In autumn 1939, Wright began a two-year appearance in the stage play
Life with Father, playing the role of Mary Skinner. It was there that she was discovered by
Samuel Goldwyn, who came to see her in the show she had been appearing in for almost a year. Goldwyn would later recall his first encounter with her backstage: Goldwyn immediately hired the young actress for the role of
Bette Davis' naive and idealistic daughter in the
1941 adaptation of
Lillian Hellman's
The Little Foxes, signing her to a five-year Hollywood contract with the Goldwyn Studios. Asserting her seriousness as an actress, Wright insisted her contract contain unique clauses by Hollywood standards: In 1941, Wright was nominated for the
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for
The Little Foxes. The following year, she was nominated again, this time for
Best Actress, for her role as
Lou Gehrig's wife in
The Pride of the Yankees opposite
Gary Cooper. The same year, she won the
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress as the courageous daughter-in-law of
Greer Garson's character in
Mrs. Miniver. Wright is the first of only nine actors who have been nominated in both categories in the same year. Her three Academy Award nominations and one Academy Award in her first three films is unique. She remains the only performer to have received Academy Award nominations for her first three films. In 1943, Wright appeared in the acclaimed
Universal film
Shadow of a Doubt, directed by
Alfred Hitchcock, playing a young woman who discovers her beloved uncle (played by
Joseph Cotten) is a serial murderer. Hitchcock thought Wright was one of the more intelligent actors he had worked with, and through his direction, he brought out her vivacity, warmth, and youthful idealism—characteristics uncommon in Hitchcock's heroines. In 1946, Wright delivered another notable performance in
William Wyler's
The Best Years of Our Lives, an award-winning film about the adjustments of servicemen returning home after World War II. Critic
James Agee praised her performance in
The Nation: Four years later, she would appear in another story of war veterans,
Fred Zinnemann's
The Men (1950), which starred
Marlon Brando in his film debut. In 1947, Wright appeared in the western
Pursued opposite
Robert Mitchum. The moody "Freudian western" was written by her first husband
Niven Busch. The following year, she starred in
Enchantment, a story of two generations of lovers in parallel romances. Wright received glowing reviews for her performance.
Newsweek commented: "Miss Wright, one of the screen's finest, glows as the Cinderella who captivated three men." And
The New York Times concluded: "Teresa Wright plays with that breathless, bright-eyed rapture which she so remarkably commands." In December 1948, after rebelling against the
studio system that brought her fame, Wright had a public falling out with Samuel Goldwyn, which resulted in the cancellation of Wright's contract with his studio. In a statement published in
The New York Times, Goldwyn cited as reasons her refusal to publicize the film
Enchantment, and her being "uncooperative" and refusing to "follow reasonable instructions". In her written response, Wright denied Goldwyn's charges and expressed no regret over losing her $5,000 per week contract. Years later, in an interview with
The New York Post, Wright recalled: "I was going to be
Joan of Arc, and all I proved was that I was an actress who would work for less money." For her next film,
The Men (1950), instead of the $125,000 she had once commanded, she received $20,000. in
The Capture (1950) In the 1950s, Wright appeared in several unsuccessful films, including
The Capture (1950),
Something to Live For (1952),
California Conquest (1952),
The Steel Trap (1952),
Count the Hours (1953),
The Actress (1953) and
Track of the Cat (1954), opposite
Robert Mitchum again. Despite the poor box-office showing of these films, Wright was usually praised for her performances. Toward the end of the decade, Wright began to work more frequently in television and theatre. She received
Emmy Award nominations for her performances in the
Playhouse 90 original television version of
The Miracle Worker (1957) and in the Breck Sunday Showcase feature
The Margaret Bourke-White Story (1960). In 1955 she played Doris Walker in
The 20th Century-Fox Hour remake of the 1947 movie
Miracle on 34th Street, opposite
MacDonald Carey and
Thomas Mitchell. In 1957, she starred on Broadway in
The Dark at the Top of the Stairs by
William Inge. Directed by
Elia Kazan, it ran for 468 performances. On February 8, 1960, Wright was inducted to the
Hollywood Walk of Fame with two stars: one for motion pictures at 1658 Vine Street, and one for television at 6405 Hollywood Boulevard. In the 1960s, Wright returned to the New York stage appearing in three plays:
Mary, Mary (1962) at the Helen Hayes Theatre in the role of Mary McKellaway,
I Never Sang for My Father (1968) at the Longacre Theatre in the role of Alice, and ''Who's Happy Now?
(1969) at the Village South Theatre in the role of Mary Hallen. During this period, she toured throughout the United States in stage productions of Mary, Mary
(1962), Tchin-Tchin (1963) in the role of Pamela Pew-Picket, and The Locksmith (1965) in the role of Katherine Butler Hathaway. In addition to her stage work, Wright made numerous television appearances throughout the decade, including episodes for The Alfred Hitchcock Hour (1964) on CBS, Bonanza (1964) on NBC, The Defenders (1964, 1965) on CBS and CBS Playhouse'' (1969). In 1975, Wright appeared in the Broadway revival of
Death of a Salesman, and in 1980, appeared in the revival of ''
Morning's at Seven'', for which she won a
Drama Desk Award as a member of the Outstanding Ensemble Performance. She appeared on
The Love Boat S6 E11 "A Christmas Presence" as Sister Regina, who foils a con man's scheme to smuggle stolen gold molded as a painted creche scene. The episode aired on 12/18/1982. In 1989, she received her third Emmy Award nomination for her performance in the CBS drama series
Dolphin Cove. She also appeared in
Murder, She Wrote in the episode "Mr. Penroy's Vacation". Her last television role was in an episode of the CBS drama series
Picket Fences in 1996. Wright's later film appearances included a major role in
Somewhere in Time (1980), the grandmother in
The Good Mother (1988) with
Diane Keaton, and her final role as Miss Birdie in
John Grisham's
The Rainmaker (1997), directed by
Francis Ford Coppola. ==Personal life==