Jane Wyman Biography

Jane Wyman (born Sarah Jane Mayfield; January 5, 1917 - September 10, 2007) was an American singer, dancer, and film/television actress. She began her film career in 1932 and her work in television lasted into 1993. She was a prolific performer for two decades. She received an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in Johnny Belinda (1948), and was a three-time winner of a Golden Globe, she achieved a new level of success as Angela Channing in the 1980s prime-time soap opera Falcon Crest.

She was the first wife of Ronald Reagan; they married in 1940 and divorced in 1949.

Early life

Wyman was born Sarah Jane Mayfield in St. Joseph, Missouri. Although her birthdate has been widely reported for many years as January 4, 1914, research by biographers and genealogists indicates she was born on January 5, 1917. The most likely reason for the 1914 year of birth is that she added to her age so as to be able to work and act while still a minor. She may have moved her birthday back by one day to January 4 so as to share the same birthday as her daughter, Maureen (January 4, 1941-August 8, 2001). The 1920 census, though, has her at three and living in Philadelphia. After Wyman's death, a release posted on her official website confirmed these details.

Her parents were Manning Jefferies Mayfield (circa 1885-1922), a meal-company laborer, and Gladys Hope Christian Mayfield (circa 1891-1960), a doctor's stenographer and office assistant.

In October 1921, her mother filed for divorce, and her father died unexpectedly the following year at age 37. After her father's death, her mother moved to Cleveland, Ohio, leaving her to be reared by foster parents, Emma (1866-1951) and Richard D. Fulks (1862-1928), the chief of detectives in Saint Joseph. She took their surname unofficially, including in her school records and, apparently, her first marriage certificate.

Her unsettled family life resulted in few pleasurable memories. Wyman later said, "I was raised with such strict discipline that it was years before I could reason myself out of the bitterness I brought from my childhood." In 1928, aged 11, she moved to southern California with her foster mother, but it is not known for certain if she attempted a career in motion pictures at this time, or if the relocation was because some of Fulks' children also lived in the area. In 1930, the two moved back to Missouri, where Sarah Jane attended Lafayette High School in Saint Joseph. That same year, she began a radio singing career, calling herself "Jane Durrell" and adding years to her birthdate to work legally, as she would have been underaged.

Career

Beginnings

After dropping out of Lafayette in 1932, at age 15, she returned to Hollywood, taking on odd jobs as a manicurist and a switchboard operator, before obtaining small parts in such films as The Kid from Spain (as a "Goldwyn Girl"; 1932), My Man Godfrey (1936), and Cain and Mabel (1936). After changing her name from Jane Durrell to Jane Wyman, she began her career as a contract player with Warner Bros. in 1936 at age 19. Her big break came the following year, when she received her first starring role in Public Wedding.

Recognition and acclaim

In 1939, Wyman starred in Torchy Plays With Dynamite. In 1941, she appeared in You're in the Army Now, in which Regis Toomey and she had the longest screen kiss in cinema history: 3 minutes and 5 seconds.

Wyman finally gained critical notice in the film noir The Lost Weekend (1945). She was nominated for the 1946 Academy Award for Best Actress for The Yearling (1946), and won two years later for her role as a deaf-mute rape victim in Johnny Belinda (1948). She was the first person in the sound era to win an acting Oscar without speaking a line of dialogue. In an amusing acceptance speech, perhaps poking fun at some of her long-winded counterparts, Wyman took her statue and said only, "I accept this, very gratefully, for keeping my mouth shut once. I think I'll do it again." The Oscar win gave her the ability to choose higher-profile roles, although she still showed a liking for musical comedy. She worked with such directors as Alfred Hitchcock on Stage Fright (1950), Frank Capra on Here Comes the Groom (1951), and Michael Curtiz on The Story of Will Rogers (1952). She starred in The Glass Menagerie (1950), Just for You (1952), Let's Do It Again (1953), The Blue Veil (1951) (another Oscar nomination), the remake of Edna Ferber's So Big (1953), Magnificent Obsession (1954) (Oscar nomination), Lucy Gallant (1955), All That Heaven Allows (1955), and Miracle in the Rain (1956). She replaced the ailing Gene Tierney in Holiday for Lovers (1959), and next appeared in Pollyanna (1960), Bon Voyage! (1962), and her final big screen movie, How to Commit Marriage (1969).

Television

Her first guest-starring television role was on a 1955 episode of General Electric Theater, a show hosted by her former husband Ronald Reagan. This appearance led to roles on Summer Playhouse, Lux Playhouse, Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse, Checkmate, The Investigators, and Wagon Train. She guest-starred in 1959 on The Ford Show, Starring Tennessee Ernie Ford on NBC. She was hostess of The Bell Telephone Hour and Bob Hope Presents The Chrysler Theatre. She had telling roles in both The Sixth Sense and Insight, among other programs.

