- A Beverly Hills judge has reduced the criminal charges against her from felonies to misdemeanors. (June 19, 2004)
- Her defense attorney Mark Geragos, who failed to clear Ryder's name of shoplifting charges at Los Angeles boutique Sak's Fifth Avenue last year, failed to invite her to his Christmas bash -- Sources close to the legal eagle cite Ryder's guilty verdict as the reason Geragos is trying to distance himself from her. (December 19, 2003)
- Was commended by a judge for abiding by the rules of her probation in a shoplifting case. (December 16, 2003)
- Ryder has taken to wearing a bracelet honoring three convicted murderers -Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Miskelley, aka The Memphis Three- that she's convinced are innocent. (September 9, 2003)
- Ryder is fronting an art show campaign to save three death-row inmates in America, nine months after her own courtroom conviction -- The 'West Memphis Three' were found guilty of murdering a young boy in a Satanic ritual, but Winona believes they're innocent and is supporting the art show next month to raise money for their legal defense fund. (August 14, 2003)
- The doctor who had his license revoked for prescribing painkillers to troubled Ryder has been charged with illegally practicing medicine -- Jules Lusman is accused of illicitly injecting two women with Botox and Perlane at his palatial home in Brentwood, California. (July 24, 2003)
- In the latest example of art imitating life, a group of high school students (Point Loma High School's Sticky Fingers: A Tale of Saks, Lies and Videotape) has created a musical based on Ryder 's shoplifting trial -- The production is the culmination of a year's worth of work by several dozen students and is directed by teacher Larry Zeiger, who plays piano for the show and stars as interviewer Larry King. (May 28, 2003)
- Ryder has reportedly been romantically snubbed by actor Sam Rockwell -- The attractive pair were spotted in New York hotspot Tai where they danced together to Stevie Wonder's hit You Are The Sunshine Of My Life. (May 2, 2003)
- Ryder wants to hold a charity auction to sell the $5,500 worth of clothes and accessories that she stole from a posh department store but a judge on Monday was reluctant to buy into the plan. (April 8, 2003)
- Ryder is planning to keep the luxury items she was found guilty of stealing from Saks Fifth Avenue so that she can sell them -- sources say she plans to auction the clothes off for charity and burnish her image in the process. (January 25, 2003)
- Ryder has been hit by a new trauma - she's the subject of a cheeky Christmas card: internet shoppers are snapping up the humorous cards, which show convicted shoplifter Winona carrying bags with the slogan Let Winona Shop For Christmas. (November 20, 2002)
- Ryder fled sobbing from a department store after an assistant cruelly taunted her -- the convicted shoplifter visited the Los Angeles branch of Macy's and ran up a total of $3,500 at the checkout, but she didn't have her purse with her and a less than charitable check out clerk didn't show her any sympathy, by saying, "Don't tell me your rehearsing for another movie role, right? (November 15, 2002)
- According to sources, sales of $140 Frederic Fekkai hair clips have soared since they were revealed as one of the 20 items Ryder left the Saks Fifth Avenue department store in Beverly Hills without paying for last December. (November 14, 2002)
- Stone Temple Pilots singer Scott Weiland is confident that things will turn out OK for actress Winona Ryder, despite her recent felony convictions of grand theft and vandalism. (November 12, 2002)
- Ryder opted for a non-featured, non-speaking part as the defense rested Monday in her demi-epic shoplifting trial. (November 5, 2002)
- The prosecutor in Ryder's shoplifting trial suggested to the jury Monday that the actress may have been stealing for the sheer thrill and said she should not be given special consideration just because she is a celebrity. (November 5, 2002)
- Ryder keeps Keanu Reeves' phone number and Bono's in her Filofax -- on Thursday, defense legal eagle Mark Geragos accused the former guard of: (1) making up the story; (2) trying to sell said story (presumably titled I Watched Winona Ryder through the Slats in the Dressing Room Door); and (3) jotting down Keanu and Bono's respective digits from Ryder's datebook. (November 2, 2002)
- Ex-Saks guard says she saw Winona snipping tags -- she testifies that she spied on the actress through slats in a dressing-room door and saw her sucking on a cut finger and wielding a pair of scissors. (November 1, 2002)
- Ryder claimed she was told to steal clothes from a Los Angeles department store, to help her prepare for a movie role, a court heard today. (October 31, 2002)
- Ryder marked her 31st birthday Tuesday in the defendant's chair as she and jurors watched security video of a Saks Fifth Avenue shopping expedition that led to theft charges. (October 30, 2002)
- Lawyers for Ryder, who is accused of shoplifting from Saks Fifth Avenue, met with prosecutors and a judge behind closed doors amid speculation that a plea deal was in the works to settle the high-profile case. (August 2002).
- Prosecutors charge her with four felony counts: grand theft, second-degree burglary, vandalism and unlawful possession of the prescription painkiller oxycodone. Ryder faces nearly four years in prison, if found guilty on all charges.
- She was named after the town she was born in, Winona, by her hippy parents Cindy and Michael.
- During her first week at the new school, the tom-boyish waif was jumped by a group of boys who mistook her for a gay boy rather than a girl.
- She is fuming at an Los Angeles store profiting from her alleged shoplifting incident by selling Winona-themed merchandise.
