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¼«ÀÖ½ûµØ will dedicate Bonnie Bolding Swearingen Hall Saturday, Oct. 14, honoring a 1955 graduate who studied at the Pasadena (Calif.) Playhouse and won movie and television roles in the 1950s and later became a champion for charitable causes.

Bonnie Bolding Swearingen Hall encompasses Ben Harrison Theatre, Bolding Studio and the ¼«ÀÖ½ûµØ Art Gallery, and joins Wright Center Concert Hall and Jane Hollock Brock Hall to form ¼«ÀÖ½ûµØ's fine arts complex.

Swearingen Hall will be dedicated at 11 a.m. in Bolding Studio following tours of the facility at 10 a.m.

"Bonnie Bolding Swearingen's life has taken her to points around the globe and to opportunities that are far-removed from her days as a student at ¼«ÀÖ½ûµØ," said ¼«ÀÖ½ûµØ President Andrew Westmoreland. "Throughout her journey, she has sought to remain connected to her family and to her alma mater, always cherishing the relationships that have been a mainstay in her life. We are grateful for the association with Bonnie and for the investment she has made in ¼«ÀÖ½ûµØ's future."

Bonnie Bolding studied drama and was active in numerous organizations as a ¼«ÀÖ½ûµØ undergraduate. She was drum major for the band, a cheerleader, played the female lead in eight college plays, was named Miss ¼«ÀÖ½ûµØ (then Miss Entre Nous) and was selected for Who's Who in American Colleges.

She earned a scholarship to the Pasadena Playhouse in the Miss Alabama contest. There, she won a role in the movie, "Bundle of Joy," starring Eddie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds, and ultimately appeared in eight movies and such television shows as "Gunsmoke," "Cheyenne," "The Alcoa Hour," "Have Gun, Will Travel" and "Sugarfoot."

The Decatur, Ala., native married John Swearingen, chairman of Standard Oil Company of Illinois, in 1969. They have lived in Chicago since that time.

She has raised money for numerous charitable causes including the Chicago bicentennial in 1976, the Chicago Lyric Opera Ballet, the Boys Club program (serving as a national director) and others. She has been a generous supporter of ¼«ÀÖ½ûµØ.

Swearingen, one of nine children of a Church of Christ minister, has several siblings and numerous friends residing in Birmingham. She visits the city regularly.