archive-date=March 14, 2016}}</ref> She made her formal Broadway debut in 1965's ''The Playroom'',<ref name=pb/> which received favorable reviews and for which she was nominated for a [[New York Drama Critics' Circle]] Award for Best Actress.<ref>{{cite book|title=Contemporary Theatre, Film and Television|volume=31|page=40|last=Riggs|first=Thomas|year=2000|isbn=978-0-787-64636-3|publisher=Gale Group|location=Detroit, Michigan}}</ref>

In 1966, she appeared with [[José Ferrer]] in a stage production of ''[[After the Fall (play)|After the Fall]]'' at the [[Coconut Grove Playhouse]] in Miami, earning an Angel award for best supporting actress.<ref>{{cite news|title=Karen Black Puts on Real Act|date=February 9, 1966|first=Beatrice|last=Washburn|work=The Miami Herald|page=C1}}</ref><ref name=DeVine>{{cite news|title=Karen Black: Good-Fortune Kooky|date=June 18, 1967|first=Lawrence|last=DeVine|work=The Miami Herald Sunday Magazine|pages=14–15}}</ref> Black returned to film with a leading role in the comedy ''[[You're a Big Boy Now]]'' (1966), directed by [[Francis Ford Coppola]], portraying the love interest of a young male student.{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=86}} The film earned Black favorable reviews, and the experience prompted her to relocate to Los Angeles.<ref name=DeVine/> Beginning in 1967, she appeared in guest roles in several television series, including ''[[The F.B.I. (TV series)|The F.B.I.]]'', ''[[Run for Your Life (TV series)|Run for Your Life]]'', ''[[The Big Valley]]'', ''[[Mannix]]'' and ''[[Adam-12]]''.

Her feature film career expanded in 1969, playing the role of an acid-tripping prostitute opposite [[Dennis Hopper]] and [[Peter Fonda]] in the counterculture film ''[[Easy Rider]]'';{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=86}} the first choice for the role was [[Lana Wood]], who had turned it down.<ref>{{cite interview|title=SpyCon2 presents Lana Wood: Plenty O'Toole talks Bond!|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Yj0U9mOvXA|date=October 10, 2020|author=Rocko Jerome|time=54:27}}</ref> Black's sequence in the film was cut from 16 hours of footage.<ref name=npr/> The following year, Black appeared as Rayette, the waitress girlfriend of [[Jack Nicholson]], in the film ''[[Five Easy Pieces]]'' (1970), for which she was nominated for an [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress]],{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=86}} and earned her first [[Golden Globe Award]] for Best Supporting Actress. She also won a [[New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actress]] for her performance in the film.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://screenprism.com/insights/article/how-do-bobbys-love-interests-in-five-easy-pieces-help-reveal-parts-of-his-c|website=Screen Prism|title=How do Bobby's love interests in "Five Easy Pieces" help reveal parts of his character?|author=Saporito, Jeff|access-date=December 3, 2015|archive-date=December 10, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151210044710/http://screenprism.com/insights/article/how-do-bobbys-love-interests-in-five-easy-pieces-help-reveal-parts-of-his-c|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===1971–1979: Hollywood breakthrough and heyday===

[[File:Karen Black The Day of the Locust.jpg|thumb|upright=.9|In ''[[The Day of the Locust (film)|The Day of the Locust]]'' (1975)]]

Black had a supporting role as the girlfriend of a heroin addict in ''[[Born to Win]]'' (1971) opposite [[George Segal]] and [[Robert De Niro]],{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=86}} followed by a role in Jack Nicholson's directorial debut, ''[[Drive, He Said]]'', as a promiscuous faculty wife;{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=86}} and the Western ''[[A Gunfight]]'', opposite [[Kirk Douglas]] and [[Johnny Cash]], in which she portrayed a saloon barmaid.{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=86}} Black followed these roles with a part in ''[[Cisco Pike]]'' (1972) opposite [[Kris Kristofferson]] and [[Gene Hackman]], and subsequently played a foul-mouthed fashion model in ''[[Portnoy's Complaint (film)|Portnoy's Complaint]]'' (1972).{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|pages=86, 90–91}} She had a lead role opposite [[Christopher Plummer]] in the Canadian-produced horror film ''[[The Pyx]]'' (1973), playing a prostitute embroiled in a series of occult murders, and later appeared in ''[[The Outfit (1973 film)|The Outfit]]'' (1973) with [[Robert Duvall]].{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|pages=90–91}} Black had the titular role of Laura in the crime film ''[[Little Laura and Big John]]'' (1973), playing a runaway moll of the [[John Ashley (bandit)|Ashley gang]], a film which "aped" the success of ''[[Bonnie and Clyde (film)|Bonnie and Clyde]]'' (1967).{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|pages=86, 90–91}} Shortly after, she appeared in the comedy [[Rhinoceros (film)|''Rhinoceros'']] (1974) with [[Gene Wilder]].{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=90}}

