page_title: Fay Wray
section_title: Horror films and King Kong
hierarchical_section_title: Fay Wray / Horror films and King Kong
caption_attribution_description: Publicity photo of American actress Fay Wray promoting the 1933 feature film King Kong.
context_page_description: Vina Fay Wray was a Canadian-born American actress best remembered for starring as Ann Darrow in the 1933 film King Kong. Through an acting career that spanned nearly six decades, Wray attained international recognition as an actress in horror films. She has been dubbed one of the early "scream queens".
  After appearing in minor film roles, Wray gained media attention after being selected as one of the "WAMPAS Baby Stars" in 1926. This led to her being contracted to Paramount Pictures as a teenager, where she made more than a dozen feature films. After leaving Paramount, she signed deals with various film companies, being cast in her first horror film roles, in addition to many other types of roles, including in The Bowery and Viva Villa, both of which starred Wallace Beery. For RKO Radio Pictures, Inc., she starred in the film with which she is most identified, King Kong. After the success of King Kong, Wray made numerous appearances in both film and television; she retired in 1980.
context_section_description: After leaving Paramount, Wray signed with various film companies. Under these deals, Wray was cast in a variety of horror films, including Doctor X (1932) and Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933). However, her best known films were produced under her deal with RKO Radio Pictures. Her first film with RKO was The Most Dangerous Game (1932), co-starring Joel McCrea. The production was filmed at night on the same jungle sets that were being used for King Kong during the day, and with Wray and Robert Armstrong starring in both movies.
  The Most Dangerous Game was followed by the release of Wray's most memorable film, King Kong. According to Wray, Jean Harlow had been RKO's original choice, but because MGM put Harlow under exclusive contract during the pre-production phase of the film, she became unavailable. Wray was approached by director Merian C. Cooper to play the blonde captive of King Kong, the role of Ann Darrow was one she would most be associated with and she was paid $10,000 ($200,000 in 2019 dollars) to play her. The film was a commercial success and Wray was reportedly proud that the film saved RKO from bankruptcy.
caption: Fay Wray in the 1933 feature film King Kong
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