JAME WYMAN: 'I ALWAYS DID FOUR-HANDKERCHIEF ROLES. UNTIL NOW.'

HOLLYWOOD Over the years, as the public's memory of her faded and the popularity of her ex-husband grew, she became known in the media as the former Mrs. Ronald Reagan. And to many on the street who said they remembered her so well, she was invariably mistaken for another actress, Jane Wyatt.

''Oh, yes, they loved me in 'Father Knows Best,' '' Jane Wyman said with a laugh during a recent interview over lunch. ''It's really cute.''

After 73 movies and 30 years in the business, Miss Wyman retired. That was 19 years ago. In the interim, mediocre scripts and roles she found insulting failed to entice her into a comeback. Now, however, she is returning to the cameras as the star of ''Falcon Crest,'' a CBS series that will have its premiere Friday at 10 P.M.

In it, Miss Wyman plays Angie Channing, the matriarch of a Napa Valley winery who determinedly fends off intrafamilial and outside efforts to gain control of the empire she has inherited. Although this series is the brainchild of Earl Hamner, who also created the ''The Waltons,'' the advance word is that the scripts for ''Falcon Crest'' contain the kind of sexual steaminess that pervades other prime-time soap operas, such as ''Dallas'' and ''Knots Landing.''

What prompted Miss Wyman, now 67, to return to acting in this kind of role? After all, didn't she win an Academy Award in 1948 for her portrayal of a deaf-mute who gets raped in ''Johnny Belinda''? Wasn't she nominated for Oscars for her performances as the Spartan wife in ''The Yearling'' (1946), the aging nursemaid in ''The Blue Veil'' (1951) and a blind widow in ''The Magnificent Obsession'' (1954)? Indeed, wasn't she considered the quintessential nice lady, of whom Bosley Crowther, former film critic for The New York Times, wrote in 1953: ''Her acting of drudges has become a virtual standard on the screen''?

''I read the pilot script for 'Falcon Crest,' '' Miss Wyman said, ''and all of a sudden, it just struck a bell. I thought, 'Well, I've always done the four-handkerchief bits' - you know, everybody walking outside and saying, 'Wasn't it marvelous?' '' She mockingly sniffled a few times and dabbed at her eyes with a napkin. In contrast, ''Angie Channing is a very heads-up lady, so why don't we just go ahead and play her? I really like her. A lot. She's very much a 1981 kind of lady. You just can't miss on a thing like this. You really can't. If you do, you're dumb.''