Rita Hayworth.

ah wait wait wait wait here she comes it's the part I really like this when she does I said what I hear I know it's in three times this month ah Gilda are you decent to watch Rita Hayworth do her thing it is spellbinding as an actress working now you say it's so important that we remember our past and the women that brought us here and Rita was certainly the forerunner she really defined the word charisma and she was so extraordinarily beautiful to her millions of fans all over the world Rita Hayworth was the Love goddess of the 1940s the sensual woman whose beauty and talent kept her in the public's favor for decades a self-described Spanish peasant Rita Hayworth was a woman who throughout her life would be continuously transformed and reinvented to fit an image that she could never live up to one such image from which she would never break free was that of Gilda a mythical character that she had mortalized on the screen we to her fans Rita Hayworth was Gilda a woman who was bold and brash openly sexual sure and easy to her family and friends she was simply a loving and kind woman who's soft-spoken demeanor belied an inner strength and courage I just wasn't all of my mother I I just looked up to her I admired her in her beauty in her charm and her grace and her sincerity and her truthfulness she was an amazing lady I think that the publicity is always on the Rita Hayworth of Gilda and I've you know this incredibly beautiful woman I think that's part of the myth they think that the studio's were insisting on keeping up images they would try to correlate the image that was on the screen with what was happening in life and many times there was a conflict between the two put the blame on me name did a band called kitschy crew that's the famous Lou Magoo put the blame on me blame on me rita hayworth is a name that was once notable to millions of movie fans all over the world yet she ended her life in a state of confusion we dispense years suffering the effects of an unknown illness an affliction called Alzheimer's disease her twilight years were spent in helplessness and uncertainty a poignant ending to an accomplished and glorious life she was trapped in a disease where all that she had known became lost in a foggy haze margarita Carmen Cansino was born on October 17 1918 in New York to parents Volga and Eduardo Cansino Rita's father hailed from a famous dancing family in Spain and margarita took great pride in her Spanish heritage my father was born in Seville Spain my grandfather and my father were Spanish all Spanish she longed to be like her aunt ELISA her mentor and her father's partner in the dancing Cansino's you in 1926 the can see no Klan moved to Hollywood where career opportunities awaited while her brothers Eduardo jr. and Vernon went to school margarita was being trained in the art of dads I had been studying dancing since I was five four five six seven years old eight and I could dance and I danced with my father I had a fine teaching Eduardo taught classes and Rita was in those classes too she went to his classes which her brothers would do they goofed off and fooled around on the top of the building with their wooden swords and there were a lot of people in those classes and she was the star of the show of course because she was the best answer he had at the tender age of 13 margarita would become the family breadwinner eventually margarita replaced her aunt ELISA as her father's dance partner in the dancing consumers there was depression at that time so when we needed money I worked with my father at the age of 13 better place in Tijuana my mother's they are my two brothers were with me I did four shows a day two in the afternoon and two in the evening and in between the shows I went to my tutor and have my lessons our next job was working on a gambling bill called the wrecks out of Long Beach it was kind of a gambling boat he's a terrible thing on stage margarita came alive she was graceful and powerful in control off stage she remained quiet withdrawn painfully shy margarita was lonely and her innate shyness prevented her from seeking out friends or other outlets to offset her cloistered lifestyle she only opened up to her mother Volga margarita was kept close by her father's side allowing her very little freedom but margarita had a chance to earn money a new way in motion pictures Rita would later remember these years as some of the most stifling and difficult of her life yet the fact that her talent and efforts enabled her family to survive the Depression was a source of great pride for her in time little margarita Cansino would earn the title as the undisputed goddess of Hollywood but she would look back on her youth with a tinge of bitterness they had me dancing almost as soon as I could walk I didn't have a choice she would later say I was so very busy learning dances and study I did miss playing with children my age and all that but I didn't know that I missed it till after a little while I was 15 I had a great deal of poisoner older for my age I had that kind of poise professional children have people from the industry came often like executives and they did ask my father if he would consider allowing me to make a test for films and my father in the beginning should know but in about 6 months later he decided that I could possibly make a test he allowed me to make an acting test Marguerita began to look toward having a career on her own independent of her father but she was not yet bold