Oscar-winning actress Eva Marie Saint dies at 102

Eva Marie Saint, the Hollywood Golden Age star known for her roles in 'On the Waterfront' and 'North by Northwest,' died Tuesday at the age of 102.

Saint’s representative, Jeff Sanderson, confirmed that the actress passed away of natural causes at her Los Angeles home while surrounded by family and loved ones. Her career in film and television spanned seven decades, beginning with a celebrated movie debut in the 1954 classic "On the Waterfront." That performance alongside Marlon Brando earned her the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. According to CBS News, she was only the fourth person to win that specific Oscar for a film debut.

Five years later, Saint starred as mysterious secret agent Eve Kendall opposite Cary Grant in Alfred Hitchcock’s "North by Northwest." The Guardian noted that she secured the iconic role in part by wearing beige and white gloves to a lunch with the director. Throughout her career, she worked with many of the industry's most prominent leading men, including Paul Newman, Gregory Peck, and Henry Fonda. Later in her career, she appeared as Martha Kent in the 2006 film "Superman Returns."

Beyond the silver screen, Saint was a prolific performer on television and the stage. Fox News and NBC News reported that she received five Emmy nominations during her career, winning one in 1990 for the miniseries "People Like Us." She had also appeared on Broadway in "The Trip to Bountiful" before her film career began. Despite her success, CBS News reported that Saint intentionally limited her workload to one movie a year to prioritize raising her children, once telling an agent that family was more important than being a superstar.

Outlets provided slightly different descriptions of her longevity, with The Guardian describing her screen work as spanning six decades while Fox News and NBC News characterized her career as lasting more than seven decades. Saint remained active late into her life, appearing on a podcast series at age 97. At the time of her death, she was regarded as one of the last surviving luminaries of Hollywood's classical era.

Background

Born in 1924 in Newark, New Jersey, Saint studied acting at Bowling Green State University and the New York Actors Studio. She married director-producer Jeffrey Hayden in 1951, and the two remained together for 65 years until his death in 2016.