Dana Reeve 1856733 225050816 2008-07-11T17:26:10Z Forteblast 152319 Fixed marriage years {{Infobox actor | bgcolour = silver | name = Dana Reeve | image = | imagesize = | caption = | birthname = | birthdate = {{birth date|1961|3|17}} | birthplace = [[Teaneck, New Jersey]], [[United States|U.S.]] | deathdate = {{death date and age|2006|3|6|1961|3|17}} | deathplace = [[New York City]], [[New York]] | spouse = [[Christopher Reeve]] (1992&ndash;2004) }} ''' '''Dana Reeve''' ([[March 17]] [[1961]] &ndash; [[March 6]] [[2006]]) was an [[United States|American]] [[actor|actress]], [[singer]], and activist for disability causes. She was also the wife of actor [[Christopher Reeve]]. ==Early life and family== Reeve was born '''Dana Charles Morosini''' in [[Teaneck, New Jersey]] to Charles Morosini, a [[cardiology|cardiologist]], and Helen Simpson Morosini, who died in 2005.<ref>{{cite press release |publisher=New York Times|date=2005-02-15 |title=Paid Notice: Deaths MOROSINI, HELEN SIMPSON|url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9804E3DA123AF936A25751C0A9639C8B63}}</ref> She grew up in the town of [[Greenburgh, New York]], where she graduated from [[Greenville, Westchester County, New York|Edgemont]] High School in 1979.<ref>{{cite news |first=Tony |last=Aiello |pages= |title= Dana Reeve's Death Hits Home In Westchester: Remembered As Ultimate Role Model For Youths |date=2006-03-07 |publisher=WCBS-TV New York |url=http://wcbstv.com/topstories/local_story_066170127.html}}</ref> She graduated [[latin honors|cum laude]] in English Literature from [[Middlebury College]] in [[Vermont]] in 1984. She spent the junior year of her studies at the [[Royal Academy of Dramatic Art]] in [[London]]. She later pursued additional graduate studies in acting at the [[California Institute of the Arts]]. She and her husband received honorary Doctorates of Humane Letters from Middlebury in 2004. She married actor [[Christopher Reeve]] in [[Williamstown, Massachusetts]] in April 1992, and they had one child, William Elliot "Will" Reeve, born on [[June 7]] [[1992]], whom they raised in [[Pound Ridge, New York]]. Dana Reeve loved to ride horses. In 2005, she told [[Larry King]]: "I rode my whole life, and after Chris had his accident, I stopped riding, primarily because he loved it so much, and I think it really would have been painful for him if I was going off riding and he wasn't able to. And it didn't mean that much to me to drop."<ref>{{cite press release |publisher=CNN.com|date=2005-02-22 |title= CNN LARRY KING LIVE Interview With Christopher Reeve's Widow, Dana|url=http://cnnstudentnews.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0502/22/lkl.01.html}}</ref> ==Activism== Reeve was thrust into a public role after her husband became a [[quadriplegic]] as a result of a horse riding accident in [[Culpeper, Virginia]] on [[May 27]] [[1995]]. Reeve then became a [[motivational speaker]] and [[Activism|activist]] for the quality of everyday life of the paralyzed and, after her husband's death, a proponent of the controversial human embryonic [[stem cell]] research. Reeve, in an editorial<ref>{{cite news |first=Dana |last=Reeve |pages= |title=First Person: Point of View: Superwoman |date=2005-10-01 |publisher=Robb Report |url=http://www.worth.com/Editorial/Commentary/Profiles/First-Person-Point-of-View-Superwoman.asp}}</ref> she wrote in October 2005, confessed that "I still have my soft spot for the quality-of-life grant programs and for the resource center, because it’s really the people part. Chris used to be the visionary who went to Washington to lobby for funding, and I was the one who figured out, 'Is there a wheelchair ramp so that our family can get into this movie theater?' I thought if that’s hard for me, it’s got to be much harder for the majority of people out there." She emphasized care over cure in her philosophy. In 1996, the Reeves founded the [[Christopher Reeve Foundation]], which funds research on paralysis and works to improve the lives of the [[Disability|disabled]]. In 2005, the name changed from ''Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation'' to its pre-merger name of ''Christopher Reeve Foundation''. It is not known if the name change was from a separation from the American Paralysis Association which merged with the Christopher Reeve Foundation in 1999 or if it had been just cosmetic. Both organization names are interchangeable. To date, it has awarded more than $55 million (USD) in research grants and more than $8 million in quality-of-life grants. Reeve created fundraiser trinkets for the Foundation. In 1998, a tie she designed for the Christopher Reeve Collection of celebrity-designed ties sold for a limited time through [[J.C. Penney]].