enough to risk it alone ambitious but camera shy she allowed a new man to take control of her life Edward C Jetson was a Los Angeles car salesman but his expertise extended to more than just automobiles his connections in the film industry allowed margarita to land her first film contract with Fox films in 1934 her credit listed her as Rita Cansino though prominently featured Fox had yet to find the right roles for her therefore she played women of various ethnic backgrounds margarita was grateful to ed Jetson for believing in her abilities as an actress she married him in 1937 she was 18 and he was 40 by marrying Edie Jetson she had unwittingly placed herself in the hands of another controlling taskmaster six months into their union margarita realized that her husband considered her a business investment my father said that nobody liked Eddie Judson he was too old to be married to their daughter and apparently he would go over there just to antagonize particularly Volga margaritas mother opposed her marriage to Jetson and her close-knit family ties were now fraught with tension nevertheless she had made a commitment to her husband that she intended to honor her career seemed to be going in the right direction when margarita was offered the lead role in the Fox film Ramona they wanted me to play Ramona the Indian girl because I did have black hair nasty black and it was very long and I am Spanish after a year old zanuck came in and he thought I was too young to play and he said they were going to have the better young plane but I was very upset I tried that afternoon I never cried so much my life I wanted to play that role Fox studio chief Darryl zanuck also decided to cancel Margarita's contract leaving her with no studio backing but Judson had a plan she lived in an empty home with no furniture while jetson invested all money's earned by Rita into the publicity and promotion of her career Reeta landed roles in various be pictures while she was slowly shedding her fear of the movie cameras jedson was controlling the money he was a pretty domineering factor in her life he was there all the time and pushing all the time as her father did before him I guess she had a father who was as persistent as Judson was and we did at that point was gonna make little girl Maya's overcoming her shyness rita began to appear at nightclubs and hollywood events in order to be photographed for the magazines and newspapers you didn't look at anybody else when she is on board one time she come out in a red this year burned in my memory a red dress red shoes and man what a knockout I mean when she walked in the casino only you could hear was the little balls and roll that table clicking away she didn't very stay very long it was a publicity stunt of course you couldn't help but notice her I mean you give out a thousand people out there and you look right maybe she was the plan worked and Rita eventually landed a contract with Columbia studios as well as a new title on the marquee Rita's last name was changed from Cansino to the more refined Hayworth her mother's maiden name from now on she would be known as Rita Hayworth as Columbia's newfound starlet she would have a new man to contend with Columbia's studio chief Harry Cohn was legendary in Hollywood not only for his business acumen but also for the sheer number of people who despised and feared him after Rita spurned his romantic advances he made sure to keep her in her place despite her rising star he was a gentleman that if you if the old lady wanted to work at Columbia Pictures she should put forth her charms so that he could enjoy them and Rita Hayworth said go write a horse because I ain't it an oddly named 'harry gone he was constantly bothering her and she really was affected by it you people snooping on her hallway and it was really quite mean there again was another father figure who was more than that nevertheless upon occasion he did make good choices for her in 1939 Rita starred in her first a film vehicle opposite Cary Grant in only angels have wings director Howard Hawks helped Rita to develop a subtle acting style ultimately bringing to the screen a sensuous performance that attracted attention he wouldn't tell me said it had nothing to do with us Oh seems that that's that so you're gonna let him go it all by himself huh mm-hmm did you ever hear the word trust did once but I forgot it in order to capitalize on her potential Rita's husband and Judson and the executives at Columbia decided a change was in order for the Spanish look that had been so prominent in Rita's earlier film roles they set out to create an Rita the all-american girl next door she is to have she had very black hair at one time and they lightened her hair and she had kind of a low hairline they had to take about an inch of her hair out with electrolysis to give her a higher more of a forehead but it was very painful even with her changed appearance Columbia had no suitable roles available for Rita so Harry Cohn loaned her out to other studios he wanted to make as much money off of his investment as he could as obviously better still nice-looking oh you make me tight why don't you pick your mind up out of the gun why should I you out put in there would you return to Columbia after these loan-outs she was a much bigger star than when she had left and this was all money in Harry Cohn's pocket she kept that studio going it was called the Rita Hayworth Studio because she was such a big star I mean MGM and 20th