Priscilla Pointer, a renowned character actress, has enjoyed a remarkable career spanning over four decades, both as a stage, film, and television performer, as well as being the mother of the talented Amy Irving.
Born in New York, Pointer received her training on the stage and went on to appear in numerous tours and Broadway shows, including "A Streetcar Named Desire", "The Country Wife", and "The Condemned of Altona", often under the direction of her husband, Jules Irving, a former actor whom she married in 1947.
Together, they co-founded the San Francisco Actor's Workshop along with Herbert Blau and Beatrice Manley. After taking a hiatus from her career to raise her children, Pointer returned to the stage at the age of 40+ and set her sights on film and television, becoming a ubiquitous presence in the 1970s and 1980s as a mother figure, often portraying characters that were both brittle and resilient.
She also demonstrated her versatility by playing dependable roles as stern, no-nonsense teachers, doctors, and judges. Notably, she played the mother of her real-life daughter Amy Irving in the cult classic "Carrie" (1976),as well as the mother of Diane Keaton in "Looking for Mr. Goodbar" (1977),Sean Penn in "The Falcon and the Snowman" (1985),and Kyle MacLachlan in "Blue Velvet" (1986).
In addition, Pointer appeared on the popular nighttime soap opera "Dallas" (1978),playing the role of the mother of Victoria Principal's character. Following the passing of her husband Jules in 1979, she married actor Robert Symonds two years later, and the couple has frequently appeared together on stage, including in the plays "Voices" and "The Road to Mecca".
