{"id":415296,"date":"2026-01-18T17:30:13","date_gmt":"2026-01-18T17:30:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/415296\/"},"modified":"2026-01-18T17:30:13","modified_gmt":"2026-01-18T17:30:13","slug":"beverly-dangelo-chose-motherhood-over-her-hollywood-career","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/415296\/","title":{"rendered":"Beverly D’Angelo chose motherhood over her Hollywood career"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!\n <\/p>\n

When Beverly D\u2019Angelo became a mom at age 49, she was determined to raise her children away from the glaring Hollywood spotlight.<\/p>\n

The “National Lampoon” star, 74, welcomed twins Anton and Olivia Pacino in 2001 with then-partner Al Pacino. The couple were together from 1997 to 2003.<\/p>\n

The actress is kicking off the new year by starring alongside Hayden Panettiere in the psychological thriller “Sleepwalker.”<\/p>\n

\u2018NATIONAL LAMPOON\u2019 STAR BEVERLY D’ANGELO SAYS SHE’D TELL YOUNGER SELF TO ‘DO MORE NUDITY’ IN HOLLYWOOD CAREER<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Beverly <\/p>\n

Anton James Pacino, Olivia Pacino and their mother Beverly D’Angelo at the premiere of “Violent Night” on Nov. 29, 2022, in Los Angeles. (Gilbert Flores\/Variety via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

“There\u2019s this thing that happens when you have kids,” D\u2019Angelo told Fox News Digital. “All of a sudden, you go, \u2018Oh, wait a minute, my parents.\u2019 You look at how you were raised. Maybe some of the things that you thought were a drag when you were a kid turn out to be exactly what you want to pass on. And my value system has never included a lot of hype or a lot of focus on fame.”<\/p>\n

“I\u2019m from the Midwest<\/a>,” she said. “In retrospect, even though I was a real rebel, leaving home at 17, I had a great upbringing. Everything was clear. There were good people who didn\u2019t lie.”<\/p>\n

\"Beverly <\/p>\n

Beverly D’Angelo arrives at a reception benefiting SCLA Veterans in Art and NAVSO at Via Porto on March 8, 2020, in Beverly Hills. (Amanda Edwards\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

“You follow the golden rules \u2014 find something you can do well, be responsible with it and embrace your community,” D’Angelo continued. “You know, all the four-square values. American values. And I really had a pretty all-American upbringing for as wild as my life has been.”<\/p>\n

\"The <\/p>\n

Chevy Chase, Beverly D’Angelo and their on-screen kids wave goodbye in a scene from the film “National Lampoon’s Vacation,” circa 1983. (Warner Brothers\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

D\u2019Angelo stressed she wanted to give her children as normal an upbringing as possible.<\/p>\n

WATCH: CHEVY CHASE ON HAND TO SUPPORT SYLVESTER STALLONE<\/p>\n

“I raised them with values of honesty, responsibility<\/a> and finding your gifts,” she said. “I wanted them to focus on that.”<\/p>\n

D\u2019Angelo noted she didn’t think twice about prioritizing her children over her Hollywood career.<\/p>\n

\"Beverly <\/p>\n

Beverly D’Angelo told Fox News Digital she had zero qualms raising her children outside the Hollywood spotlight. (American Broadcasting Companies via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

“I had kids really late \u2014 I gave birth to twins<\/a> six weeks after I turned 49,” she explained. “It was really important to me to place them at the center of my world. So, I wouldn\u2019t do any films that would take me out of town for any amount of time. I did television, I did some indie films and things like that, but my focus was really to always be emotionally and physically available to my kids.”<\/p>\n

\"Beverly <\/p>\n

Beverly D’Angelo welcomed twins Anton and Olivia Pacino with then-partner Al Pacino in 2001. (Ron Galella\/Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

“And I\u2019ve got to make a confession: I\u2019m not a careerist,” she admitted. “I have never been. Everything I\u2019ve done is because I love a script or a character. But as far as pursuing a career, I wasn\u2019t somebody who had a dream like, \u2018One day I\u2019m going to grow up and become an actress.\u2019 That\u2019s not me. I never thought, \u2018If I do this role, maybe I\u2019ll get this other role.\u2019 I\u2019ve always just been motivated by a profound need to express myself.”<\/p>\n