Century Fox had many women and stars but she was the main one in 1941 at the last laugh when Fox the studio which had fired her years before now requested her services for the Vixen ich Dona Sol it would be a surprising and pivotal performance for Rita low-key and understated in her own unique way she established herself as a first-rate femme fatale in 1941 and 42 Rita was finally able to capitalize on her talents as a dancer when she starred with Fred Astaire and you'll never get rich and you were never lovelier Rita's film partnership with Fred Astaire produced a magical chemistry which movie audiences responded to Fred Astaire told me that she was one of the best dancers he'd ever danced with he just thought that she was so graceful rita's wholesome yet sensual image struck a chord with the public particularly the serviceman during World War two we see another and how the beauty of American womanhood who may have fought that the only Sunday hope to return I saw as a young soldier to go back to what soldiers felt you know being away from home being away from the loved ones was an anxiety ridden period in their lives and movies tended to help we'd sit on logs coconut logs and watch the movies and the Japanese to be right up on hill and they'd sneak down but they were not they sneak down and watch the movies but you didn't know who's sitting alongside is dark grey galactic crazy when they put on video the guys would just stare when their mouths open it took minutes before they come to their senses again you can't imagine what it is when you're out in their minds you think you're going to be dead tomorrow and you get something like that it wasn't only Rita's films that provided inspiration to the soldiers also a tantalizing photograph of Rita wearing a risque negligee and sitting on her bed became one of the most popular pinups of World War two every soldier remembers vividly the picture of Rita on the bed in a negligee Dadda magnet for men to want to go back home what Rita couldn't have imagined then was that this image would enchant the public for decades to come and immortalize her as a goddess of love and sex during the production of my gal Sal in 1942 Rita would begin a romance with Victor Mature her co-star and she filed for divorce from Jetson before Victor Mature headed off to war they became engaged divorce was granted on May 22nd 1942 in order to keep Edie Jetson from revealing what he considered to be scandalous and damaging information about Rita's personal life Harry Cohn paid him $30,000 to stay out of her life forever for the first time Rita was happy and loved and able to breathe freely and experience life on her own terms 1943 proved to be one of her happiest years as she embarked on the Technicolor production of covergirl that is one of my favorites is doing it was exciting I was working with marvelous people Gene Kelly choreographed movie we danced together we had well it was just fantastic upon seeing Rita's famous pinup controversial filmmaker Orson Welles had boasted I'm going to marry that girl Welles was a gregarious genius whose impressive reputation made his pursuit of Rita all the more flattering to her he was pursuing Rita with a vigor too tempting for her to ignore in letters to her he wrote I suppose most of us are lonely in this big world but we must fall tremendously in love to find it out you are my life my very life I'm too blue for anything but the sonorous repetition of my love for you before long Victor Mature was a forgotten man the coupling of Rita Hayworth and Orson Welles made headlines all over the world they were dubbed Beauty in the brain but Rita didn't care they were married on September 7 1943 in a quick civil ceremony there was no lengthy honeymoon in fact the ceremony had taken place during the shooting of covergirl I was working in publicity at Columbia Pictures one day I was having lunch I was sitting on a bench outside of the photo studio on the lot and suddenly Rita and Orson Welles came rushing out there holding hand giggling and laughing like children they got in the car and as the car started the fender barely touched the bench I was on I was almost thrown off and Rita stuck her head out of the window and said sorry but we're on a way to get married Ken off they went with covergirl Rita's stardom was at its peak the film was a huge box-office success and it cemented her status in the often fickle film industry ironically at this stage in her life stardom meant very little to Rita once she became a star I don't think she look forward to that position of great clean and she had just Sassoon leave it but the pressures that were put upon her to get her to that position was horrendous horses manipulated her everybody seen a manipulator studio chief Harry Cohn was angry over her marriage to Orson Welles he was furious when he found out that at the peak of her stardom she was expecting her first child Rebecca Wells was born on December 17th 1944 Rita's happiness seemed complete until the untimely death of her mother Volga Rita would never be quite the same both of her brothers Vernon and Eduardo Cansino jr. were soldiers overseas when Vernon returned from the war during the Christmas of 1944 Rita flew to New York for a happy reunion she seemed to want very simple things love family and security and yet they were eluding her her marriage to Orson Welles was slowly eroding she had begun to lose faith in Orson whose exhaustive schedule left Rita and baby Rebecca alone most of the