- Born
- Died
- Birth nameDonna Belle Mullenger
- Height1.61 m
- Donna Reed was born in the midwestern town of Denison, Iowa, on January 27, 1921, as Donna Belle Mullenger. A small town - a population of less than 3,000 people - Denison was located by the Boyer River, and was the county seat of Crawford County. Donna grew up as a farm girl, much like many young girls in western Iowa, except for one thing - Donna was very beautiful. That wasn't to say that others weren't as pretty, it's just that Donna's beauty stood out from all the other local girls, so much so that she won a beauty contest in Denison. Upon graduation from high school Donna left for college in Los Angeles, in the hopes of eventually entering movies. While at Los Angeles City College, she pursued her dream by participating in several college stage productions. In addition to the plays, she also won the title of Campus Queen. At one of those stage plays Donna was spotted by an MGM talent scout and was signed to a contract. Her first film was a minor role in MGM's The Get-Away (1941). That was followed by a small part in Débuts à Broadway (1941), with Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland as a secretary. She then won her breakthrough role in L'ombre de l'introuvable (1941). Afterwards, MGM began giving her better parts, in films such as The Bugle Sounds (1942), The Courtship of Andy Hardy (1942) and Le héros du Pacifique (1943). In 1944 she received second billing playing Carol Halliday in See Here, Private Hargrove (1944), a comedy about a reporter drafted into the army who eventually meets up with Donna's character as a worker in the canteen. The following year Donna starred in Le Portrait de Dorian Gray (1945), her best role to date. It was a love story set in London in 1890. It got mixed critical reviews but did well at the box-office. Donna was now one of the leading ladies of Hollywood. In 1946 she starred in what is probably her best-known role, as the wife of James Stewart in the classic La vie est belle (1946). This timeless story is a holiday staple to this day. The film also starred Lionel Barrymore and Thomas Mitchell. The next year Donna starred as Ann Daniels in Paramount's Retour sans espoir (1948) with Alan Ladd, which did well at the box-office. Her next role was the strongest she had had yet--Enquête à Chicago (1949), again with Ladd. It was one of the best mystery dramas to come out of Hollywood in a long time, and did very well at the box office. As the 1940s faded out and the 1950s stormed in, Donna's roles got bigger but were mainly of the wholesome, girl-next-door type. In 1953, however, she starred as the hostess Alma in the widely acclaimed Tant qu'il y aura des hommes (1953). She was so good in that film she was nominated for and won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, beating out such veterans as Thelma Ritter and Marjorie Rambeau. The film itself won for Best Picture and remains a classic to this day. Later that year Donna starred in Amours, Délices... et Golf (1953), a comedy with Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin. Three years later she landed the role of Sacajawea in Horizons lointains (1955), the story of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, starring Charlton Heston and Fred MacMurray. After finishing Le crime était signé (1958), Donna began her own TV series (produced by her husband), The Donna Reed Show (1958), a hit that ran for eight years. She was so effective in the show that she was nominated for TV's prestigious Emmy Award as Best Actress every year from 1959-1962. She was far more popular in TV than on the screen. After the run of the program, Donna took some time away from show business before coming back in a couple of made-for-TV movies (in 1974, she had made a feature called Welcome to Arrow Beach (1973), but it was never released). She did get the role of Ellie Ewing Farlow in the hit TV series Dallas (1978) during the 1984-85 season. It was to be her final public performance. On January 14, 1986, less than two weeks before her 65th birthday, she died of pancreatic cancer in Beverly Hills, California. Grover Asmus, her husband, created the Donna Reed Foundation for the Performing Arts in her hometown of Denison. The foundation helps others who desire a career in the arts. Donna never forgot her roots. She was still a farm girl at heart.- IMDb mini biography by: Denny Jackson
- SpousesGrover Asmus(August 30, 1974 - January 14, 1986) (her death)Tony Owen(June 15, 1945 - 1971) (divorced, 4 children)William Tuttle(January 30, 1943 - January 8, 1945) (divorced)
- ChildrenMary Anne OwenPenny Jane OwenAnthony OwenTimothy Owen
- ParentsHazel Jane MullengerWilliam Richard Mullenger
- Flip hairdo
- In the scene from La vie est belle (1946) where she and James Stewart throw rocks at the old Granville house, director Frank Capra had originally planned to use a double in Donna's place to throw the rock. Miss Reed, however, was an accomplished baseball player in high school and threw very well, as evidenced by her toss in the movie.
- Had a close relationship with her TV daughter, Shelley Fabares. Was considered by Fabares as her second mother until Reed's death in 1986.
- Although her image was generally associated that of the the squeaky-clean, conservative 1950s housewife and mother, she won her Oscar for Tant qu'il y aura des hommes (1953) for playing a prostitute.
- Learned of her firing from Dallas (1978) from a reporter while on a vacation to Paris. She was in the process of suing the show's producers before her death in January, 1986.
- Her last husband Grover Asmus started a program called the Donna Reed Foundation that led to the Donna Reed festival held yearly in Denison, IA. It's a celebration of Donna, and includes classes and performances. Many stars attend such as Shelley Fabares, Debbie Reynolds, and Loren Janes.
- Forty pictures I was in, and all I remember is 'What kind of bra will you be wearing today, honey?' That was always the area of big decision - from the neck to the navel.
- I've been involved with blood donation since the 1980s because there is a critical need.
- If nuclear power plants are safe, let the commercial insurance industry insure them. Until these most expert judges of risk are willing to gamble with their money, I'm not willing to gamble with the health and safety of my family.
- What we look for in the school is unrealized potential.
- I hope more people decide to become organ donors.
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