After high school, the Ohio native<\/a> moved to California and landed a job at Hanna-Barbera Studios. She later moved to Canada, where she trained as a studio vocalist before landing a Broadway role in “Rockabye Hamlet.”<\/p>\n

\"Beverly <\/p>\n

Beverly D’Angelo performs onstage at Saban Theatre on Dec. 6, 2025, in Beverly Hills. (Scott Dudelson\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

“Instead of being pursued by the music industry, it was casting directors for films,” said D\u2019Angelo. “I got my Screen Actors Guild card with a line in \u2018Annie Hall.\u2019 And I just worked, worked, worked. It took 14 auditions for the film \u2018Hair\u2019 that landed me the lead role of Sheila. I worked on that film with a fantastic director, Milo\u0161 Forman.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTER<\/a><\/p>\n

\"A <\/p>\n

Beverly D’Angelo left Ohio when she was 17 years old. (Reg Innell\/Toronto Star via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

“He was a very important director in the whole scheme of things,” she continued. “He really held my hand and introduced me to the world of film. That\u2019s really where I got my acting experience<\/a>. It\u2019s always been in film.”<\/p>\n

“My acting was learned. It all came from being in the moment. That\u2019s what you have to do \u2014 just be in the moment.”<\/p>\n

When asked whether she ever felt pressure to be a sex symbol in Hollywood, D\u2019Angelo didn\u2019t hesitate: “One hundred percent.”<\/p>\n

\"Actress <\/p>\n

Beverly D’Angelo, circa 1991. (Lynn Goldsmith\/Corbis\/VCG via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

“And then I left,” she said. “I moved to Italy<\/a>. I don\u2019t know what else to say except I really wasn\u2019t a careerist. I didn\u2019t plot, I didn\u2019t plan. I\u2019ve always had great people around me. I had a fantastic agent for a long time. I have a wonderful agent now, but again, I was never a plotter or a planner.”<\/p>\n

D\u2019Angelo was married to Italian duke Lorenzo Salviati from 1981 to 1995.<\/p>\n

\"Beverly <\/p>\n

Christie Brinkley and Beverly D’Angelo at Mr. Chow’s restaurant on Feb. 19, 1983, in Beverly Hills. (Ron Galella\/Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Today, D\u2019Angelo stays busy, acting on her own terms \u2014 and often playing a role she knows well.<\/p>\n

LIKE WHAT YOU\u2019RE READING? CLICK HERE FOR MORE ENTERTAINMENT NEWS<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Beverly <\/p>\n

Beverly D’Angelo is keeping busy in 2026 with new films. (Momodu Mansaray\/WireImage\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

“Acting today is a gift, and it\u2019s a gift to come to this point, too,” she said. “You have something to say in your 20s, your 30s and your 40s. And then, you don\u2019t find a lot of people writing what women have to say as time goes on.”<\/p>\n

“The fantastic thing about aging is that you have this wealth of experience,” D’Angelo continued. “You can relate to so much more. I\u2019m not saying it entitles you to become a know-it-all. You just have a greater understanding of the world.”<\/p>\n

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Beverly <\/p>\n

Beverly D’Angelo attends the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences 30th anniversary screening of “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” on Dec. 12, 2019, in Beverly Hills. (Jean Baptiste Lacroix\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

“I\u2019ve been really lucky to have been met with so many opportunities,” she reflected. “It\u2019s a whole new phase \u2014 fantastic, really. And you know what? Every single role I\u2019ve done in the past year has been a mother. That\u2019s a recurring theme. I do like to think that with the \u2018Vacation\u2019 movies, I was the original MILF.”<\/p>\n

Stephanie Nolasco covers entertainment at Foxnews.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! When Beverly D\u2019Angelo became a mom at age 49, she…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":415297,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[57],"tags":[236,88,42752,206,61469],"class_list":["post-415296","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-celebrities","tag-entertainment","tag-family-genres","tag-movies","tag-then-and-now"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/415296","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=415296"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/415296\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/415297"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=415296"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=415296"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=415296"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}