time she was heartbroken to find out about his liaisons with other women Rita separated from Orson Welles in 1945 during which time she was also shooting Gilda the movie that would forever immortalize her on the screen Gilda would become a film noir classic however Rita's personal life always seemed to outweigh her professional triumphs and disappointment she endured were sometimes too much for her to bear I had left the publicity department to work as a stand-in because I wanted to be where the action was and one of the first jobs I had was Gilda I would wake up every morning thinking today I'm going to spend the whole day watching Rita Hayworth emote hate is a very exciting emotion haven't you noticed very exciting I hate you too Johnny I hate you so much I think I'm ready to die from it she was I think very quiet very professional and somehow a little sad I know that at the end of the day Rita seemed to be more or less on her own and word drifted around that the marriage with Orson Welles wasn't all that successful put the blame on me name gave a chump such a nice cold no for seven days the shovel snows you have to riding the wave of guilt success Rita was surprised to find that people expected her to be like the character of Gilda in real life a lot of times women like that who you see as these wonderful sex symbols they're always you know that's shoved down your throat by the publicity Department that's difficult for a woman because when you're that sex symbol the sex goddess as she was how do you say I want to reach out and do other things who will take me seriously Hollywood has a tendency to latch on to this and then latch on to what is current and discard the other without much feeling because of her disdain for Hollywood gossip Rita made a point of avoiding the press even renowned columnist Louella Parsons and Hedda Hopper they interviewed me a few times very early in my career and very early in my career I decided to never talk to either one of them again they were barred from my set to Columbia all the time I was there I thought for a good reason I didn't care what anyone else thought and there was no way to Hanlin except not to see them so I just didn't see them all I know is that yeah it's important to try and protect the sanctity of your privacy because if you don't you're so exposed as an actor you're so exposed to the world that if everything is exposed its it can become too much it can become overwhelming in 1947 Columbia Pictures cast Rita as a real goddess in film who came down to earth to perform on the stage this was the kind of person that if you threw a challenge at her her job she might about a foot and a half he said okay fine no matter what was going on with her private life this lady when she was on the set she was shy very very shy and through all of this Monalisa kind of quietness she always prevailed during the production of down-to-earth Rita formed her own production company up until now she had asked for little and gotten less at Columbia but now her leverage was unsurpassed even Harry Cohn had to acquiesce to her demands a triumph that was not lost on Rita and then Rita always did what was right for herself she's a very smart woman she had an inner strength of her own and she stood up for herself when it came to her rights she was a woman she was a woman a lot of people try to slip up on her blindside they might try it for a while but when it got to the point where she didn't like it she woke up if they let her down she was out the door the late 1940 sparked a time of dramatic change in Rita's life after much controversy over the release of Citizen Kane Orson Welles was considered blacklisted in Hollywood at this point in his career his only hope for the creation of a film project backed by a major studio was Rita although separated from Welles at this time Rita used her power Columbia to convince Harry Cohn to finance the lady from Shanghai Orson would be writer director and star of the film Rita was thrilled to have a part in it because she would finally have a chance to shine as a dramatic actress for the film her famous red mane was cut in a platinum Bob an event that infuriated Cohn and was attended by every photographer in Hollywood lady from Shanghai was stylistic and imaginative but confusing with a convoluted plot about greed murder and deceit George columnist Louella Parsons no fan of Welles called it an experiment and what not to do it's true I made a lot of mistakes though Rita still had hopes that their marriage could work Orson had failed her as a husband but he encouraged her as an artist what if we quit and you're not going to not again oh my god I'm afraid the end of a film and for Rita I got the devastating end of her marriage comeback Michael please Orson was a bad man bad for her she was unhappy pretty unhappy at that time he said Bob get some beautiful girls we'll use him in the film so I said Orson I don't want to pimp for you but I know where I can get some when Orson saw this bevy of beauties didn't you no frame of film the rest of the night Andrea and I went out someplace Rita and I went back to the hotel about five or six in the morning standing waiting at the elevator elevator opens and it's Orson the camera and the crew going to work and we're studying they're just getting in work now became a welcome relief for Rita and she dove into production on loves of Carmen a portrayal of a free-spirited gypsy allowed audiences a glimpse of the real Rita who with castanets