Her alma mater, Stephens College in Columbia, Missouri, a college for women. Joan Crawford was expelled from Stephens in the early 1920s.
She earned an A.A. at the two year college, Stephens College, Missouri, and later a B.A. at the University of Washington in 1960.
Miss Nevada 1959; she participated in Miss America 1960.
She co-produced and starred on a television show called "Dawn Wells: Reel Adventures" (1997).
Wells' great-great grandfather was a stagecoach driver during the 1849 gold rush.
Her father once owned the Las Vegas Thunderbird Hotel.
Owns her own company, Wishing Wells, which makes clothing for people with disabilities.
Colleen Haskell, from "Survivor" (2000) was often compared to Wells's character Mary Ann from _Gilligan's Island (1964)_ .
Wells and actor Russell Johnson are best known for their roles on the television series _Gilligan's Island (1964)_ , but they are also well known for their infamous reference, "and the rest," in the show's original theme song. (Later, the song substituted that phrase for "the Professor and Mary Ann".)
Runs a "boot camp" for wannabe actors at her ranch in Wyoming.
The band Squirt Gun have a song called "Mary Ann" which is about the character she played on _Gilligan's Island (1964)_ . She appeared in the music video for the song.
Has a second cousin named Bonnie, who is an artist in Baltimore.
Dawn Wells was born in Reno, Nevada on October 18, 1938. Her father was a real estate owner and developer and her mother was a home maker. Wells' childhood was a happy and healthy one. Dawn Wells and her mother grew their own fruits and vegetables in their gardens and Dawn rode horses. In her high school years she was the class treasurer, President of the debate team and an honor rolls student. She was Miss Nevada in 1959 and went on to the Miss America Pageant. Dawn originally wanted to be a doctor, so she enrolled in the elite Stephens College in Columbia, Missouri to study medicine, but then she discovered the Drama Club. Dawn Wells then transferred to the University of Washington, which was known for their Theatre Department, and she graduated with a Degree in Theatre. Dawn Wells moved to Hollywood and got the role of Mary Ann Summers on CBS's "Gilligan's Island" 1964. The rest is history. However, there was much more to Dawn Wells than her simple Mary Ann character. Wells refused to be an unemployed actor after the show ended and has never been out of work since the show aired 40 years ago. She has performed in over 66 theatrical productions, including the National Touring Company of "They're Playing Our Song!" She has done countless voice overs, commercials and talk shows. Dawn Wells worked for the Australian news show "Midday" and interviewed such talents as Julia Robert, Eddie Murphy and Tom Hanks to name a few. Dawn has also had great success as a producer and has a number of TV movies to her credit. She currently has a new project in the works for release in 2005.
After years of touring and performing in dramas, comedies, and musical theatre Dawn Wells finally slowed down a bit. In 1998 she founded the Dawn Wells' Film Actors Boot Camp in Driggs, Idaho. The camp is for the already trained actor looking to make the transition from the amateur to the professional actor. Wells still runs the camp to this day. In 2003, Dawn Wells did tours of the plays "Love Letters" with Adam West and Eve Ensler's Award Winning "The Vagina Monologues". In early 2004 Dawn established and founded The Spud Film Institute in Idaho and Wyoming and will hold the first ever Spud Drive in Film and Music Festival in the summer of 2004. Dawn Wells is also the artistic director of the festival. If that is not enough, Ms. Wells also has her own clothing line for the physically challenged called "Wishing Wells Collections" and she recently launched her own skin care line, Classic Beauty.
Dawn Wells continues to contribute to the business she loves so much and constantly gives back to the acting community. She mentors young actors and travels to colleges all across the U.S. to teach Master Classes. Dawn Wells has served as Artist in Residence at several Universities. Dawn Wells is in constant demand for personal appearances and speaking engagements, yet she never forgets to give back to the Artistic community. She will surely be remembered for all her good work.
