Estelle Parsons on AllMovie

Parsons attended law school and was involved in local politics before joining the staff of the "Today" show. She moved from production assistant to writer and feature producer. In the late '50s she began appearing onstage in satirical revues and plays, working in stock and on and off Broadway. She began appearing in character roles onscreen in 1963. For her work in Bonnie and Clyde (1967) she won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar, then was again nominated in the same category for Rachel, Rachel (1968). She went on to give a number of memorable screen performances (though she did almost no film work in the late '70s and '80s), and also acted on stage and television. In 1983 she starred in the feminist one-woman show Adulto Orgasmo Escapes From the Zoo. She has also taught acting for many years. In the '80s and '90s she was a semi-regular on the hit TV sitcom "Roseanne."