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IMDbPro

Bonita Granville(1923-1988)

  • Producer
  • Actress
  • Director
IMDbProStarmeterTop 5,00020048
Bonita Granville
The teens of a defense-plant town hop on the road to juvenile delinquency while their parents are busy with the war.
Play trailer1:22
Youth Runs Wild (1944)
8 Videos
99+ Photos
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.
BornFebruary 2, 1923
DiedOctober 11, 1988(65)
BornFebruary 2, 1923
DiedOctober 11, 1988(65)
IMDbProStarmeterTop 5,00020048
  • Nominated for 1 Oscar
    • 2 wins & 1 nomination total

Photos184

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+ 178
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Known for

Call It a Day (1937)
Call It a Day
5.9
  • Ann Hilton
  • 1937
Brian Aherne and Constance Bennett in Merrily We Live (1938)
Merrily We Live
7.3
  • Marion Kilbourne
  • 1938
Bette Davis and Claude Rains in Now, Voyager (1942)
Now, Voyager
7.8
  • June Vale
  • 1942
Miriam Hopkins, Joel McCrea, and Merle Oberon in These Three (1936)
These Three
7.4
  • Mary Tilford
  • 1936

Credits

IMDbPro

Producer



  • Lassie: Peace is Our Profession
    TV Movie
    • producer (as Bonita Granville Wrather)
    • 1987
  • James Stewart and Mickey Rooney in The Magic of Lassie (1978)
    The Magic of Lassie
    5.5
    • producer (as Bonita Granville Wrather)
    • 1978
  • Jon Provost, Tommy Rettig, and Lassie the Dog in Lassie (1954)
    Lassie
    6.6
    TV Series
    • producer
    • associate producer
    • assistant producer (as Bonita Granville Wrather)
    • 1959–1973
  • Lassie: Well of Love (1970)
    Lassie: Well of Love
    5.8
    TV Movie
    • associate producer (as Bonita Granville Wrather)
    • 1970
  • Lassie: The Adventures of Neeka (1968)
    Lassie: The Adventures of Neeka
    5.5
    TV Movie
    • associate producer (as Bonita Granville Wrather)
    • 1968
  • Flight of the Cougar (1967)
    Flight of the Cougar
    6.0
    TV Movie
    • associate producer (as Bonita Granville Wrather)
    • 1967
  • Lassie: A Christmas Tail
    6.3
    • associate producer
    • 1963
  • June Lockhart, Jon Provost, and Hugh Reilly in Lassie's Great Adventure (1963)
    Lassie's Great Adventure
    6.0
    • associate producer
    • 1963

Actress



  • Klinton Spilsbury in The Legend of the Lone Ranger (1981)
    The Legend of the Lone Ranger
    5.0
    • Woman (uncredited)
    • 1981
  • Jon Provost, Tommy Rettig, and Lassie the Dog in Lassie (1954)
    Lassie
    6.6
    TV Series
    • Narrator
    • Mrs. Brewster
    • Mrs. Wade ...
    • 1960–1972
  • The Best of the Post (1960)
    The Best of the Post
    7.6
    TV Series
    • Widow
    • 1961
  • Strange Stories
    6.9
    TV Series
    • 1960
  • Playhouse 90 (1956)
    Playhouse 90
    8.3
    TV Series
    • Mrs. Kirkley
    • 1959
  • Target (1958)
    Target
    7.0
    TV Series
    • Alice Ward
    • 1958
  • Marsha Hunt and John Rodney in Studio One (1948)
    Studio One
    7.6
    TV Series
    • Ann
    • 1958
  • Kraft Mystery Theatre (1947)
    The United States Steel Hour
    8.0
    TV Series
    • 1957
  • Lux Video Theatre (1950)
    Lux Video Theatre
    7.3
    TV Series
    • Anne
    • Joan
    • Kitty
    • 1951–1957
  • Science Fiction Theatre (1955)
    Science Fiction Theatre
    8.0
    TV Series
    • Barbara Cameron
    • 1957
  • This Is the Life (1952)
    This Is the Life
    6.5
    TV Series
    • Edna Johnson
    • 1956
  • Ethel Barrymore Theater
    6.7
    TV Series
    • 1956
  • Matinee Theatre (1955)
    Matinee Theatre
    6.8
    TV Series
    • 1956
  • Dan Duryea in Climax! (1954)
    Climax!
    6.5
    TV Series
    • Molly
    • Laura Jordan
    • 1955–1956
  • Clayton Moore and Jay Silverheels in The Lone Ranger (1956)
    The Lone Ranger
    6.5
    • Welcome Kilgore
    • 1956

Director



  • Jon Provost, Tommy Rettig, and Lassie the Dog in Lassie (1954)
    Lassie
    6.6
    TV Series
    • Director (as Bonita Granville Wrather)
    • 1969

Videos8

Official Trailer
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Trailer 1:41
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Trailer 1:41
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Trailer 1:23
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Trailer
Trailer 1:29
Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 1:22
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Trailer 2:48
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Personal details

  • Alternative name
    • Bonita Granville Wrather
  • Height
    • 5′ (1.52 m)
  • Born
    • February 2, 1923
    • Chicago, Illinois, USA
  • Died
    • October 11, 1988
    • Santa Monica, California, USA(cancer)
  • Spouse
    • Jack WratherFebruary 5, 1947 - November 12, 1984 (his death, 2 children)
  • Children
      Chris Wrather
  • Parents
      Bernard Granville
  • Publicity listings
    • 1 Portrayal
    • 8 Articles

Did you know

  • Trivia
    Through a special agreement with Walt Disney, she and her husband, Jack Wrather were able to use the Disneyland name on the hotel they built across the street from the theme park in Anaheim, California.
  • Quotes
    [observation, 1972] I don't go to the movies. They're indecent. They appeal to the baser tendencies, to temptations. Young people aren't able to cope with them, all this sex starting too early. It's thrown at them under the guise of art. But it's really immoral, amoral stuff , made just for the money. More than that, it's done something to our generation. It's destroyed romance and imagination that goes along with sex. And that's pretty important because, otherwise, sex becomes mechanical. Don't get me wrong. I'm a great believer in sex. But that's not the way to go about it.
  • Nickname
    • Bunny
  • Salary
    • Call It a Day
      (1937)
      $500 /week

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