Winona Ryder
The E! True
Hollywood Story
She stole our hearts with winning performances in Lucas, Beetlejuice and Reality Bites. Now, actress Winona Ryder has been convicted of felony grand theft and vandalism after a sticky-fingered shopping spree at a Beverly Hills department store.
This E! True Hollywood Story, produced with Ryder’s co-operation and approval, explores the ups and downs of this young actress' life, from her early years as the precocious child of hippie parents to her later successes as one of Hollywood's most respected young stars.
Named for her birthplace of Winona, Minnesota, Ryder was the goddaughter of 60s guru Timothy Leary and spent her early years in a Northern California commune, immersed in a politically active, countercultural environment. As well as taking her daughter to rallies and protests, her mother introduced Ryder to classic films, showing them on a projector rigged up within a barn.
Unhappy at her junior high school, Ryder left to attend San Francisco's American Conservatory Theater. She was soon working as a film actress in her first role, that of a lonely high schooler, in Lucas. More movies followed, like Heathers, Edward Scissorhands and Bram Stoker's Dracula, propelling Ryder into the highest reaches of stardom at an early age.
Though several high-profile romances, with Johnny Depp, Davide Pirner and Matt Damon-introduced her to tabloid attention, few could have been prepared for the shocking conviction handed down after she lifted thousands of dollars worth of merchandise from a Beverly Hills Saks Fifth Avenue on December 2001.