Dorothy Hackett McGuire (June 14, 1916 – September 13, 2001) was an American actress.

Career

Born in Omaha, Nebraska

Omaha, Nebraska

Omaha is the largest city in the state of Nebraska, United States, and is the county seat of Douglas County. It is located in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about 20 miles north of the mouth of the Platte River...

, she began her acting career on the stage at the Omaha Community Playhouse. Eventually, she reached Broadway

Broadway theatre

Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...

, first appearing as an understudy to Martha Scott

Martha Scott

Martha Ellen Scott was an American actress best known for her roles as mother of the lead character in numerous films and television shows.-Early life:...

 in Our Town

Our Town

Our Town is a three-act play by American playwright Thornton Wilder. It is a character story about an average town's citizens in the early twentieth century as depicted through their everyday lives...

, and subsequently starring in the domestic comedy, Claudia.

Brought to Hollywood by producer David O. Selznick

David O. Selznick

David O. Selznick was an American film producer. He is best known for having produced Gone with the Wind and Rebecca , both of which earned him an Oscar for Best Picture.-Early years:...

 on the strength of her stage performance, McGuire starred in her first film, a movie adaptation of her Broadway success, Claudia, and portrayed the character of a child bride who almost destroys her marriage through her selfishness. Her inaugural screen performance was popular with both the public and critics alike and was the catalyst for not only a sequel, Claudia and David (both movies co-starring Robert Young

Robert Young (actor)

Robert George Young was an American television, film, and radio actor, best known for his leading roles as Jim Anderson, the father of Father Knows Best and as physician Marcus Welby in Marcus Welby, M.D. .-Early life:Born in Chicago, Illinois, Young was the son of an Irish immigrant father...

), but also for numerous other film roles.

By 1943, at the age of 27, she was already playing mother roles, in such movies as A Tree Grows In Brooklyn

A Tree Grows In Brooklyn (film)

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn is a 1945 film, the first film directed by Greek-American director Elia Kazan, starring James Dunn , Dorothy McGuire, Joan Blondell, and Peggy Ann Garner .The film is based on an American novel A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith first published in 1943...

. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress

Academy Award for Best Actress

Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...

 in 1947 for Gentleman's Agreement

Gentleman's Agreement

Gentleman's Agreement is a 1947 drama film about a journalist who goes undercover as a Jew to conduct research for an exposé on antisemitism in New York City and the affluent community of Darien, Connecticut...

. Other notable films include The Enchanted Cottage

The Enchanted Cottage (1945 film)

The Enchanted Cottage is a 1945 romantic film fantasy starring Robert Young, Dorothy McGuire, and Mildred Natwick. It was based on a play by Arthur Wing Pinero...

, A Summer Place

A Summer Place

A Summer Place is a 1958 novel by Sloan Wilson, a follow-on to The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit. It was adapted into a 1959 film of the same name.-Plot summary:...

, Three Coins in the Fountain

Three Coins in the Fountain (1954 film)

Three Coins in the Fountain is the 1954 film that introduced the song of the same name, which became an enduring standard. It tells the story of three American girls looking for romance in Rome while employed at the American Embassy...

, Friendly Persuasion

Friendly Persuasion (film)

Friendly Persuasion is a 1956 Civil War film starring Gary Cooper, Dorothy McGuire, Anthony Perkins, Richard Eyer, Robert Middleton and Phyllis Love. The screenplay was adapted by Michael Wilson from the 1945 novel The Friendly Persuasion by Jessamyn West, and was directed by William Wyler...

, Old Yeller

Old Yeller (1957 film)

Old Yeller is a 1957 Walt Disney Productions film starring Tommy Kirk, Dorothy McGuire and Beverly Washburn, and directed by Robert Stevenson. It is about a boy and a stray dog in post-Civil War Texas. The story is based upon the 1956 Newbery Honor-winning book Old Yeller by Fred Gipson. Gipson...

, Swiss Family Robinson

Swiss Family Robinson (film)

Swiss Family Robinson is a 1960 American Technicolor feature film starring John Mills, Dorothy McGuire, and Sessue Hayakawa in a tale of a shipwrecked family building an island home. The screenplay by Lowell S. Hawley was loosely based upon the 1812 novel Der Schweizerische Robinson by Johann...

