<Tr> <Th> Years active </Th> <Td> 1943--1949 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Spouse (s) </Th> <Td> Cruse W. Moss (m . 1949) </Td> </Tr> <P> Virginia Ann Patton (born June 25, 1925) is an American retired businesswoman and former actress . After appearing in several films in the early 1940s, she was cast in her most well - known role as Ruth Dakin Bailey in Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life (1946). In 1949, Patton retired from acting, with her final film credit being The Lucky Stiff (1949). </P> <P> Patton was born in Cleveland, Ohio to Marie (née Cain) and Donald Patton . She was raised in her father's hometown of Portland, Oregon, where her family relocated when she was an infant . </P>

Who played ruth in its a wonderful life