A Night Out With Karen Allen

"IT'S a little like being shot out of a cannon," Karen Allen said, describing her return to the role of Marion Ravenwood in "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull." It has been 27 years since Ms. Allen, 56, played Harrison Ford's rugged romantic interest in "Raiders of the Lost Ark." Following breakthrough roles in "Animal House," "Manhattan" and "Starman," and more recent work in "The Perfect Storm" and "In the Bedroom," she moved with her son, Nick Browne, to Great Barrington, Mass. Today, she owns a knitting shop there and teaches acting at Bard College at Simon's Rock -- but a call from Steven Spielberg, inviting her to join the newest Indiana Jones movie, thrust her back into the spotlight. At the movie's preview Wednesday night at Lincoln Square, Ms. Allen was greeted by flash bulbs, autograph hounds and an untapped popcorn-movie demographic: knitting enthusiasts. (link)