Bonita Granville, Acting - KorPlix:Korean Person Archives

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Bonita Granville
Acting

Bonita Granville
Known For
Acting
Birthday
1923-02-02,New York City, New York, USA
Gender
Female
Biography
Daughter of Bernard 'Bunny' Granville and Rosina Timponi, Bonita Granville was born into an acting family on 2 Febuary 1923, in New York, New York. It's not surprising that she herself became a child actor, first on the stage and, at the age of 9, debuting in movies in Westward Passage (1932). She was regularly cast as a naughty little girl, as in These Three (1936) where she played Mary, an obnoxious girl spreading lies about her teachers. Her performance left an impression on the audience, and she was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress award. In 1938-39 came the movies she is now best remembered for -- playing the bright and feisty detective/reporter Nancy Drew in the Nancy Drew series. She also appeared with Mickey Rooney in a few Andy Hardy movies. She never really had a movie breakthrough, and after marrying oil millionaire and later producer Jack Wrather, she retired from acting in the middle of the 1950s, although she went on to produce the Lassie (1954) TV series. After her marriage to oil millionaire Jack Wrather in 1947, she appeared in only three more movies. She became an executive in the Wrather Corp., and first associate producer, then executive producer of the Lassie (1954) TV series. After Wrather's death in 1984, she took over as chairman of the board. She was also involved in many civic and cultural groups, and she was chair of American Film Institute, trustee of John F. Kennedy Center, as well as other well known organizations and charities. Walt Disney personally convinced the Wrathers to build the Disneyland Hotel when Disney could not raise the money to do so -- his credit was all tied up in building the theme park itself. After the phenomenal success of Disneyland, Disney attempted to buy the hotel; but the Wrathers steadfastly refused to sell. Long after Jack and Bonita Wrather's and Walt Disney's deaths, the Disney Company bought the Wrather Corporation. The Disney Company thus acquired the Disneyland Hotel, the Queen Mary and Spruce Goose attractions in Long Beach, California, the rights to The Lone Ranger (1949) TV series, as well as other properties. Bonita Granville Rather died of cancer on 11 October 1988, in Santa Monica, California. She and Wrather had four children (two from Wrather's first marriage).

Filmography

The Mortal Storm

7.2

The Mortal Storm
1940-06-20

Nancy Drew... Reporter

6.2

Nancy Drew... Reporter
1939-02-18

6.3

Suspense
1946-06-15

7.3

Now, Voyager
1942-10-22

5.3

The Guilty
1947-03-22

Love Laughs at Andy Hardy

5.3

Love Laughs at Andy Hardy
1946-12-25

6.569

The Glass Key
1942-09-08

Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase

6.7

Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase
1939-09-09

Nancy Drew… Detective

6.3

Nancy Drew… Detective
1938-11-19

Nancy Drew... Trouble Shooter

6

Nancy Drew... Trouble Shooter
1939-06-17

6.729

Little Women
1933-11-24

Third Finger, Left Hand

6.8

Third Finger, Left Hand
1940-10-11

7.2

These Three
1936-03-18

5.5

Cavalcade
1933-02-08

Andy Hardy's Blonde Trouble

5.7

Andy Hardy's Blonde Trouble
1944-05-04

Youth Runs Wild

4.2

Youth Runs Wild
1944-09-01

H.M. Pulham, Esq.

6.8

H.M. Pulham, Esq.
1941-12-04

6.8

Syncopation
1942-05-22

Hitler's Children

5.8

Hitler's Children
1943-01-06

It's Love I'm After

7

It's Love I'm After
1937-10-08

Forty Little Mothers

6.2

Forty Little Mothers
1940-04-26

The Lone Ranger

6.1

The Lone Ranger
1956-02-25

5.8

White Banners
1938-06-23

Angels Wash Their Faces

6.4

Angels Wash Their Faces
1939-08-26

7.4

Escape
1940-11-01

Seven Miles from Alcatraz

4.5

Seven Miles from Alcatraz
1942-11-18

Merrily We Live

7.2

Merrily We Live
1938-03-04

The People Vs. Dr. Kildare

7

The People Vs. Dr. Kildare
1941-05-02

Breakfast in Hollywood

5

Breakfast in Hollywood
1946-02-26

5

Call It a Day
1937-04-17

Song of the Saddle

7

Song of the Saddle
1936-02-28

The Wild Man of Borneo

6.5

The Wild Man of Borneo
1941-01-24

Screen Snapshots Series 21 No. 1

0

Screen Snapshots Series 21 No. 1
1941-08-15

Those Were the Days!

0

Those Were the Days!
1940-07-14

The Beloved Brat

6.4

The Beloved Brat
1938-04-30

7.2

Gallant Sons
1940-11-15

Song of the Open Road

0

Song of the Open Road
1944-06-21

The Truth About Murder

5

The Truth About Murder
1946-04-01

6

Hard to Get
1938-11-05

Westward Passage

5.8

Westward Passage
1932-05-27

6.2

My Bill
1938-07-08

Guilty of Treason

6

Guilty of Treason
1950-02-20

The Life of Vergie Winters

5.9

The Life of Vergie Winters
1934-06-14

5.9

Maid of Salem
1937-02-12

The Beautiful Cheat

0

The Beautiful Cheat
1945-07-20

0

Soaring Stars
1942-04-25

The Plough and the Stars

5.6

The Plough and the Stars
1936-12-26

0

Strike It Rich
1948-12-01

Ah, Wilderness!

6.3

Ah, Wilderness!
1935-12-25

5.9

Quality Street
1937-03-26

5.7

Silver Dollar
1932-12-22

Senorita from the West

5

Senorita from the West
1945-10-12

0

Cradle Song
1933-11-19

Down in San Diego

5.5

Down in San Diego
1941-08-01

The Garden of Allah

5.7

The Garden of Allah
1936-10-14

The Legend of the Lone Ranger

5.1

The Legend of the Lone Ranger
1981-08-06

The Velvet Alley

0

The Velvet Alley
1959-01-22

Breakdowns of 1938

5

Breakdowns of 1938
1938-12-31

Hollywood’s Children

0

Hollywood’s Children
1982-02-24

4.4

Studio One
1948-11-07

6.133

Lassie
1954-09-12

Lux Video Theatre

5.5

Lux Video Theatre
1950-10-02

Schlitz Playhouse of Stars

6.5

Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
1951-10-05

2.7

Climax!
1954-10-07

Lux Video Theatre

5.5

Lux Video Theatre
1950-10-02

V.I.P. Schaukel

6

V.I.P. Schaukel
1971-05-09

The Mike Douglas Show

4.8

The Mike Douglas Show
1961-12-11

2.7

Climax!
1954-10-07