Black's first major commercial film{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=86}} was the disaster feature ''[[Airport 1975]]'' (1974), in which she played Nancy Pryor, a stewardess forced to fly a plane after a midair collision.<ref name=la>{{cite web|url=http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-karen-black-20130809,0,254151.story|title=Karen Black dies at 74; actress starred in 'Five Easy Pieces' and 'Easy Rider'|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]]|first=Rebecca|last=Trounson|date=August 9, 2013|access-date=August 10, 2013}}</ref> She subsequently portrayed an unfaithful wife, Myrtle Wilson, in the 1974 version of [[The Great Gatsby (1974 film)|''The Great Gatsby'']], a performance that earned her a second [[Golden Globe Award]] in the same category. In 1975, she played multiple roles in [[Dan Curtis]]' televised anthology film ''[[Trilogy of Terror]]'': The segments, all written by [[Richard Matheson]], were named after the women involved in the plot&nbsp;— a plain college professor seemingly seduced by a handsome cad of a student ("Julie"), a pair of sisters who squabble over their father's inheritance ("Millicent and Therese"), and the unknowing purchaser of a cursed [[Zuni fetish]] that comes to life and pursues her relentlessly ("Amelia").<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.metv.com/stories/lets-not-forget-trilogy-of-terror-was-the-scariest-tv-movie-of-all-time|title=Let's not forget 'Trilogy of Terror' was the scariest TV movie of all time (Who's still frightened by the Zuni warrior doll?)|website=MeTV.com|access-date=October 5, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.denofgeek.com/us/tv/trilogy-of-terror-karen-black/168614/karen-blacks-horror-tour-de-force-trilogy-of-terror-1975-review|title=Karen Black's Horror Tour de Force, Trilogy of Terror (1975)|author=Knipfel, Jim|website=Den of Geek|date=August 10, 2013|access-date=August 8, 2018}}</ref>

[[File:Karen Black and Joseph Bottoms.jpg|thumb|upright=.9|left|With [[Joseph Bottoms]] in ''[[Crime and Passion]]'' (1976)]]

Black received her third Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress for her role as an aspiring starlet in 1930s Hollywood in [[John Schlesinger]]'s tragic drama ''[[The Day of the Locust (film)|The Day of the Locust]]'' (1975). Though the film earned her critical notice, Black recalled the production being profoundly troubled and possibly hindering her career: {{quote|That was not a fun experience, making that film. It was just horrible. I wish quite heartily I'd never made it, because I'd have had a much longer career in Hollywood... It was a very troubled production, and I became the scapegoat that everyone blamed. People kept getting sick, getting fired, and it was just a horror, an absolute horror. Seven months. There were all these rumors that people made up…and I wound up being the center of it. Poor [[William Atherton|[William] Atherton]] walked off and didn't do the final scene, because he couldn't take it anymore.<ref name=simon>{{cite web|title=Karen Black Dances the Missouri Waltz|last=Simon|first=Alex|url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/karen-black-dead_b_3729690|work=[[HuffPost|The Huffington Post]]|date=October 9, 2013|orig-year=2007|archive-url=https://archive.today/20190822083606/https://www.huffpost.com/entry/karen-black-dead_b_3729690|archive-date=August 22, 2019|access-date=August 22, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>}}

[[File:Family Plot 1976 Still.jpg|thumb|upright=.9|As Fran in ''[[Family Plot]]'' (1976)]]

The same year, she starred as a glamorous country singer in [[Robert Altman]]'s ensemble film ''[[Nashville (film)|Nashville]]''.{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=90}} In addition to acting in the film, Black also wrote and performed two songs for the soundtrack, which was nominated for a [[Grammy Awards|Grammy Award]] for [[Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media|Best Score Soundtrack]].<ref name=npr/>

In 1976, Black appeared as a [[femme fatale]] jewel thief [[Alfred Hitchcock]]'s final film, ''[[Family Plot]]''.{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=90}} The film received mixed reviews, though [[Roger Ebert]] commented that Black "does a good job in a role that doesn't give her much to do."<ref>{{cite web|work=[[Chicago Sun-Times]]|author=Ebert, Roger|author-link=Roger Ebert|title=Family Plot|url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/family-plot-1976|date=April 12, 1976|archive-url=https://archive.today/20190821110802/https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/family-plot-1976|archive-date=August 21, 2019|access-date=August 21, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> She also reunited with director [[Dan Curtis]] to star opposite [[Oliver Reed]] and [[Bette Davis]] in the supernatural horror film ''[[Burnt Offerings (film)|Burnt Offerings]]'', playing the wife of a family living in a haunted house.{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|pages=87, 90}} Released in the fall of 1976, ''Burnt Offerings'' was deemed in ''The New York Times'' as an "outstanding terror movie" with "solid actors."<ref>{{Cite web|work=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/09/30/archives/burnt-offerings-is-an-outstanding-terror-movie.html|title='Burnt Offerings' Is an Outstanding Terror Movie|date=September 30, 1976|archive-url=https://archive.today/20190821110307/https://www.nytimes.com/1976/09/30/archives/burnt-offerings-is-an-outstanding-terror-movie.html|archive-date=August 21, 2019|access-date=August 21, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> Additionally, she had a lead role in the independent crime comedy ''[[Crime and Passion]]'' (1976), co-starring with [[Omar Sharif]].{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=90}} Due to scheduling conflicts with ''Family Plot'', Black turned down [[Valerie Perrine]]'s role in ''[[W.C. Fields and Me]]'' (1976).<ref>{{cite interview|title=Vivid Obsessions: Hitchcock's Technicolor Films|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6RQWiVdWP8|date=September 16, 2010|time=5:15}}</ref>

In September 1976, Black traveled to Toronto to be a guest star on the variety program ''[[The Bobby Vinton Show]]'', which aired across the United States and Canada. Black sang "Lonely Now", and joined Bobby in a medley of country oldies. She played a dual role in the 1977 made-for-television thriller, ''[[The Strange Possession of Mrs. Oliver]]'', followed by a minor role in ''[[Capricorn One]]'' (1978) opposite [[Elliott Gould]].{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=90}} In 1979, Black appeared in the erotic drama ''[[In Praise of Older Women (1978 film)|In Praise of Older Women]]'', which she regretted because she thought its title aged her.<ref>[https://facebook.com/realkarenblack/photos/karen-black-and-a-young-tom-berenger-publicity-shot-in-praise-of-older-women-kar/10158694190078009 Facebook]. July 6, 2019.</ref>

