Sally Field: Then And Now, From Gidget To Mama Gump

By | November 5, 2019

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Sally Field circa 1980. (Photo by Aaron Rapoport/Corbis via Getty Images)

From surfer girl to labor leader, from supernatural nun to Mary Todd Lincoln, Sally Field's incredibly wide-ranging career spans many decades of underrated greatness. Whether you remember her as the adorable spunky “Gidget,” the runaway bride in Smokey And The Bandit, or in one of her spectacular Oscar-winning performances like Norma Rae or Places In The Heart, there are many sides to Field to fall in love with.

From a difficult childhood to “You like me, you really like me” (a misquote, by the way) on stage at the Academy Awards, Sally Field ran the entire gamut of life on her way Hollywood success. Perhaps someday soon Sally Field: The Movie will be coming to a theater near you.

A Father Figure Who Helped Her Get Her Start

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At 18 Field got her Hollywood start early (defunctgames)

Sally Field was a child of a divorce but that wasn’t the difficult part of her childhood. The difficulties came when her mother married Jock Mahoney, an actor and stuntman. In many places, he’s credited as the man who talked Field into taking the role of The Flying Nun, which became a huge success.