British-American actress
Born: July 1, 1916
Died: July 26, 2020
Olivia de Havilland (July 1, 1916 – July 26, 2020) was an iconic actress whose career spanned over five decades, leaving an indelible mark on Hollywood’s Golden Age. Born in Tokyo to British parents, she moved to California with her mother and sister, Joan Fontaine, also an acclaimed actress. De Havilland’s breakthrough came with her role as Melanie Hamilton in “Gone with the Wind” (1939), for which she earned her first of five Academy Award nominations.
De Havilland’s career was distinguished by her versatility and depth, with notable performances in films such as “The Snake Pit” (1948) and “The Heiress” (1949), the latter earning her a second Oscar for Best Actress. Her courageous legal battle against Warner Bros. in the 1940s, known as the “de Havilland Law,” was pivotal in ending the studio system’s restrictive contracts, granting actors more freedom and control over their careers.
Retiring in the mid-1980s, de Havilland spent her later years in Paris, where she lived until her passing at the age of 104. Her legacy endures through her timeless performances and her significant contributions to the film industry.
Olivia de Havilland’s 5 most popular quotes
- Famous people feel that they must perpetually be on the crest of the wave, not realising that it is against all the rules of life. You can’t be on top all the time, it isn’t natural.
- I loved France, although I initially thought they were stubborn for always speaking French.
- I was naturalized right before Pearl Harbor. Nine days later, I would have been classified as an enemy alien. I might have been sent to a camp.
- I feel like a survivor from an age that people no longer understand. I want to try to explain what the 1930s – the golden age of Hollywood – was truly like. People forget that America was such a different place then, not yet the dominant force in the world.
- I was quite thin, and I didn’t have to worry until I had my appendix out and a mysterious metabolic change occurred.
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