<ref>{{cite press release |publisher=Christopher Reeve Homepage|date=1998 |title=J.C. Penney Christopher Reeve Tie Collection |url=http://www.chrisreevehomepage.com/fundrais.html#ties}}</ref> At a press conference to promote the tie collection, she and her husband wore the ties. In 2005, in honor of her husband and put a play on the Superman character he was most famous for, she created and promoted a Superman-shield dog tag that said "Go Forward" and sold them through the foundation.<ref>{{cite press release |publisher=Christopher Reeve Homepage|date=2005 |title= Christopher Reeve Foundation Superman Dog Tags|url=http://www.chrisreevehomepage.com/fundrais.html#tag}}</ref> After her husband's death on [[October 10]] [[2004]], she assumed the role of chairperson of the organization. She also endorsed Senator [[John Kerry]] (D-MA) for president and introduced him before his speech on science and technology on [[October 21]] [[2004]].<ref>{{cite news |first=Dana |last=Reeve |pages= |title= Speech by Christopher Reeve's wife, Dana Reeve |date=2004-10-21 |publisher=Medical News TODAY |url=http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=15416}}</ref> ==Show business career== Her many singing and acting credits included appearances on [[television]], where she had guest roles on ''[[Law & Order: Criminal Intent]]'', soap operas ''[[All My Children]]'' as Eva Stroupe and ''Loving'', among others. She performed at theatres on [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]], [[off-Broadway]], and at numerous regional theatres. Reeve also did a long-running commercial for [[Tide (detergent)|Tide]] laundry detergent that aired during the 1990s. In 2000, she co-hosted a live daily talk show for women on the [[Lifetime Television|Lifetime Network]] with [[Deborah Roberts]] called ''Lifetime Live'' and also wrote a brief column for the defunct AccessLife.com These articles can be found at the Christopher Reeve Homepage.<ref>{{cite news |first=Dana |last=Reeve |pages= |title=AccessLife.com Column |date=2000 |publisher=Christopher Reeve Homepage |url=http://www.chrisreevehomepage.com/accesslife-danareeve.html}}</ref> She sang the title song on the soundtrack of the [[HBO]] drama, ''In the Gloaming'' directed by her husband. Reeve also had another cameo in her husband's movie ''The Brooke Ellison Story'' as a teacher. She also authored the book, ''Care Packages: Letters to Christopher Reeve from Strangers and Other Friends''.<ref>{{cite news |first=Dana |last=Reeve |pages= |title= Care Packages : Letters to Christopher Reeve from Strangers and Other Friends |date=1999 |publisher=Amazon.com |url=http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0375500766}}</ref> In 2004, she was performing in the Broadway-bound play ''[[Brooklyn Boy]]'' at [[South Coast Repertory]] in [[Costa Mesa, California]] when she had to rush home to reach her husband's bedside after he went into cardiac arrest and a coma. In April 2005, it was also announced that she signed a seven-figure book deal<ref>{{cite press release |publisher=My USTINET News|date=2005-04-04 |title=Reeve's Widow To Write About Married Life|url=http://news.usti.net/home/news/cn/?/living.movies/2/wed/ab/Uus-reeve.RzxH_FA4.html}}</ref> with Penguin Books to write about her relationship with her famous husband. It is not known how far Reeve got with writing the book before she died or even if it is still coming out at its scheduled release. The children's book ''Dewey Doo-it Helps Owlie Fly Again: A Musical Storybook Inspired by Christopher Reeve'' was published in 2005 and included an audio to accompany the book with [[Mandy Patinkin]] reading the story as well as Reeve and [[Bernadette Peters]] singing.<ref>{{cite news |first=Brahm |last=Wenger |pages= |title= Dewey Doo-it Helps Owlie Fly Again: A Musical Storybook Inspired by Christopher Reeve |date=2005 |publisher=Amazon.com |url=http://www.amazon.com/Dewey-Doo-Helps-Owlie-Again/dp/0974514314}}</ref> On [[February 2]] [[2005]], eight days before the death of her mother Helen, Reeve attended President [[George W. Bush]]'s [[State of the Union]] address seated in the Capitol gallery in Washington, D.C. as the guest of Congressman [[Jim Langevin]] (D-RI).