, The Greatest Story Ever Told

The Greatest Story Ever Told

The Greatest Story Ever Told is a 1965 American epic film produced and directed by George Stevens and distributed by United Artists. It is a retelling of the story of Jesus Christ, from the Nativity through the Resurrection. This film is notable for its large ensemble cast and for being the last...

, and The Dark at the Top of the Stairs

The Dark at the Top of the Stairs

The Dark at the Top of the Stairs is a 1957 play by William Inge about family conflicts during the early 1920s in a small Oklahoma town. It won the Tony Award for Best Play and was made into a film in 1960.-Plot:...

.

McGuire had a long Hollywood career. Her versatility served her well in taut melodramas, such as The Spiral Staircase and Make Haste to Live, as well as in light, frothy comedies, such as Mother Didn't Tell Me and Mister 880

Mister 880

Mister 880 is a 1950 film directed by Edmund Goulding and starring Burt Lancaster, Dorothy McGuire, Edmund Gwenn, and Millard Mitchell. It was based on an article by St. Clair McKelway that was first published in The New Yorker and later collected in McKelway's book True Tales from the Annals of...

.

Personal life and death

Married to Life

Life (magazine)

Life generally refers to three American magazines:*A humor and general interest magazine published from 1883 to 1936. Time founder Henry Luce bought the magazine in 1936 solely so that he could acquire the rights to its name....

 magazine photographer John Swope (1908–1979) for more than 35 years, she had a son, photographer Mark Swope, and a daughter Topo (born 1948), who also became an actress.

McGuire died of cardiac arrest

Cardiac arrest

Cardiac arrest, is the cessation of normal circulation of the blood due to failure of the heart to contract effectively...

 following a brief illness at the age of 85 in 2001. Her ashes were scattered into the Pacific Ocean.

For her contribution to the motion picture industry, Dorothy McGuire has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame

Hollywood Walk of Fame

The Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...

 at 6933 Hollywood Blvd.