She hosted an anthology television series, Jane Wyman Presents the Fireside Theater, for which she was nominated for an Emmy Award in 1957. The ratings steadily declined, however, and the show ended after three seasons. She was later cast in two unsold pilots during the 1960s and 1970s. After those pilots were not picked up, Wyman went into semiretirement and remained there for most of the 1970s, although she did make guest appearances on Charlie's Angels and The Love Boat.

Falcon Crest

In the spring of 1981, Wyman's career enjoyed a resurgence when she was cast as the scheming Californian vintner and matriarch Angela Channing in The Vintage Years, which was retooled as the primetime soap opera Falcon Crest. The series, which ran from December 1981 to May 1990, was created by Earl Hamner, who had created The Waltons a decade earlier. Also starring on the show was an already established character actress, Susan Sullivan, as Angela's niece-in-law, Maggie Gioberti, and the relatively unknown actor Lorenzo Lamas as Angela's irresponsible grandson, Lance Cumson. The on- and off-screen chemistry between Wyman and Lamas helped fuel the series' success. In its first season, Falcon Crest was a ratings hit, behind other 1980s prime-time soap operas, such as Dallas and Knots Landing, but initially ahead of rival Dynasty. Cesar Romero appeared from 1985 to 1987 on Falcon Crest as the romantic interest of Angela Channing.

For her role as Angela Channing, Wyman was nominated for a Soap Opera Digest Award five times (for Outstanding Actress in a Leading Role and for Outstanding Villainess: Prime Time Serial), and was also nominated for a Golden Globe award in 1983 and 1984. Her 1984 Golden Globe nomination resulted in a win for Wyman, who took home the award for Best Performance By an Actress in a TV Series. Later in the show's run, Wyman suffered several health problems. In 1986, she had abdominal surgery which caused her to miss two episodes (her character simply "disappeared" under mysterious circumstances). In 1988, she missed another episode due to ill health and was told by her doctors to avoid work. However, she wanted to continue working, and she completed the rest of the 1988-1989 season while her health continued to deteriorate. Months later in 1989, Wyman collapsed on the set and was hospitalized due to problems with diabetes and a liver ailment. Her doctors told her that she should end her acting career. Wyman was absent for most of the ninth and final season of Falcon Crest in 1989-1990 (her character was written out of the series by making her comatose in a hospital bed following an attempted murder).

Against her doctor's advice, she returned for the final three episodes in 1990, even writing a soliloquy for the series finale. Wyman ultimately appeared in almost every episode until the beginning of the ninth and final season, for a total of 208 of the show's 227 episodes. After Falcon Crest, Wyman acted only once more, playing Jane Seymour's screen mother in a 1993 episode of Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman. Following this, she retired from acting permanently. Wyman had starred in 83 movies and two successful TV series, and was nominated for an Academy Award four times, winning once.

Personal life

Marriages

Wyman married four times.

Myron Martin Futterman

Wyman married Myron Martin Futterman (1900-1965), a dress manufacturer, in New Orleans on June 29, 1937. As Wyman wanted children but Futterman did not, they separated after only three months of marriage and divorced on December 5, 1938.

Ronald Reagan

In 1938, Wyman co-starred with Ronald Reagan in Brother Rat (1938), and its sequel Brother Rat and a Baby (1940). They were engaged at the Chicago Theatre, and married on January 26, 1940, at the Wee Kirk o' the Heather Church, Glendale, California. She and Reagan had three children; Maureen Elizabeth Reagan (1941-2001), their adopted son Michael Edward Reagan (born March 18, 1945), and Christine Reagan (born prematurely on June 26, 1947, and died later the same day). This event soured their marriage irreparably. Wyman stated that their break-up was due to a difference in politics (Ronald Reagan was still a Democrat at the time). She filed for divorce in 1948; the divorce was finalized in 1949. Ronald Reagan is the only U.S. president to have been divorced, and Wyman was the first and only former wife of a United States president so far. Although she remained silent during Reagan's political career, she told a newspaper interviewer in 1968 that this was not because she was bitter or because she didn't agree with him politically. "I've always been a registered Republican. But it's bad taste to talk about former husbands and former wives, that's all. Also, I don't know a damn thing about politics."

In spite of her divorce, she still voted for her former husband in the 1980 and 1984 presidential elections, according to her former personal assistant.

