Elizabeth McGovern Movies and Career Information

Elizabeth McGovern (born July 18, 1961) is an American film, television, and theater actress. In 1981, she earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Evelyn Nesbit in the film Ragtime. McGovern was born in Evanston, Illinois, the daughter of Katharine Woolcot (née Watts), a high school teacher, and William Montgomery McGovern, a university professor. The McGovern family moved to Los Angeles where her father accepted a position with UCLA. Her younger sister is novelist Cammie McGovern. McGovern started acting in plays while attending North Hollywood High School. Agent Joan Scott saw her performance in The Skin of Our Teeth by Thornton Wilder, was impressed by her talent, and recommended she take acting lessons. McGovern followed her advice and studied at the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco, then at The Juilliard School in New York City. In 1980, while studying at Juilliard, McGovern was offered a part in her first movie, Ordinary People, in which she played the girlfriend of troubled teenager Timothy Hutton. It was also Robert Redford's first film as director. The movie won four Oscars. The next year she earned an Academy Award