===1980–1985: Career comedown===
[[File:Stephen Eckelberry and Karen Black.jpg|thumb|upright=.9|With husband Stephen Eckelberry during their courtship]]

In 1980, Black starred in a made-for-TV movie ''[[Police Story: Confessions of a Lady Cop]]''. She subsequently starred in the drama ''[[Killing Heat]]'' (1981), based on [[Doris Lessing]]'s 1950 novel ''[[The Grass Is Singing]]'', which focused on race relations in [[South Africa]] in the 1960s; in the film, Black portrayed an urban woman who relocates to a rural farm with her husband.{{sfn|Weldon|1996|p=314}} She also appeared as [[Émilienne d'Alençon]] in the French film ''[[Chanel Solitaire]]'' (1981), a biographical feature detailing the early life of [[Coco Chanel]].{{sfn|Weldon|1996|p=100}}

In 1982, Black starred opposite [[Cher]] and [[Sandy Dennis]]<ref name=npr>{{cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/2013/08/09/210547172/karen-black-strange-and-lovely-and-always-game|work=[[NPR]]|access-date=August 21, 2019|title=Karen Black, Strange And Lovely, And Always Game|last=Del Barco|first=Mandalit|date=August 9, 2013}}</ref> in a Robert Altman-directed Broadway production of ''[[Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean (play)|Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean]]''.<ref name=pb/> She subsequently co-starred with Cher and Dennis in Altman's [[Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean (film)|film adaptation]], also released in 1982.<ref name=npr/> In both renditions, she portrayed the role of Joanne, a [[trans woman]] in a small Texas town.<ref name="npr" /> Black spent months preparing for the role, and "did research into pretty depressing statistics about people who've become transsexuals and how they still don't feel complete. I had to become a man, and I am not a man...&nbsp; And that transition was so painful to me, to become a man, that I could use the pain of my actual transition for Joanne."<ref name=ww>{{cite web|work=[[Willamette Week]]|location=Portland, Oregon|title=The Voluptuous Allure of Karen Black|last=Beck|first=Byron|date=July 9, 2002|url=https://www.wweek.com/portland/article-1120-the-voluptuous-allure-of-karen-black.html|archive-url=https://archive.today/20190822091912/https://www.wweek.com/portland/article-1120-the-voluptuous-allure-of-karen-black.html|archive-date=August 22, 2019|access-date=August 22, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> While the Broadway production garnered Black some unfavorable reviews,<ref name=wp>{{cite news|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1982/11/19/riding-the-come-back-trailjimmydean-altmans-new-triumph/0bc0625b-5394-487a-97da-c944cbea8235/|title=Riding the 'Come Back' Trail 'Jimmy Dean': Altman's New Triumph|last=Arnold|first=Gary|date=November 19, 1982|archive-url=https://archive.today/20190822093800/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1982/11/19/riding-the-come-back-trailjimmydean-altmans-new-triumph/0bc0625b-5394-487a-97da-c944cbea8235/?noredirect=on|archive-date=August 22, 2019|access-date=August 22, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> Gary Arnold of ''[[The Washington Post]]'' praised Black's performance in the film, writing that "watching her in the movie, you can understand that what she's doing as Joanna ''[sic]'' might depend on the intimacy of the camera to be both witty and credible."<ref name=wp/>

Black next starred in the [[Henry Jaglom]]-directed comedy ''[[Can She Bake a Cherry Pie?]]'' (1983) playing a divorcee who becomes involved with a bachelor,{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=88}} followed by a lead in the teen-themed [[black comedy]] ''[[Bad Manners (1984 film)|Bad Manners]]'' (1984).{{sfn|Weldon|1996|p=37}} She also appeared in television during this period, with a guest-starring role as Sheila Sheinfeld on ''[[E/R]]'' between 1984 and 1985. She starred in several feature films in 1985, including the Italian exploitation horror film ''[[Cut and Run (film)|Cut and Run]]'', directed by [[Ruggero Deodato]];{{sfn|Weldon|1996|p=131}} the Canadian supernatural horror film ''[[The Blue Man (film)|The Blue Man]]'';{{sfn|Weldon|1996|p=189}} and the action film ''Savage Dawn'', co-starring with [[Lance Henriksen]] as a kidnappee.{{sfn|Weldon|1996|p=482}}

===1986–2002: Independent films and horror roles===
[[File:Stephen Eckelberry Karen Black wedding.jpg|thumb|upright=.9|Black and Eckelberry on their wedding day]]

In 1986, Black co-starred with her son, Hunter, in [[Tobe Hooper]]'s science fiction horror film ''[[Invaders from Mars (1986 film)|Invaders from Mars]]''. She had a supporting role as a mutant's mother in [[Larry Cohen]]'s horror sequel ''[[It's Alive III: Island of the Alive]]'' (1987),{{sfn|Weldon|1996|p=297}} and in the youth-themed comedy ''[[The Invisible Kid]]'' (1988).{{sfn|Weldon|1996|p=294}} She co-starred with [[Jim Belushi]] and [[Whoopi Goldberg]] in ''[[Homer and Eddie]]'' (1989), a comedy about a woman (Goldberg) with a psychologically-impairing brain tumor, and a mentally-challenged man (Belushi).<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/movies/videos/homerandeddierhinson_a0a911.htm|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|title='Homer and Eddie'|last=Hinson|first=Hal|date=February 26, 1990|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130209013050/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/movies/videos/homerandeddierhinson_a0a911.htm|archive-date=February 9, 2013|access-date=August 21, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> In 1990, Black had a supporting role in ''[[The Children (1990 film)|The Children]]'' (1990), a British adaptation of a novel by [[Edith Wharton]], opposite [[Ben Kingsley]],{{sfn|Weldon|1996|p=103}} and in the science fiction comedy ''[[Zapped Again!]]''.{{sfn|Weldon|1996|p=294}}