in hand became lost in a world of music and dance when production ended rita decided to take a trip to europe to relax and recuperate after an emotional and difficult year but quiet calm was not the result of her vacation while there she met the renowned and fabulously wealthy prince ali khan the prince was in read his own words magical she said we danced and we danced and we danced I like to think we never stopped unfortunately they were both still legally married to others when both of their divorces were final and the way became clear for them to marry margarita prepared herself to become a princess it was grander than any Hollywood fairy tale Rita left Hollywood at the peak of her career and she dropped everything in order to find love and happiness she wrote me a lovely long letter and she said she was not sorry to leave her career she thought she'd be married to Ali Khan for the rest of her life and where he lived and he lived in the South of France he lived in Paris he lived in London and he he lived in Ireland it sort was all part of his life and I became a part of it I was always with Ali when he visited his people in different places couldn't work and be his wife I made it my mind what I you know I thought I should do and that's what I did I stopped working he was a very vivacious man a life of royalty did not quite fit Rita's longing for privacy Ali engaged in an active social life a situation that made Rita terribly uncomfortable Rina was very soft-spoken actually and very easygoing she loved to just put on some old old clothes and just sit around and to the fat she was a very down-to-earth person she wasn't put on or anything Ali Khan loved parties he lived for parties he lived for beautiful women he lived for gambling he live for drinking he live for all the things that he was so known for he was a Playboy knowing Rita she would watch some time at home but she wouldn't have gotten that from him he was magical to her he loved her she loved him they had totally different lives had come from totally different backgrounds it just wasn't her personality type she just was person who needed to spend more time alone she was overwhelmed by crowds of people Rita's innate shyness made constant social events a painful drain on her she had difficulty with the French language and ultimately made few friends overwhelmed by her life Rita retreated into her shell however Rita never gave up hope to have a happy family life she was overjoyed at the birth of princess Yasmine Agha Khan on December 28 1949 Ali was a doting father both to baby as mean and Rebecca Wells Rita's illusions of a settled family life were shattered however she was constantly surrounded by crowds of people allowing her no privacy she gathered her girls and headed home for America putting on a brave face for the press that awaited her after only two years as Princess margarita Ali Khan Rita's separated from the prince it just didn't work out as a marriage but their friendship remained and their love for each other remained returning to Hollywood is a single mother was an overwhelming and depressing experience for Rita because now she had a family to support she was again at the mercy of Columbia's Harry Cohn I think Harry Cohen wanted to put the knife to her up almost punishing her for leaving it was like a girl going back home when they'd had a send-off I don't think that reader really enjoyed making movies that much I think she would have far rather been a wife and a mother I don't think she was happy coming at all it's strange how life works out the very thing that you run away from was a very thing that saved her she came back to her career and carried on with her career she didn't want to do it at all I think it was in the afternoon I said Rita so let's get higher never so cute she said what time is it noon so we've got a car drove to Arizona stopped at the Arizona Biltmore not knowing it was Harry Cohen's favorite place to go and he was directing all of this operation find Rita there was a lot of noise and in the hallway during the night and a lot of screaming the morning I reached out to get the paper and they are door down the hall was getting the paper and to this day I am all sure it was Harry Cohn I recognized it that was where the noise was coming from looking for Rita we're right next door but Harry Cohn would capitalize on her by placing her in one mediocre role after another the scripts presented to her by Columbia were poorly written a fare in Trinidad was to be her comeback vehicle with two girls to support Rita swallowed her pride and went back on the set Harry Cohen said well I want you to meet Rita she was very sweet like a frightened little girl when you haven't been in front of the camera for over three years there's a bit of insecurity that arises the fascinating thing was when it came time for her to dad it was as though somebody turned a spark on inside of her and suddenly she sprang to life she just threw herself into things and I mean you see the abandoned which she would dance all you know is you want to watch her and your watcher in almost anything you'd watch you're wearing a paper bag you rewind and watch it again a rewind and watch it again I remembered so well when I first met him proverb West Indian household hint scared to death frightened to death but when they introduced me to her she put her arms around me she says we're gonna have a good time you know I hadn't done a few things in movies she was the only one that