RIP Bonnie Bolding

The Huntsville Times

August 3, 2020

On Sunday, August 2, 2020, Bonnie Bolding Swearingen cherished sister, and revered aunt, passed away at the age of 87. Bonnie was known by all who knew her as a grand Southern lady who spoke her mind and always told you exactly what she was thinking. She was born in Joppa, Alabama on February 22, 1933, the child of Gertha and Orin Thomas Bolding. She entered the Miss Alabama contest four times, wining a scholarship to Birmingham's Howard College (now Samford University) and also a scholarship to the Pasadena Playhouse, where she studied acting after graduating from Howard College in 1955. She left professional acting behind after a brief but highly successful career in movies and television but maintained lifelong relationships with many of the Hollywood elite. Bonnie was married and divorced from John David Manley III of Corpus Christi, Texas and then to Oscar Wyatt Jr. of Houston, Texas. Bonnie then moved to New York City and became a Wall Street stockbroker, one of the very first women to earn a seat on the exchange, where she met John E. Swearingen, an oil Executive with Standard Oil of Indiana, now BP America. John had become CEO of Standard of Indiana in 1960 at the age of 41, a position he excelled at for 23 years. They married in New York City in 1969. Over the years John's job took them all over much of the world, where they met royalty and heads of state including several American Presidents. Sharing time between their homes in Chicago and Palm Springs, Bonnie, the daughter of a Southern itinerant preacher, somehow fit right in with all they met, including the old money and high society around the world. The Swearingen's did a lot of philanthropy work around the country, Samford University being a favorite cause. Large gifts were given to the University's Athletic Department and the Samford University Arts Center was renamed Bonnie Bolding Swearingen Hall in her honor. John E. Swearingen passed away on September 14, 2007. Bonnie leaves behind her little sister and closest friend, Margie Bolding. She was preceded in death by her three other sisters, Nellie Salners, Janie Llewellyn and Mia Stockard. All glamorous, they were collectively and affectionately known as the "Alabama Gabor Sisters". The five sisters were guided and loved though out their lives by their two brothers, Sam Henry Bolding, and Dr. Orin Thomas Bolding Jr., and of course their beloved mother Gertha Bolding, all of whom preceded Bonnie in death. Her ten surviving nephews and nieces will remember Bonnie as, a mentor, a role model, and generous beyond measure. A private graveside ceremony will be held at Elmwood cemetery in Birmingham and a Celebration of Bonnie's Life will take place at a future date. In lieu of flowers the family requests any donations be sent to the Bonnie Lee Bolding Charitable Foundation, 2340 S River Road, Suite 311, Des Plaines Illinois 60019.

BOLDING, Bonnie (Bonnie Catherine Bolding)

Born: 2/22/1933, Joppa, Alabama, U.S.A.

Died: 8/2/2020, Birmingham, Alabama, U.S.A.

Bonnie Bolding’s westerns – actress:

Cheyenne (TV) – 1957 (Lynne Ellis)

Have Gun – Will Travel (TV) – 1958 (Belle Hooper)