Wichita State University - Theatre Program
Guest Artist: SHIRLEY KNIGHT
Shirley Knight Hopkins, an internationally known stage, film, and television actress,
was inducted into the College of Fine Arts Hall of Fame in its inaugural year 2015.
As a youth, Knight sang with an orchestra on radio and placed second in a state-wide talent show. As a teen she wrote a short story which was chosen for publication in a national magazine. Born and raised in Kansas, she graduated from Lyons high school and attended Phillips University in Enid, Oklahoma, and Wichita State University and has now earned her Doctor of Fine Arts from Lake Forest College.
She headed to Hollywood at age 20 and began her film career while studying at the
Pasadena Theatre School. Knight went on to New York and began her theatre career,
studying acting with Jeff Corey and Lee Strasberg and became a member of The Actor's
Studio. She quickly earned her first credit on the television series Matinee Theater
and by the early 1960s, she garnered nationwide exposure with Oscar nominations for
her supporting role in the films "The Dark at the Top of the Stairs" (1960) and "Sweet
Bird of Youth" (1962). She has appeared in major films as "As Good As It Gets";
"The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood"; and "Grandma's Boy", and television
shows such as "Hot in Cleveland", "House", Desperate Housewives", Cold Case" and more.
In her long and distinguished career, Knight has been earned nominations for every major industry award including:
- two Academy Award nominations for Best Supporting Actress
- three Golden Globe nominations
- win for Best Supporting Actress in "The McMartin Trial" (1995)
- seven Emmy nominations
- two wins for Outstanding Guest Performer in a Drama Series: "NYPD Blue" (1993) and Thirtysomething (1987)
- and numerous other awards including the Golden Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress in "As Good as It Gets" (1997).
She has received many honors from her home state of Kansas, including the Kansan of
the Year award in 2000 and the Governor's Distinguished Artist Award in 2007. Both
were given to her by Governor Kathleen Sebelius.