allowed me to get close to her I don't need to put my face in there and talk to her really talking said is getting back something have a distance with me she said come closely because you're in the scene with me she felt that I wasn't trying to take advantage of her she appreciated that because every man had used her one way or another sexually or for exploiting his own ego and so forth and so on so she's very wary of men very suspicious and very distrustful she asked me if I would drive her home and we went inside and she said would you like to have a nightcap with me I said fine she put on a nightgown and she got in the bed and she said once you take off your things and spend a little time with me so I got non dressed and we made love that night it was so easy to fall in love with him but I knew she was in the middle of a divorce it was either all or nothing and I said I can't give you the kind of care and love that you really need she kissed me goodbye and then I don't think we ever saw each other again Reid and Ali attempted to reconcile in 1952 to no avail she was officially divorced for the third time in 1953 while in production on the film Salome Rita would meet another man who would temporarily take control of her life once again she was charmed and during a period of vulnerability and loneliness she allowed nightclub singer Dick Haymes into her life he accompanied Rita on location and became a constant companion to her ignoring the advice of her friends Rita married Dick Haymes in 1953 he was wanted by the IRS and being threatened with deportation to Argentina later on Rita claimed that she married him to help him with his troubles and to keep him from being deported also Haynes appeared to be a devoted father to her children she was unaware of the serious threat that he would be to her life to attract ticket buyers Dick Haymes always like to have Rita on the road with him when he toured but he was seen to both verbally and physically abused her in public on one occasion he put her relationship with her children in jeopardy while Rita was on tour with Hammes Rebecca and Yasmine stayed with his mother unbeknownst to Rita the children were left alone and the situation was reported to the social services department Rita was charged with neglect a situation that left her devastated and frightened Rita had not made a film in two years and she had no income in order to pay for court cost and other legal fees incurred by Hames she was forced to sell her share of her production company both Orson Welles and Ali Khan came to the court to speak out in her defense and the charges were soon dropped but the damage had been done Eames really manipulated her to all sorts of unpleasant situations I witnessed all of these and it bothered me too because I was so friendly with her I guess I was the only one that really didn't want everything we just had fun while she was married to these fellows I think that's why we had such a nice relationship she began to realize that everyone was having dinner on her as with most difficult times in Rita's life she eventually realized that it was time to disengage and make a fresh start once again she filed for divorce from Haynes in 1955 and took control of her life her children in her career read along to portray serious characters and dramatic parts that suited her age she had been off the screen for four years who was ready for her second comeback it happened very naturally from The Love goddess to the serious actress I think she was relieved I do remember her saying well you know I'm no longer the age that I used to be of Gilda and I have to adjust in 1957 Rita flew to Trinidad where she had the chance to perform some of the most revealing dialogue that she had ever delivered on screen I can pass from hand to hand I've had to submit two things that nice young American boys couldn't conceive of in their wildest nightmares I've lived on the ruins armies marched over me the same year Rita also went into production on PAL Joey it was the perfect vehicle for her to showcase her talent as a maturing actress who still retained her own unique sexuality the contract would call for Frank Sinatra's name first Frank Sinatra said no but Rita Hayworth first because she is one of the great stars of all times after all two years is a long time between drinks no one can move like Rita it was like a ship on sails is floating with pal Joey Rita was waving goodbye to her many years at Columbia studios it was without sentiment or rancor that she ended her relationship with Harry Cohn and she Khalifa Lee rode the wave of PAL Joy's success right out of the Columbia studio gates rita was determined at this stage in her life to be taken seriously as an actress now that she was no longer considered the Love goddess of Hollywood she wanted to work hard to hone her dramatic skills helping her in this effort was a new man James Hill I wanted to be in that first picture that I directed when Carol Reid said to me that Dame is the most talented woman I've ever seen he said she makes them all look like bums he's quite right he sure does and that's when I said to myself I'm going to get her for that picture I'm gonna get to know her I did poorly at first gosh oh my she didn't wasn't interested me at all and gradually I worked around to where I began entertainer James Hills role as partner in the Hecht hild Lancaster production company helped her to land a truly meaningful role as and Shanklin in separate tables she was playing