“There are two good reasons for falling in love. One is that the object of your affections is unlike anyone else — such as Lord Byron. The other is that he’s like everyone else, only superior.” Gwendolen Chelm in “Beat The Devil” (1954).
Jennifer Jones was born Phylis Flora Isley in Oklahoma in 1919. Her parents, Flora Mae and Phillip toured the Midwest in a traveling tent show which they owned and operated. At the age of 19, Jennifer began studying at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts where she met and fell in love with fellow acting student Robert Walker whom she married a few months later.
Shortly after their marriage, Jennifer and Robert moved to Hollywood where Jennifer landed two small roles, the first one in a 1939 John Wayne film, “New Frontier” followed by a serial, “Dick Tracy’s G-Men”. After Jennifer Jones and her husband failed a screen test for Paramount Pictures, they decided to return to New York.
Upon the couple’s return to New York, Robert Walker found work in radio programs while Jennifer worked part-time modeling hats for Powers Agency while looking for possible acting jobs. Jennifer took a screen test for the lead role of Claudia in Rose Franken’s play “Claudia” and despite fears that she performed badly, was offered a seven-year contract by David O. Selznick. It was at this time that Jennifer changed her name from Phylis Isler to Jennifer Jones and shortly afterwards was awarded the role of Bernadette in Henry King’s “The Song of Bernadette” which won her the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1944, beating Ingrid Bergman to the award.
Over the next two decades, Jennifer Jones appeared in a wide range of roles selected by David Selznick. Following her role as Saint Bernadette, Jennifer’s next role provided a stark contrast when she was cast as a provocative bi-racial woman in David Selznick’s controversial film, “Duel in the Sun”. Other noteworthy films include “Madame Bovary”, “Carrie” and “A Farewell to Arms” and Jennifer starred with a wide range of leading men including Laurence Olivier, Gregory Peck, Humphrey Bogart and Sir John Gielgud.
Offscreen, Jennifer Jones was married three times: her forst marriage to fellow actor Robert Walker ended in divorce and Jennifer then married director David O. Selznick which lasted until his death in 1965. After Selznick’s death, Jones semi-retired from acting with her last appearance being a supporting role in the 1974 film “The Towering Inferno”. In 1971, Jennifer Jones married multi-millionaire industrialist and philanthropist Norton Simon,
Jennifer Jones is currently on the board of directors of the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena.
