April 5, 2010
“Some people dream of having a big swimming pool-with me, it’s closets.” -AH
In previous posts, I have mentioned Hepburn’s award-winning, timeless style. Polly Mellen, who has been a fashion editor/expert for many years at many places, pulled together “the essentials” for Audrey’s closet in the book Audrey Style by Pamela Keogh. “Her dress was not fancy or bourgeoisie. You can’t beat a black turtleneck and a pair of black pants. Audrey Hepburn make that point-Audrey was black! She was very, very glamorous in a sort of boyish way,” says Mellen. So take note of these classic pieces that can complete the perfect Audrey wardrobe. For all of the people through the years that have tried to emulate Hepburn’s style, why not get straight to the source?
The Essentials:
-The Little Black Dress
-A sleeveless sheath dress
-The white shirt
-A jazzy suit
-Capri pants
-A dark turtleneck
-One “What The Hell” item…”To show you mean business!”
-One killer dress
-Jeans, a Polo shirt, sneaks
-Flats
-The Sabrina heel
And of course, don’t forget the much-needed accessories:
-The scarf (preferably Hermes)
-Dark sunglasses
-As little jewelry as possible
-A small dog with a wry name (I’m not joking, it’s on the list)
-Gregory Peck (Also, not joking, although Mr. Peck does seem like the perfect accessory)
March 31, 2010
Fighting Back
This week has been a bit of a battle for me personally. I had been debating on writing about this at all, but it seems to be all I can think about at the current time. This week, my family and I learned that my grandmother has cancer. It was a shock and one that I wish no one had to go through. I am an intern for The American Cancer Society. I meet people who have currently, have had or have lost someone to cancer on a regular basis. In my world, it is a far too common tragedy. But even being immersed and knowledgable about the many types and frequency, I was not prepared for this.
Cancer is something that sneaks up on people all of the time. It is a secret monster that hides, waiting to attack. Audrey Hepburn died of colon cancer on June 20, 1993. While she was working hard for UNICEF she grew more and more ill. Like some cases, it was too late to be beaten. Hepburn went through many experimental treatments to try to win against the illness.
Everyday, The American Cancer Society fights to find a cure. They help those with support, knowledge and hope. My grandmother is a strong fighter and is not willing to give up. I will be there to help her fight every step of the way and rest easy knowing that there are resources available for her when she needs them. This is a struggle that no one should face alone. Audrey was surrounded by her family and loved ones and my grandmother will be surrounded by hers as well. Hepburn died at the height of charity work. She accomplished so much before she couldn’t fight any longer.
To learn more about The American Cancer Society and its programs, visit www.cancer.org.
March 23, 2010
Accents
I was inspired to write a little blurb on accents this week. My friend from Illinois has a very peculiar way of saying her vowels. My friends and I in the lovely state of Kentucky think this is very funny. We often make fun her…it’s easy when we all speak with the same pronunciations.
So, I felt bad and to make her feel better, I told her she reminded me of Eliza Doolittle (movie version by Audrey of course) and that we were Professor Higgins, simply studying the way she spoke. That at least made her feel better. Amazing how a comparison to Audrey can make someone so happy! My Fair Lady is one of my (and this friend’s) favorite movies.
Eliza Doolittle is continuously mocked, studied and corrected by Higgins throughout the movie. Her cockney accent was what was supposed to be holding her back from being a proper lady and flower girl.
Although my friend has a bizarre way of saying milk (melk? But she can say silk right?) and we enjoy making her say things and correcting her, we wouldn’t want her to actually correct it…because that wouldn’t be too much fun would it?
March 15, 2010
Carpe Diem
“Pick the day. Enjoy it – to the hilt. The day as it comes. People as they come… The past, I think, has helped me appreciate the present, and I don’t want to spoil any of it by fretting about the future.”
“Living is like tearing through a museum. Not until later do you really start absorbing what you saw, thinking about it, looking it up in a book, and remembering – because you can’t take it in all at once.”
~Audrey Hepburn (of course!!)
While stressing about the future and where I am going in life, I stumbled upon these quotes from Audrey. They are perfect advice for everything going on in my life right now (and in the lives of many college students, I am sure). Registration for senior year, finding an apartment (since I will no longer be living dorm life and am officially homeless next year), job/ internship searches, graduate schools, homework…and the list continues.
But while talking with some of my close friends, something very surreal began to dawn on us. Within one year, we will all be moving on to bigger things in life. These things will take us all over the United States (and some farther than that). Realizing we probably only have one year left where we will all be together (no matter how much we literally change the subject or start singing and holding our ears), we have to grab onto to every last moment we have and live each day.
