Donna Reed (January 27, 1921 - January 14, 1986) was an Academy Award-winning American actress.

The Donna Reed Show was a situation comedy which aired on ABC from 1958 to 1966. It starred Donna Reed as Donna Stone, a housewife to pediatrician Alex Stone, played by Carl Betz. The couple had two children together, Mary and Jeff. Another series regular (from 1963-1965) was future Hogan's Heroes star Bob Crane. For many years its main sponsor was the Campbell Soup Company with Johnson & Johnson as the principal alternate sponsor.

This was a sparkling situation comedy, focusing on parenting problems and the love lives and activities of the children, distinctive in that Donna was deeply involved in the lives of the kids, helping them solve their problems while Dr. Alex had to see patients (a stark and refreshing contrast to "Father Knows Best" and "I Love Lucy"). The show was also unique in that Donna frequently worked as a nurse, at a time when most TV mothers were housewives.

Former "Mouseketeer" Paul Petersen portrayed the son Jeff. The character of Mary, played by Shelley Fabares, became very popular on Top 40 radio thanks to a charming single she recorded in 1962 called "Johnny Angel." It sold over a million copies, and Fabares left the show in 1963 to pursue other acting and singing opportunities. In the series, Mary Stone left to attend college away from home, while Petersen's real-life sister Patty Petersen joined the cast as Trisha. (Petersen had his own recording career, his biggest hit being the 1963 single "My Dad", for Colpix Records)

Reruns aired on Nick at Nite from 1985 through 1994 and on TV Land in 2002. Surprisingly, the only DVD release of the show has been two episodes included as adult cereal "prizes" in 2004.

Reed first achieved major fame with the film "From Here to Eternity."

Another popular 1950's sitcom about a close family. The Stones consist of loving homemaker Donna, her pediatrician husband Alex, and their children Mary and Jeff. Many situations arise like when they found a baby on their doorstep or take in a rebellious youth or when Donna tries to patch up marital spats among friends. Written by Dylan Self

Donna Reed was born in the midwestern town of Denison, Iowa, on January 27, 1921, as Donna Belle Mullenger. A small town - a population of less than 3,000 people - Denison was located by the Boyer River, and was the county seat of Crawford County. Donna grew up as a farm girl, much like many young girls in western Iowa, except for one thing - Donna was very beautiful. That wasn't to say that others weren't as pretty, it's just that Donna's beauty stood out from all the other local girls, so much so that she won a beauty contest in Denison. Upon graduation from high school Donna left for college in Los Angeles, in the hopes of eventually entering movies. While at Los Angeles City College, she pursued her dream by participating in several college stage productions. In addition to the plays, she also won the title of Campus Queen. At one of those stage plays Donna was spotted by an MGM talent scout and was signed to a contract. Her first film was a minor role in MGM's Get-Away, The (1941). That was followed by a small part in Babes on Broadway (1941), with Mickey Rooney (I) and Judy Garland (I) as a secretary. Afterwards, MGM began giving her better parts, in films such as Bugle Sounds, The (1942), Courtship of Andy Hardy, The (1942) and Man from Down Under, The (1943). In 1944 she received second billing playing Carol Halliday in See Here, Private Hargrove (1944), a comedy about a reporter drafted into the army who eventually meets up with Donna's character as a worker in the canteen. The following year Donna starred in Picture of Dorian Gray, The (1945), her best role to date. It was a love story set in London in 1890. It got mixed critical reviews but did well at the box-office. Donna was now one of the leading ladies of Hollywood. In 1946 she starred in what is probably her best-known role, as the wife of James Stewart (I) in the classic It's a Wonderful Life (1946). This timeless story is a holiday staple to this day. The film also starred Lionel Barrymore and Thomas Mitchell (I). The next year Donna starred as Ann Daniels in Paramount's Beyond Glory (1948) with Alan Ladd (I), which did well at the box-office. Her next role was the strongest she had had yet--Chicago Deadline (1949), again with Ladd. It was one of the best mystery dramas to come out of Hollywood in a long time, and did very well at the box office. As the 1940s faded out and the 1950s stormed in, Donna's roles got bigger but were mainly of the wholesome, girl-next-door type. In 1953, however, she starred as the prostitute Alma in the widely acclaimed From Here to Eternity (1953). She was so good in that film she was nominated for and won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, beating out such veterans as Thelma Ritter and Marjorie Rambeau. The film itself won for Best Picture and remains a classic to this day. Later that year Donna starred in Caddy, The (1953), a comedy with Jerry Lewis (I) and Dean Martin (I). Three years later she landed the role of Sacajawea in Far Horizons, The (1955), the story of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, starring Charlton Heston and Fred MacMurray. After finishing Whole Truth, The (1958), Donna began her own TV series (produced by her husband), "Donna Reed Show, The" (1958), a hit that ran for eight years. She was so effective in the show that she was nominated for TV's prestigious Emmy Award as Best Actress every year from 1959-1962. She was far more popular in TV than on the screen. After the run of the program, Donna took some time away from show business before coming back in a couple of made-for-TV movies (in 1974, she had made a feature called Yellow-Headed Summer (1974), but it was never released). She did get the role of Ellie Ewing Farlow in the hit TV series "Dallas" (1978) during the 1984-85 season. It was to be her final public performance. On January 14, 1986, less than two weeks before her 65th birthday, she died of pancreatic cancer in Beverly Hills, California. Grover Asmus, her husband, created the Donna Reed Foundation for the Performing Arts in her hometown of Denison. The foundation helps others who desire a career in the arts. Donna never forgot her roots. She was still a farm girl at heart.