ACTIVIST AND ACTRESS WYLER DIES AT AGE 75.

Byline: RACHEL URANGA

Staff Writer

Gretchen Wyler, the actress-turned-animal-rights activist who drew national attention to the plight of captive animals using big-name celebrities, died of breast cancer Sunday at her home in Camarillo. She was 75.

Wyler had been battling cancer for four years, said Catherine Doyle, campaign director for In Defense of Animals.

Pressuring officials to arrange this month's transfer of African elephant Ruby from tight quarters at the Los Angeles Zoo to a 2,300-acre preserve in central California was among Wyler's proudest achievements, friends say.

A Broadway and television actress whose career spanned more than five decades, Wyler became a superstar in the world of animal activism when she created the Genesis Award in 1986.

Using celebrities such as Judd Nelson, Brooke Shields and Betty White, Wyler pulled together a Hollywood-style award ceremony to honor activists. The ceremony is broadcast annually on the Animal Planet.

"She was one of a kind. She brought animal issues to the public and educated them on it," Doyle said.

As an actress, Wyler understood the power of the celebrity and founded the Ark Trust Inc. in 1991.

The group -- which later merged with the Humane Society of the United States' Hollywood office, based in Encino -- promotes media coverage of animal topics.

Wyler first became an activist after visiting what she described as a dank and filthy shelter in Warwick, N.Y., in 1966. Moved by the experience, she split her time between activism and theater. Wyler managed the shelter for 10 years, later becoming the first woman to sit on the board of the American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in New York.

But she was ousted early on, after filing a lawsuit against the board accusing it of wasting funds, according to Wyler's Web site. The lawsuit, settled out of court, prompted reforms within the organization.

In 1978, following the theatrical production of "Sly Fox," she moved to Los Angeles, where she gained a reputation as an indefatigable animal rights advocate.

During the early 1980s, she led the fight to repeal "pound seizures" -- the selling of shelter cats and dogs for medical research. Later, she became a leading voice against exhibiting Ruby, the 4 1/2-ton elephant, at the Los Angeles Zoo, where activists say the pachyderm was isolated, unable to roam and more likely to develop chronic health problems.

An actress with a wide-ranging career, Wyler appeared in dozens of television shows such as "Dallas," "Judging Amy," "Private Benjamin" and "Charlie's Angels."

She also appeared in the original Broadway production of "Guys and Dolls," "Silk Stockings," "Damn Yankees" and "Bye Bye Birdie," according to her Web site.

She is survived by sister Peggy Hanson and brother Lou Wienecke.

Memorial services are pending.

rachel.uranga(at)dailynews.com

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