Cobina Wright Jr.

Cobina Wright Jr. (August 14, 1921 - September 1, 2011) was an American actress and model. She was featured on the cover of Life magazine's February 17, 1941, issue, and a nationally distributed newspaper columnist described her as a debutante who "fought a draw with Brenda Frazier for the glamour girl championship of New York society." Early years Born in New York City, Wright was the daughter of stockbroker William May Wright and singer, actress, and newspaper columnist Cobina Wright Sr. The mother, born Elaine Cobb, created the unusual first name as a variation on her maiden name. Wright grew up in an environment with servants, a yacht, and more on a Long Island estate—all of which was wiped out by the Great Depression. The mother's plans for the daughter's future led to the parents' divorce, with the father describing as "prostitution" the mother's "grooming [of Cobina Jr.] for a film career capped by a spectacular marriage." Wright was selected as Miss Manhattan in competition at the 1939 New York World's Fair, and in 1941, Life magazine described her as "a young New Yorker of excellent family but limited means ..."