Sally Field's Mom Made Her First Golden Globe Dress — Years Later, The Actress Still Looks Stunning

Jul 07, 2023 by apost team

Sally Field has lived an eventful life. The actress is the recipient of two Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, and three Primetime Emmy Awards. She has been nominated for a Tony Award and two British Academy Film Awards and has been named the recipient of the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award for 2023. 

Sally began her career as a teenager on the small screen as the titular character in the comedy "Gidget" in 1965. Her next role was as Sister Bertrille in "The Flying Nun," which she disliked very much and revealed that her stepdad forced her to take. Sally's role in the comedy series made her famous, but it also made her the laughingstock in Hollywood. Consequently, the budding actress was typecast and couldn't get any serious roles after that.

"The Girl with Something Extra" gave Sally the break she needed, and she won her first Emmy for her outstanding performance. After starring in "Sybil," she began to be taken seriously. Sally's role in "Norma Rae," which earned her two Academy Awards, established her in films. 

The "Gidget" actress broke the glass ceiling in the industry by crossing over to film from TV at a time when there was a clear dichotomy between the small screen and the big screen. Other notable works that she has starred in include "Forrest Grump," "Places in the Heart," and "Lincoln." She has since become of the industry's greatest TV and film stars. 

Sally's accomplishments did not come easily. Following the release of her memoir, Sally revealed on September 18, 2018, that her first Golden Globe Dress was handmade. Despite aging, the actress remains ever so beautiful. Keep reading to know who made Sally's first Golden Globes dress. 

Despite Sally's achievements, her life has been filled with heartbreak, loneliness, and pain since childhood. The TV personality was born to actress Margaret Field and army officer Richard Field. The duo divorced in 1950. Margaret remarried two years after the divorce to fellow actor and stuntman Jock Mahoney. However, Mahoney sexually abused Sally for years, starting when she was 11 years old. 

Sally married her first husband, Steve Craig, in 1968. They had two children, Peter and Eli Craig, but separated in 1973 and divorced in 1975. She then met Burt Reynolds when they acted together in "Smokey and the Bandit." The pair got attracted to each other immediately, and a sizzling romance that would last five years began. 

However, Reynolds was emotionally abusive and controlling. Sally said about their relationship: "We were a perfect match of flaws." 

She wrote in her memoir, "In Pieces," published in 2018, that he "began teaching me what was allowed and what was not." Reynolds also wanted to know who the men she met were and their roles in her life. 

"I knew early on never to mention the men who had been in my life, and later became terrified of running into somebody I might have known, whether sexually or not," her memoir revealed. "Burt would pinch my face in his hands, demanding I tell him who the guy was and what kind of relationship I'd had with him."

Sally said of the situation, "I was always flattered when he said that," referring to the actor saying she was the love of his life. Nevertheless, she found the courage to split in 1982. Sally married her second husband, Alan Griesman, in 1984, and they had a son, Sam. The couple divorced in 1994.

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While talking about her memoir and the painful memories she recounted in it, Sally shed more light on her journey to stardom in an interview with ABC's Diane Sawyer in a story posted on YouTube on September 18, 2018. The grandmother of five revealed that the dress she wore to her first Golden Globe Awards was handmade. Sally's mom, Margaret, made it hurriedly. 

"My mom made the dress the night before," she recalled. "I was wearing a pink taffeta culottes outfit. ... My hair was in ringlets. I mean, what on Earth was I thinking?"

The "Sybil" actress also recounted how she had to fly onto the stage to get her award. "I'm flying across the Coconut Grove, looking down at everyone I wanted to know and be. ... And I had to fly into the arms of John Wayne," she remembered, laughing.

Sally and her mom had a good relationship despite her traumatic childhood before Margaret died in 2011 from cancer. Before Margaret's death, the two made up after they talked about Mahoney abusing her and Margaret pledging her undying support for her daughter. 

Margaret also helped Sally when she had no money. As a single mom of two boys, Sally could barely afford to take care of her children, and thankfully, her mom was willing to help. 

Sally told Bustle, "I had two little boys, and I wasn't married. That was basically my life, trying to take care of these two boys and be the breadwinner. Luckily I had the most fabulous mother who helped take care of my boys while I went off to work because I never had enough money (for child care)."

Today, Sally has more than enough and still looks lovely in her 70s.

Does Sally Field's story inspire you? Are you a fan of the actress? Which of her works is your favorite? Let us know — and be sure to pass this article on to friends, family members, and fellow Sally Field fans!