Iowa Almanac
Iowa Almanac -- Tuesday, June 25, 2024
Denison's Favorite Daughter. More from the Iowa Almanac in a Moment. Stay up to date on the latest news impacting the soybean industry by attending the Iowa Soybean Association's Summer Soy Series, coming to a community near you. Hear the latest insights on issues directly impacting farmer profitability, productivity, and sustainability, including soybean demand, research, policy, and more. Register today at iasoybeans.com/events. The Iowa Soybean Association, driven to deliver for Iowa's 37,000 soybean farmers. Donna Bell Mullinger was born in Denison on January 27, 1921. When she was 17, she took the train westward to Los Angeles to pursue her dream of becoming an actress. As Donna Reid, America came to appreciate her work in classic films such as It's a Wonderful Life and From Here to Eternity, for which she won an Academy Award. But she may best be known for her nine years as star of her own television show. It's a source of great satisfaction to her mother to see her children take their household duties self-seriously. But on the other hand, darling, is it really necessary to wash the same dish five times? The Donna Reid show aired from 1958 through 1966. She never forgot her hometown visiting often, and even now nearly 30 years after her death, her hometown has not forgotten her. The Donna Reid Foundation for the Performing Arts was created by friends and family in her memory. In addition to scholarships and frequent festivals and workshops, the foundation supports the Donna Reid Heritage Museum, which opened on June 25, 2004. The museum includes exhibits displaying her many awards and honors, as well as a series of personal letters exchanged with her pen pal of 48 years, Violet Lindsay. Original scripts with Donna's notations, vintage costumes, movie posters, personal scrapbooks, and more, are also intended to be on display at the corner of Broadway and Maine in downtown Denison, where the foundation headquarters is located. Work continues to build upon the various projects, including frequent festivals and workshops. But one of those projects, the Donna Reid Heritage Museum held its ribbon-cutting on this date in 2004. And that's Iowa Almanac for June 25. Follow us on Twitter @IowaAlmanac. Until tomorrow, I'm Jeff Stein.