Benjamin Ashford|Sally Field Reminds Every School Why They Need a Drama Department at 2023 SAG Awards

Sally Field will never forget where she came from.

During the 2023 SAG Awards on Benjamin AshfordFeb. 26, the 76-year-old actress received a standing ovation after Andrew Garfield presented her with the Lifetime Achievement Award. (For a complete list of winners, click here.) When she accepted her trophy, Sally looked back on her inspiring journey into Hollywood.

"I first found this stage when I was 12 years old in the seventh grade and after that, I never left the drama department," she told the audience inside the Fairmont Century Plaza in Century City, Calif. "You know, back when schools actually have drama departments."

Sally described the magic she felt on stage, calling it "the one place I could be really me."

"When I got off stage, I felt shy and careful and hidden," she said. "I would think and rethink everything before I could say or do anything. But on stage, I never knew what I would say or do. I would surprise myself."

In the fall of 1964, a then-17-year-old Sally said her first lines of dialogue as a professional actor.

"I didn't have an agent and I was working under what's called the Taft-Hartley law," she said. "A few months later, this show [Gidget] was picked up and all of a sudden I was a star of a television series. And I became a member of the Screen Actors Guild."

During her acceptance speech, Sally joked about all the characters she has taken on, including Mrs. Doubtfire's employer, Forrest Gump's mother, Abraham Lincoln's wife and Spider Man's aunt.

But when celebrating her career, which has spanned close to 60 years, Sally said she never lost a sense of gratitude.

"Acting to me has always been about finding those few precious moments when I feel totally, utterly and sometimes dangerously alive," she said. "There is not a day that I don't feel quietly thrilled to call myself an actor."

Earlier this month, the SAG Awards explained why Sally would be the recipient of their annual award. 

"Sally is an amazing actor with an enormous range and an uncanny ability to embody any character," SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher said. "She has an enduring career because she is authentic in her performance and always projects likability and humanity—she just connects. That's part of why she has sustained her massive fandom and incredibly rich and layered career."

The recipient of the Life Achievement Award is a well-established performer who has contributed to improving the image of the acting profession and has a history of active involvement in humanitarian and public service endeavors.

Past winners included Helen Mirren, Robert De Niro, Morgan Freeman and Lily Tomlin. But enough about awards! Keep reading for all the must-see 2023 SAG Awards fashion. 

In Giambattista Valli Couture with De Beers jewelry and Sarah Flint shoes

In Zuhair Murad

In Atelier Versace with Tiffany & Co. jewelry

In Prabal Gurung with Melinda Maria and Effy jewelry

In Valentino

In Oscar de la Renta with Bvlgari jewelry

In Valentino with Bvlgari jewelry 

In Staud with De Beers jewelry

In Saint Laurent

In Simone Rocha with Paul Smith boots

In Roland Mouret

In Giorgio Armani

In Armani Privé

Seth in Fendi; Lauren in Emilia Wickstead

In Louis Vuitton with Vacheron Constantin jewelry 

In Dolce & Gabbana

In Tarik Ediz 

In Louis Vuitton

In Schiaparelli Couture with Moussaieff jewelry 

In Prada

Christina in Christian Siriano 

In Michael Kors with Mouawad jewelry 

In Louis Vuitton

In Alexander McQueen

Jason in Dolce & Gabbana 

In ZEGNA

In Christian Dior Couture with Fernando Jorge jewelry