Yes, I have to focus on my future because the real world is coming, and fast. Yes, this seems like high school all over again: new place, new people, new adventure. But what is different is the fact that we have gathered so many memories in the past few years and will never let them, or each other, go.
These words couldn’t have found me at a better time. With the stresses hanging in the air around me and all of my friends, I took the opportunity to share these wise words. And though the fact that we are splitting is a forbidden subject, we take comfort in the fact that we can live each day to the fullest just by being friends and creating those memories.
March 9, 2010
Oscar Title Wave
This weekend, stars of every type pulled out all of stops for one special little man. The Academy Awards are considered the film world’s most prestigious awards. This past Sunday, on March 7, the 82nd Academy Awards displayed a new and old generation of artist coming together to honor great films. Given this event and its importance to the film world, I thought it would be the perfect time to remember Hepburn’s success with Oscar himself. All in all, Hepburn has only won one little gold statue. She snagged the Best Actress in a Leading Role in 1953 for Roman Holiday.
She accepted her award with gratitude and poise, as usual.
Hepburn was nominated for the following roles as well:
Best Actress in a Leading Role- 1955 Sabrina
Best Actress in a Leading Role- 1960 The Nun’s Story
Best Actress in a Leading Role- 1962 Breakfast at Tiffany’s
Best Actress in a Leading Role- 1968 Wait Until Dark
Of course, I have written about past award show drama dealing with Hepburn and whether a role deserved a win it didn’t get before. But that is one of the great idea about the Oscars, you can never tell who may win. There is almost always a shocking result for some category, sometimes happy and sometimes undeserved. Unfortunately, this is one of those events where people will have to agree to disagree.
Hepburn won the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in 1993. The award had been voted on before her death, and was presented to her son, Sean Ferrer.
For a list of all of the awards Audrey had received or been nominated for, visit http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0000030/awards.
February 21, 2010
Audrey Movie Marathons
Ever had one of those days/weeks/months where you get home and you couldn’t imagine doing anything except exactly what you want to do? Where nothing seems to go right for you and the world is not turning in your favor. Well, unfortunately, I am having just that type of week. But when we have bad days, my friends and I don’t just watch movies or our favorite shows. No, we go straight for the lengthy ”Audrey Section” in our movie drawer and commence the Audrey Movie Marathon.
This is a tradition I started with my best friends in high school. So, I curled up in with my favorite blanket and pillow and started Sabrina. I spent the rest of the day with friends like Audrey Hepburn, Humphrey Bogart, William Holden, Gregory Peck, Fred Astaire, Kay Thompson, and George Peppard. And of course my roommate, Casey, who is always game for an Audrey Marathon. A day can’t get much better than that.
When life gets to be too much, I simply escape reality to these classics where cats are named Cat and where happy endings can show up in unexpected ways.
February 14, 2010
Beauty to all others
People always say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Personally, I always thought that this phrase was very true, but society always has a defined opinion of beauty. Audrey Hepburn never really thought of herself as beautiful. In fact, she was quoted as saying “I never thought I’d land in picture with a face like mine.” Well, considering she still tops lists as one of the most beautiful actresses throughout time, I would have to say that the public has spoken.
Just by typing in “Audrey Hepburn”, you get pages of “Classic Audrey beauty tips”. Just like her fashion, she was considered to have a classy, chic look to her. With big eyes, a small frame, and “weird teeth” (as she would say), she created a different style of beauty. She considered herself shapeless and thought she had no appeal. She found beauty in other things, but definitely not in herself. I believe that most of this critique of her own beauty comes from the fact that Audrey Hepburn thought of beauty not from looks but other aspects in people. I found the following quote to justify this idea.
“For Attractive lips, speak words of kindness, For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people, For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry, For Beautiful hair, let a child run their fingers through it once a day, For poise, walk with the knowledge that you never walk alone. People, more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed. Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you will find one at the end of each of your arms. As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself and the other for helping others.”
~Audrey Hepburn
If you are looking for good quotes by Hepburn or other significant figures, check out www.goodreads.com.
February 13, 2010
Fashion that stands the test of time
Audrey Hepburn once said, “My look is attainable. Women can look like Audrey Hepburn by flipping out their hair, buying the large sunglasses, and the little sleeveless dresses.”
Women having been trying to emulate Hepburn’s style since she first appeared in Hollywood; a style people would describe as classy and chic. Hepburn turned to friend Hubert de Givenchy for all of her clothing needs, both on-screen and of. According to www.imdb.com, Givenchy also created the “little black dress” from Breakfast at Tiffany’s, which has since become a staple in every woman’s wardrobe. All of Hepburn’s clothes were credited to the designer who has known her from the start of her career.
