Jane Wyatt, the noted film and television actress, was of solid Dutch American background. Her great-grandparents were Henry Bell Van Rensselaer, and Margaret Schuyler, and her distant cousin was Eleanor Roosevelt. She met her future husband, to whom she would remain married for 65 years, Edgar Bethune Ward, at a house party at the Roosevelt estate in Hyde Park, New York. Her father’s name was Christoffer Billupp Wyatt, Jr., and her mother’s name was Euphemia Van Rensselaer Waddington. Jane had three siblings, Christoffer III, Elisabeth and Monica.
Wyatt grew up in a wealthy New York family. She received her early schooling at the exclusive Chapin School, and then attended Barnard College for two years. She left Barnard College after two years, to join the apprentice school of the Berkshire Playhouse at Stockbridge, Massachusetts. One would expect that her parents would be happy with their daughter wanting to become an actress. Not so, they both opposed it. At the Berkshire Playhouse, she played a variety of roles, and she quickly received plaudits for her performances, and was then invited to participate in Broadway performances. One of her first roles on Broadway was as an understudy for Rose Hobart in “Trade Winds”. The New York Social set apparently felt that performing as an actress on Broadway was demeaning, and decided to remove Wyatt’s name from the New York City Social Register. Later, following her marriage to Edgar Bethune Ward, her name was reinstated. During the next two years, Wyatt alternated between Berkshire and Broadway. On Broadway, she received her first major role, performing with Charles Laughton, Louis Calhern and Osgood Perkins.
For her Broadway performances, Wyatt quickly received rave notices, and in 1937, she made the transition from stage to screen in the movie, “Lost Horizon”. Wyatt would remain in movie productions through the mid fifties, during which time she performed in, “Kisses for Breakfast”, in 1941, in ”None But the Lonely Heart”, in 1944, in “Boomerang!”, in 1947, in “Gentleman’s Agreement”, also in 1947, in “Canadian Pacific”, in 1949, in “Task Force”, also in 1949, in “House By the River”, in 1950, and in “Our Very Own”, also in 1950.
In the 1950’s, and specifically in 1954, Wyatt made her transition to television, appearing with Robert Young, in “Father Knows Best”, the long running and classic family television show. She would remain with the “Father Knows Best” show, for seven seasons until 1960, appearing in 207 performances. She received three Emmy awards, in 1958, 1959, and 1960, for her performance as Margaret Anderson in the long running and successful “Father Knows Best” television series.
During the 1960’s and 1970’s, Wyatt performed in a number of television shows, but she was not actively involved with a specific series. In 1975, she appeared in the film “Katherine”, and in the 1980’s, she also appeared in the films, “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home” in 1986, and in “Amityville: The Evil Escapes” in 1986.
In 1983, Wyatt returned actively to acting and appeared in the television series, “St. Elsewhere”, as Katherine Auschlander”. She performed in that series through 1988. At that time, she had reached the advanced age of 78. It was time to retire. During her acting career, Wyatt had performed through seven decades, from the 1930’s through the 1990’s. Her first reported performance was in “One More River” in 1934, and her last reported performances were in 1996 in “Ruth Rendell Mysteries” and in “Simisola”, both as reader in television episodes. And finally in 2007, she appeared at the 79th Annual Academy Awards Ceremony.
Jane Wyatt was born in Campgaw, now Mahwah, Bergen County, New Jersey, on August 12, 1910. She was raised in New York City. She married Edgar Bethune Ward on November 9, 1935. Ward passed away on November 8, 2000, one day before the couple would have celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary. The couple had two surviving sons, Christoffer Wyatt III and Michael Wyatt, and two daughters, Elisabeth Wyatt Russell and Monica Wyatt, three grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. Jane Wyatt passed away on October 20, 2006, at the advanced age of 96. She died of natural causes at her home in Bel-Air, California following a rich and active life. Her funeral mass was held at the Church of St. Martin of Tours in Brentwood, California.
REFERENCES
Jane Wyatt, http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0943553/
Jane Wyatt, http://www.nndb.com/people/517/000092241/
Jane Wyatt, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jane_Wyatt
Actress Jane Wyatt Dies at 96, http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15379626/page/2/
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