Dorris Bowdon
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Dorris Estelle Bowdon (December 27, 1914 – August 9, 2005) was an American actress, best known for her role as ''Rosasharn'' in ''
The Grapes of Wrath ''The Grapes of Wrath'' is an American realist novel written by John Steinbeck and published in 1939. The book won the National Book Award and Pulitzer Prize for fiction, and it was cited prominently when Steinbeck was awarded the Nobel Prize ...
.''


Early life

Dorris Estelle Bowdon was born on December 27, 1914, in
Coldwater, Mississippi Coldwater is a town in Tate County, Mississippi, United States, and is part of the Memphis Metropolitan Area. The population was 1,677 at the 2010 census. History The town square of Coldwater is approximately two miles south of the Coldwater R ...
, one of seven children of Lillian and James Bowdon. She attended
Louisiana State University Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...
.


Career

Bowdon was an actress in the 1930s and 1940s. When she was 20 years old, talent scout Ivan Kahn found her in
Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...
, and brought her to
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...
, California, for a screen test with
20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...
. She "didn't fare so well" in her first test, so she was given another try.


Personal life

She was married to
Nunnally Johnson Nunnally Hunter Johnson (December 5, 1897 – March 25, 1977) was an American screenwriter, film director, producer and playwright. As a filmmaker, he wrote the screenplays to more than fifty films in a career that spanned from 1927 to 1967. He a ...
from 1939 until his death in 1977, and they had three children together, the first of whom was born in 1942, which prematurely ended Bowden's acting career. They resided in a mansion located at 625 Mountain Drive in
Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hills ...
.Victoria Talbot, 'Beverly Hills Cultural Heritage Commission Splits 2 To 2 on Mountain Drive Landmark Vote', ''The Beverly Hills Courier'', October 03, 2014, Vol. XXXXVIIII, No. 39, p. 4 It was designed by architect Paul R. Williams and built from 1937 to 1938 by O' Neal and Son. Actor Jack Johnson is her grandson.


Death

Bowdon died in
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
at the age of 90 of a stroke and heart failure. She was cremated and a portion of her ashes were scattered at sea and another portion interred with her husband
Nunnally Johnson Nunnally Hunter Johnson (December 5, 1897 – March 25, 1977) was an American screenwriter, film director, producer and playwright. As a filmmaker, he wrote the screenplays to more than fifty films in a career that spanned from 1927 to 1967. He a ...
in
Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park and Mortuary is a cemetery and Morgue, mortuary located in the Westwood, Los Angeles, Westwood area of Los Angeles. It includes a crematory for cremation services. Its location is at 1218 Glendon Av ...
in
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
.


Filmography


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bowdon, Dorris 1914 births 2005 deaths People from Coldwater, Mississippi Actresses from Beverly Hills, California American film actresses Burials at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American women