Fred Karger

Following her divorce from Reagan, Wyman married German-American Hollywood music director and composer Frederick M. "Fred" Karger (1916-1979) on November 1, 1952, at El Montecito Presbyterian Church, Santa Barbara. They separated on November 7, 1954, and were granted an interlocutory divorce decree on December 7, 1954; the divorce was finalized on December 30, 1955. They remarried on March 11, 1961, and Karger divorced her again on March 9, 1965. According to The New York Times report of the divorce, the bandleader charged that the actress "had walked out on him." Wyman had a stepdaughter, Terry, from Karger's first marriage to Patti Sacks.

Wyman, who had converted to Catholicism in 1953, never remarried. She was a member of the Good Shepherd Parish and the Catholic Motion Picture Guild in Beverly Hills, California.

Later life

After Falcon Crest ended, Wyman made a guest appearance on the CBS series Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman and then completely retired from acting, spending her retirement painting and entertaining friends. A recluse, Wyman made only a few public appearances in her last years in part due to suffering from diabetes and arthritis, although she did attend her daughter Maureen's funeral in 2001 after the latter's death from cancer. (Ronald Reagan was unable to attend due to his Alzheimer's disease.) She also attended the funeral of her long-time friend Loretta Young in 2000. Wyman broke her silence about her former husband upon his death in 2004, attending his funeral and issuing an official statement that read, "America has lost a great president and a great, kind, and gentle man."

Death

Wyman died at the age of 90 at her Rancho Mirage home on September 10, 2007. Wyman's son, Michael Reagan, released a statement saying:

Wyman reportedly died in her sleep of natural causes. A member of the Dominican Order (as a lay tertiary) of the Roman Catholic Church, she was buried in a nun's habit. She was interred at Forest Lawn Mortuary and Memorial Park in Cathedral City, California.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1932	'	Goldwyn Girl	Uncredited
1933	Elmer, the Great	Game Spectator	Uncredited
1933	Gold Diggers of 1933	Gold Digger	Uncredited
1934	All the King's Horses	Chorine	Uncredited
1934	College Rhythm	Chorine	Uncredited
1935	Broadway Hostess	Chorus Girl	Uncredited
1935	Rumba	Chorus Girl	Uncredited
1935	George White's 1935 Scandals	Chorine	Uncredited
1935	Stolen Harmony	Chorine	Uncredited
1936	King of Burlesque	Dancer	Uncredited
1936	Freshman Love	Co-Ed	Uncredited
1936	Anything Goes	Chorus Girl	Uncredited
1936	Gengal Tiger	Saloon Girl	Uncredited
1936	My Man Godfrey	Socialite	Uncredited
1936	Stage Struck	Bessie Funfnick	Uncredited
1936	Cain and Mabel	Chorus Girl	Uncredited
1936	Here Comes Carter	Nurse	Uncredited
1936	'	Butte Soule	Short film
1936	Polo Joe	Girl at Polo Field	Uncredited
1936	Gold Diggers of 1937	Chorus Girl	Uncredited
1937	Smart Blonde	Dixie the Hat Check Girl
1937	Ready, Willing and Able	Dot
1937	'	Babette Latour
1937	Slim	Stumpy's Girl
1937	Little Pioneer	Katie Snee	Short film
1937	'	Joan
1937	Public Wedding	Florence Lane Burke
1937	Mr. Dodd Takes the Air	Marjorie Day
1937	Over the Goal	Co-Ed	Uncredited
1938	'	Elaine Burdette
1938	He Couldn't Say No	Violet Coney
1938	Fools for Scandal	Party Guest	Uncredited
1938	Wide Open Faces	Betty Martin
1938	'	Vivian
1938	Brother Rat	Claire Adams
1939	Tail Spin	Alabama
1939	The Kid from Kokomo	Marian Bronson
1939	Torchy Blane... Playing with Dynamite	Torchy Blane
1939	Kid Nightingale	Judy Craig
1939	Private Detective	Myrna 'Jinx' Winslow
1940	Brother Rat and a Baby	Claire Terry
1940	An Angel from Texas	Marge Allen
1940	Flight Angels	Nan Hudson
1940	Gambling on the High Seas	Laurie Ogden
1940	My Love Came Back	Joy O'Keefe
1940	Tugboat Annie Sails Again	Peggy Armstrong
1941	Honeymoon for Three	Elizabeth Clochessy
1941	Bad Men of Missouri	Mary Hathaway
1941	'	Joan Shotesbury
1941	You're in the Army Now	Bliss Dobson
1942	Larceny, Inc.	Denny Costello
1942	My Favorite Spy	Connie
1942	Footlight Serenade	Flo La Verne
1943	Princess O'Rourke	Jean Campbell
1944	Make Your Own Bed	Susan Courtney
1944	The Doughgirls	Vivian Marsden Halstead
1944	Crime by Night	Robbie Vance
1945	'	Helen St. James
1946	One More Tomorrow	Frankie Connors
1946	Night and Day	Gracie Harris
1946	'	Orry Baxter	Nominated"?Academy Award for Best Actress
1947	Cheyenne	Ann Kincaid
1947	Magic Town	Mary Peterman
1948	Johnny Belinda	Belinda McDonald	Academy Award for Best Actress Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama
1949	'	Polly Haines
1949	'	Jennifer Smith
1950	Stage Fright	Eve Gill
1950	'	Laura Wingfield
1951	Three Guys Named Mike	Marcy Lewis
1951	Here Comes the Groom	Emmadel Jones
1951	'	Louise Mason	Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama Nominated"?Academy Award for Best Actress
1952	'	Betty Rogers
1952	Just for You	Carolina Hill
1953	Three Lives	Commentator	Short film
1953	Let's Do It Again	Constance 'Connie' Stuart
1953	So Big	Selina DeJong
1954	Magnificent Obsession	Helen Phillips	Nominated"?Academy Award for Best Actress
1955	All That Heaven Allows	Cary Scott
1955	Lucy Gallant	Lucy Gallant
1956	Miracle in the Rain	Ruth Wood
1959	Holiday for Lovers	Mrs. Mary Dean
1960	Pollyanna	Aunt Polly
1962	Bon Voyage!	Katie Willard
1969	How to Commit Marriage	Elaine Benson
1971	'	Mary Bloomquist	Television film
1973	Amanda Fallon	Dr. Amanda Fallon	Television film
1979	'	Granny Arrowroot	Television film