Beginning in the 1990s, Black was more frequently cast in horror films. Among them were ''[[Mirror, Mirror (1990 film)|Mirror, Mirror]]'' (1990), in which she played a troubled mother;{{sfn|Stanley|2000|p=344}} [[Gary Graver]]'s low-budget supernatural film ''[[Evil Spirits (1990 film)|Evil Spirits]]'' (1990);{{sfn|Stanley|2000|p=173}} and ''[[Children of the Night (1991 film)|Children of the Night]]'' (1991), in which she played an ancient vampire.{{sfn|Weldon|1996|p=103}} She also had roles in the British comedy  ''[[Rubin and Ed]]'' (1991),  the martial arts film ''[[The Roller Blade Seven]]'' (also 1991), and a cameo in Robert Altman's ''[[The Player (1992 film)|The Player]]'' (1992). Black reprised her role from ''The Roller Blade Seven'' in its [[The Legend of the Roller Blade Seven|1992]] and [[Return of the Roller Blade Seven|1993]] sequels, and appeared in the direct-to-video comedy ''[[The Double 0 Kid]]'' (1993), with [[Corey Haim]] and [[Nicole Eggert]]. Also in 1993, Black had a supporting role in [[George Sluizer]]'s drama ''[[Dark Blood]]'' opposite [[River Phoenix]] and [[Judy Davis]], a film that remained incomplete and unreleased for two decades after Phoenix died during the production.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2012/film/reviews/dark-blood-1117948612/|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|title=Review: 'Dark Blood'|date=October 22, 2012|last=Van Hoeij|first=Boyd|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140905082107/https://variety.com/2012/film/reviews/dark-blood-1117948612/|archive-date=September 5, 2014}}</ref> In 1995, she starred in ''[[Plan 10 from Outer Space]]'', a science fiction satire of [[Mormons|Mormon]] theology, directed by [[Trent Harris]].

[[File:Karen Black and Hunter Carson.jpg|thumb|upright=.9|left|With son Hunter Carson, 1999]]

In 1996, Black appeared as a paranoid mother in small-town Nebraska in ''[[Children of the Corn IV: The Gathering]]'', opposite [[Naomi Watts]].<ref name=hr/> She had supporting roles in a number of other independent films that year, including as a public defender in [[Ulli Lommel]]'s drama ''Every Minute is Goodbye'',<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Video Watchdog]]|issue=43–48|page=47|last1=Lucas|first1=Tim|last2=Lucas|first2=Donna|publisher=Tim and Donna Lucas|title=Reviews: ''Every Minute Is Goodbye''|location=Cincinnati, Ohio|issn=1070-9991}}</ref> and the exploitation comedy ''Dinosaur Valley Girls''.{{sfn|Klossner|2006|p=49}} The following year, she co-starred with [[Tilda Swinton]] as Lady Byron in the feminist science fiction feature ''[[Conceiving Ada]]'' (1997), about a contemporary scientist who uses software to make contact with the Victorian pioneer of computer programming [[Ada Lovelace]], daughter of the poet [[Lord Byron]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/library/film/022699ada-film-review.html|work=[[The New York Times]]|archive-url=https://archive.today/20190821215625/https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/library/film/022699ada-film-review.html|archive-date=August 21, 2019|last=Holden|first=Stephen|author-link=Stephen Holden|title='Conceiving Ada': Calling Byron's Daughter, Inventor of a Computer|date=February 26, 1999|access-date=August 21, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> She also had supporting roles in the independent drama ''[[Men (1997 film)|Men]]'', and as a singer in rural Missouri in [[George Hickenlooper]]'s ''[[Dogtown (film)|Dogtown]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/1997/film/reviews/dogtown-1117341418/|title=Review: 'Dogtown'|last=McCarthy|first=Todd|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=April 20, 1997|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222154429/https://variety.com/1997/film/reviews/dogtown-1117341418/|archive-date=February 22, 2014}}</ref>

She continued to star in independent films in 1998, including the [[camp (style)|camp]] comedy ''[[I Woke Up Early the Day I Died]]'',<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|url=https://ew.com/article/1999/09/17/i-woke-early-day-i-died/|last=Gleiberman|first=Owen|date=September 17, 1999|title=I Woke Up Early the Day I Died|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160131174718/https://ew.com/article/1999/09/17/i-woke-early-day-i-died/|archive-date=January 31, 2016}}</ref> the drama ''[[Charades (film)|Charades]]'', as well as the short film ''Waiting for Dr. MacGuffin''.<ref>{{cite web|work=[[British Film Institute]]|url=https://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b81ab54b6|title=Waiting for Dr. MacGuffin|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181203202156/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b81ab54b6|archive-date=December 3, 2018}}</ref> In 2000, Black began filming [[Rob Zombie]]'s directorial debut ''[[House of 1000 Corpses]]'', in which she portrayed [[Mother Firefly]], the matron of a family of psychotic murderers. Upon its release in 2003, the film received largely unfavorable reviews,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/house_of_1000_corpses|work=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|title=House of 1000 Corpses|access-date=August 22, 2019}}</ref> though it helped cement Black's status as a [[cult film|cult]] icon in the horror genre.<ref name="marty">{{cite web|url=http://www.scpr.org/blogs/news/2013/08/08/14468/karen-black-oscar-nominated-actress-and-cult-horro|publisher=[[KPCC (radio station)|KPCC]]| title=Karen Black, Oscar-nominated actress and cult horror film icon, dies at 74|date=August 8, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130831021219/http://www.scpr.org/blogs/news/2013/08/08/14468/karen-black-oscar-nominated-actress-and-cult-horro/|archive-date=August 31, 2013|url-status=dead|last=Lederhandler|first=Marty|agency=[[Associated Press]]}}</ref>

