Bonita Granville(1923-1988)
- Producer
- Actress
- Director
Daughter of Bernard Granville, Bonita
Granville was born into an acting family. It's not surprising that she
herself became a child actor, first on the stage and, at the age of 9,
debuting in movies in
Westward Passage (1932). She was
regularly cast as a naughty little girl, as in
These Three (1936) where she played
Mary, an obnoxious girl spreading lies about her teachers. Her
performance left an impression on the audience, and she was nominated
for a best supporting actress award. In 1938-39 came the movies she is
now best remembered for -- playing the bright and feisty
detective/reporter Nancy Drew in the Nancy Drew series. She also
appeared with Mickey Rooney in a
few Andy Hardy movies. She never really had a movie breakthrough, and
after marrying oil millionaire & later producer
Jack Wrather, she retired from acting in
the middle of the 1950s, although she went on to produce the
Lassie (1954) TV series.