Stella Adler

Stella Adler (February 10, 1901 – December 21, 1992) was an American actress and an acclaimed acting teacher, who founded the Stella Adler Studio of Acting in New York City (1949) with long-time protege Joanne Linville, who continues to teach and furthers Adler's legacy. Her grandson Tom Oppenheim now runs the school in New York, which produced alumni including Marlon Brando, Robert De Niro, and more recently Jenny Lumet (film director Sydney Lumet's daughter). She founded the Stella Adler Academy of Acting and Theatre in Los Angeles, and the school continues to flourish as an acting studio and houses several theaters. She began acting at the age of four as a part of the "Independent Yiddish Art Company" of her parents, and concluded it 55 years later, in 1961. During that time, and for years after, Stella Adler taught acting as well.