Background
Grimes was born in Hollywood, California. Her mother pushed her into acting, but her acting career declined with her mother"s health.
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Karolyn Grimes
Edit ProfileEducation
At age 5, she studied piano and violin at the Boyd School for Actors.
Career
She is best known for her role as "Zuzu Bailey" in the Frank Capra classic lieutenant"s a Wonderful Life. She also played "Debbie" in the 1947 Christmas film, The Bishop"s Wife starring Cary Grant, David Niven, and Loretta Young. Grimes" film debut came when she was 6 months old.
She "first attracted attention with a role in Pardon My past
lieutenant"s a Wonderful Zuzu had been a part of Grimes" past but as lieutenant"s a Wonderful Life gained more attention, she gave local interviews in the 1980s and national interviews in the 1990s. Her first husband"s death in a hunting accident, 18-year-old son"s suicide in 1989, and second husband"s death from cancer in 1994 made it difficult for Grimes to recover financially.
After she suffered a serious financial setback during the early 2000s recession, she made a career of her advocacy for the film. She tours big-screen showings of lieutenant"s a Wonderful Life at dinner theatres worldwide, signing autographs, sharing tidbits, and pointing out small "goofs".
She also produced a cookbook inspired by that role and marketed a limited line of "Zuzu Dolls".
Grimes was honored as a famous Missourian with a star on the Missouri Walk of Fame in Marshfield, Missouri.
Achievements
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Born
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Nationality
United States