Straight made her Broadway debut in "The Possessed" (1939). Her other Broadway roles included Viola in "Twelfth Night" (1941), Catherine Sloper in "The Heiress" (1947) and Lady Macduff in "Macbeth" (1948). For her role as Elizabeth Proctor in the production of "The Crucible" (1953), she won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play. For the satirical film "Network" (1976), she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Her performance is the shortest ever to win an Academy Award for acting, at five minutes and two seconds of screen time. She also received an Emmy Award nomination for the miniseries "The Dain Curse" (1978). Straight also appeared as Mother Christophe in "The Nun's Story" (1959) and Dr. Martha Lesh in "Poltergeist" (1982).