Box office ranking

For several years, film exhibitors voted Wyman as among the most popular stars in the country:

• 1949 - 25th (US), 6th (UK)
• 1952 - 15th most popular (US)
• 1953 - 19th (US)
• 1954 - 9th (US)
• 1955 - 18th (US)
• 1956 - 23rd (US)

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1955	G.E. True Theater	Dr. Amelia Morrow	Episode: "Amelia"
1955-1958	Jane Wyman Presents The Fireside Theatre	Various	49 episodes Nominated"?Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series (1957, 1959)
1958	Wagon Train	Dr. Carol Ames Willoughby	Episode: "The Doctor Willoughby Story"
1959	Lux Video Theatre	Selena Shelby	Episode: "A Deadly Guest"
1960	Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse	Dr. Kate	Episode: "Dr. Kate"
1960	Startime	Host	Episode: "Academy Award Songs"
1960	Checkmate	Joan Talmadge	Episode: "Lady on the Brink"
1961	'	Elaine	Episode: "Death Leaves a Tip"
1962	Wagon Train	Hannah	Episode: "The Wagon Train Mutiny"
1964	Insight	Marie	Episode: "The Hermit"
1966	Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre	Addie Joslin	Episode: "When Hell Froze"
1967	Insight	Auschwitz Victim	Episode: "Why Does God Allow Men to Suffer?"
1968	'	Clara Appleby	Episode: "18.9"
1970	My Three Sons	Sylvia Cannon	Episode: "Who Is Sylvia?"
1972	'	Ruth Ames	Episode: "If I Should Die Before I Wake"
1972	'	Dr. Amanda Fallon	Episode: "Discovery at Fourteen"
1973	'	Dr. Amanda Fallon	Episode: "And Other Springs I May Not See"
1974	Owen Marshall: Counselor at Law	Sophia Ryder	Episode: "The Desertion of Keith Ryder"
1980	'	Sister Patricia	Episode: "Another Day, Another Time"
1980	Charlie's Angels	Eleanor Willard	Episode: "To See an Angel Die"
1981-1990	Falcon Crest	Angela Channing	228 episodes Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Television Series Drama Nominated"?Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Television Series Drama
1993	Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman	Elizabeth Quinn	Episode: "The Visitor"

Radio appearances

Program	Episode	Date	Notes
Screen Guild Players	The Lost Weekend	January 7, 1946
Screen Guild Players	Saturday's Children	June 2, 1947
Hollywood Star Playhouse	A Letter from Laura	February 24, 1952
Hallmark Playhouse	Whistler's Mother	May 8, 1952
Lux Radio Theatre	The Blue Veil	November 24, 1952

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Work	Result
1946	Academy Award for Best Actress	The Yearling
1948	Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama	Johnny Belinda
	Academy Award for Best Actress	Johnny Belinda
1951	Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama	The Blue Veil
	Academy Award for Best Actress	The Blue Veil
1954	Academy Award for Best Actress	Magnificent Obsession
1957	Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series	Jane Wyman Presents The Fireside Theatre
1959	Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series	Jane Wyman Presents The Fireside Theatre
1983	Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Television Series Drama	Falcon Crest
1984	Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Television Series Drama	Falcon Crest

Wyman has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame; one for motion pictures at 6607 Hollywood Boulevard and one for television at 1620 Vine Street.