Her name might not be as well-known as some actresses from the Golden Age of Hollywood like Joan Crawford or Bette Davis, but actress Dorothy McGuire appeared in many major films as well as had ties to La Jolla.<\/p>\n
McGuire\u2019s softness made her a favorite leading lady in films such as \u201cGentleman’s Agreement\u201d (1947, for which she received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress) and \u201cFriendly Persuasion\u201d (1956), and \u201cSwiss Family Robinson\u201d (1960), to name a few.<\/p>\n
She was also part of a stellar trio that founded the La Jolla Playhouse, which continues to be a leading venue for people to see live theater in 1947.<\/p>\n
“We are deeply grateful for the extraordinary vision of La Jolla Playhouse founders and Hollywood luminaries Dorothy McGuire, Mel Ferrer, and Gregory Peck, and we are honored to carry forward their legacy,” said La Jolla Playhouse managing director Debby Buchholz.<\/p>\n
LEAVING A LEGACY<\/p>\n
According to longtime La Jolla resident Scott Paulson, who curates a film series for the La Jolla Historical Society and at the UC San Diego Library and hosts popular events and exhibitions that embrace La Jolla\u2019s past and present, co-founder Peck was her co-star in \u201cGentlemen\u2019s Agreement,\u201d released the same year. That proximity allowed for a bit more ease in inaugural Playhouse planning.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe and Peck (along with Ferrer) longed for the challenge of stage acting, but active film careers and restrictive studio contracts didn\u2019t allow for Broadway commitments.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur La Jolla High School stage was just a couple hours from some of their studio commitments, so it was possible to hit the 92037 ZIP code floorboards one evening and be in Tinsel Town present and camera-ready the following morning, if necessary,\u201d Paulson said.<\/p>\n
\u201cMcGuire was a truly versatile actress, with great success in radio, on Broadway, in film, and on television. Her ties to La Jolla are still appreciated and old photos of her in Playhouse publicity Village outings truly relay her sincerity and joy about the seasons spent here. Her time in La Jolla was not a chore \u2014 you can see her beaming in those stills and know that she was both inspired by the work here and inspiring to those immediately around her.\u201d<\/p>\n
Paulson added, La Jollans, who had an adoptive fondness for McGuire as a Playhouse founder, were mortified when she was not included in the 2002 Oscars \u201cIn Memoriam\u201d tribute. Though Peck was a true local, McGuire\u2019s long-term commitment to La Jolla Playhouse endeared her forward to more official village-citizen status.<\/p>\n
\u201cMcGuire\u2019s long-term, full commitment to La Jolla Playhouse outlasted Peck and Ferrer\u2019s by many years. Locals watching the broadcast were aghast to witness that snub. To see \u2018one of our own\u2019 overlooked caused quite a stir here,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
LA JOLLA PLAYHOUSE HISTORY<\/p>\n
The Playhouse website says in its history section: \u201cLa Jolla Playhouse thrived as a summer stock retreat for such Hollywood luminaries as Vivian Vance, Groucho Marx, and Eve Arden.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/cdn.sdnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/20230329164457\/Dorothy-in-Old-Yeller-dorothy-mcguire-10009811-853-480-300x169.jpg\")
\u201cAfter over a decade of performances featuring numerous greats from stage and film, the Playhouse went on hiatus from 1959\u20131982. While shuttered, a handful of dedicated supporters fought to keep the Playhouse alive, eventually working to revive it on the campus of UC San Diego in 1983.<\/p>\n
\u201cOver the next three decades, La Jolla Playhouse rose to prominence as one of the most celebrated regional theatres in the country. Under the artistic leadership of Des McAnuff (1983\u20131994; 2001\u20132007), the Playhouse developed dozens of new works, many of which transferred to Broadway, including\u00a0\u201cBig River,\u201d\u00a0\u201cThe Who\u2019s Tommy,\u201d and\u00a0\u201cJersey Boys.\u201d In 1993, the Playhouse was awarded the Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis period\u00a0also\u00a0saw the beginning of the Playhouse\u2019s acclaimed Performance Outreach Program (POP) Tour, in which a\u00a0brand new, Playhouse-commissioned work\u00a0brings the magic of theatre into San Diego\u00a0schools. The Playhouse\u2019s continued its commitment to developing new plays and musicals\u00a0with the launch of its\u00a0Page To Stage New Play Development Program, spawning the Pulitzer Prize-winning\u00a0\u201cI Am My Own Wife\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
EARLY DAYS<\/p>\n
Born Dorothy Hackett McGuire, in 1916 she was an only child who kicked off her acting career in her hometown, at the Omaha Community Playhouse.<\/p>\n
She moved to New York City and appeared on Broadway as an understudy to Martha Scott in \u201cOur Town\u201d and gained almost instant stardom in the domestic comedy \u201cClaudia.\u201d<\/p>\n
McGuire was brought to Hollywood by big-time producer David O. Selznick because of her superb stage performance. She starred in her first film, a movie adaptation of her Broadway success, \u201cClaudia\u201d (1943), co-starring Robert Young.<\/p>\n
POPULAR FAST<\/p>\n
McGuire immediately gained popularity with the public and critics and was the catalyst for not only a sequel, \u201cClaudia and David\u201d (1946, also co-starring Young), but also for many other film roles, including \u201cA Tree Grows in Brooklyn\u201d (1945), \u201cThe Enchanted Cottage\u201d (1945), \u201cTill the End of Time\u201d (1946), \u201cThe Spiral Staircase\u201d (1946), \u201cMister 880\u201d (1950), \u201cThree Coins in the Fountain\u201d (1954), \u201cOld Yeller\u201d (1957), \u201cA Summer Place\u201d (1959), \u201cThe Dark at the Top of the Stairs\u201d (1960), \u201cThe Greatest Story Ever Told\u201d (1965, as the Virgin Mary), and the television film \u201cLittle Women\u201d (1978).<\/p>\n
She also appeared in the television mini-series \u201cRich Man, Poor Man\u201d (1976) many episodes of \u201cThe Love Boat,\u201d \u201cSt. Elsewhere,\u201d and \u201cHighway to Heaven.\u201d<\/p>\n
DEATH AND RESTING PLACE<\/p>\n
In 1943 she married Life Magazine photographer John Swope and was married to him until he died in 1979.<\/p>\n
McGuire died of a heart attack at the age of 85 in Santa Monica, in 2001 following a brief illness. She has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Cremated, her ashes were scattered at sea.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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