I just started reading Audreystyle by Pamela Clarke Keough. Keough not only records the style of the icon, but shows how it is broken into the many facets and phases of her life. But it was the introduction that inspired this blog, simply because it was written by none other than Mr. Hubert de Givenchy himself.
“Audrey had a big personality. In the choice of her dresses, in wearing them with such elegance, chic, and simplicity. In a very personal way, she created her own her look- “The Hepburn Style.”
How proud and happy I am to have been able to work with and embellish my dear Audrey. She was ‘unique’ and will always be so.
The Audrey Hepburn myth exits. It is here.”
~Hubert de Givenchy
Though I am not far into the book, I am interested to see how it will unravel. It is very clear that, as I explore this actress’s life, modesty was one of her most endearing qualities. She never thought much of herself in the things she did, or believed she couldn’t do things, but it never stopped her from trying. And now, she is perceived as a fashion icon. She truly created her own style that people still look to today. I will keep you posted on how she used style to interpret who she was a person or what she was doing in life.
February 7, 2010
Grace Under Pressure
Who knew that one little golden statue could cause so much drama? It can when you’re dealing with two of America’s most beloved actresses. Both Julie Andrews and Audrey Hepburn have enough star power to overshadow anyone else, but when these two are pushed into the same category, there is bound to controversy.
In 1964, My Fair Lady was adapted into a film version from the play Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw. To most people, Julia Andrews was a shoo-in to play the part of Eliza Doolittle. But Warner surprised everyone (and angered some) by choosing Hepburn instead. But both Hepburn and Andrews played off a feud by telling reporters the other deserved the role. However, this didn’t stop the media from creating a fight anyway.
Hepburn was hurt when she found the news reporting that she wanted the part before it was offered, countering her own comments about Andrews. But she was even more insulted when she found that her singing in the movie had been dubbed by Marni Nixon.
To make the situation even more humiliating to Hepburn, My Fair Lady received 12 nominations and won 8 Oscars at the Academy Awards that year. Nominations for the film covered every major category including Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress. Hepburn was completely skipped for a Best Actress nod, even after rave reviews as the chosen Eliza. The New York Times review by Bosley Crowther stated that “The happiest thing about it is that Audrey Hepburn superbly justifies the desicion of Jack Warner to get her to play the title role.”
Even with all of this praise, Hepburn was snubbed by the Academy for Best Actress. To add insult to injury, the Oscar went to Julie Andrews for Mary Poppins. There is no way to justly say that Andrews did not deserve this award because she too did a superb job, but the fact that Hepburn was not even nominated makes the situation seem like a personal hit to the starlet. Even Andrews stated she believed that Hepburn deserved a nomination as well.
Both actresses stayed poised and collected throughout the growing controversy. The medias continual pitted the two against each other but neither ever said an ill word of the other. It would take a lot grace to withstand the continuous media hits to both. These class acts, however, never wavered in their public opinions of each other. If only the world had more of these qualities…
For more information on this story visit http://www.altfg.com/blog/awards/audrey-hepburn-julie-andrews-my-fair-lady-894/.
“I probably hold the distinction of being one movie star who, by all laws of logic, should never have made it. At each stage of my career, I lacked the experience.” ~Audrey Hepburn
Audrey Hepburn never expected herself to be famous. But fame seemed to come naturally to her and she automatically won the hearts of the world. Hepburn’s first role on Broadway in Gigi was a success that continued her climbing role as an artist. But she had a tremendous climb to make.
After World War II, Hepburn was left with physical deprivations and limitations of her height that made a career as a prima ballerina impossible. But there was no stopping Hepburn, who was determined to continue her training and further her talent. She worked extremely hard to continue on in other forms of art.
After going from dance classes to cabaret choruses, Hepburn found herself moving to acting roles. Though landing roles in films, it wasn’t until her break in Gigi that Hepburn stole the spotlight. When offered the part by Colette, a famous writer, Hepburn responded “I’m sorry, Madame, but it is impossible. I wouldn’t be able to, because I can’t act.”
Gigi was followed by Hepburn’s first motion picture in American Roman Holiday in 1954. The role of Princess Anne won Hepburn an Oscar for Best Actress. Not bad for someone who claimed they couldn’t act.
Audrey Hepburn is an inspiration because she never gave up. She may not have believed in herself sometimes, but she went for the opportunity anyway. The world can seem unbearable when things stand in your way, or something doesn’t seem like the right fit. But sometimes you just have to keep trying to find what is right for you as an individual.
For more information on Audrey Hepburn’s history go to her official website, www.audreyhepburn.com
