Eileen Brennan Movies

Want to know the best Eileen Brennan movies?  How about the worst Eileen Brennan movies?  Curious about Eileen Brennan box office grosses or which Eileen Brennan movie picked up the most Oscar® nominations? Need to know which Eileen Brennan movie got the best reviews from critics and audiences? Well, you have come to the right place….because we have all of that information.

Eileen Brennan (1932-2013) was an Oscar® nominated American actress.  Brennan was a gifted, versatile player who could reach dramatic depths, as exemplified in her weary-eyed, good-hearted waitress in 1971’s The Last Picture Show (1971), or comedy heights, as in her sadistic drill captain in 1980’s Private Benjamin. Her IMDb page shows 128 acting credits from 1960 to 2013.  This page will rank Eileen Brenan movies from Best to Worst in six different sortable columns of information.  To do well in our overall rankings a movie has to do well at the box office, get good reviews by critics, be liked by audiences, and get some award recognition.

1980’s Private Benjamin

Eileen Brennan Movies Ranked In Chronological Order With Ultimate Movie Rankings Score (1 to 5 UMR Tickets) *Best combo of box office, reviews and awards.

1971’s The Last Picture Show

Eileen Brennan Movies Can Be Ranked 6 Ways In This Table

The really cool thing about this table is that it is “user-sortable”. Rank the movies any way you want.

  • Sort Eileen Breenan movies by her co-stars
  • Sort Eileen Brennan movies by adjusted domestic box office grosses using current movie ticket cost (in millions)
  • Sort Eileen Brennan movies by domestic yearly rank
  • Sort Eileen Brennan movies by how they were received by critics and audiences.  60% rating or higher should indicate a good movie.
  • Sort by how many Oscar® nominations and how many Oscar® wins each Eileen Brennan movie received.
  • Sort Eileen Brennan movies by Ultimate Movie Rankings (UMR) Score.  UMR puts box office, reviews and awards into a mathematical equation and gives each movie a score.
1985’s Clue

Possibly Interesting Facts About Eileen Brennan

1. Verla Eileen Regina Brennan was born in Los Angeles, California in 1932.

2. While studying at the Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York, Eileen Brennan shared an apartment with The Golden Girls star, Rue McClanahan.

3.  Eileen Brennan originated the role of Irene Malloy in the original Broadway production of Hello, Dolly! in 1964.

4.  In 1982, Eileen Brennan was seriously injured in a car crash by a drunk driver.

5.  Eileen Brennan was nominated for 7 Emmy Awards®.

Check out Eileen Brennan’s career compared to current and classic actors.  Most 100 Million Dollar Movies of All-Time.

20 thoughts on “Eileen Brennan Movies

  1. 1/Like Steve I am not familiar with Eileen’s work – but then probably neither was Hirsh but that never stopped him pontificating about a thespian!

    2/However as I have said on many occasions it is to WH’s credit that he profiles both the low and the high and does so 99.9% impartially. “With the poor and meek and lowly. Lived on earth our Saviour Holy.” {Cecil F. Alexander’s Christmas carol Once in Royal David City].

    3/Looking down Work Horse’s carefully-devised list I see that I have watched 5 movies that Eileen has been in but sadly can remember her in none of them with the exception of Last Picture Show but even then only as a vague general image on the screen my recollections being helped by Bruce’s miniature above.

    The Sting
    Last Picture Show
    Stella – not to be confused with the legendary “Stellaahhhhh!
    Jeepers Creepers – as horrific as any of Steve’s Xmas Video offerings!
    Murder by Death [“I’m in disguise” in disguise in disguise!” – Peter Falk as sleuth Sam Diamond a gambling-card play on Dashiell Hammett’s famous Sam Spade.]

    1. 4/On top of her movie career Eileen has been in 43 television productions including 4 of the series that I used to watch continuously: Rock Hudson’s McMillan and Wife *** [1971-77]; Barnaby Jones; Kojak; and Murder She Wrote

      ***Would be a good alternative title for this site [with just a slight tweak] but be warned: Susan St James [by all accounts a real pain in the ***] who didn’t get along with her co-stars left the series in 1976 and the title was changed to just “McMillan” for the remainder of the series.

