Edna Rae Gilhooley was born December 7, 1932 in Detroit Michigan. A High School dropout, Edna Rae Gilhooley would work a number of jobs including: short order cook, waitress, model, show-girl, and nightclub dancer until she was cast in a Broadway play under the name Ellen McRae. Ellen would eventually marry her third husband in 1960 and take his name of Burstyn which would then become her billing name. Ellen Burstyn married Neil Burstyn in 1960 have one son and divorce in 1971. Her second husband was Paul Roberts whom she was married to from 1956 to 1959 and her first husband was William Alexander whom she remained with from 1950 to 1955. Ellen would only have the one son by Burstyn.

Ellen's career was pushed into the limelight for her role in "Goodbye Charlie" (1964). This prompted her to take time off acting to study acting with Lee Strasberg at the Actors Studio. She would then return to the limelight when she was cast as the female lead in "The Last Picture Show"(1971). This would be the break she required to bring her acting career into full swing. She received a number of nominations for Oscar's and Golden Globes until finally in 1974 for her work in "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore" when she won the Oscar for Best Actress. That same year she also took home a Tony Award for her role in "Same Time, Next Year" a Broadway play. This feat would make history by becoming the first person to win an Oscar and a Tony in the same year.

The 80's were a tough decade for the Oscar winning Ellen. Even though her abilities were proven, she was unable to secure work except in some television movies and "The Ellen Burstyn Show (1986)" a television series. Ellen would receive a number of Emmy nominations for the television movies throughout this decade. In the 90's she continued with the television series and managed to get some work on a few films. Hopefully Hollywood will wake up and not allow Ellen's talents to waist away any more.