and aging once beautiful lady and her essential problem is her desperate fear of growing old particularly of growing old alone he was at your feet while his hands were shaking so much he couldn't even like your cigarette please don't be angry with me I had to see you I was desperate too slow why to help me you wouldn't think of telling you the truth no you had to have your conquest your unconditional surrender and if you could do it by lying and cheating some other night I knew you're gonna get married but I should have said so from the beginning but I still have some pride left yes I can see the makeup now all right the line is it weren't there before the beginning will be more and more than one day this face will begin to decay and I'll be nothing left to make a man grow to make him want to write much what you are feeling seeing those scenes came from Rita herself independent of any suggestions from the director during the production of separate tables Rita married producer James Hill in February of 1958 she was once again attempting to attain a happy and peaceful home life Rita was hoping to share quiet times and spent time learning to paint however Hill was consumed with his company and the many dramatic roles he planned for Rita once again she felt used Rita still had hopes that she and Hill might take time to rest and live a normal life he had other plans however in 1958 James Hill convinced Rita to play the only female lead in an all-male ensemble cast and they came to Cordura Rita was older now she wasn't the sex symbol but she had a presence and she had a chemistry but I always felt that she was very frightened a time she was shy and another thought she was you know very outgoing she was kind of a dichotomy I think James Hill kind of was keeping a strong arm honor and in the evenings we'd hear them fighting from their little cabins that we were staying in when both she and Hill were drinking their arguments got out of control one night I'm trying to get these scenes written and she's about half pissed and she kept bothering and bothering me and finally I'd push her like that the next day I went to where she was being made up this makeup man was working over the eye now he had gotten rid of him pretty well and he said how did this happen did your husband hit you and she said yes he hits me all the time through all her troubles Rita was accomplishing her desire to become a dramatic actress yet fewer people were seeing her films in 1960 Rita gave an inspiring performance in story on page one but perhaps this was not the Rita Hayworth it held the interest of the movie gone public in the movie we were doing she was just not the Hayworth that I remembered with Fred Astaire at all frankly I'm prejudiced against married women he'll go out in traffic and it was nothing Rita Hayworth that one thing so not for my family he was into the part she was in and it was you know she had her house dress on and she was just very simple and very quiet just looking into her eyes I knew that I had to be on my toes and that pull anything edrick allottee is here Rita soon discovered that it was time to release herself from yet another unhappy Union and filed for divorce in September of 1961 the night before she left Hill she told him his talent for using people was destroying him why bother to write she said when it's so much easier to use the talents of others she was gone in the morning Rita was finally free to live her life on her own independent of a man but her personal triumph would not last for long unbeknownst to herself and to others she was beginning to show the first signs of an unknown disease Rita was losing her short-term memory and would often become violent with people for no apparent reason as was witnessed by friends and Miller and choreographer Hermes pan she invited Doug Hermes and myself one night for dinner and we came and we rang the doorbell nobody answered finally it opened and there was Rita and she had a butcher knife in her hand and she said well who are you people I don't know you I said what do you mean you don't know us you invited us for dinner we're very close friends she said your fans and I'm not signing any autographs tonight and get out of my courtyard get out get out she had this butcher knife and she started after us boy we got out of there so fast and about two days later she called Hermes and said why didn't you all come for dinner she was fun she was giggly she was just a loving mother and then of course there was this whole other side to her that was the disease side I saw it early during the years that she was ill and she suffered with alcoholism and then this Alzheimer is slowly creeping in the alcohol exacerbated the Alzheimer's and it just grew into this huge illness she just slowly was losing her her mind in 1961 Rita challenged herself by attempting to appear on Broadway in the production of step on a crack however her disease was now beginning to affect her professionally and she was horrified to find that she could not memorize her dialogue marita had a hard time remembering lines and she said Annie will you help me with the script can can you throw lines to me and we worked about a week and then she went to New York and got out there on the stage in front of all these people and had a terrible time remembering the lines it was disappointing and they didn't take her she was in touch with her dad man she was calling him every day from New York she was saying um Oh daddy I can't remember my