R.I.P. Sondra Locke (1944-2018)

Sandra Locke

On November 3, 2018, actress and director Sondra Locke passed away in Los Angeles, CA at the age of 74 after battling breast and bone cancer. Among the highlights of her illustrious career was a 13 year partnership with actor Clint Eastwood, starring together in seven films including The Outlaw Josey Wales and Sudden Impact. She is also the central subject of a nasty lawsuit between her and Eastwood that has since become a textbook case for law students on how to have a case with "good faith." She received an Oscar nomination for her debut role The Heart is a Lonely Hunter and has since gone on to have a compelling and lengthy career full of splendid highs. She leaves behind an incredible legacy both on the screen and off and will be missed greatly for her impact towards women in the industry.

Sondra Locke was born Sandra Louise Smith on May 28, 1944 in Shelbyville, Tennessee. Her early childhood was a complicated one with her father disappearing prior to her birth. She was raised by family that had a maternal quality. It wasn't until her mother married Alfred Locke in 1948 that she chose to change her name. She would later change her name from Sandra to Sondra as a performer so that she wouldn't be constantly called Sandy. In junior school, she was a cheerleader and class valedictorian and elected "Duchess of Studiousness" and became interested in acting. Towards her 20's, she would become a model for the Tennessean fashion page and pursued a career in acting on stage.

Locke would win a nationwide talent search in 1967 that lead to her playing Mick Kelly in the film The Heart is a Lonely Hunter opposite Alan Arkin. The role would prove to be a big boost for her career, as she would earn a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination for her role, becoming one of a rare group to be nominated for their cinematic debut performance. She also received two Golden Globe nominations for the film, including Best Supporting Actress and Most Promising Newcomer. As a whole, her career was off to a great start. She would continue to star in films like Cover Me Babe and TV series like The F.B.I., Kung Fu, and Night Gallery.

Her next big break and moment that would define her career came with the 1975 western The Outlaw Josey Wales. She starred as the love interest of actor Clint Eastwood. The partnership would lead to a behind the scenes relationship that lasted until 1989 and would find her working almost exclusively with Eastwood in films that included Every Which Way But Loose and Sudden Impact - the latter being the highest grossing of the popular Dirty Harry franchise. Eastwood would also producer her directorial debut Ratboy through his production company Malpaso. The film was considered a flop despite positive reviews from European markets. She would continue to direct movies for the rest of her career.

In 1989, her and Eastwood would part ways. It wasn't until later that she revealed horrifying details of her time with the famed actor. She had performed two abortions because she didn't believe that she was good mother material. Eastwood would also suggest that it didn't fit their public image to have children. In spite of this, Eastwood would father two children secretly in the final years of his time with Locke. Once separated, Locke was blackballed by Eastwood and found it difficult to work in Hollywood. This would lead to a lawsuit against Warner Bros. regarding Eastwood's plan to sabotage her directing career. She considered it five years of torture, but would end up winning. It's a trial that has since become a textbook case illustrating the legal concept of good faith.

in more recent years, Locke became a breast cancer survivor after undergoing a double mastectomy and chemotherapy. She would also date one of the surgeons, Dr. Scott Cunneen. They moved in together and lived together in the Hollywood Hills in recent years. While her career may seemed to have stalled out in the 1980's, it was only another turn in a career that saw her take on the patriarchy and become one of the progenitors of women succeeding in Hollywood. She leaves behind an impressive body of work on screen as a tough woman who could hold her own against strong men. The same could be said for her work off screen. It's an incredible career and one that's hard to beat. She will be missed.