<ref>{{cite press release |publisher=Langevin|date=2005-02-01 |title= DANA REEVE TO ATTEND STATE OF THE UNION AS LANGEVIN'S GUEST: Langevin Invites Widow of Christopher Reeve, Staunch Advocate of Stem Cell Research, to Attend Presidential Address|url=http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/ri02_langevin/pr020105danareeve.html}}</ref> Several months before her death, Reeve taped the [[PBS]] documentary ''The New Medicine'' focusing on the growing trend in medical care combining [[holistic]] and traditional treatment. The program premiered after her death, on March 29, 2006. She also worked on the computer animated movie ''Everyone's Hero'', a project with the working title ''Yankee Irving'' when her husband was the director at the time of his death. The movie was released on [[September 15]] [[2006]], and is dedicated to both her and [[Christopher Reeve]]. ==Illness and death== On [[August 9]] [[2005]] Reeve announced that, although she had never smoked cigarettes, she had been diagnosed with [[lung cancer]]. Reeve chose to disclose her illness after ''[[The National Enquirer]]'' announced that it planned to make the information public. In 2005, Reeve received the "Mother of the Year Award" from the [[American Cancer Society]] for her dedication and determination in raising her son after the loss of her husband. In her final public appearances, Reeve stated that the [[tumor]] had responded to therapy and was shrinking. She appeared at [[Madison Square Garden]] on [[January 12]], [[2006]], to sing in honor of [[New York Rangers]] hockey player, [[Mark Messier]], whose number was retired that evening. Reeve died on [[March 6]] [[2006]], aged 44<ref>{{cite news |first=Deborah (sister of Reeve)|last=Morosini, MD |pages= |title= A Hole in the World: Dana Reeve's death revealed the other face of lung cancer. |date=Summer, 2007 |publisher=CURE (Cancer Updates, Research and Education) |url=http://www.curetoday.com/backissues/v6n4/departments/speaking/index.html}}</ref>, at [[Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center]] in New York City. She is survived by her son, her father, two sisters, Deborah Morosini and Adrienne Morosini Heilman; and her late husband's two grown children (her stepchildren), Matthew Exton Reeve and Alexandra Exton Reeve. Episode 16 of the fifth season of [[Smallville (TV series)| Smallville]] is dedicated to her and the film ''[[Superman Returns]]'' is dedicated to both her and Christopher. She was [[cremated]] after her funeral service. Her ashes were either given to a friend or family. ==Filmography== *''[[Everyone's Hero]]'' (2006) *''[[The Brooke Ellison Story]]'' (2004) *''[[Above Suspicion]]'' (1995) ==References== <div class="references-small"> <!-- See this article's discussion page for an explanation of how to generate footnotes using the <ref(erences/)> tags. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:NSA_warrantless_surveillance_controversy#Footnotes http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Footnotes also explains use of the <ref> tags. --> <references /> </div> ==External links== * [http://www.nndb.com/people/974/000113635/ Dana Reeve] at [[NNDB]] *{{ymovies name|1804714910}} *{{imdb name|id=0716106|name=Dana Reeve}} *[http://www.christopherreeve.org/ Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation] *[http://www.middlebury.edu/about/pubaff/addresses/reeves04.htm Christopher Reeve and Dana Morosini Reeve Commencement Addresses at Middlebury College, 2004] May 23, 2004. *[http://www.legacy.com/GB/GuestbookView.aspx?PersonId=16996917 Dana Reeve Guestbook] {{lifetime|1961|2006|Reeve, Dana}} [[Category:American female singers]] [[Category:American film actors]] [[Category:American soap opera actors]] [[Category:American stage actors]] [[Category:American television actors]] [[Category:Lung cancer deaths]] [[Category:Middlebury College alumni]] [[Category:People from Bergen County, New Jersey]] [[Category:People from Westchester County, New York]] [[de:Dana Reeve]] [[fr:Dana Reeve]] [[it:Dana Reeve]] [[he:דיינה ריב]] [[nl:Dana Reeve]] [[no:Dana Reeve]] [[sl:Dana Reeve]] [[fi:Dana Reeve]] [[sv:Dana Reeve]]