She lit up the entertainment world in the 1980s with a singular talent that helped redefine what Hollywood leading ladies could be — bold, quirky, complex, and wholly human. Geena Davis rose from small‑town New England roots to become a multi‑award‑winning actor, an influential advocate for gender equality in media, and a voice for women both onscreen and off. Yet behind the glamour of her Hollywood career lay formative experiences that shaped her personality, world…

Geena Davis rose from small‑town New England roots to become a multi‑award‑winning actor, an influential advocate for gender equality in media, and a voice for women both onscreen and off.

Yet behind the glamour of her Hollywood career lay formative experiences that shaped her personality, world view, and creative choices. Geena Davis was born Virginia Elizabeth Davis on January 21, 1956, in Wareham, Massachusetts, a coastal town where life was modest, practical, and grounded in hard work and humility.

Her parents, Bill and Lucille Davis, were old‑fashioned New Englanders — rooted in self‑sufficiency and polite reserve — a culture that deeply influenced her early years and, later, the themes she would explore in her memoir.