Katharine Hepburn
Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress. Her career lasted 66 years. She is thought of as one of the top screen actresses in movie history. She was nominated for 12 Academy Awards, winning four.
Katharine Hepburn | |
|---|---|
 Studio publicity photograph, c. 1941 | |
| Born | Katharine Houghton Hepburn May 12, 1907 |
| Died | June 29, 2003 (aged 96) Fenwick, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Bryn Mawr College |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1928–1994 |
| Spouse(s) | Ludlow Ogden Smith
(m. 1928; div. 1934) |
| Partner(s) | Spencer Tracy (1941–1967, his death) |
| Relatives | See Houghton family |
| Awards | Full list |
Hepburn was born in Hartford, Connecticut and went to Bryn Mawr College. She got her degree in 1928 and started on Broadway that same year.
In 1932 she got a role in the George Cukor movie A Bill of Divorcement, with John Barrymore. She was very successful in the early 1930s, but then she became unpopular. She became popular again with the movie The Philadelphia Story. In 1942 she starred in Woman of the Year with Spencer Tracy. They made eight more movies together, including Adam's Rib and Guess Who's Coming to Dinner. They also had an off-screen romance that lasted until Tracy's death in 1967, but they never married because Tracy did not want to divorce his wife. Before this, Hepburn was married to Ludlow Ogden Smith from 1928 to 1934, and also had relationships with Leland Hayward and Howard Hughes.
Her autobiography, Me: Stories of My Life, came out in 1991. She died on June 29, 2003 at 2:50 p.m., at Fenwick, the Hepburn family home, in Old Saybrook, Connecticut. She was 96.
Stage work
- These Days - 1928
- Art and Mrs. Bottle - 1930
- The Warrior's Husband - 1932
- The Lake - 1933
- The Philadelphia Story - 1939
- Without Love - 1942
- As You Like It - 1950
- The Millionairess - 1952
- The Merchant of Venice; Measure for Measure; The Taming of the Shrew - 1955, On tour in Australia with the Old Vic
- The Merchant of Venice; Much Ado About Nothing - 1957, Stratford, Connecticut Shakespeare Theatre
- Antony and Cleopatra, Twelfth Night - 1960, Stratford, Connecticut Shakespeare Theatre
- Coco - 1969
- A Matter of Gravity - 1976
- The West Side Waltz - 1981
Filmography
1930s
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1940s
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1950s
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1960s
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1970s
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1980s
1990s
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Further reading
Katharine Hepburn Media
Left to right: daughter Katharine, Marion, Robert, Thomas, and Richard. Her mother is seated at center with daughter Margaret, 1921
Hepburn's yearbook photo, 1928, Bryn Mawr College
Hepburn in the 1932 role that brought her to the attention of Hollywood, The Warrior's Husband
Hepburn's first movie appearance, in the melodrama A Bill of Divorcement (1932). Critics praised her performance, and she became an instant star.
As Jo March in Little Women (1933), which was one of the most popular movies of its day
In Mary of Scotland (1936), one of a series of unsuccessful films Hepburn made in this period
Hepburn made four films with Cary Grant. They are seen here in Bringing Up Baby (1938), which flopped on release, but has since become renowned as a classic screwball comedy.[1]
The majority of films Hepburn did in this period were with Spencer Tracy. She later said the partnership did much to advance her career, as he was the more popular star at the time.[2] Seen here in Adam's Rib (1949).
Hepburn often worked abroad in the 1950s, beginning with The African Queen with co-star Humphrey Bogart.
In David Lean's romantic drama Summertime (1955). Jane Hudson is one of the roles Hepburn played in the 1950s.
- ↑ Dickstein 2002, pp. 48–50.
- ↑ Chandler 2011, p. 149.