Katharine Ross (born January 29, 1940) is a retired American actress. Her accolades include an Academy Award nomination, a BAFTA Award, and two Golden Globe Awards. In the 1960s, she emerged as a defining face of American cinema, known for her “natural” beauty and a minimalist, interior acting style that felt modern and honest. She transitioned from television guest spots to becoming one of the most acclaimed actresses of the late 1960s.
Ross’s career in the 1960s is anchored by two of the decade’s most iconic films. As Elaine Robinson, she became the center of a famous cinematic love triangle alongside Dustin Hoffman and Anne Bancroft in The Graduate (1967). This role earned her a Golden Globe for New Star of the Year and an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. In Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969), she played Etta Place, the intelligent and independent schoolteacher who accompanies the outlaws Paul Newman and Robert Redford to Bolivia. This performance won her the BAFTA Award for Best Actress.
Before her mainstream breakthrough, Ross spent the early 1960s establishing herself in television and supporting film roles. She made her debut in Sam Benedict (1962) and appeared in classic series like Gunsmoke, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, The Virginian, and The Big Valley.
Ross made her first feature film appearance in the Civil War drama Shenandoah (1965), playing the daughter-in-law of James Stewart. She appeared in The Singing Nun and Mister Buddwing (1966) and the psychological thriller Games (1967). In 1968, she starred alongside John Wayne in Hellfighters. In addition to Butch Cassidy, she starred in Tell Them Willie Boy Is Here (1969) with Robert Redford, further solidifying her association with the Western genre.
In the 1960s, Ross was considered a “Hollywood bombshell,” but one with a distinctly casual, “California cool” vibe. She often wore her hair long and loose with face-framing layers, sometimes in braids or a messy “up-do.” She was known for a tawny, matte face with softly smudged eye liner and neutral lips, avoiding the heavy, dramatic makeup often associated with earlier Hollywood eras. Here, below is a selection of 30 stunning portraits of a young and beautiful Katharine Ross in the 1960s:
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