Early life ''. Wray was born on a ranch near
Cardston, Alberta, to parents who were members of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: Elvina Marguerite Jones from
Salt Lake City, Utah, and Joseph Heber Wray from
Kingston upon Hull, England. They had six children and she was a granddaughter of LDS pioneer
Daniel Webster Jones. Her ancestors came from England, Scotland, Ireland, Northern Ireland, and Wales. Her family returned to the United States a few years after she was born; they moved to Salt Lake City in 1912 and moved to
Lark, Utah, in 1914. In 1919, the Wray family returned to Salt Lake City, and then relocated to
Hollywood, where she attended
Hollywood High School.
Early acting career ,
William Powell, and Fay Wray are in
Pointed Heels (1929). , Wray, director
Richard Thorpe, and cinematographer
George Robinson (in background) on the set of
Cheating Cheaters (1934) In 1923, Wray appeared in her first film at the age of 16, when she landed a role in a short historical film sponsored by a local newspaper. In the 1920s, Wray appeared in the silent film
The Coast Patrol (1925), and uncredited bit parts at the
Hal Roach Studios. In 1926, the Western Association of Motion Picture Advertisers selected Wray as one of the "
WAMPAS Baby Stars", a group of women whom they believed to be on the threshold of movie stardom. She was at the time under contract to
Universal Studios, mostly co-starring in low-budget
Westerns opposite
Buck Jones. The following year, Wray was signed to a contract with
Paramount Pictures. In 1926, director
Erich von Stroheim cast her as the main female lead in his film
The Wedding March, released by Paramount two years later. The film was noted for its high budget and production values, but was a financial failure. It also gave Wray her first lead role. Wray stayed with Paramount to make more than a dozen films and made the transition from silent films to "
talkies".
Horror films and King Kong ''. After leaving Paramount, Wray signed with other film studios. Under these deals, Wray was cast in several horror films, including
Doctor X (1932) and
Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933). Her best known films were produced under her deal with
RKO Radio Pictures. Her first film with RKO was
The Most Dangerous Game (1932), co-starring
Joel McCrea. The production was filmed at night on the same jungle sets used for
King Kong during the day, and with Wray and
Robert Armstrong starring in both movies.
The Most Dangerous Game was followed by the release of Wray's best-remembered film,
King Kong. According to Wray,
Jean Harlow had been RKO's original choice, but because
MGM put Harlow under exclusive contract during the pre-production phase of the film, she became unavailable. Wray was approached by director
Merian C. Cooper to play King Kong's blonde captive, Ann Darrow, for which she was paid . The film was a commercial success and Wray was reportedly proud that it saved RKO from bankruptcy.
Later career , and
Natalie Wood. at 6349 Hollywood Blvd. Wray continued starring in films, including
The Richest Girl in the World, but by the early 1940s, her appearances became less frequent. She retired in 1942 after her second marriage but due to financial exigencies she soon resumed her acting career, with
Natalie Wood as her daughter. Wray appeared in
Queen Bee and
The Cobweb, both released in 1955. Wray appeared in
three episodes of
Perry Mason: "The Case of the Prodigal Parent" (1958); "The Case of the Watery Witness" (1959), as murder victim Lorna Thomas; and "The Case of the Fatal Fetish" (1965), as voodoo practitioner Mignon Germaine. Wray also co-starred with
Perry Mason star Raymond Burr in the 1957 noir film release
Crime of Passion. In 1959, Wray was cast as Tula Marsh in the episode "The Second Happiest Day" of
Playhouse 90. Other roles around this time were in the episodes "Dip in the Pool" (1958) and "The Morning After" of CBS's
Alfred Hitchcock Presents. In 1960, she appeared as Clara in an episode of
77 Sunset Strip, "Who Killed Cock Robin?" Another 1960 role was that of Mrs. Staunton, with
Gigi Perreau as her daughter, in the episode "Flight from Terror" of
The Islanders. Wray appeared in a 1961 episode of
The Real McCoys titled "Theatre in the Barn". In 1963, she played Mrs. Brubaker in
The Eleventh Hour episode "You're So Smart, Why Can't You Be Good?" She ended her acting career with the 1980 made-for-television film ''
Gideon's Trumpet''. In 1989, her autobiography was released,
On the Other Hand. In her later years, Wray continued to make public appearances. In 1991, she was crowned Queen of the Beaux Arts Ball, presiding with King
Herbert Huncke. She was approached by
James Cameron to play Rose Dawson Calvert for his blockbuster
Titanic (1997) with
Kate Winslet to play her younger self, but she turned down the role, which was subsequently portrayed by
Gloria Stuart in an
Oscar-nominated performance. She was a special guest at the
70th Academy Awards, where the show's host
Billy Crystal introduced her as the "Beauty who charmed the Beast". She was the only 1920s Hollywood actress in attendance that evening. On October 3, 1998, she appeared at the Pine Bluff Film Festival, which showed
The Wedding March with live orchestral accompaniment. In January 2003, at age 95, she appeared at the
Palm Beach International Film Festival to celebrate the Rick McKay documentary film
Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There, where she was honored with a "Legend in Film" award. In her later years, she visited the
Empire State Building frequently; in 1991, she was a guest of honor at the building's 60th anniversary, and in May 2004, she made one of her last public appearances at the ESB. Her final public appearance was at the premiere of the documentary film
Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There in June 2004. ==Personal life==