===2003–2013: Establishment as cult figure; playwriting and later works===
[[File:Celine Eckelberry and Karen Black.jpg|thumb|upright=.9|With daughter Celine Eckelberry in the late 2000s]]

As her later career progressed, Black gained a cult following, as alluded to by ''[[Family Guy]]'' television anchor [[List of Family Guy characters#Tom Tucker|Tom Tucker]] in his remark, "Karen Black: what an obscure reference." in the episode ''[[Death Is a Bitch]]'' (season 2, episode 6). She co-starred with [[Natasha Lyonne]] in ''[[America Brown]]'' (2004), which won the Golden Zenith Award for Best Picture at the [[Montreal World Film Festival]]. In 2005, Black received the Best Actress Award at the Fantasporto International Film Festival in [[Porto]], Portugal, for her work in the critically acclaimed [[Steve Balderson]] film ''[[Firecracker (2005 film)|Firecracker]]'' (2005), in which she played two roles, Sandra and Eleanor. She and actor [[John Hurt]] were also presented with Career Achievement Awards.

Black launched a career as a playwright in May 2007 with the opening of ''Missouri Waltz'' at the Blank Theater in Los Angeles; Black starred in the play as well. She also performed live narrations of [[Guy Maddin]]'s experimental film ''[[Brand Upon the Brain!]]'' in 2007, touring the show around the United States.<ref name=or/> 

In 2009, Black worked with director [[Steve Balderson]] for ''[[Stuck!]]'', a homage to [[film noir]] women-in-prison dramas, which co-starred [[Mink Stole]], [[Pleasant Gehman]] and [[Jane Wiedlin]]. She starred in [[John Landis]]' 2010 thriller ''[[Some Guy Who Kills People]]'',<ref>{{cite journal| url=http://www.dreadcentral.com/news/35430/some-guy-who-kills-people-casting-news| title=Some Guy Who Kills People Casting News| journal=[[Dread Central]]| date=January 20, 2010| first=Steve| last=Barton| access-date=August 9, 2013}}</ref> as well as [[Aïda Ruilova]]'s surrealist short film ''Meet the Eye'' (2009).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://hammer.ucla.edu/artist-residencies/2008/aida-ruilova/|work=[[Hammer Museum]]|title=Aïda Ruilova|date=June 16, 2009 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20190822101656/https://hammer.ucla.edu/artist-residencies/2008/aida-ruilova/|archive-date=August 22, 2019|access-date=August 22, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> Later that year, Black appeared on [[Cass McCombs]]' song "[[Dreams Come True Girl|Dreams-Come-True-Girl]]" from the album ''[[Catacombs (album)|Catacombs]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5l8lqNakPI|title = Dreams Come True Girl feat. Karen Black|publisher= [[YouTube]]|date= May 14, 2009|access-date= March 11, 2022}}</ref>

The [[experimental hip-hop]] group [[Death Grips]] released a video on [[YouTube]] called "[[Bottomless Pit (album)|Bottomless Pit]]" in October 2015. The video shows footage of Black reciting lines from a film script written by the group's drummer/co-producer [[Zach Hill]]. The footage was shot in early 2013.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=susTeQpgR9k| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211030/susTeQpgR9k| archive-date=October 30, 2021|title=Bottomless Pit| date=October 21, 2015|publisher=Death Grips|access-date=October 21, 2015}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

==Image and acting style==
{{quotebox|align=right|width=24%|bgcolor=lavender|quote="I remember a friend of mine who said once, when you're raised in a congested space, you can get kind of intellectual. A little paper-loving, a little essayist. That's not very good for actors. Actors don't think. Thinking isn't good for acting; it's not what you do at all."|source=–Black on acting, 2008<ref name=reflects>{{cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2008-09-19-0809171015-story.html|work=[[Chicago Tribune]]|title=Karen Black reflects on her life and career|last=Elder|first=Roger K.|date=September 19, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190304013814/https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2008-09-19-0809171015-story.html|archive-date=March 4, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>}}
Due to her work in various independent and mainstream films in the 1970s, Black is considered by film historians as a prominent figure of [[New Hollywood]],<ref name=guardian/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.avclub.com/r-i-p-karen-black-1798239956|work=[[The A.V. Club]]|title=R.I.P. Karen Black|last=Dyess-Nugent|first=Phil|date=August 8, 2013 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20190821220736/https://news.avclub.com/r-i-p-karen-black-1798239956|archive-date=August 21, 2019|access-date=August 21, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> and was described in 2004 by Howard Feinstein in the [[LGBT]] magazine ''[[The Advocate (LGBT magazine)|The Advocate]]'' as "Hollywood's off-center icon."<ref name=adv>{{cite web|work=[[The Advocate (LGBT magazine)|The Advocate]]|title=Bet on black: how Hollywood's off-center icon Karen Black wound up singing on the set of the new gay independent film Gypsy 83|last=Feinstein|first=Howard|date=May 11, 2004|url=https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Bet+on+black%3A+how+Hollywood%27s+off-center+icon+Karen+Black+wound+up+...-a0116288156|archive-url=https://archive.today/20190822084442/https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Bet+on+black:+how+Hollywood's+off-center+icon+Karen+Black+wound+up+...-a0116288156|archive-date=August 22, 2019|access-date=August 22, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> She was prolific throughout her career, sometimes appearing in as many as seven films a year,<ref name=or/> and favored working in independent films: "That's my world—independent features," she stated in 2007. "That's how I started. That's what I like. It's playful and comfortable and not stressful, and it's an individual's way of creating. You're not in the studio system imitating other people and yourself. I'm having a good life."<ref name=or/>

