Bonita Granville

Bonita Gloria Granville Wrather (February 2, 1923 – October 11, 1988) was an American character actress and producer. The daughter of vaudevillians, Granville began her career on the stage at age three. She began as a child actress, making her film debut in Westward Passage. She rose to prominence for her role in These Three (1936), which earned her an Academy Award nomination at age 14. Her prominence continued with the Nancy Drew film series and roles in Now, Voyager (1942) and Hitler's Children (1943).

After marrying Jack Wrather in 1947, Granville transitioned into producing with her husband on series such as Lassie (1959–1973). She also worked as a philanthropist and a businesswoman, owning and operating the Disneyland Hotel and the in Long Beach, with her husband. She was appointed to the John F. Kennedy Center board of trustees by President Richard Nixon in 1972 and for another term by President Ronald Reagan in 1982.

In addition to her Oscar nomination, Granville received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960 for her contributions to the film industry. Her husband and she were posthumously named Disney Legends in 2011.

Early life Granville was born on February 2, 1923, in Manhattan, New York City, the daughter of Rosina (née Timponi) and Bernard Granville. Both of her parents were stage performers. She was raised Roman Catholic.

Career 1932–1941: Child actress She made her film debut at the age of nine in Westward Passage (1932) and appeared in a credited but nearly wordless supporting role as the young dancer Fanny Bridges in Cavalcade (1933), which won the Academy Award for Best Picture. Over the next few years, she played uncredited supporting roles in such films as Little Women (1933) and Anne of Green Gables (1934). She next played the role of Mary Tilford in the 1936 film adaptation of Lillian Hellman's 1934 stage play The Children's Hour. Renamed These Three, the film told the story of three adults (played by Miriam Hopkins, Merle Oberon, and Joel McCrea) who find their lives almost destroyed by the malicious lies of an evil, attention-seeking child. For her role as that child, Granville was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, then the youngest person to be nominated for an Oscar.

In 1938, Granville was cast by Warner Bros. to play the role of girl detective Nancy Drew in a series of B movies based on the novels. The films were meant to resemble the popular Torchy Blane film series starring Glenda Farrell. Granville co-starred in the films with John Litel as her father, Carson Drew, and Frankie Thomas, Jr. as Ted Nickerson. All four films — Nancy Drew... Detective (1938), Nancy Drew... Reporter (1939), Nancy Drew... Trouble Shooter (1939), and Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase (1939) — were played continuously in theaters over the next several years. Also in 1938, Granville appeared as the saucy, mischievous daughter in the multiple Academy Award-nominated hit comedy film Merrily We Live and starred as the title character in The Beloved Brat. She also performed in Angels Wash Their Faces (1939) alongside Ronald Reagan, who became a lifelong friend.

In late 1939, Granville left Warner Bros. and signed a contract with MGM, but she continued to be relegated to supporting roles in The Mortal Storm (1940) and H. M. Pulham, Esq. (1941), and less substantial leading roles in Those Were the Days! (1940) and Down in San Diego (1941). She soon parted ways with MGM.

1942–1947: Stardom In 1941, Granville signed with RKO Pictures and immediately found more substantial supporting roles in The Glass Key (1942) and Now, Voyager (1942), for which she was lent to Paramount and Warner Bros. Following her leading role in Seven Miles from Alcatraz (1942), director Edward Dmytryk cast her in RKO's World War II anti-Nazism film Hitler's Children (1943). The film was a commercial and critical success, becoming one of the studio's highest-grossing films of the year, and one of the highest-grossing for both RKO and 1943. However, the studio then relegated her to B-films such as Youth Runs Wild (1944) and The Truth About Murder (1946). She also continued to be lent out to other studios. For example, she was sent to MGM for two Andy Hardy films with Mickey Rooney, Andy Hardy's Blonde Trouble (1944) and Love Laughs at Andy Hardy (1946), as well as a leading role in Song of the Open Road (1944); to Universal for The Beautiful Cheat and Senorita from the West (both 1945); and to United Artists for Breakfast in Hollywood. Following being lent to Monogram Pictures for Suspense (1946) and The Guilty (1947), Granville informally retired from films, only appearing in Strike It Rich (1948) and Guilty of Treason (1950).

1948–1988: Later career On February 5, 1947, Granville married Jack Wrather at the Bel-Air Hotel, having met him while he produced The Guilty. He formed the Wrather Corporation, and bought the rights to the characters from both The Lone Ranger and Lassie. Granville worked as a producer for several film and television productions featuring these characters, including the 1954 TV series Lassie.

She appeared in the film version of The Lone Ranger in 1956, and made her final screen appearance in a cameo role in The Legend of the Lone Ranger (1981).

Together, she and her husband had four children, two from Wrather's previous marriage to Mollie O'Daniel, a daughter of Governor of Texas and U.S. Senator W. Lee O'Daniel. with a Catholic Mass.

Legacy Granville has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, at 6607 Hollywood Boulevard, for her contributions to motion pictures. She was honored at the Disneyland Hotel, which she and her husband owned until The Wrather Company was sold to the Walt Disney Company after Granville's death. The Bonita Tower and the Granville's Steak House were named in her honor. In 2011, Disney honored the Wrathers posthumously by inducting them into the Disney Legends.

