THE MAKING OF AN ICON: YOUNG AUDREY HEPBURN AND HER LIFE IN WARTIME EUROPE

 

  A REVIEW OF THE SOON-TO-BE-PUBLISHED BIOGRAPHY DUTCH GIRL: AUDREY HEPBURN AND WORLD WAR II...AND A BOOK GIVEAWAY

 

Audrey Hepburn. One of the most beloved stars in the history of Hollywood. An Oscar winner at age 25, she took the Best Actress award with her first starring role, as a runaway princess in Roman Holiday (1953). She would be nominated in the same category four times more and be honored, in 1993, with the Academy's Jean Hersholt humanitarian award. She was and is, 26 years after her death, a revered international style icon. And she has long been admired around the globe for her philanthropic work on behalf of the children of the world; in 1988 she embarked on her first mission for UNICEF, to Ethiopia, and in 1989 she was named a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador.

Deck the Halls with Holly Golightly!

Holly Golightly, that beguiling creature Truman Capote conceived as the centerpiece for his novella, Breakfast at Tiffany's, captured the imaginations of readers the instant she appeared in print in 1958. But it's doubtful anyone at the time could foresee that Capote's chic, free-spirited rebel would live on to become a cultural icon as well as a touchstone of style. Holly Golightly's longevity in our collective dreamlife, though, is all about Blake Edwards' 1961 film adaptation and, most especially, Audrey Hepburn's inspired and heartstopping turn as Holly.

In the 55 years since Audrey-as-Holly first stepped onscreen, her insouciant, Givenchy-gowned charm and style not only conquered the test of time, but have also sparked much emulation and homage...and so, on this Christmas Day 2016, I'm decking my blog with pix of Holly!

Très Distingué: "Breakfast at Tiffany's," another "Big Screen Classic" from TCM and Fathom Events

Each month this year Turner Classic Movies and Fathom Events have teamed to bring "Big Screen Classics" into movie theaters around the country. The series kicked off with Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) in January and will close with From Here To Eternity (1953) in December.

Audrey Hepburn and Jose Luis de Vilallonga

I've attended several of these screenings and last Sunday afternoon enjoyed the immense pleasure of viewing one of my favorite romantic comedies on the big screen for the first time, Blake Edwards' iconic Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961) starring Audrey Hepburn in the role that defined her appeal and firmly cemented her status as a film and style legend.

Give 'Em the Old Pizzazz - Funny Face (1957)

Director Stanley Donen and actress Audrey Hepburn are being honored separately and together at this year's TCM Classic Film Festival in Hollywood. The director, who will be making personal appearances at all screenings of his films, did some of his best work with the sublime Audrey as his leading lady. With a "happy birthday" to Stanley Donen who celebrates his 88th birthday today, this post is dedicated to them both...
 
Pizzazz! The very word came into being with Funny Face in 1957.