BIOGRAPHY
As the daughter of one of
cinema's most intense and psychotic actors, Nastassja Kinski emerged in her own
right as a sensual, albeit aloof, actress who, for a time, was relegated to
B-movie status despite several acclaimed performances. After receiving her
start in German movies, some of which gained notoriety for the underage actress
playing sexual characters, Kinski attained international stardom as the titular
heroine in mentor Roman Polanski's Oscar-nominated "Tess" (1979).
Kinski found herself the object of desire when photographer Richard Avedon shot
a nude poster of her coiled with a snake that became quite popular in college
dorm rooms. She later starred in Paul Schrader's erotic horror thriller,
"Cat People" (1982), while engaging in a brief, but long remembered
affair with the director. Kinski gave one of her most affecting performances as
an estranged wife in the arthouse hit, "Paris, Texas" (1984), before
spending the remainder of the decade and beyond in a series of forgettable
Italian-made movies. Though she retreated from the limelight for the most part
to concentrate on raising her first two children, Kinski became the focus of
tabloid excess when it was revealed that famed musician-producer Quincy Jones
was the father of her second daughter. The newfound attention sparked a renewed
film career which saw Kinski deliver strong turns in "The Ring" (NBC,
1996), "Your Friends & Neighbors" (1998) and "The
Claim" (2000), before she again bowed out of the spotlight in 2006.
Despite her spotty film résumé, Kinski was notable for her strong allure
onscreen and off that continued to enthrall audiences across generations.