Filmography

Film and Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1943	Claudia	Claudia Naughton
1944	Reward Unlimited	Peggy	Short film
1945		Laura Pennington
1945		Katie Nolan
1945		Helen Capel
1946	Claudia and David Claudia and David Claudia and David is a 1946 film directed by Walter Lang. It stars Dorothy McGuire and Robert Young.-Cast:*Dorothy McGuire as Claudia Naughton*Robert Young as David Naughton*Mary Astor as Elizabeth Van Doren*John Sutton as Phil Dexter...	Claudia Naughton
1946	Till the End of Time Till the End of Time (film) Till the End of Time is a 1946 drama film directed by Edward Dmytryk and starring Dorothy McGuire, Guy Madison, Robert Mitchum, and Bill Williams. Released the same year as the better known The Best Years of Our Lives, it covers much the same topic: the adjustment of World War II veterans to...	Pat Ruscomb
1947	Gentleman's Agreement Gentleman's Agreement Gentleman's Agreement is a 1947 drama film about a journalist who goes undercover as a Jew to conduct research for an exposé on antisemitism in New York City and the affluent community of Darien, Connecticut...	Kathy Lacy
1950	Mother Didn't Tell Me	Jane Morgan
1950	Mister 880 Mister 880 Mister 880 is a 1950 film directed by Edmund Goulding and starring Burt Lancaster, Dorothy McGuire, Edmund Gwenn, and Millard Mitchell. It was based on an article by St. Clair McKelway that was first published in The New Yorker and later collected in McKelway's book True Tales from the Annals of...	Ann Winslow
1951	Robert Montgomery Presents Robert Montgomery Presents Robert Montgomery Presents is an American dramatic television series which was produced by NBC from January 30, 1950 until June 24, 1957. The live show had several sponsors during its seven-year run, and the title was altered to feature the sponsor, usually Lucky Strike cigarettes, for example,...	Judith Traherne	Episode: "Dark Victory"
1951	Callaway Went Thataway Callaway Went Thataway Callaway Went Thataway is a 1951 American comedy film starring Fred MacMurray, Dorothy McGuire, and Howard Keel. It was written, directed, and produced by Melvin Frank and Norman Panama...	Deborah Patterson
1951	I Want You I Want You (1951 film) I Want You is a 1951 film directed by Mark Robson taking place in America during the Korean War. The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Sound .-Plot:...	Nancy Greer
1952	Invitation Invitation (film) Invitation is a 1952 melodrama starring Van Johnson and Dorothy McGuire as a happily married couple, until the wife learns a secret about her husband. The film was based on the short story "R.S.V.P." by Jerome Weidman.-Plot:...	Ellen Bowker Pierce
1954	Make Haste to Live Make Haste to Live Make Haste to Live is an American suspense film released by Republic Pictures.- Plot :'Chris' Crystal Benson is a single mother living in a small town in New Mexico. One night she feels a man is stalking. She grabs a gun and makes a series of arrangements anticipating his own death...	Crystal Benson
1954	Three Coins in the Fountain Three Coins in the Fountain (1954 film) Three Coins in the Fountain is the 1954 film that introduced the song of the same name, which became an enduring standard. It tells the story of three American girls looking for romance in Rome while employed at the American Embassy...	Miss Frances
1954		Tina	Episode: "A Garden in the Sea"
1954	Lux Video Theatre Lux Video Theatre Lux Video Theatre, is a weekly television anthology series that was produced from 1950 until 1959. The series presented both comedy and drama in original teleplays, as well as abridged adaptations of films and plays....	Jody Norris	Episode: "To Each His Own"
1954		Tracy Lord	Episode: "The Philadelphia Story The Philadelphia Story (play) The Philadelphia Story is a 1939 American comic play by Philip Barry. It tells the story of a socialite whose wedding plans are complicated by the simultaneous arrival of her ex-husband and an attractive journalist.-Production:... "
1954	Climax!	Janet Spence	Episode: "The Gioconda Smile"
1955	Trial Trial (1955 film) Trial is a 1955 American film directed by Mark Robson and written by Don Mankiewicz . It stars Glenn Ford, Dorothy McGuire, Arthur Kennedy and Juano Hernandez...	Abbe Nyle
1956	Climax!	Miranda	Episode: "Pale Horse, Pale Rider"
1956	Friendly Persuasion Friendly Persuasion (film) Friendly Persuasion is a 1956 Civil War film starring Gary Cooper, Dorothy McGuire, Anthony Perkins, Richard Eyer, Robert Middleton and Phyllis Love. The screenplay was adapted by Michael Wilson from the 1945 novel The Friendly Persuasion by Jessamyn West, and was directed by William Wyler...	Eliza Birdwell
1957	Old Yeller Old Yeller (1957 film) Old Yeller is a 1957 Walt Disney Productions film starring Tommy Kirk, Dorothy McGuire and Beverly Washburn, and directed by Robert Stevenson. It is about a boy and a stray dog in post-Civil War Texas. The story is based upon the 1956 Newbery Honor-winning book Old Yeller by Fred Gipson. Gipson...	Katie Coates
1959		Mrs. Emily 'Ma' Pennypacker
1959	This Earth Is Mine This Earth Is Mine This Earth Is Mine is a 1959 drama film directed by Henry King and starring Rock Hudson and Jean Simmons. The film portrays the lives and loves of the Rambeau family, a California winemaking dynasty trying to survive during Prohibition in the United States.-Summary:Elizabeth , an English cousin of...	Martha Fairon