[[File:Karen Black 2010.jpg|thumb|upright=.9|left|Black in 2010]]

In her later life, Black spoke unfavorably of the formal [[acting coach|study of acting]], and commented that she found her training both in the university (under [[Alvina Krause]]) and at the [[Actors Studio]] unhelpful and oppressive.{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=85}}<ref name=simon/> Also a writer, Black likened her acting process to that of writing screenplays or other literature: "Everything that occurs in this zone is imagination-based. In that sense you mock up a life, and then you become the effect of what you've mocked up, so it's [[causality|cause and effect]]. So the more you can mock it up so that it seems real to you, the more you can react to the effect. That's what acting is, and that's what writing involves for me, too. That's the simplicity of it. It sounds simple, because it is."<ref name=simon/> Black considered herself a [[character actor|character actress]].{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=89}}

Throughout her career, Black was noted for her distinctive eyes, which gave her a slightly "[[cross-eyed]]" appearance,<ref>{{cite news |last1=Wood |first1=Gaby |title=Karen Black: The face of the counterculture |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/culturenews/10233540/Karen-Black-The-face-of-the-counterculture.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/culturenews/10233540/Karen-Black-The-face-of-the-counterculture.html |archive-date=January 12, 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |work=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]] |date=August 9, 2013}}{{cbignore}}</ref> although she stated in a 1982 interview that she had not been clinically diagnosed as such.<ref name="Sharbutt">{{cite news |last1=Sharbutt |first1=Jay |title=Karen Black: Hollywood actress returns to tackle Broadway |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/22759802/ |work=[[The Anniston Star]] |date=February 14, 1982 |location=Anniston, Alabama |page=10D|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> One reviewer once described her as a "lopsided caricature of a pretty face."{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=85}} For much of her career, Black was [[typecasting (acting)|typecast]] as an unglamorous or lowly woman of limited intelligence.{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=85}} Beginning in the 1990s, Black began garnering a cult following for her appearances in horror films, though she clarified in 2008 that she had acted only in "about 14" out of her wide-ranging filmography.<ref name=reflects/> "When I did ''[[Trilogy of Terror]]'', with that [demon] doll, I filled the role very well," she recalled. "It was very real to people, and they just fell in love with it. And that got to be incredibly popular. With my last name being Black ... so it got to be kind of an unconscious thing, [my association with horror movies]. But I'm not interested in blood."<ref name=reflects/>

==Beliefs==
In 1964, Black became a [[Scientology|Scientologist]],{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=87}} and practiced it for the remainder of her life.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,913147,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110122060343/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,913147,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 22, 2011 |title=Show Business: Boom in Black |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|TIME]] |date=June 9, 1975 |access-date=August 9, 2013}}</ref><ref name="Guthmann">{{cite web|url=https://www.sfgate.com/movies/article/remembering-karen-black-as-actress-friend-spouse-4776039.php|title=Remembering Karen Black as actress, friend, spouse|date=August 30, 2013|first=Edward|last=Guthmann|work=SFGate}}</ref> She was a vocal proponent of [[gay rights]], commenting in 2007: "I'm for gay rights. Who you are is very sacred, and should be honored—no matter what gender you were born. You shouldn't feel like you have to dodge some sort of conformity."<ref name=or>{{cite web|url=https://www.oregonlive.com/aenow/2007/10/interview_karen_black_the_ulti.html|work=[[The Oregonian]]|location=Portland, Oregon|last=Johnson|first=Barry|date=October 21, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190821213612/https://www.oregonlive.com/aenow/2007/10/interview_karen_black_the_ulti.html|archive-date=August 21, 2019|title=Interview: Karen Black, the ultimate indie actor}}</ref> Black also advocated [[animal rights]] and was critical of the [[fur industry]], once posing in a Halloween-themed anti-fur advertisement for [[People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals]] (PETA).<ref>{{cite web|work=[[People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals|PETA]]|url=https://www.peta.org/blog/peta-pays-tribute-to-scream-queen-on-halloween/|title=PETA Pays Tribute to Scream Queen on Halloween|last=Kretzer|first=Michelle|date=October 24, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140625053002/http://www.peta.org/blog/peta-pays-tribute-to-scream-queen-on-halloween/|archive-date=June 25, 2014}}</ref>

==Personal life==
Black was married four times and called off two engagements. Three of her marriages ended in divorce, while the fourth lasted nearly 30 years and ended only at death.