In 1942, Granville's image was used as the heroine of the novel Bonita Granville and the Mystery of Star Island. The story, written by Kathryn Heisenfelt, was published by Whitman Publishing Company in 1942. The story was written for a young teenaged audience and is reminiscent of the adventures of Nancy Drew. Part of a series known as "Whitman Authorized Editions", 16 books published between 1941 and 1947 each featured a film actress as heroine.

Filmography Features Year Title Role Notes1932 Westward Passage Little Olivia Allen (age 10) Silver Dollar Liddy Uncredited1933 Cavalcade Young Fanny Beauty for SaleLittle Girl at Madame Sonia'sUncredited Little Women Amy's Classmate Uncredited Cradle Song Carmen 1934 The Life of Vergie Winters Joan Winters as a Child Uncredited Anne of Green Gables School Girl Uncredited1935 Ah, Wilderness! Mildred Miller 1936 Song of the Saddle Jen as a Child These Three Mary Tilford The Garden of Allah Convent Girl Uncredited The Plough and the Stars Mollser 1937 Maid of Salem Ann – Their Daughter Quality Street Isabella Uncredited Call It a Day Ann Hilton It's Love I'm After Gracie Kane 1938 White Banners Sally Ward Merrily We Live Marian Kilbourne The Beloved Brat Roberta Morgan My Bill Gwen Colbrook Hard to Get Connie Nancy Drew... Detective Nancy Drew 1939 Nancy Drew... Reporter Nancy Drew... Trouble Shooter Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase The Angels Wash Their Faces Peggy Finnegan 1940 Forty Little Mothers Doris Those Were the Days! Martha Scroggs The Mortal Storm Elsa Third Finger, Left Hand Vicky Sherwood Escape Ursula Gallant SonsKate Pendleton 1941 The Wild Man of Borneo Francine Diamond The People vs. Dr. Kildare Frances Marlowe Down in San Diego Betty Haines H.M. Pulham, Esq. Mary Pulham 1942 Syncopation Kit Latimer The Glass Key Opal Madvig Seven Miles from Alcatraz Anne Porter Now, Voyager June Vale 1943 Hitler's Children Anna Müller 1944 Andy Hardy's Blonde Trouble Kay Wilson Song of the Open Road Bonnie Youth Runs Wild Toddy Jones 1945 The Beautiful Cheat Alice Senorita from the West Jeannie Blake 1946 Breakfast in Hollywood Dorothy Larson The Truth About Murder Christine Allen SuspenseRonnie Love Laughs at Andy Hardy Kay Wilson 1947 The Guilty Estelle Mitchell / Linda Mitchell 1948 Strike It Rich Julie Ann Brady 1950 Guilty of Treason Stephanie Varna 1956 The Lone Ranger Welcome Kilgore1981 The Legend of the Lone Ranger Woman Uncredited - final film role

As Producer Year Title Notes1963 Lassie's Great Adventure 1978 The Magic of Lassie (as Bonita Granville Wrather)

Television Year Title Role Notes1951 Armstrong Circle Theatre Episode: "That's Simon's Girl"The Bigelow Theatre Episode: "Make Your Bed"Somerset Maugham TV Theatre Episode: "Masquerade"Lux Video Theatre Kitty Episode: "Not Guilty - of Much"Gruen Guild Playhouse 2 episodes1952 Episode: "I Saw It Happen"The Schaefer Century Theatre 2 episodesChevron Theatre 2 episodesThe Unexpected Woman Episode: "The Woman Who Left Herself"1953 Broadway Television Theatre Evelyn Heath Episode: "Guest in the House"The Ford Television Theatre Margo Foster Episode: "The Son-in-Law"1954 The Pepsi-Cola Playhouse Episode: "Annual Honeymoon"1955 Crown Theatre with Gloria Swanson Episode: "The Antique Shop"The Eddie Cantor Comedy Theatre Pearl Episode: "The Suspicious Husband"Schlitz Playhouse of Stars Ellen MorisonEpisode:"Sentence to Death"Climax! Laura Jordan Episode: "The Healer"1956 Molly Episode: "The Fifth Wheel"Ethel Barrymore Theater Episode: "Lady Investigator"Matinee Theater Edna Johnson Episode: "The 25th Hour"The Fisher Family Episode: "Burden Made Light"1957 Lux Video Theatre Joan / Anne Episodes: "One Way Passenger" & "Stand-in for Murder"Science Fiction Theatre Barbara Cameron Episode: "Killer Tree"The United States Steel Hour Episode: "Shadow in the Sky"1958 Studio One Ann Episode: "The Fair-Haired Boy"Target Alice Ward Episode: "Edge of Terror"1959 Playhouse 90 Mrs. Kirkley Episode: "The Velvet Alley"1960 Lassie Mrs. Brewster Episode: "The Wrong Gift"1961 The Best of the Post Widow Episode: "The Valley of the Blue Mountain"1963-1972 Lassie Narrator 1965 Nancy Hoyt Episode: "Lassie's Teamwork"1966 Williamsburg tour guide Episode: "Lassie the Voyager: Part 3"1968 Mrs. Wade Episode: "Hanford's Point: Part 3" Uncredited

As Producer

Radio appearances Year Program Episode/source 1945 Suspense Bank Holiday 1952 Family Theater The Promise

Awards and nominations Year Award Category Nominated work Result 1936 9th Academy Awards Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress These Three