Neal, Patricia, 1926-2010

Award-winning screen and stage actress Patricia Neal was born on January 20, 1926, in Packard, Kentucky, to William Burdette “Coot” Neal (1895-1944) and Eura Petry Neal (1899-2003). She was raised in Knoxville, Tennessee, where her father worked as a manager at the Southern Coal and Coke Company.

Neal developed an interest in the performing arts at a young age. She began drama lessons at age eleven at the Emily Mahan School of Drama, where she performed in annual recitals and theatrical productions. In 1941, Neal became a member of the Tennessee Valley Players, a community theater group. The following year, with the support of Malcolm Miller, the theater critic for the Knoxville Journal, Neal joined the Barter Theater acting colony in Abingdon, Virginia. She spent her final high school summer with the company, training, performing, and traveling across the southeast.

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