Oscar-Nominated Actress Sondra Locke, Clint Eastwood’s Long-time Girlfriend, Dies At 74

Oscar-nominated actress and director, Sondra Locke, who was known for her long relationship with Clint Eastwood, has died at the age of 74.

On November 3, Locke died of cardiac arrest from breast and bone cancer at her Los Angeles home.

In 1967, Locke’s career began to emerge when she won a nationwide talent search for a role in The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter opposite, Alan Arkin. Her portrayal of the 16-year-old character put her on the public radar and earned her an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress as well as two Golden Globe nominations. The actress then went on to star in Cover Me Babe, A Reflection of Fear, and The Second Coming of Suzanne. But things took a turn when she was cast as Eastwood’s love interest in The Outlaw Josey Wales in 1975. From that point on, Locke and Eastwood were in a relationship, and over the course of their relationship, the pair would continue to work alongside in films from The Gauntlet to Every Which Way But Loose, Any Which Way You Can and Bronco Billy. 

In 1986, Locke branched out of acting and made her directional debut with Ratboy. Over the next several years, she continued to direct with 1990’s Impulse and 1997’s Do Me a Favor. But in 1989, Locke and Eastwood parted ways, when she sued him for palimony after he allegedly changed the locks to their home and removed all her belongings. The two ended up settling for an undisclosed amount. The following year, Locke released her memoir, called, The Good, the Bad and the Very Ugly: A Hollywood Journey, which included details of her double mastectomy and chemotherapy that came with her diagnosis of breast cancer.

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“I try to cover the good years as well as the bad and the ugly,” Locke told AP at the time. “Also, that in even the worst ugly things there can sometimes be a lot that will make you a better person.”

In 1967, Locke married actor Gordon Anderson, and the two have remained married until her death.