'It's a Wonderful Life' Actress Recalls Classic Film Role
Virginia Patton of Dexter, who portrayed Ruth Dakin Bailey in 'It's a Wonderful Life,' appeared recently at the Penn Theatre in Plymouth, MI.
VERNON HILLS, IL -- Giving up a promising career in Hollywood to start a family might be a difficult choice for a talented young actress, but for Virginia Patton, the decision paved the way for a wonderful life away from the limelight. Patton, now 86, portrayed Ruth Dakin Bailey in the 1946 Frank Capra classic It’s a Wonderful Life, starring alongside such screen legends as James Stewart and Donna Reed at just 20 years old, but left acting soon afterwards to move to Ann Arbor to pursue a family with husband Cruse W. Moss, a successful automotive executive. Patton, of Dexter, MI, and Moss appeared together recently at the historic Penn Theatre in downtown Plymouth, MI, for a screening of It’s a Wonderful Life, where the former actress …
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