Jane Wyman earned an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in "Johnny Belinda" in 1948, playing a deaf-mute woman in a role that required her to learn sign language and perform entirely without dialogue. Born Sarah Jane Mayfield on January 5, 1917, in St. Joseph, Missouri, she began her career as a chorus girl and bit-part player in Warner Bros. musicals during the 1930s. The studio considered her a lightweight. She was cast in comedies and forgettable programmers for nearly a decade before dramatic roles revealed a depth that surprised everyone, including herself. Her marriage to Ronald Reagan in 1940 made her part of a Hollywood power couple, but they divorced in 1949. She never publicly discussed the marriage for the rest of her life, reportedly saying only "it's not because I'm bitter or because I don't agree with him politically." When Reagan became president in 1981, she was the only living former spouse of a sitting president. She declined all interview requests about him. Her television career proved equally significant. She starred as Angela Channing in "Falcon Crest" from 1981 to 1990, earning Golden Globe and Emmy nominations. She received four Golden Globe Awards over her career and was nominated for two Primetime Emmys. She appeared in over 80 films across five decades, transitioning from ingenue roles to character parts with a professionalism that earned respect throughout the industry. She died on September 10, 2007, at age 90, in Rancho Mirage, California.