Alabama born Oscar winning actress dies

Birmingham native Louise Fletcher has died at age eighty eight. The Oscar winner’s agent announced that the actress died at her home in France. Fletcher set a new standard for screen villains with the role of Nurse Ratched opposite Jack Nicholson in 1975's "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest." Director Milos Fletcher chose the late-blooming star after many more prominent stars including Anne Bancroft, Ellen Burstyn, and Angela Lansbury, turned down the role. Fletcher won the Academy Award for best actress for the role. She would work steadily for the rest of her life, including guest spots on TV shows that saw her nominated for two Emmys. Fans of the Star Trek science fiction franchise may remember Fletcher as the villainous Kai Winn in the “Deep Space Nine” series.