Donna Reed

At 64 years old, Donna Reed has this physical status:

Donna Reed (born Donna Belle Mullenger, 1921 – January 14, 1986) was an American film, television actress, and producer.

Her career spanned more than 40 years, with appearances in more than 40 films.

She is best known for her role as Mary Hatch Bailey in Frank Capra's 1946 film It's a Wonderful Life.

She received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Lorene Burke in the war drama From Here to Eternity. Reed is best known for her television work, particularly as Donna Stone, a middle-class American mother and housewife in the sitcom The Donna Reed Show (1958–66), in which her character was more assertive than most other television mothers of the time.

Several Emmy Award nominations for her role as well as the Golden Globe Award for Best TV Star in 1963.

Reed later in her career, she succeeded Barbara Bel Geddes as Miss Ellie Ewing Farlow in the 1984–85 season of the television melodrama Dallas; she sued the production company for breach of contract when she was abruptly terminated after Bel Geddes' decision to return to the program.

Early life

Reed was born Donna Belle Mullenger on a farm near Denison, Iowa, the daughter of Hazel Jane (née Shives) and William Richard Mullenger. She was raised as a Methodist, making her the eldest of five children. Edward Tompkins, a chemistry teacher at Denison (Iowa) High School in 1936, gave her the book How to Win Friends and Influence People. The book is said to have a major influence on her life. On reading it, she was named Campus Queen and was ranked in the top ten of the 1938 graduating class. Tompkins continued to work on the Manhattan Project.

Reed planned to become a tutor after graduating from Denison High School, but was unable to pay for college. On the recommendation of her aunt, she moved to Los Angeles City College. She appeared in various stage productions while attending college, but she had no intention to become an actress. Reed eventually signed with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer after receiving multiple offers to film; however, she insisted on finishing her education first. She obtained her associate degree and then joined as an agent.

Personal life

Reed was married to make-up artist William Tuttle from 1943 to 1945. She married producer Tony Owen after they divorced in 1945. They raised four children together: Penny Jane, Anthony, Timothy, and Mary Anne (the two older children were adopted). Reed and Owen married in 1971 after 26 years of marriage.

Reed married Grover W. Asmus (1926–2003), a former United States Army colonel, three years later. They were married until her death in 1986.

Reed, a registered Republican but showed amity to the Democrats, became involved in politics after she became worried that her eldest son, Tony, would be drafted. Reed co-chaired Another Mother for Peace, a war activist and co-chaired the anti-war advocacy group Another Mother for Peace in 1967. "War is not safe for children and other living things," the group's slogan read. Reed said in a 1971 interview with the Los Angeles Times, "I'm a bigote."

In the 1964 US presidential election, Reed favored Barry Goldwater.

Reed was also opposed to nuclear power plants in addition to opposing the Vietnam War. In the 1968 presidential race, Senator Eugene McCarthy of Minnesota supported Democratic Senator Eugene McCarthy of Minnesota. He was a ferocious anti-war protester.

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Career

Reed made her film debut in 1941 after signing with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer; she was billed as Donna Adams in The Get-Away opposite Robert Sterling.

Donna Reed was MGM's first name when World War II was introduced, as there was anti-German sentiments at the time. "I was hung the name on me, and I never did like it," Reed once said. "I hear 'Donna Reed' and I imagine a tall, chic, austere blonde that isn't me." 'Donna Reed' has a chilly, forbidding sound."

Reed appeared in Shadow of the Thin Man (1941) and in Wallace Beery's The Bugle Sounds (1942). In her case, she appeared opposite Mickey Rooney in an Andy Hardy film, she played her opposite Mickey Rooney (1942). She was second in a children's film, Mokey (1942). Reed appeared in Calling Dr. Gillespie (1942) and the Apache Trail (1942), later doing Eyes in the Night (1942), directed by Fred Zinnemann.

Reed appeared in The Human Comedy (1943) with Mickey Rooney, MGM's biggest film. She appeared in Dr. Gillespie's Criminal Case (1943) and The Man From Down Under (1943), and was one of many MGM actresses to make cameos in Thousands Cheer (1943). During World War II, her "girl-next door" good looks and warm onstage person made her a common pin-up for several GIs. She personally answered letters from several GIs deployed overseas. Reed appeared in See Here, Private Hargrove (1944) and Gentle Annie (1945), a Western. She appeared in The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945) and appeared as a nurse in John Ford's They Were Expendable (1945), opposite John Wayne. At this point, MGM was very optimistic about Reed's prospects.

