Victoria Tennant (born 30 September 1950) is a British actress. She is known for her roles in the TV miniseries '' The Winds of War'' and '' War and Remembrance'', in which she appeared as actor

Robert Mitchum Robert Charles Durman Mitchum (August 6, 1917 – July 1, 1997) was an American actor. He is known for his antihero roles and film noir appearances. He received nominations for an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award. He received a star on the Holl ...

's on-screen love interest, Pamela Tudsbury, as well as her supporting roles in '' All of Me'' (1984), ' (1985), '' Flowers in the Attic'' (1987), ' (1990), and '' L.A. Story'' (1991).

Early life

Tennant was born in London, England, daughter of Cecil Gordon Tennant (1910-1967) and Irina Baronova. Her father, from a junior branch of a family of minor Yorkshire gentry resident at Kilnsey, was a producer and

talent agent A talent agent, or booking agent, is a person who finds work for actors, authors, broadcast journalists, film directors, musicians, models, professional athletes, screenwriters, writers, dancers, and other professionals in various entertainm ...

for MCA; her mother was a

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

prima ballerina A ballet dancer is a person who practices the art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet. They rely on years of extensive training and proper technique to become a part of a professional ballet company. Ballet dancers ...

who appeared with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. Tennant's maternal grandfather, Mikhail Baronov, was a senior officer in the

Imperial Russian Navy The Imperial Russian Navy () operated as the navy of the Russian Tsardom and later the Russian Empire from 1696 to 1917. Formally established in 1696, it lasted until being dissolved in the wake of the February Revolution and the declaration of ...

; his wife, the former Lydia Vishniakova, was a general's daughter. Tennant has a sister, Irina, and a brother, Robert, both of whom were seriously injured in a car crash in 1967 that killed their father. Tennant's godfather was the actor

Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier ( ; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director. He and his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud made up a trio of male actors who dominated the British stage of the m ...

. Like her mother, Tennant trained in

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

, first at the

Elmhurst Ballet School Elmhurst Ballet School is an independent boarding school for professional classical ballet in the United Kingdom. It takes students aged 11–19 years who intend to pursue a career in professional classical ballet. Elmhurst provides a full acade ...

and then (for two years) at the

Central School of Speech and Drama The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, commonly shortened to Central, is a drama school founded by Elsie Fogerty in 1906, as the Central School of Speech Training and Dramatic Art, to offer a new form of training in speech and drama for ...

Career

After a number of roles in British and other European films, including '' The Ragman's Daughter'' (1972) and ''

Inseminoid ''Inseminoid'' (titled ''Horror Planet'' in the United States) is a 1981 British science fiction horror film directed by Norman J. Warren and starring Judy Geeson, Robin Clarke and Stephanie Beacham, along with Victoria Tennant in one of her ea ...

'' (1981), Tennant emigrated to the United States. She went to appear in films '' Strangers Kiss'' (1983), '' All of Me'' (1984) with

Steve Martin Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American comedian, actor, writer, producer, and musician. Known for Steve Martin filmography, his work in comedy films, television, and #Discography, recording, he has received List of awards a ...

, her future husband, and '' The Holcroft Covenant'' (1985). She starred as Pamela Tudsbury in the ABC miniseries '' The Winds of War'' in 1983, receiving

Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Janua ...

nomination for Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film. She reprised her role in the sequel miniseries '' War and Remembrance'' (1988). In 1987, Tennant starred in the neo-noir crime thriller '' Best Seller'' and the psychological drama film '' Flowers in the Attic'' playing the leading role. In 1990 she appeared in the dystopian drama film ''

The Handmaid's Tale ''The Handmaid's Tale'' is a futuristic dystopian novel by Canadian author Margaret Atwood published in 1985. It is set in a near-future New England in a patriarchal, totalitarian theonomic state known as the Republic of Gilead, which has ...

'' and was lead actress in the horror film '' Whispers''. In 1991, Tennant starred alongside Steve Martin in the romantic comedy film, '' L.A. Story''. She wrote the script for the 1996 romantic comedy film, '' Edie & Pen''. The following years, Tennant appeared mostly in the smaller-scale films and guest-starred in television series including '' Diagnosis: Murder'', '' JAG'', '' Scrubs'' and ''

Monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

''. In 2014, Tennant published a memoir about her mother titled ''Irina Baronova and The Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo'', published by the

University of Chicago Press The University of Chicago Press is the university press of the University of Chicago, a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. It is the largest and one of the oldest university presses in the United States. It pu ...

. The book was presented at the Bel Air Country Club in

Bel Air, Los Angeles Bel Air (or Bel-Air) is a residential neighborhood on the Los Angeles Westside, in the foothills of the Santa Monica Mountains in the U.S. state of California. Together with Beverly Hills, California, Beverly Hills and Holmby Hills, Bel Air fo ...

."Blue Ribbon Book"
(21 Nov 2014) ''

The Beverly Hills Courier ''The Beverly Hills Courier'' is a free weekly Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid-sized print newspaper of circulation in Beverly Hills and the surrounding communities, and a daily web newspaper. History The publication was founded by March Sch ...

'', Vol. 49, No. 46, p. 8

Personal life

Tennant's first marriage was to Peppo Vanini, a nightclub owner who owned the Xenon nightclub. They married in 1969 and divorced in 1976.''Contemporary Theatre, Film and Television'' (2008) She dated Matthew Chapman from 1978 until 1982, but ended their relationship upon meeting

. She married Martin in 1986, but they divorced in 1994. Since 1996, Tennant has been married to Kirk Justin Stambler.

Filmography

Film

Television

Music

*'' Hussy'' – theme song lyrics

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tennant, Victoria 1950 births 20th-century English actresses 21st-century English actresses Actors educated at the Elmhurst School for Dance Actresses from London Alumni of the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama British expatriate actresses in the United States English ballerinas English emigrants to the United States English film actresses English people of Russian descent English television actresses Living people