Friday, July 1, 2011

Happy Birthday, Olivia de Havilland!

Yes, you!

Today marks the 95th birthday of one of my very favorite actresses—the beautiful and talented Olivia de Havilland.

Olivia at age 10 months
Olivia, as sophomore class secretary, poses with other class officers;
Los Gatos High School
At age 17


 
As Maid Marian in The Adventures of Robin Hood
 
Looks like somebody is going to get it! :o
Olivia with her TWO Oscars
Olivia today. Still going strong and living in Paris.



I'm still waiting for that promised autobiography, Olivia!
No idea what she's doing here but it's adorable.

One of my favorite Olivia films--The Snake Pit
With co-star Errol Flynn. They made eight films together.

She's amazing in this film, too (The Dark Mirror), playing the good AND the bad sister. I bet you can tell which is which!
Olivia and her sister, fellow actress Joan Fontaine.



“There’s something about Olivia de Havilland that has always set her apart from other actresses. Maybe it’s the combination of warmth, sensitivity and intelligence she conveys, or the way her good looks have always been further enhanced by the ever-present twinkle in her eyes or the wisdom you sense behind those orbs.”
Robert Osborne (via)



“Playing good girls in the '30s was difficult, when the fad was to play bad girls. Actually I think playing bad girls is a bore; I have always had more luck with good girl roles because they require more from an actress.”
 – Olivia de Havilland


“That girl can play any part ever written!”  – James Cagney about Olivia de Havilland


Oh, dear! All this and I STILL haven't even mentioned Hold Back the Dawn, The Heiress, To Each His Own, OR her most famous role as Melanie in Gone With the Wind! I guess I just can't get everything into one post, so here are some resources to learn more about this lovely lady:

Lots more photos of her on Tumblr
Interview for The Screen Actors Guild
2009 interview with Olivia in The Independent
2006 interview for the Academy of Achievement 
This interview (from last year) in the London Evening Standard

'Til next time...

**Please note that the pictures and graphics in this post are NOT MINE. No copyright or creative infringement is intended. If you feel I have used an image contrary to the author's wishes, please let me know and I will promptly remove it.**

7 comments:

  1. Awesome post, Audrey! loved the pics and the quotes, especially the one by James Cagney :) Olivia is awesome (and yeah, I'm waiting for her autobio too...and for her autograph...sent her a letter early this year, I guess she's terribly busy). Hugs.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oh! I was just going to do a post asking if anyone knew how to contact stars
    and ask for their autographs. You're one step ahead of me! I think she does
    keep quite busy. I only hope that I'm that sharp and spry at 95!

    ReplyDelete
  3. HOW AM I NOT FOLLOWING YOUR BLOG YET. I adore this post!! Thanks for this beautiful tribute to Livvie.
    Lara (from Backlots)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Wow, thanks for the sweet comment! :) I kind of went a bit overboard on the
    pictures!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thank you for posting this, and reminding me how gorgeous and talented she was. Very nice indeed.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thank you for the nice comment. :)

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...