- Was treated in a London, England, hospital for a mystery bug.
- In BEETLEJUICE (1988) Ryder (Lydia Deitz) is actually a blonde but has been dying her hair since age 11.
- Favorite book: Catcher In The Rye. She claims she owns every paperback edition and translations.
- Smokes a pack of cigarettes a day.
- Graduated from Petaluma High School with a 4.0 GPA.
- She is disappointed with the on-screen presentation of her lesbian kiss with Jennifer Aniston earlier this month.
- Was originally cast in THE GODFATHER PART III (1990), but she withdrew due to exhaustion.
- Auditioned on video for the part of Rose in DESERT BLOOM (1986), which eventually went to Annabeth Gish
- During the filming of GIRL INTERRUPTED (1999) the filmmakers had to re-shoot the scene in which Winona Ryder finds her after she commits suicide, because Winona was too good and Brittany couldn't help crying.
- At the end of the credits, LITTLE WOMEN (1994) is dedicated to two persons, one of whom is Polly Klaas, the 12-year-old girl who was kidnapped from her Petaluma, California, home in 1993 and later found murdered. Ryder, much of whose youth was spent in Petaluma, joined in the highly publicized search effort and made a number of emotional appeals for the child's safe return.
- Replaced Emily Lloyd in MERMAIDS (1990) because it was thought that Lloyd looked too genetically dissimilar to 'Cher'.
- The highschool is named Westerberg High. Her favourite band at the time was The Replacements, whose lead singer is named Paul Westerberg (HEATHERS (1989)).
- When she was little she was addicted to vitamins and would always make up exuses why they were missing. She stopped taking them one day when she went to grab them and then an earthquake struck. She thought it was a sign from god telling her not to take them any more.
- Timothy Leary is her godfather, not her grandfather.
- Nominated for Best Kiss at MTV Movie Awards for HOW TO MAKE AN AMERICAN QUILT (1996) - shared with Dermot Mulroney
- Nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role at Academy Awards for LITTLE WOMEN (1995)
- Nominated for Best Kiss at MTV Movie Awards for REALITY BITES (1994) - shared with Ethan Hawke
- Nominated for Best Actress in a Supporting Role at Academy Awards for THE AGE OF INNOCENCE (1994)
- Nominated for Best Actress Supporting at BAFTA Awards for THE AGE OF INNOCENCE (1994)
- Nominated for Best Kiss at MTV Movie Awards for DRACULA (1993) - shared with Gary Oldman
- Nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture at Golden Globe Awards for MERMAIDS (1991)
Quotes- About her sentencing, "I just want to curl up in a ball, open my eyes and everything goes away. I really can't take any more. This is the worst experience of my life. How could anyone come to terms with being locked up. I really, really don't want to go there. I would be the victim of sexual abuse and God knows what else. My career in Hollywood is on the line, surely that's enough punishment in the circumstances?"
- "I would sooner die rather than face the prospect of being kept behind bars like some sort of caged animal."
- "I'm not into older guys... To tell you the truth, Richard is not the sexiest man alive, in my book." [on costar Richard Gere]
- "In high school, I dressed up as every James Bond girl. I was a teenage Pussy Galore."
- "I'm strange, crazy, intelligent, wild, soft, coy, thrifty, boring, romantic, selfish, full of pride, mean, dark, sweet and most of all I'm through with this interview."
- "Most of my friends had pretty weird names; the crowd we ran with when I was a little kid was like, Tatonka, Gulliver, Oobie Doobie... I had a friend, who was on my skateboarding team, named A-shole."
- "I love being called a hipster... What exactly does that term mean?"
- "Quirky. If anyone calls me quirky again, I think they should be shot."
- "People think that they just want movies like PRETTY WOMAN, when really they - at least the ones that I know personally - have been waiting for something that doesn't completely insult them."
- "You can't pay enough money to... cure that feeling of being broken and confused."
- "If I showed you scripts from my first few movies, the descriptions of my characters all said 'the ugly girl'."
- "I read biographies of the greats, and they were so messed up that I thought I'd better mess myself up. But I couldn't. I'm too small."
- For a long time I was almost ashamed of being an actress. I felt like it was a shallow occupation. People would be watching my every move.
- "I don't believe I am influencing anybody but myself."
- "I've learned that it's OK to be flawed."
Awards- San Francisco International Film Festival: Peter J. Owens Award (2000)
- Blockbuster Entertainment Awards: Favorite Supporting Actress - Sci-Fi, ALIEN: RESURRECTION (1998)
- ShoWest Award: Female Star of the Year (1997)
- Golden Globe Awards: Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture, THE AGE OF INNOCENCE (1994)
- Southeastern Film Critics Association Awards: Best Supporting Actress, THE AGE OF INNOCENCE (1994)
- National Board of Review: Best Supporting Actress, THE AGE OF INNOCENCE (1993)
- Sant Jordi Awards: Best Foreign Actress, EDWARD SCISSORHANDS (1992)
- National Board of Review: Best Supporting Actress, MERMAIDS (1990)
- ShoWest Award: Female Star of Tomorrow (1990)
- Young Artist Awards: Best Young Actress Starring in a Motion Picture, GREAT BALLS OF FIRE! (1990)
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