She became pregnant the first time she had sex, with her boyfriend Charles Black.{{sfn|Bay|2022|p=161}} He was 18; she was  15.{{sfn|Bay|2022|p=161}} They were driven to Alabama where they could marry with parental consent, then moved to [[Muncie, Indiana]], where Charles attended college.{{sfn|Bay|2022|p=162}} Black had a [[miscarriage]], to her relief, but when she returned home, her father barred her from returning, so she drove back to Muncie.{{sfn|Bay|2022|p=162}} The marriage was short-lived, although she retained Charles' surname, under which she would come to be credited throughout her career.<ref>{{cite web|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|url=https://variety.com/2013/film/news/karen-black-dead-at-74-1200576003/|last=Saperstein|first=Pat|title=Karen Black Dies at 74|date=August 8, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131231213455/https://variety.com/2013/film/news/karen-black-dead-at-74-1200576003/|archive-date=December 31, 2013}}</ref>

While a student at Northwestern University, Black began dating classmate Robert Benedetti.<ref name=la/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://karenblackactress.blogspot.com/2013/10/karen-and-nina.html|title=Karen and Nina|last=Eckelberry|first=Stephen|date=October 7, 2013|website=Karen Black: Diary of an Actress}}</ref> She got pregnant again and gave birth to a daughter on March 4, 1959.{{sfn|Bay|2022|p=57}} She did not tell her parents about the pregnancy, and put her daughter up for [[adoption]] at birth;{{sfn|Bay|2022|p=162}} she reconnected with her in 2012.{{sfn|Bay|2022|pages=78–79}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.findingkarenblack.com/|archiveurl=https://archive.today/20201108185030/https://www.findingkarenblack.com/|url-status=dead|title=Karen Black |website=Findingkarenblack.com|archive-date=November 8, 2020|access-date=July 17, 2021}}</ref>

[[File:Robert Burton and Karen Black.jpg|thumb|upright=.9|left|With Skip Burton, 1973]]

Boyfriends during the 1960s included writer [[Henry Jaglom]] and actors [[Peter Kastner]] and [[Paul Sorvino]].<ref name="Guthmann"/><ref name="Marci">{{cite news|title=A kooky movie star flees status symbols for cluttered studio|date=October 7, 1972|first=Marci|last=McDonald|work=Toronto Star|page=4}}</ref> From 1971 to 1972, Black was engaged to music manager Peter Rachtman.<ref name="Marci"/> Rachtman's daughter [[Karyn Rachtman|Karyn]] would remain a lifelong friend, delivering a eulogy at Black's memorial service.<ref name="vimeo">[https://vimeo.com/75189301 Karen Black Memorial September 17th, 2013]. ''Vimeo''.</ref>

On April 17, 1973, Black married actor Robert "Skip" Burton.{{sfn|Segrave|Martin|1990|p=87}} They appeared together in the first segment of ''[[Trilogy of Terror]]'' (1975), but had separated by the time it premiered.<ref name="guardian">{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/aug/09/karen-black |title=Karen Black obituary |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |location=[[Manchester]] |last=Gilbey |first=Ryan |date=August 9, 2013 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130811103253/http://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/aug/09/karen-black |archive-date=August 11, 2013 |access-date=December 12, 2016 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="tcm">{{cite web |url=http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/participant.jsp?spid=16780 |title=Overview for Karen Black |work=[[Turner Classic Movies]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161215120230/http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/16780%7C91906/Karen-Black/|archive-date=December 15, 2016}}</ref>

In January 1975, Black met screenwriter [[L. M. Kit Carson]] in Beverly Hills during an interview for ''[[Oui (magazine)|Oui]]'' magazine.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20065458,00.html|title=Wedding Bells in the Canyon: Karen Black Packs Up Her Joys in a Young Kit Carson|date=July 21, 1975|first=Barbara|last=Wilkins|work=People|archive-date=November 23, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101123202758/http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20065458,00.html}}</ref> They married on July 4 of that year when she was pregnant with their son [[Hunter Carson|Hunter]].<ref name=guardian/> Black and Carson separated in 1980 and divorced in 1983.<ref name="guardian"/><ref name="tcm"/> In 1989, when Hunter was 13, he decided to live with his father and stepmother in Dallas; he did not see Black for a decade.<ref name="Guthmann" />{{sfn|Bay|2022|pages=99, 116}}

In 1981, Black announced her engagement to [[Michael Raeburn]], who wrote the screenplay for her low-budget star vehicle ''[[Killing Heat]]''.<ref>{{cite news|title=Marriage song|date=January 30, 1981|work=Evening Standard|page=6}}</ref> The two did not marry. Black's next significant relationship was with [[Paul Williams (director)|Paul Williams]], who directed her in 1982's ''Miss Right''.<ref name="Sharbutt"/><ref>{{cite news|title=Karen's Kind of Loving; The star who keeps her men busy!|date=October 7, 1984|first=Trudi|last=Pacter|work=Sunday Mirror|page=17}}</ref>

[[File:Stephen Eckelberry and Karen Black with daughter Celine.jpg|thumb|upright=.9|With Stephen Eckelberry, circa 2005]]

In August 1983, Black met her fourth husband, film editor Stephen Eckelberry, at a Scientology retreat in [[Clearwater, Florida]].<ref name="Guthmann"/> The couple married on September 27, 1987, and adopted a daughter, who acted with her parents in the film ''Movies Money Murder''.{{sfn|Bay|2022|p=59}}<ref>{{cite news|title=Karen Black's funny on screen and off|date=August 25, 1988|first=Rita|last=Zekas|work=Toronto Star|page=C1}}</ref> Black and Eckelberry remained married until her death in 2013.