1959		Sylvia Hunter
1960		Cora Flood
1960		Mother Robinson
1961	Susan Slade Susan Slade Susan Slade is a 1961 American drama film released by Warner Bros. The film was directed by Delmer Daves and stars Troy Donahue, Connie Stevens, Dorothy McGuire, Lloyd Nolan, Bert Convy and Grant Williams...	Leah Slade
1963	Summer Magic Summer Magic Summer Magic is a 1963 Walt Disney Productions feature film starring Hayley Mills, Burl Ives, and Dorothy McGuire in a story about a Boston widow and her children taking up residence in a small town in Maine. The film was based on the book "Mother Carey's Chickens" by Kate Douglas Wiggin and was...	Margaret Carey
1964		Guest Vocalist	Episode: "A Man and His Money Are Soon Parted"
1965		The Virgin Mary
1971	Flight of the Doves Flight of the Doves Flight of the Doves is a 1971 British film based on the novel by Walter Macken, the film was written by Frank Gabrielson and Ralph Nelson. Nelson also directed the film.-Cast:...	Granny O'Flaherty
1972	Another Part of the Forest Another Part of the Forest Another Part of the Forest is a 1946 play by Lillian Hellman, a prequel to her 1939 drama The Little Foxes.-Plot synopsis:Set in the fictional town of Bowden, Alabama in June 1880, the plot focuses on the wealthy, ruthless, and innately evil Hubbard family and their rise to prominence...	Lavinia Hubbard	TV movie
1972	She Waits	Sarah Wilson	TV movie
1973	Jonathan Livingston Seagull Jonathan Livingston Seagull (film) Jonathan Livingston Seagull is a 1973 American film directed by Hall Bartlett, adapted from the novella by Richard Bach. The film, which has no human actors on screen, tells the story of a young seabird who, after being outcast by his stern flock, goes on an odyssey to discover how to break the...	Mother (voice)
1976	Rich Man, Poor Man Rich Man, Poor Man (TV miniseries) Rich Man, Poor Man was a 1976 American television miniseries that aired on ABC in one-hour episodes at 10:00pm ET/PT on Monday night for twelve weeks, beginning February 1. It was produced by Universal Television and was the second time programming of this nature had been attempted. The first TV...	Mary Jordache	7 episodes
1978	Little Women Little Women (1978 film) For other motion pictures of this title, see Little Women Little Women is a 1978 romantic family drama television film directed by David Lowell Rich and based upon Louisa May Alcott's novel of the same name. The screenplay was written by Suzanne Clauser...	Marmee March
1979		Effie Webb	TV movie
1982		Hanna Hamilton	1 episode
1983	Ghost Dancing	Sarah Bowman	TV movie
1983	Fantasy Island Fantasy Island Fantasy Island is the title of two separate but related American fantasy television series, both originally airing on the ABC television network.-Original series:...	Joan Mallory	Episode: "Three's a Crowd/Second Time Around"
1984		Sarah Webster	1 episode
1984		Cora Miller	TV series
1985	Hotel Hotel (TV series) Hotel is an American prime time drama series which aired on ABC from September 21, 1983 to May 5, 1988 in the timeslot following Dynasty....	Mrs. Christopher	Episode: "Skeletons"
1985	Amos	Hester Farrell	TV movie
1985	Glitter Glitter (TV series) Glitter was an American television drama series screened on the ABC network during the 1984-1985 season.The series was produced by Aaron Spelling and was set behind the scenes of a top entertainment magazine titled "Glitter" and attempted to combine the urgency of journalism and business politics...	The Matriarch	Episode: "The Matriarch"
1985	Between the Darkness and the Dawn	Beryl Foster	TV movie
1986	St. Elsewhere St. Elsewhere St. Elsewhere is an American medical drama television series that originally ran on NBC from October 26, 1982 to May 25, 1988. The series is set at fictional St. Eligius, a decaying urban teaching hospital in Boston's South End neighborhood...	Augusta Endicott	3 episodes
1986	American Geisha	Ann Suzuki	TV movie
1986	Highway to Heaven Highway to Heaven Highway to Heaven is an American television drama series which ran on NBC from 1984 to 1989.- Season 1 :- Season 2 :- Season 3 :- Season 4 :- Season 5 :...	Jane Thompson	Episode: "Keep Smiling"
1987	Summer Heat Summer Heat Summer Heat is a film directed by Michie Gleason, with a screenplay by Michie Gleason based on the novel Here to Get My Baby Out of Jail by Louise Shivers.-Cast:*Lori Singer as Roxy*Anthony Edwards as Aaron*Bruce Abbott as Jack Ruffin...	Narrator (voice)
1988	Highway to Heaven Highway to Heaven Highway to Heaven is an American television drama series which ran on NBC from 1984 to 1989.- Season 1 :- Season 2 :- Season 3 :- Season 4 :- Season 5 :...	Jane Thompson	Episode: "We Have Forever: Part 1" Episode: "We Have Forever: Part 2"
1988	I Never Sang for My Father	Margaret Garrison
1990	Hallmark Hall of Fame Hallmark Hall of Fame Hallmark Hall of Fame is an anthology program on American television, sponsored by Hallmark Cards, a Kansas City based greeting card company. The second longest-running television program in the history of television, it has a historically long run, beginning in 1951 and continuing into 2011...	Flora Atkins	Episode: "Caroline? Caroline? Caroline? is a 1990 Hallmark Hall of Fame TV movie that aired on CBS on April 29, 1990. The movie starred Stephanie Zimbalist, Pamela Reed, and George Grizzard.-External links:*... "
1990		Anne	TV movie

External links