lines and she'd cry he said to her never mind Marguerite I never mind you've had a fine career you don't have to apologize to anybody so I said well no I don't think I don't want to do it now I stayed for five days I went to the show every night I said a while that's a tough one I cannot open by July this first method it you don't know what it's like on the stage when you forget a line you're absolutely around the world you know you're mystified that this thing has missed the tape has run dry Rita drank heavily to ease the frustration she felt she could no longer maintain her professionalism which was of the utmost importance to her and had been since she was a child her father and teacher eduardo Cansino passed away in 1968 he died before he could watch his daughter margarita lose her memory entirely Rita continued to look for work throughout the 1960s and 70s as always her career provided solace for her when I saw Rita I flashed back to her sitting on the bed in the Life magazine photo seeing her dance in the movies and I thought that's Rita Hayworth she seen me only and shy and I felt I don't know why she's shy and unhappy she was a private person I felt I've been isolated she'd do her work on the set but then wander off you didn't know where she was after hearing that she needed cue cards to remember lines of dialogue film producers were reluctant to hire Rita she found some reprieve intelligence got to do this film it's perfect for you know Bernie is wrong I just don't think the public wants to see me as a brain surgeon Rita I'm telling you the puppet will eat it up they're just not going to believe it yes they will they won't it's got social comments too talky they're rewriting it'll never work I said well it's a great part it's not for me it's not for her her last film was the wrath of God released in 1972 it was finally time for Rita to quit the movies Rita's behavior became utterly unpredictable her family and friends never knew when to expect an outrageous outbursts around 3 o'clock 4 o'clock her mood would change just for no reason just just change angry we just thought she was drinking we were going to aunt Rita's house for my birthday I prayed I just prayed God I said God just give me one thing I don't want anything else just don't let aunt Rita get drunk in March 1974 both of her brothers Vernon and Eduardo jr. died within a week of each other she paid for but could not bring herself to attend the funerals rita spent most of the 1970s touring the world making personal appearances but becoming more impaired everyday in 1976 Rita's problems became public knowledge on a flight to London she became disoriented and out of control we were sitting there and all of a sudden she just pushed all the dishes and Scylla where everything just slid her arm across the table and knocked it on the floor flight attendants came running upstairs and you can see the reader was just uncontrollable she's just looked dazed for some reason like almost a blackout and I sat with me the rest of the night and I just held her I think one of the stewardess tipped off the press and two photographers got to the bottom of the stairs as I started to help read it down with the captain and they took several of those most horrendous photos that as we all know went around the world the next day in about two minutes Rita returned to Hollywood and although she knew she had a problem she refused help from anyone finally in a Los Angeles hospital Rita was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease suddenly years of erratic behavior began to make sense to her friends and family I knew that she was not well and there was nothing that I could do at the time I could just watch her just slowly sink I'd got the call that she was in hospital and I came back and took charge it was the time to take charge but before that there was no time to wasn't able to do that nobody could it was a sad sad ending to my situation with her she was at the Hope Memorial Hospital apparently she wasn't recognizing people I sat in the room with her and her eyes had that distant look you know she was just off someplace and I'd bring up some of the situations that we were involved in and what we did and the laughs we had and then suddenly she'd come out of it and this wonderful face would blossom in the the recognition of you know looking back to the good times and she was a little girl again Rita Hayworth spent her last days bedridden unable to speak walk or function by herself most of the time her eyes were closed for someone who had loved the freedom of dance and expression and the joy of family and friends her debilitating disease was heartbreaking she moved with such Grace and beauty and she was just so warm and loving she was like a gentle bird Rita Hayworth died in New York of Alzheimer's disease on May 14th 1987 at the age of 68 although she left behind a wonderful legacy Rita never achieved what meant most to her the security of lasting love she seemed to have spent much of her life escaping the manipulation of men the trappings of Fame and in the end the prison of her own mind upon reflection Rita once commented when I look back on my marriages or breakups sure I know the pain I went through but that's part of life and it has its own value to the press she asked whatever you write about me don't make

Channel: Movie Documentary

Views: 1,472,695

Rating: 4.7271132 out of 5

Keywords:

Id: 4jDvdPYPZ0k

Length: 57min 5sec (3425 seconds)

Published: Sun Dec 08 2013