Mercedes McCambridge

Mercedes McCambridge (1916–2004) was an American actress whose work spanned radio, stage, film, and television. She won an Academy Award for All the King's Men and voiced the demon in The Exorcist.

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All the King's Men: A 1949 American film drama adapted from Robert Penn Warren’s novel about a Southern politician’s rise to power. McCambridge won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for playing campaign aide Sadie Burke.
Elia Kazan: An American theater and film director known for socially engaged works including A Streetcar Named Desire and On the Waterfront. Kazan directed All the King's Men, the film that earned McCambridge her Academy Award.
Voice acting: Performance that uses the voice to portray characters in animation, radio, games, or other recorded media. McCambridge’s demon performance is a notable example of voice acting in a live-action film.
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress: An annual Academy Award honoring a film performance in a supporting role by an actress. McCambridge received the award for All the King's Men, establishing her as a major film performer.
The Exorcist: A 1973 horror film about a child’s demonic possession and the priests who attempt an exorcism. McCambridge supplied the demon’s voice, a performance central to the film’s unsettling sound.
William Friedkin: An American film director whose films include The French Connection and The Exorcist. Friedkin directed The Exorcist and brought McCambridge in to voice the demon.
Radio drama: A dramatic performance created primarily through dialogue, music, and sound effects for broadcast or recording. Radio trained McCambridge to convey character and emotion through sound alone.
Academy Awards: An annual set of American film awards presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Her Oscar win became the most prominent formal recognition of her screen career.
Giant: A 1956 American epic film about a Texas ranching family and social change across generations. McCambridge played Luz Benedict, whose forceful presence shapes the film’s opening.
William Holden: An American film actor whose screen career included Sunset Boulevard, Stalag 17, and The Wild Bunch. Holden starred opposite McCambridge in All the King's Men.