Trivia

She would never talk about Ronald Reagan in an interview, but voted for him three times and attended his funeral.

She and third husband Ronald Reagan had a daughter Christine who was born June 26, 1947 and lived 9 hours.

Replaced Gracie Allen for an evening of "The Burns and Allen Radio Show" when Gracie had a migraine. It turned out to be the only time Gracie missed their show in all the years Burns and Allen performed together.

Mother of Maureen Reagan and Michael Reagan.

Ranks fourth behind Mickey Rooney, Barbara Stanwyck and Bette Davis, but in front of Eddie Albert and Ernest Borgnine, in appearances of movies, she was featured in over 80 films.

Wyman had appeared in almost every episode of Falcon Crest (1981) from 1981 to 1989, before she missed 16 episodes in the final season. Against her doctor's advice, she came back for the series' final three shows, for a total of 208 of the 227 episodes of the series.

Jack Benny gave Jane her nickname of Minnie Mouse because he believed that she resembled what the Disney character would look life if human.

Apparently broke up with Ronald Reagan over her love for Lew Ayres, but that relationship failed in the long run.

Before she was a successful actress, she was a switchboard operator and a chorus girl.

Held the record for the longest screen kiss, with Regis Toomey in You're in the Army Now (1941), at 3 minutes and 5 seconds. The record was broken by Big Top Pee-wee (1988) and is now held by Kids in America (2005) as six minutes.

Met Lorenzo Lamas's father, Fernando Lamas, on an episode of Jane Wyman Presents the Fireside Theatre (1955), when at the time of filming, Lorenzo was a 3 month old infant. By the time Lorenzo Lamas was 21, he persistently auditioned for a co-starring role in the long-running TV series, Falcon Crest (1981), opposite Wyman, as her grandson. His persistence paid off, and he won the role.

While being under contract at Warner Bros., she first met, Ronald Reagan, on the set of Brother Rat (1938), in 1938. Wyman was 21, whilst Reagan was 27. The two had been married from 1940, until their divorce in 1949. They remained on good terms, until Reagan's death, in mid-2004. Before his death, she especially voted for him, twice, in both the 1980 and 1984 presidential elections in the Republican Party.

She has appeared in four films that have been selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant: Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933), My Man Godfrey (1936), The Lost Weekend (1945) and All That Heaven Allows (1955).

Was a spokesperson for the National Arthritis Foundation from the mid-1970s.

Wrote a soliloquy for the series finale of Falcon Crest (1981).

After her guest-starring role on Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman (1993), she retired from acting at age 76.

She and Eddie Albert were best friends from 1938 to Thursday, May 26, 2005, when Eddie Albert lost his life.

She dropped out of Lafayette High School, during her freshman year, and took on odd jobs such as a waitress and manicurist.

Several sources have given her date of birth as January 4, 1914, which would mean she was one of the first (and one of the very few) actresses to make herself older. She is a serious convert to Roman Catholicism, attending Mass with good friend Loretta Young.

Was buried as a third-degree nun [from an interview by Michael Reagan to Megyn Kelly on America Live (2010) on May 29, 2012].

Her best friend Esther Williams is the stepmother of Falcon Crest (1981), co-star, Lorenzo Lamas, whose father was Fernando Lamas, who married Williams on New Years' Eve, 1969, till his death in 1982. Ironically, Wyman, Lamas and Williams, knew each other for many years, before.

Was reported that she also died of natural causes in her sleep.

Was actually the first and only choice for the role of Angela Channing on Falcon Crest (1981), that after her best friend Barbara Stanwyck had been rumoured she turned down this part. That was not the case for Stanwyck, she had never been given this role by the producers, only Wyman took on the role.

When Sarah Jane was age 15, she landed a job as dancer in the chorus of Busby Berkeley's The Kid from Spain (1932) at MGM. Other dancers and unfamiliar actresses on the lot included Lucille Ball, Betty Grable and Paulette Goddard.

Remained good friends with Susan Sullivan and Lorenzo Lamas during and after Falcon Crest (1981).

Her Best Actress Oscar for Johnny Belinda (1948) makes her the only wife of a future U.S. President (Ronald Reagan) ever to win such an award.

Was considered for the role of Scarlett O'Hara in Gone with the Wind (1939).

Had taken a break on the ninth and final season of Falcon Crest (1981), during the third episode, due to the health problems she was suffering, but came back for the last three episodes of the series.

Lived in a retirement home in Palm Springs, California, before she resided at the Rancho Mirage Country Club, where she died.

Was the recipient of the Charles B. Harding Award in 1977, which was the highest national award given by The Arthritis Foundation.

Her name changed to "Jane Faulks" when she was unofficially "adopted" by the Faulks family, middle-aged neighbors of her single mother. Moved to So. California with Mrs. Faulks when she was widowed in 1928

Has 2 stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

She studied music at the University of Missouri in Columbia, Missouri.

Created the character of Angela Channing of Falcon Crest (1981), who also had no intention of letting her character become a sort of J.R. Ewing of the wine business who felt she was representing all women in business. She was also a very, tough character at first, but wanted Angela to show she was also capable of love.

After she won the Oscar, Jack Warner announced Wyman for "A Streetcar Named Desire" and "Ethan Frome.' Vivien Leigh played the role in "Streetcar" and Warner Bros. never made "Frome.".

Is one of only 11 so-called "honorary U.S. first ladies" (wives who were married to a U.S. President at a different time they were President), others are Martha Jefferson, Rachel Jackson, Hannah Van Buren, Caroline Fillmore, Ellen Arthur, Mary Harrison, Alice Roosevelt, Ivana Trump, Marla Maples and Neilia Biden.

Her parents were Gladys Hope Christian, an a doctor's stenographer and office assistant and Manning Jefferies Mayfield, a meal-company laborer.

Was always good friends with Loretta Young.

Before Merv Griffin became a successful talk show host and producer, he worked with her, when he began his contract career at Warner Bros. in 1954.

Daughter, with third husband - actor/former president Ronald Reagan - Maureen Reagan dies of malignant melanoma (skin cancer) at her Sacramento-area home. (August 8, 2001)

Her father, Manning Jefferies Mayfield, died when she was 5.

Her Falcon Crest (1981) co-star, Susan Sullivan, won the 1998 Jane Wyman Award at the Arthritis Foundation.

Was hospitalized with a liver ailment and diabetes after she collapsed on the set of Falcon Crest (1981)'s ninth season. [20 February 1989].

On an episode of Falcon Crest (1981), Wyman's movie The Blue Veil (1951), showed flashback scenes when her character reminisces about being told in the hospital that her newborn son had died.

Was supposed to reprise her role as Aunt Polly in The Adventures of Pollyanna (1982), but was unavailable, because she was under contract working on Falcon Crest (1981), hence, the role was ultimately given to Shirley Jones.

Her adopted son Michael Reagan had a recurring role on Falcon Crest (1981) with her.

Daughter, Maureen Reagan, was admitted to the John Wayne Cancer Institute for malignant melanoma. [11 December 2000]

Has ranked second, between fellow actors Danny Thomas, Julie London and Robert Fuller, with the many name changes. After she took the name of Sarah Jane Fulks, she dropped her first name and used Jane, as her middle name, hence, she legally changed her name to Jane Durrell, however, she was asked to change her last name to Wyman, the same last name as her adoptive siblings - her mother had first been married to a Dr. Weymann.

She had 10 hobbies: landscape painting, golfing, dancing, collecting CDs, listening to music, playing piano, singing, philanthropy, reading and politics.

Was a very good friend of Aaron Spelling. She appeared on both of his shows: Charlie's Angels (1976) and The Love Boat (1977).