IRMA P. HALL NEWS, INTERVIEWS & UPDATES



News for 5/24/2004


'Ladykillers' Star Hall Wins Cannes Award


CANNES, France (Reuters) - U.S. actress Irma P. Hall won a Cannes prize Saturday for her role as a little old lady who thwarts a criminal gang in "The Ladykillers," but could not collect her award because she is recovering from a car accident.

A panel headed by director Quentin Tarantino gave Hall the special jury prize in a tie with director Apichatpong Weerasethakul for "Tropical Malady," the first Thai film to compete at the world's top movie festival.

Hall plays a church-going landlady in the Deep South who inadvertently plays host to a gang planning a heist on a floating casino. When she finds out what they are doing, they try to kill her but run into unexpected problems.

The actress was seriously injured in the accident in January and has been unable to attend any of the film's premieres.

The film also stars Tom Hanks and was directed by brothers Joel and Ethan Coen.



News for 3/28/2004


Hall leans on faith, humor

BY BILL ZWECKER
Sun-Times Columnist


"Survivor" is not a TV show for Irma P. Hall. Instead it's the best word to describe the veteran actress' life the past few months. Yet, while Hall is recovering from the life-threatening injuries suffered in a car crash Jan. 24, the "Soul Food" star exhibited nothing but laughter, joy and amazing tenacity the other day.

Sitting in her wheelchair at a Near North Side rehab center, Hall happily showed off the neon-pink cast on her left leg. Admitting humor has helped see her through the past couple of months, the actress said, "I've got enough dark drama going on in my life. I wanted bright colors around me."

The accident not only reinforced Hall's lifelong deep faith in God, but even has had an effect on Tom Hanks, her co-star in "The Ladykillers," opening Friday.

"Tom told me, '[Your accident] has turned me into a praying man, Irma. I'm praying for you every day!'"

Hall's philosophy hasn't really changed all that much since the head-on collision that even necessitated open heart surgery to save her life. "I've always told my children ... life's just not that serious. I know that sounds opposite of what people tell you -- and yes, there are very serious things in life. I know it only takes a second to die. But overall, my attitude toward life has always been that it's not that serious. People shouldn't go around moping all the time. There's a lot more funny things in life than serious things. ... Even God had a sense of humor about this accident. In his wisdom he did not touch my face -- but that's his little joke. I'm a character actor. I could have been scarred up and it wouldn't have mattered ... just God's little joke," said Hall, letting out a deep chuckle.

The Chicago resident hopes "The Ladykillers" gives her fans yet another reason to find humor in life. But she's frustrated because her injuries have prevented her from attending any early screenings of the film -- the latest offering from Ethan and Joel Coen. "I can't wait to see it. I want to see her. I want to see Mrs. Munson."

Hall was the first actress the Coens approached about playing Mrs. Munson in "The Ladykillers," a loose remake of the 1955 movie starring Alec Guinness and Peter Sellers. "To tell you the truth, when they called, I was just happy to meet the Coen brothers. When I did meet them, I only read a couple of lines and then we just started talking from then on.

"I thought, 'Oh, well. They don't even want me to read [the script] ... so forget that! But at least I got to meet them and we got to talk. I was happy with that."

Later, when Hall learned she had indeed nailed the audition and was going to be working with Hanks, "I didn't say anything. I was speechless. I couldn't say a word."

Hall was further dumfounded when her manager, Harrise Davidson, also told her, "Tom Hanks is looking forward to working with you." The actress was incredulous. "Does he know my work? ... I'm still trying to get used to that!"

Hanks' familiarity with her performances should not have come as a surprise. Hall has created any number of memorable characters -- Big Mama in "Soul Food" and Aunt T. in "A Family Thing" perhaps being her best known.

Hall is not one of those actresses who recoils from seeing herself on screen.

"I'm playing so hard, creating that character that is not me, I just get lost in the story and watching the characters. If something happens to them that's sad, I feel sad. If they die, I cry.

"When Big Mama died in 'Soul Food,' people would say to me, 'Why are you crying?' I'd tell them, 'Because Big Mama died.'

" 'But that was you!' they'd say. And I'd tell them, 'But that was not me. That's just a character I'm playing.' ''

As the actress approaches her 69th birthday in June, she knows her turf well.

"I've become an older woman, and when I meet women on the street they tell me they're very pleased because they see themselves up on the screen or on TV or on the stage.

"I love it when they tell me, 'I see me when I see you.' That makes me feel good."



News for 2/19/2004


GOOD NEWS

By BY STELLA FOSTER
SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST


On The "Hall" Front: On Jan. 27, I broke the news that beloved actress Irma P. Hall, 68, a veteran of stage/screen/TV and best known for her role as Big Momma in the film and TV version of "Soul Food," was in a car accident on the South Side that landed her in the hospital in critical condition from her injuries.

The good news is she is out of the hospital and now convalescing at the Warren Barr Pavilion, 66 West Oak.

She told me, "I'm just happy to be alive and able to look down on the ground instead of being under the ground." She's been hearing from her Hollywood pals including Tom Cruise, Tom Hanks and from her old childhood classmate, WMAQ-Channel 5 anchor Warner Saunders. They attended elementary and high school in Chicago together.

Hanks' office, along with writer/director Joel Coen, have been in constant touch and hopeful that Hall will be well enough to attend the premiere next month of their movie "The Lady Killers," in which she is a co-star.



Actress Irma Hall hurt in accident

From the Chicago Tribune on January 28, 2004


Irma P. Hall, a Chicago actress perhaps best known for her roles in "A Family Thing" and "Soul Food," is in serious condition after a weekend driving accident, her manager said.

Hall, 68, was driving near 98th Street and Jeffery Boulevard Saturday morning when she rounded a curve, crossed lanes into oncoming traffic and crashed head on with another car, police spokesman Carlos Herrera said.

Hall was taken to Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn and the other driver to Trinity Hospital, where a press aide could not confirm the driver's condition.

Hall was later cited for driving with a suspended license and failing to stay in her lane, Herrera said.

Hall remains in intensive care. She's undergone open-heart surgery as well as surgery for her broken arm and crushed ankle, said Hall's manager, Harrise Davidson.