Beverly Heather D’Angelo was born on November 15, 1951, in Columbus, Ohio, to Priscilla Ruth (née Smith), a violinist, and Eugene Constantino “Gene” D’Angelo, a bass player and television station manager at WBNS-TV in Columbus. She is of Italian, Irish, English, and Scottish descent. D’Angelo attended Upper Arlington High School before pursuing a brief career as a visual artist, working at Hanna-Barbera Studios.
D’Angelo began her entertainment career as a singer, performing in clubs and with various bands. She was a singer for Canadian rockabilly band “Rompin’ Ronnie Hawkins and the Hawks,” and briefly played with Dr. Music. She transitioned to acting, appearing in off-Broadway productions and on Broadway in 1976 in “Rockabye Hamlet,” a rock musical adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Hamlet.”
D’Angelo’s film debut was a small role in The Sentinel (1977). She gained wider recognition for her roles in Annie Hall (1977) and Every Which Way But Loose (1978). Her breakthrough role came as Patsy Cline in the biographical film Coal Miner’s Daughter (1980), for which she received critical acclaim and a Golden Globe nomination.
D’Angelo is widely recognized for her role as Ellen Griswold in the National Lampoon’s Vacation film series, starting with National Lampoon’s Vacation (1983). She reprised the role in National Lampoon’s European Vacation (1985), National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989), Vegas Vacation (1997), and Vacation (2015). Other notable film appearances include: