Jane Wyman facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Sarah Jane Wyman
Wyman in the 1950s
Born	Sarah Jane Mayfield (1917-01-05)January 5, 1917 St. Joseph, Missouri, U.S.
Died	September 10, 2007(2007-09-10) (aged 90) Rancho Mirage, California, U.S.
Resting place	Forest Lawn Mortuary and Memorial Park, Cathedral City, California
Occupation	Actress singer dancer philanthropist
Years active	1932–1993
Known for	The Lost Weekend Stage Fright Johnny Belinda The Blue Veil Falcon Crest The Yearling Magnificent Obsession
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Ernest Wyman ​ ​ (m. 1933; div. 1935)​ Myron Futterman ​ ​ (m. 1937; div. 1938)​ Ronald Reagan ​ ​ (m. 1940; div. 1949)​ Frederick Karger ​ ​ (m. 1952; div. 1955)​ ​ ​ (m. 1961; div. 1965)​
Children	3, including Maureen Reagan and Michael Reagan

Jane Wyman (born Sarah Jane Mayfield; January 5, 1917 – September 10, 2007) was a famous American actress. She won an Academy Award, which is a very important prize in movies. She also received three Golden Globe Awards and was nominated for two Primetime Emmy Awards.

Jane Wyman started her movie career at age 17 as a dancer. She signed her first big contract with Warner Bros. in 1936 when she was 19. She quickly moved from small, uncredited roles to bigger parts. She often played the main female character in films like Public Wedding (1937) and Brother Rat (1938).

She was nominated four times for the Academy Award for Best Actress. She won this award for her role in Johnny Belinda (1948). Later in her career, she became very popular on the TV show Falcon Crest (1981–1990). In this show, she played the strong and sometimes tricky character, Angela Channing.

Jane Wyman was also the first wife of Hollywood actor Ronald Reagan. He later became the 40th president of the United States.

Early Life and Beginnings

Jane Wyman's birthplace in St. Joseph, Missouri

Sarah Jane Mayfield was born on January 5, 1917, in St. Joseph, Missouri. Her parents were Gladys Hope and Manning Jeffries Mayfield. Her father worked for a meal company, and her mother was a doctor's assistant.

When Jane was young, her parents divorced. Her father passed away shortly after. Her mother moved away, and Jane was raised by foster parents, Emma and Richard D. Fulks. Richard was a chief of detectives. Jane unofficially used their last name, Fulks, for a while.

Her childhood was not always easy. She later said she was raised with strict rules. This made it hard for her to get over some bitterness from her early years.

In 1928, at age 11, she moved to Southern California with her foster mother. They moved back to Missouri in 1930. There, Sarah Jane attended Lafayette High School. Around this time, she started a radio singing career. She called herself Jane Durrell and added three years to her age so she could work legally.

Starting Her Acting Career

18-year-old Jane Wyman on the beach, 1935

Jane left high school in 1932 when she was 15. She went back to Hollywood. She took on small jobs like being a manicurist or a switchboard operator.

She began getting tiny roles in movies. These included films like The Kid from Spain (1932) and Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933). Many of these early roles were uncredited, meaning her name wasn't shown in the movie credits.

In 1936, she signed a contract with Warner Brothers studio. This was a big step for her career.

Becoming a Star

Early Roles at Warner Brothers

At Warner Brothers, Jane appeared in movies like Freshman Love (1936). She also worked at Universal Studios for My Man Godfrey (1936).

She had her first important role in a Western film called The Sunday Round-Up (1936). In this movie, she both sang and danced. She continued to get bigger parts, including the lead role in the short film Little Pioneer (1937).

Breakthrough in "B" Pictures

Jane Wyman starred in Public Wedding (1937), which was a "B" movie (a film made with a smaller budget). By this time, she was divorced from her first husband, Ernest Wyman. She decided to keep his last name for her acting career.

She played supporting roles in films like Mr. Dodd Takes the Air (1937). She also had lead roles in other "B" films, such as The Spy Ring (1938).

A significant role came when she was cast as the lead in Brother Rat (1938). This movie was very popular. It was here that she co-starred with Ronald Reagan. They would later marry.

Jane continued to appear in films like Tail Spin (1939) and Torchy Blane... Playing with Dynamite (1939). She and Ronald Reagan also appeared together in Brother Rat and a Baby (1940).

She took on supporting roles in bigger "A" films, such as My Love Came Back (1940). She also had a very long screen kiss in You're in the Army Now (1941), which lasted over three minutes!

Becoming a Dramatic Actress

Jane Wyman with Gregory Peck in The Yearling (1946)

Jane Wyman started to gain serious attention for her acting in the film The Lost Weekend (1945). This was a supporting role, but it was very important for her career. She called it "a small miracle."

She was then borrowed by MGM for a main role in The Yearling (1946). For this role, she was nominated for her first Academy Award for Best Actress.

Her biggest breakthrough came in Johnny Belinda (1948). Jane spent over six months getting ready for this film. It was a huge success, and she won the Best Actress Oscar. She was the first person in the sound movie era to win this award without speaking any lines of dialogue. In her acceptance speech, she humorously said, "I accept this, very gratefully, for keeping my mouth shut once. I think I'll do it again."

After Johnny Belinda, Jane Wyman became a top movie star. She made comedies like A Kiss in the Dark (1948) and thrillers like Stage Fright (1950), directed by the famous Alfred Hitchcock.

She also starred in The Glass Menagerie (1950) and the popular comedy Three Guys Named Mike (1951). She worked with Bing Crosby in Here Comes the Groom (1951). She also had the main role in The Blue Veil (1951), a drama that earned her another Oscar nomination.

Music and Melodramas

Jane Wyman had a short but successful singing career. She signed a contract with Decca Records and released several songs and albums.

• Danny Kaye sings Hans Christian Andersen (1952): This album was very popular and stayed at #1 on the Billboard charts for 17 weeks.
• Selections from the Paramount Picture "Just for You" (1953): She sang with Bing Crosby on this album.

Some of her popular singles included "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening" (1951) with Bing Crosby, which reached #11 on the charts. Another song, "Zing a Little Zong" (1952), also with Bing Crosby, reached #18 in the US and #10 in the UK.

Jane Wyman in 1953

Jane had a huge success with the movie Magnificent Obsession (1954), where she starred with Rock Hudson. This film earned her another Oscar nomination. They worked together again in All That Heaven Allows (1955). She also starred with Charlton Heston in Lucy Gallant (1955).

Television Career and Later Life

Jane Wyman's first TV role was on an episode of General Electric Theater in 1955. This show was hosted by her former husband, Ronald Reagan.

She then started her own TV series, Jane Wyman Presents The Fireside Theatre (1955–58). She hosted every episode, acted in half of them, and was also a producer.

After her show ended, Jane continued to appear in films like Disney's Pollyanna (1960) and Bon Voyage! (1962). She also made guest appearances on many TV shows.

Falcon Crest Success

In 1981, Jane Wyman's career became very popular again. She was cast as Angela Channing, a powerful and clever owner of a vineyard in California, in the TV show Falcon Crest.

She worked closely with Lorenzo Lamas, who played her grandson, Lance Cumson. Their on-screen relationship helped make the show a big hit.

For her role as Angela Channing, Jane Wyman won a Golden Globe Award in 1984. She was also nominated for other awards. During the show's run, she faced some health problems. Her doctors eventually advised her to stop acting. She was absent for most of the final season of Falcon Crest. However, she returned for the last three episodes in 1990, even writing a speech for the finale. She appeared in 208 out of the show's 227 episodes.

Final Role

After Falcon Crest, Jane Wyman acted only one more time. She played Jane Seymour's mother in an episode of Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman in 1993. In total, Jane Wyman starred in 83 movies and two successful TV series. She was nominated for an Academy Award four times and won once.

Personal Life

Jane Wyman was married five times. Her last two marriages were both to Frederick Karger.

Marriages and Family

When she was 16, Jane married salesman Ernest Eugene Wyman in 1933. She used the name 'Jane Fulks' on her marriage certificate. They divorced after two years, but she kept the name Wyman for her acting career.

She then married dress manufacturer Myron Martin Futterman in 1937. They separated after only three months and divorced in 1938.

In 1938, Jane co-starred with Ronald Reagan in Brother Rat. They got engaged and married on January 26, 1940. Jane and Ronald had three children: Maureen Elizabeth Reagan, their adopted son Michael Edward Reagan, and Christine Reagan, who sadly lived for only one day.

Jane Wyman was a Republican, and she said that her divorce from Ronald Reagan was partly due to their different political views. At the time, Ronald Reagan was a Democrat. She filed for divorce in 1948, and it was finalized in 1949.

When Ronald Reagan became president in 1981, Jane Wyman was the first ex-wife of an American president who was still alive. She remained quiet about his political career. After his death in 2004, Jane Wyman released a statement saying, "America has lost a great president. And a great, kind and gentle man."

On November 1, 1952, Jane married Hollywood music director Frederick M. "Fred" Karger. They divorced in 1955. They remarried in 1961, but divorced again in 1965.

Jane Wyman became Catholic in 1953 and never remarried after her second divorce from Karger.

Later Years

After Falcon Crest ended, Jane Wyman retired from acting. She spent her time painting and enjoying friends. She became quite private in her later years, partly because she suffered from arthritis. She also had health issues related to diabetes.

She attended the funeral of her long-time friend Loretta Young in 2000. She also attended her daughter Maureen's funeral in 2001 and Ronald Reagan’s funeral in 2004.

Death

Jane Wyman passed away peacefully in her sleep at her home in Rancho Mirage on September 10, 2007. She was 90 years old. Her son, Michael Reagan, shared a statement saying that Hollywood had lost "the classiest lady to ever grace the silver screen."

She was buried in a nun's habit, as she was a lay member of the Dominican Order of the Catholic Church. She was laid to rest at Forest Lawn Mortuary and Memorial Park in Cathedral City, California.

Awards and Nominations

Jane Wyman received many awards and nominations throughout her career:

• Jane Wyman has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. One is for her movies, and the other is for her television work.

Filmography

Film

Television

See also

In Spanish: Jane Wyman para niños