Ann-Margret

Ann-Margret was married to actor Roger Smith from 1967 until his death in 2017. Smith later became her manager, and she was the stepmother of his three children, Tracey, Jordan and Dallas.

She has spoken about her Swedish-American heritage and her Christian faith. She is also a keen motorcyclist, appearing with a Triumph motorcycle in The Swinger and in stage and television performances. In 2000, she suffered three broken ribs and a fractured shoulder after being thrown from a motorcycle in Minnesota.

Ann-Margret moved from Sweden to the United States with her parents as a child and began performing in school revues, drama productions and local talent contests. While studying at Northwestern University, she formed the singing group the Suttletones with three male students. The group performed in cabaret clubs in Reno, Las Vegas and Southern California before she left college to pursue entertainment full time.

George Burns discovered her while she was performing at the Dunes Hotel in Las Vegas and invited her to join his act. The opportunity led to a recording contract with RCA Victor and a seven-year film contract with 20th Century Fox. She made her screen debut opposite Bette Davis in Frank Capra's Pocketful of Miracles in 1961 and released her first album, And Here She Is ... Ann-Margret, that year.

Her role as Kim McAfee in Bye Bye Birdie made her a major star, while Viva Las Vegas paired her with Elvis Presley. She also appeared with Dick Van Dyke in Bye Bye Birdie and recorded three duets with Presley for Viva Las Vegas, including "The Lady Loves Me." Her single "I Just Don't Understand" reached number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1961.

After a run of films that often emphasized her glamorous image, Ann-Margret took on more dramatic material. Mike Nichols cast her as Bobbie in Carnal Knowledge (1971), a performance that earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress and won her a Golden Globe in the same category.

She continued balancing dramatic acting with live musical performances. In The Train Robbers (1973), she appeared opposite John Wayne, and in Ken Russell's rock film Tommy (1975), she played Nora Walker. Her performance in Tommy brought a second Academy Award nomination, this time for Best Actress, as well as a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.

In September 1972, she fell 22 feet from an elevated platform during a performance at Lake Tahoe, breaking her left arm, cheekbone and jawbone. After facial reconstructive surgery and a ten-week recovery, she returned to the stage.

During the 1980s, Ann-Margret received major television roles in Who Will Love My Children?, A Streetcar Named Desire and The Two Mrs. Grenvilles. She won Golden Globe Awards for Who Will Love My Children? and A Streetcar Named Desire, and received Emmy nominations for all three projects.

Her later film work included Newsies, Grumpy Old Men, Grumpier Old Men, Any Given Sunday, Taxi, The Break-Up, The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause, Going in Style and Queen Bees. She also appeared in television productions such as Life of the Party: The Pamela Harriman Story, Ray Donovan and The Kominsky Method. In 2010, she won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series for Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.

Music remained part of her career. She recorded gospel albums with Art Greenhaw, including God Is Love: The Gospel Sessions and God Is Love: The Gospel Sessions 2. Her album Born to Be Wild, released in 2023, featured 13 cover songs and became her first album to chart since Beauty and the Beard in 1964.

Ann-Margret received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1973 and was appointed a Commander of Sweden's Royal Order of the Polar Star in 1988. She has won five Golden Globe Awards, an Emmy Award and several other honors, including the USO Spirit of Hope Award.

She performed for U.S. service members during a 1966 USO tour of Vietnam and Southeast Asia with Chuck Day and Mickey Jones. She later reunited with them for an encore performance for veterans and troops at Nellis Air Force Base. Her autobiography, Ann-Margret: My Story, was published in 1994 and reached the New York Times Best Seller List.