Reed coproduced with Denison High School chemistry instructor Edward R. Tompkins (who, as noted earlier, worked on the Manhattan Project) on the 1947 MGM film The Beginning and the End, which dealt with the past and fears of the atomic bomb. Reed was assisting in the creation of the story but was not included in the final film. Reed was top billed in a romantic comedy Faithful in My Fashion (1946) with Tom Drake, but it was dispensable.

MGM lent Mary Bailey to RKO Pictures for the role of Mary Bailey in Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life. Since being named one of the best American films ever made by the American Film Institute, the film has been regularly aired on television during the holiday season. Later, Reed said it was "the most difficult film I've ever made." As many of me as ever wanted.

Lana Turner and Van Heflin were a big hit in Green Dolphin Street (1947). She appeared on MGM (1947) as a teenager and then a big hit.

Reed was borrowed by Paramount to film two films with Alan Laddd (1948), where she replaced Joan Caulfield at the last minute. (1949) a Chicago Deadline (1949). In 1949, she expressed a desire for greater positions.

Reed first started a co-production in June 1950. She appeared in two films in which she appeared alongside John Derek, Saturday's Hero (1951) and Scandal Sheet (1952). Around My Shoulder (1952), she had a cameo.'

Reed appeared in Randolph Scott's Knot (1952), but he was loaned by Warner Bros for Trouble Along the Way (1953) with Wayne. In Edward Small's Raiders of the Seven Seas (1953), she was loaned out to play John Payne's love interest.

In the World War II drama From Here to Eternity (1953), Reed played Alma "Lorene" Burke, the mother of Montgomery Clift's character. Reed received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for 1953.

The presence of her parts in The Caddy (1953) with Martin and Lewis did not seem to improve; Gun violence (1954) with Dana Andrews; and They Rode West (1954) with Robert Francis. Reed appeared in The Last Time I Saw Paris (1954), the MGM's last appearance.

Reed first appeared on television programs including The Ford Television Theatre, Tales of Hans Anderson, General Electric Theater, and Suspicion.

She continued to appear in films, often as the love interest; In The Far Horizons (1955) at Pine-Thomas Productions, she appeared as the Beloved, as Benny Goodman's wife; Ransom! (1956) Glenn Ford's wife at MGM; Backlash (1956), a Western at Universal with Richard Widmark; Beyond Mombasa (1957), shot in Kenya with Cornel Wilde (1958), shot in England with Stewart Granger for Romulus Pictures; and Beyond Motherhood (1958).

Reed appeared in The Donna Reed Show, a television series created by her then-husband Tony Owen from 1958 to 1966. Donna Stone, the wife of pediatrician Alex Stone (Carl Betz) and mother of Jeff (Mary Stones), was on the program. Reed was attracted to the prospect of being in a comedy, but she had no expertise. She also loved being a wife.

The program on ABC lasted eight seasons. Reed received a Golden Globe Award and four Emmy Award nominations for her role on the series.

Reed characterized her performance as "a realistic representation of small-town life with a often comedic twist." Our plots revolve around the most important thing in America, a loving family. Donna Stone, Reed's character, is a loving mother and wife, but also a resourceful, practical woman with feelings and a sense of humor.

However, several feminists opposed the film, arguing that it encouraged submissiveness among housewives. "I played a strong woman who could take care of her family," Reed, who had four children, said in a 1979 interview. To a lot of people, it was offensive."

Reed said of her show, "I felt that I was making, for women," a remark. This mother was not stupid. She wasn't domineering, but she was bright and I suppose rather forward-thinking, happily married."

Paul Petersen, who portrayed her son Jeff Stone in the series, also shared his thoughts about the production's significance in a 2008 interview:

Reed took time off from acting to focus on raising her children and participating in political activism after the Donna Reed Exhibition ended in 1966. She returned to acting in the late 1970s, appearing in the television shows The Best Place to Be (1979) and Deadly Lessons (1983) as well as a guest stint on The Love Boat.

Barbara Bel Geddes was named Miss Ellie Ewing in the 1984–85 season of the television show Dallas. In a 1984 interview, Reed discussed the show.

Reed was abruptly dismissed as Bel Geddes decided to return to the role for the 1985-86 season. Reed failed in attempts to prevent the 1985–86 season from being broadcast while she attempted to be recalled in the role of Miss Ellie. She sued for breach of employment and then settled out of court for over $1 million.

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