Vina Fay Wray (September 15, 1907 – August 8, 2004) was a Canadian-born American actress best remembered for starring as Ann Darrow in the 1933 film King Kong.
Wray was never baptized a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Her family returned to the United States a few years after she was born; they moved to Salt Lake City in 1912 and moved to Lark, Utah, in 1914.
Wray was never baptized a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Her family returned to the United States a few years after she was born; they moved to Salt Lake City in 1912 and moved to Lark, Utah, in 1914.
In 1919, the Wray family returned to Salt Lake City, and then relocated to Hollywood, where Fay attended Hollywood High School. ==Early acting career== In 1923, Wray appeared in her first film at the age of 16, when she landed a role in a short historical film sponsored by a local newspaper.
==Personal life== Wray married three times – to writers John Monk Saunders and Robert Riskin and the neurosurgeon Sanford Rothenberg (January 28, 1919 – January 4, 1991).
In the 1920s, Wray landed a major role in the silent film The Coast Patrol (1925), as well as uncredited bit parts at the Hal Roach Studios. In 1926, the Western Association of Motion Picture Advertisers selected Wray as one of the "WAMPAS Baby Stars", a group of women whom they believed to be on the threshold of movie stardom.
She was a special guest at the 70th Academy Awards, where the show's host Billy Crystal introduced her as the "Beauty who charmed the Beast." She was the only 1920s Hollywood actress in attendance that evening with fellow 1930s actress Gloria Stuart nominated for an award.
In 1919, the Wray family returned to Salt Lake City, and then relocated to Hollywood, where Fay attended Hollywood High School. ==Early acting career== In 1923, Wray appeared in her first film at the age of 16, when she landed a role in a short historical film sponsored by a local newspaper.
She has been dubbed one of the early "scream queens". After appearing in minor film roles, Wray gained media attention after being selected as one of the "WAMPAS Baby Stars" in 1926.
In the 1920s, Wray landed a major role in the silent film The Coast Patrol (1925), as well as uncredited bit parts at the Hal Roach Studios. In 1926, the Western Association of Motion Picture Advertisers selected Wray as one of the "WAMPAS Baby Stars", a group of women whom they believed to be on the threshold of movie stardom.
In 1926, director Erich von Stroheim cast her as the main female lead in his film The Wedding March, released by Paramount two years later.
She was a special guest at the 70th Academy Awards, where the show's host Billy Crystal introduced her as the "Beauty who charmed the Beast." She was the only 1920s Hollywood actress in attendance that evening with fellow 1930s actress Gloria Stuart nominated for an award.
Vina Fay Wray (September 15, 1907 – August 8, 2004) was a Canadian-born American actress best remembered for starring as Ann Darrow in the 1933 film King Kong.
She had three children: Susan Saunders, Victoria Riskin, and Robert Riskin Jr. She became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1933. ==Death== In 2004, Wray was approached by director Peter Jackson to appear in a small cameo for the 2005 remake of King Kong.
The film was a commercial success and Wray was reportedly proud that the film saved RKO from bankruptcy. ==Later career== She continued to star in films, including The Richest Girl in the World, a second film with Joel McCrea, but by the early 1940s, her appearances became less frequent.
She retired from acting in 1942 after her second marriage but due to financial exigencies she soon resumed her acting career, and over the next three decades, Wray appeared in several films and she also frequently appeared on television.
Wray was cast as Catherine Morrison in the 1953–54 sitcom The Pride of the Family.
Wray appeared with fellow WAMPAS Baby Star Joan Crawford in Queen Bee, released in 1955. Wray appeared in three episodes of Perry Mason: "The Case of the Prodigal Parent" (1958); "The Case of the Watery Witness" (1959), as murder victim Lorna Thomas; and "The Case of the Fatal Fetish" (1965), as voodoo practitioner Mignon Germaine.
In 1959, Wray was cast as Tula Marsh in the episode "The Second Happiest Day" of Playhouse 90.
In 1960, she appeared as Clara in an episode of 77 Sunset Strip, "Who Killed Cock Robin?" Another 1960 role was that of Mrs.
Staunton, with Gigi Perreau as her daughter, in the episode "Flight from Terror" of The Islanders. Wray appeared in a 1961 episode of The Real McCoys titled "Theatre in the Barn".
In 1963, she played Mrs.
After the success of King Kong, Wray made numerous appearances in both film and television; she retired in 1980. ==Early life== Wray was born on a ranch near Cardston in the province of Alberta, Canada to parents who were members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Elvina Marguerite Jones, who was from Salt Lake City, Utah, and Joseph Heber Wray, who was from Kingston upon Hull, England.
She ended her acting career in the 1980 made-for-television film Gideon's Trumpet. In 1988, she published her autobiography On the Other Hand.
She ended her acting career in the 1980 made-for-television film Gideon's Trumpet. In 1988, she published her autobiography On the Other Hand.
Wray is interred at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Hollywood, California. Two days after her death, the lights of the Empire State Building were lowered for 15 minutes in her memory. ==Honors== In 1989, Wray was awarded the Women in Film Crystal Award.
In 1991, she was crowned Queen of the Beaux Arts Ball, presiding with King Herbert Huncke. She was approached by James Cameron to play the part of Rose Dawson Calvert for his blockbuster Titanic (1997) with Kate Winslet to play her younger self, but she turned down the role, which ended up being played by Gloria Stuart.
In her later years, she visited the Empire State Building frequently; in 1991, she was a guest of honor at the building's 60th anniversary, and in May 2004, she made one of her later public appearances.
==Personal life== Wray married three times – to writers John Monk Saunders and Robert Riskin and the neurosurgeon Sanford Rothenberg (January 28, 1919 – January 4, 1991).
On October 3, 1998, she appeared at the Pine Bluff Film Festival, which showed The Wedding March with live orchestral accompaniment. In January 2003, the 95-year-old Wray appeared at the 2003 Palm Beach International Film Festival to celebrate the Rick McKay documentary film The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There, where she was honored with a "Legend in Film" award.
On October 3, 1998, she appeared at the Pine Bluff Film Festival, which showed The Wedding March with live orchestral accompaniment. In January 2003, the 95-year-old Wray appeared at the 2003 Palm Beach International Film Festival to celebrate the Rick McKay documentary film The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There, where she was honored with a "Legend in Film" award.
Wray was honored with a Legend in Film award at the 2003 Palm Beach International Film Festival.
Vina Fay Wray (September 15, 1907 – August 8, 2004) was a Canadian-born American actress best remembered for starring as Ann Darrow in the 1933 film King Kong.
In her later years, she visited the Empire State Building frequently; in 1991, she was a guest of honor at the building's 60th anniversary, and in May 2004, she made one of her later public appearances.
She had three children: Susan Saunders, Victoria Riskin, and Robert Riskin Jr. She became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1933. ==Death== In 2004, Wray was approached by director Peter Jackson to appear in a small cameo for the 2005 remake of King Kong.
She politely declined the cameo, and claimed that the original "Kong" was the true "King." Before the filming of the remake commenced, Wray died in her sleep of natural causes on August 8, 2004 in her apartment in Manhattan, five weeks before her 97th birthday.
She had three children: Susan Saunders, Victoria Riskin, and Robert Riskin Jr. She became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1933. ==Death== In 2004, Wray was approached by director Peter Jackson to appear in a small cameo for the 2005 remake of King Kong.
She received a star posthumously on Canada's Walk of Fame in Toronto on June 5, 2005.
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