‘American Horror Story’ Star Jessica Lange Shares Hilarious & Adorable Story About Her Granddaughters

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Jessica Lange is celebrated for her role in “American Horror Story,” but before she first joined the show in 2011, she was already a big star with roles in popular ‘80s films “Tootsie” and “The Postman Always Rings” and ‘90s films, “Blue Sky” and “Cape Fear.” 

Jessica Lange Introduces Her Acting to Her Granddaughters 

At 77, Lange has accomplished a lot, but she is also a mother of three children and a grandmother. In an appearance on “The Jennifer Hudson Show,” she revealed that when her granddaughters were younger, they did not realize she was an actress.

Lange is a grandmother to two granddaughters, Adah and Ilse, and when they were young, they only knew her as their grandmother. “They didn’t know I was an actress,” she said on the show. “I mean, how do you say, ‘I’m an actress, and this is what I do?’ They just knew me as their grandma.”

Jessica Lange Recalls Hilarious Story About How Her Granddaughters Didn’t Recognize Her Onscreen

Lange reflected on the time she watched “Tootsie” with her as grandchildren. “One time we were up in the country at the house and watching TV. They were probably about 4 and 6 at the time,” she began. “I was just scrolling through the channels, and ‘Tootsie’ was on. So, I thought, ‘Ah, this is the perfect way to introduce them to who I am in another world and what I do.’ There was one long scene, and I thought, ‘Oh, pretty soon they’re going to say to me, Mam, what? That’s you.’”

She continued, “But they didn’t say anything, and they didn’t say anything, and they didn’t say anything, and Dustin [Hoffman]’s in drag with that horrible wig and those big glasses, and that goofy little dress, and this is already what 40 years ago or more. So, you know, I looked okay. Finally, I said to them, ‘Girls, look, that’s me.’ And they looked, and they said, ‘Which one?’ And I thought, ‘Well, that’s perfect, isn’t it?’” The hilarious, adorable moment has stuck with Lange for years, especially now that her granddaughters are 20 and 22.

Jessica Lange Shares Beauty of Being a Grandmother 

Lange became a grandmother in her early fifties, and she has loved experiencing everything with them. In a 2024 interview with People, she told the publication that one of the pros of becoming a grandmother so early was “you really grow up with them.” She added, “It’s like having a second crop of children. We spent a great deal of time together; We traveled together. We had all sorts of adventures together. So I treasured that.”

She referred to herself as “blessed” and “very fortunate.” Lange became a first-time mom in 1981 with the birth of her daughter Aleksandra Lange Baryshnikov, known as Shura, with actor Mikhail Baryshnikov. 

In 1986, she welcomed her second daughter, Hannah Jane Shepard, with her then-partner Sam Shepard. They welcomed their second child, Samuel Walker Shepard, in 1987. People reports that he prefers to be called Walker.