Fellow Scientologist actress [[Lee Purcell]] was Black's best friend for 43 years.<ref name="vimeo"/><ref>{{cite web|title=Tribute to Karen Black|date=August 11, 2013|first=Lee|last=Purcell|work=JerryMathers.com|url=https://www.jerrymathers.com/tribute-to-karen-black}}</ref> Other close friends included [[Harriet Schock]] and [[Angela Garcia Combs]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Karen Black: Perfectly Misunderstood|date=August 13, 2013|first=Angela|last=Garcia Combs|work=The Huffington Post|url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/karen-black-perfectly-mis_b_3750555}}</ref>

==Illness and death==
In November 2010, Black was diagnosed with [[Periampullary cancer|ampullary cancer]]. She had a portion of her [[pancreas]] removed and underwent two further operations.<ref name=hr>{{cite news|url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/karen-black-five-easy-pieces-nashville-dies-431637|title='Five Easy Pieces' Actress Karen Black Dies at 74|newspaper=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]|date=August 8, 2013|access-date=August 10, 2013}}</ref> She was invited to attend the premiere of the salvaged feature film ''[[Dark Blood]]'', in which she had played a small part in the original early 1990s shoot. Black was unable to attend the event, held in the Netherlands in September 2012, due to her illness.<ref name="guardian"/>

On August 8, 2013, Black died at [[West Hills Hospital]] in Los Angeles,<ref name=la/> from the ampullary cancer, aged 74.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/chi-actress-karen-black-dead-at-74--20130808,0,1998067.story |title=Actress Karen Black dies |work=[[Chicago Tribune]] |date=August 9, 2013|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130808220650/http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/chi-actress-karen-black-dead-at-74--20130808,0,1998067.story |archive-date=August 8, 2013 }}</ref>  Black's funeral was held on August 19 in [[Oceanside, California]], followed by a Hollywood memorial on September 17.<ref name="vimeo"/>{{sfn|Bay|2022|p=283}}

Actress [[Juliette Lewis]] paid tribute, saying "Karen Black was my mentor and a second mother to me. She inspired everyone she came in contact with."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-23627843 |title=Karen Black, Easy Rider actress dies aged 74 |work=[[BBC News]] |date=August 9, 2013 |access-date=August 10, 2013}}</ref> Peter Fonda, her co-star in ''Easy Rider'', commented upon her death: "[Karen] managed to play kooky, she managed to play sexy, she managed to play crazed. She managed to play all the different ways of human nature."<ref name=npr/> Black is interred at Eternal Hills Memorial Park in Oceanside.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.express.co.uk/celebrity-news/432406/Karen-Black-completed-memoirs-on-eve-of-her-death|title=Karen Black completed memoirs on eve of her death|date=September 26, 2013|work=Express}}</ref>

==Filmography==
{{Main|List of Karen Black performances}}

==Accolades==
{{Main|List of awards and nominations received by Karen Black}}

==Footnotes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
{{refbegin}}
*{{cite book| title = Prehistoric Humans in Film and Television: 581 Dramas, Comedies and Documentaries, 1905-2004
 | last = Klossner | first = Michael | year = 2006
 | publisher = McFarland | location = Jefferson, North Carolina
 | isbn = 978-0-786-42215-9
}}
*{{cite book| title = The Post-Feminist Hollywood Actress: Biographies and Filmographies of Stars Born After 1939
 | last1 = Segrave | first1 = Kerry
 | last2 = Martin | first2 = Linda
 | year = 1990
 | publisher = McFarland | location = Jefferson, North Carolina
 | url = https://archive.org/details/postfeministholl0000segr | url-access = registration | via = [[Internet Archive]]
 | isbn = 978-0-899-50387-5
}}
*{{cite book| title = Creature Features: The Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Movie Guide
 | last = Stanley | first = John | year = 2000
 | publisher = Berkley Boulevard Books | location = New York
 | isbn = 978-0-425-17517-0
}}
*{{cite book| title = The Psychotronic Video Guide To Film
 | last = Weldon | first = Michael | year = 1996
 | publisher = Macmillan | location = New York
 | isbn = 978-0-312-13149-4
}}
*{{cite book| title = Finding Karen Black: Roots Become Wings
 | last = Bay | first = Diane | year = 2022
 | publisher =  Roots to Wings Press, LLC | location = Frederick, Maryland
 | isbn = 978-0-578-37371-3
}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Karen Black}}
* {{IMDb name}}
* {{IBDB name}}
* {{iobdb name}}
* {{Tcmdb name}}
* [https://www.allmovie.com/artist/karen-black-an5643 Karen Black] at [[AllMovie]]
* {{discogs artist|Karen Black}}
* {{YouTube|ihjUveRJr7s|"The Films of Karen Black"}}, video compilation, 3 min.
* [http://www.terrortrap.com/screamqueens/black.php Karen Black — The Terror Trap]

{{Navboxes
|title = [[List of awards and nominations received by Karen Black|Awards for Karen Black]]
|list =
{{GoldenGlobeBestSuppActressMotionPicture 1961-1980}}
{{National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actress}}
{{New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actress}}
}}

{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Black, Karen}}

[[Category:1939 births]]
[[Category:2013 deaths]]
[[Category:Actors from Park Ridge, Illinois]]
[[Category:Actresses from Illinois]]
[[Category:American film actresses]]
[[Category:American musical theatre actresses]]
[[Category:American people of Czech descent]]
[[Category:American people of German descent]]
[[Category:American people of Norwegian descent]]
[[Category:American Scientologists]]
[[Category:American television actresses]]
[[Category:American women screenwriters]]
[[Category:American women singer-songwriters]]
[[Category:Best Supporting Actress Golden Globe (film) winners]]
[[Category:Deaths from cancer in California]]
[[Category:Northwestern University alumni]]
[[Category:Screenwriters from Illinois]]