Sylvia Miles - Biography

Sylvia Miles (born September 9, 1932) is an American actress.

Early life and career

Miles was born Sylvia Reuben Lee in New York City, the daughter of Belle (née Fellman) and Reuben Lee, a furniture maker.

Miles played the role of "Sally" in the pilot episode of what would become The Dick Van Dyke Show, which was later taken by Rose Marie for the series. She also appeared in an episode of Naked City as a lovely barfly attempting to communicate with a psychotic Jack Warden.

She is perhaps best known for her role in the movie Midnight Cowboy as a wealthy woman who invites Joe Buck (Jon Voight) up to her apartment for sex, seemingly unaware that he is a prostitute, which earned her an Oscar nomination in 1969 for Best Supporting Actress. She received a second Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress in 1975 for her role in Farewell, My Lovely.

Miles was part of an all-star cast in the 1982 Agatha Christie murder mystery Evil Under the Sun, portraying a Broadway producer. She played a real estate agent in 1987's Wall Street, directed by Oliver Stone.

Over the years, the still very active Miles has become a cult figure known for her ties to the avant-garde (Andy Warhol, Paul Morrissey, etc.) and her increasingly bizarre appearance over the years and her willingness to attend any public function. Wayland Flowers and his puppet Madame first uttered the widely quoted line "Sylvia Miles and Andy Warhol would attend the opening of a sewer." She gained some notoriety for an incident in a New York restaurant, when she publicly dumped a plate of spaghetti and tomato sauce onto critic John Simon as revenge for his comments about her body in a review.

Her most recent acting appearances include roles on Sex and the City, One Life to Live, and the films Go Go Tales and Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (reprising her role from the first film, as a real estate agent).

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