      5/IMDB credits Eileen with just 2 acting awards and 11 noms; but whilst estimates of her net worth vary NetworthWikia.com published an article about Eileen & said that her net worth was $70 Million at the time of her death in 2013 equivalent to $78 million in 2020 dollars.

      6/Sad about her car accident which WH mentions in his Interesting Facts section above. Her misfortunes seem ed to bear out the adage that “bad things come in threes” because s she also fell from the stage in 1989 during a production of Annie, breaking a leg. The following year, she was diagnosed with breast cancer which happily she successfully treated.

      7/”Voted up!” for the reason given in 2 above and because it was nice for me to be able to familiarize myself with her wider work beyond the 5 movie I have mentioned.

      1. Hey Bob. As always…thanks for sharing your thoughts on her television work, her awards and her very impressive net worth. I agree….she had a bad run of luck. Thanks for the kind words about our UMR variety. Between me and Joel we are going to educate you about movies….lol. Good stuff as always.

        1. “Cogerson on Eileen Brennan Movies: Hey Bob. Between me and Joel we are going to educate you about movies.”

          WH:

          It has been said that politically authoritarian regimes work on the principle that to brainwash their subjects and control their minds you must indoctrinate them with propaganda when they are in their infancy at primary schools. In my case you and Joel have missed the boat there!

    2. Hey Bob….tally counts: Cogerson 10, Steve and Flora at 8, Bob at 5. The Sting and Private Benjamin are the two movies mentioned most when she passed. She was Newman’s lady in The Sting. Surprised Jeepers Creepers is one of the 5 you have seen. Good quote from Murder by Death. Good stuff as always.

  2. I have seen 8 Eileen Brennan movies.

    The HIGHEST rated movie I have seen is The Sting.

    The highest rated movie I have NOt seen is Hustle.

    The LOWEST rated movie I have seen is Clue.

    Favourite Eileen Brennan Movies:

    The Sting
    The Last Picture Show
    The Cheap Detective
    Clue

    Other Eileen Brennan Movies I Have Seen:

    Murder By Death
    Private Benjamin
    Divorce American Style
    Scarecrow

    1. Hey Flora. As always…thanks for the comment, visit and tally count. Tally count. Cogerson 10, Steve and Flora at 8. I have seen 3 of your favorites and 2 of your “others”. The Sting is my top favorite. I thought Private Benjamin was ok….but not nearly as funny as so many others did. Good stuff as always.

  3. Not really familiar with this actress but I have seen 8 of the films on the chart, more than I thought. Favorites are – The Sting and Murder By Death.

    Looking at the chart – The Sting was a monster hit, star power at work, it just doesn’t happen anymore. I didn’t see The Sting until it popped up on TV in the 1980s.

    I haven’t seen Private Benjamin. I may have seen The Cheap Detective but can’t remember for sure. I have the memory of a goldfish.

    Nice work Bruce, Joel would be proud. [Bob snorts] 😉

    Vote Up!

    1. Hey Steve. I have always gotten her confused with Cloris Leachman and Madeline Kahn. She made a few movies with Leachman….but none with Kahn. I have seen 10 of her movies. I am right there with you are your favorites. I have not seen The Cheap Detective…but I will see that one in the future. The good news for Bob…is the Joel subjects are dwindling and dwindling. Another one just came off the board about a hour ago. Thanks for the kind words and the comment.

      1. Hey Steve…my comment was wrong….thanks to Dan’s epic lists…I now know that Madeline Kahn and Eileen Brennan made three movies together.

        887 MADELINE KAHN At Long Last Love (1975)
        887 MADELINE KAHN Clue (1985)
        887 MADELINE KAHN The Cheap Detective (1978)

    1. Thanks Mike….gotta admit….UMR is taking a backseat to the visit by our granddaughter…..I wrote this page a few days ago for today…..but then last night I forgot to create the post for today….I know….I am a slacker….well……off to the beach today…..lol.

  4. “Eileen Brennan is a diamond in the rough; a square-jawed actress who always gives more complexity to a role usually demands. Brennan softens the hard edges of her characters -beaten and weary, but somehow tender.” – Rating the Movie Stars book (1983)

    Rating The Movie Stars 4 Star Eileen Brennan Movie Performances
    1973’s The Sting
    1974’s Daisy Miller
    1980’s Private Benjamin

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