Jeanine Ann Roose, ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ Star, Dead at 84

Jeanine Ann Roose, one of the last surviving cast members of It’s a Wonderful Life, died on New Year’s Eve. Roose played the younger version of Gloria Grahame’s Violet character in one of the film’s early scenes. Roose was 84.

Roose died at her home in Los Angeles, TMZ reported. She was battling an infection in her abdomen for several months, the site reported. Her death was not COVID-related. She died surrounded by her loved ones, including her son, Joe. She marriedEugene Richard Auger in 1964.

It’s a Wonderful Life was the only film Roose appeared in. She is seen in an early part of the movie when the young George Bailey (Bobbie Anderson) is working at the druggist’s. Roose’s Little Violent told Young Mary (Jean Gale) she had a crush on George. “You like every boy,” Mary said. “What’s wrong with that?” Violet replied, foreshadowing the adult Violet in the rest of the movie. Roose also appeared in some radio and early television programs, including The Jack Benny Program when she was 8, reports The Hollywood Reporter.

However, Roose did not pursue a career in acting. She attended UCLA and became a psychologist and Jungian analyst. She compared connected her career choice to It’s a Wonderful Life in a statement TMZ shared.

“It’s A Wonderful Life was the only movie that I was in and it been an amazing lifetime experience to have been in such a collectively meaningful picture,” Roose once said. “It became clear that my desire was specifically to help others who were struggling with finding meaning in their life… not unlike Clarence in the movie who helps George see the meaning of his life.”

Karolyn Grimes, another of the surviving It’s a Wonderful Life actors, recently told The New York Daily News she would love to see a sequel get made. “I think a sequel might be kind of fun,” she said. The new film could tell the rest of the story of George Bailey’s children, adding, “The kids would grow up and they’d have lives that are different. I think there’s a story there.” The Dec. 24 airing of It’s a Wonderful Life on NBC drew 3.01 million viewers and a 0.5 18-49 rating, making it the top-rated program of the night.