Her Last Bow

Her last act, most memorable to any entertainment followers, may well be "Downton Abbey"'s Countess Lady Violet, or Harry Potter series' wizard Professor.

But Dame Maggie Smith's acting career has spun around since 1952, for six decades, a double-Oscar winner, played Desdemona opposite Lawrence Olivier's Othello, to BBC production's "David Copperfield."

She enlightened stages, television, and silver screen, from Shakespeare to Harry Potter, brought an incredible range of expression of characters.  Closing down her 89 years of life, she still is listening to the curtain calls.