Audrey Hepburn and Gary Cooper

AUDREY HEPBURN Born May 4, 1929 in Ixelles, Brussels, Belgium Died January 20, 1993 in Tolochenaz, Vaud, Switzerland [Age 64] Birth Name Audrey Kathleen Ruston Height 5' 7" Audrey Hepburn was born on May 4, 1929 in Ixelles, Brussels, Belgium. She was a blue-blood and a cosmopolitan from birth. Her mother, Baroness Ella Van Heemstra, was of a Dutch descent, and her father, Joseph Victor Anthony Hepburn-Ruston, was born in Úzice, Bohemia, and of an English and Austrian ancestry. After her parents divorced, Audrey went to London with her mother where she went to a private girls school. Later, when her mother moved back to the Netherlands, she attended private schools as well. While she vacationed with her mother in Arnhem, Netherlands, Hitler's army took over the town. It was here that she fell on hard times during the Nazi occupation. Audrey suffered from depression and malnutrition. After the liberation, she went to a ballet school in London on a scholarship and later began a modeling career. As a model, she was graceful and, it seemed, she had found her niche in life--until the film producers came calling. In 1948, after being spotted modeling by a producer, she was signed to a bit part in the European film Dutch in Seven Lessons (1948). Later, she had a speaking role in the 1951 film, Young Wives' Tale (1951) as Eve Lester. The part still wasn't much, so she headed to America to try her luck there. Audrey gained immediate prominence in the US with her role in Roman Holiday (1953). This film turned out to be a smashing success, and she won an Oscar as Best Actress. On September 25, 1954, she married actor Mel Ferrer. She also starred in Sabrina (1954), for which she received another Academy Award nomination. She starred in the films Funny Face (1957) and Love in the Afternoon (1957). She received yet another Academy Award nomination for her role in The Nun's Story (1959). On July 17, 1960, she gave birth to her first son, Sean Hepburn Ferrer. Audrey reached the pinnacle of her career when she played Holly Golightly in the legendary film Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), for which she received another Oscar nomination. She scored commercial success again playing Regina Lampert in the espionage caper Charade (1963). One of Audrey's most radiant roles was in the fine production of My Fair Lady (1964). After a couple of other movies, most notably Two for the Road (1967), she hit pay dirt and another nomination in Wait Until Dark (1967). In 1967, Audrey decided to retire from acting while she was on top. She divorced from Mel Ferrer in 1968. On January 19, 1969, she married Dr. Andrea Dotti. On February 8, 1970, she gave birth to her second son, Luca Dotti in Lausanne, Vaud, Switzerland. From time to time, she would appear on the silver screen. In 1988, Audrey became a special ambassador to the United Nations UNICEF fund helping children in Latin America and Africa, a position she retained until 1993. She was named to People's magazine as one of the 50 most beautiful people in the world. Her last film was Always (1989) in 1989. Audrey Hepburn died on January 20, 1993 in Tolochnaz, Vaud, Switzerland, from appendicular cancer. She had made a total of 31 high quality movies. Her elegance and style will always be remembered in film history as evidenced by her being named in Empire magazine's "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time." - IMDb Mini Biography By: Denny Jackson and Volker Boehm Spouse (2) Andrea Dotti (18 January 1969 - 21 September 1982) ( divorced) ( 1 child) Mel Ferrer (25 September 1954 - 5 December 1968) ( divorced) ( 1 child) Often cast opposite leading men who were considerably older than she was. Often played classy High Society women. Charming characters who try to wear their troubles lightly. Delicate thin frame. Was first choice for the lead in A Taste of Honey (1961). Ranked #50 in Empire (UK) magazine's "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" list. [October 1997] Mother of Sean Hepburn Ferrer, with first husband, Mel Ferrer. Son, Luca Dotti (b. 8 February 1970), with second husband, Dr. Andrea Dotti. Chosen by People magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the world. [1990] After Wait Until Dark (1967) was offered the leads in Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1969), 40 Carats (1973), Nicholas and Alexandra (1971), The Exorcist (1973), One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), A Bridge Too Far (1977) and The Turning Point (1977) but decided to stay in retirement and raise her sons. Interred in Tolochenaz, Vaud, Switzerland.

GARY COOPER May 7, 1901 - May 13, 1961 Gary Cooper, the strong, silent hero of the screen, died of cancer at 12:27 p.m. Saturday in the quiet of his Holmby Hills home. The 60-year-old actor's death, awaited by his family and friends and by Cooper himself for two weeks, ended a long fight with the disease, the nature of which did not become publicly known until his confinement last month. The tall, drawling Cooper, winner of two Academy Awards in a film career that spanned 35 years, had received messages of hope from all over the world, including a call from President Kennedy. Cooper's wife, Veronica, their daughter, Maria, the family doctor, a priest and two male nurses were with Cooper when the end came in a bedroom of his estate at 200 Baroda Dr. Beverly Hills, California. Fears for the actor's health arose a year ago after a prostate operation. He denied then that there was a malignancy. Five weeks later, a cancerous portion of his colon was removed, but he still wouldn't admit it. From then on, doctors acknowledged later, it was only a matter of time. Cooper, heavily drugged for the last 10 days to ease the intense pain, received the last rites of the Catholic Church on Friday. A long-time friend, the Rt. Rev. Daniel Sullivan of the Church of the Good Shepherd, Beverly Hills, said he was able to talk with Cooper briefly on Thursday. Catholic Convert "Although he was weak, I was amazed how alert he was," Father Sullivan commented. The priest reported that Cooper had been unconscious all day and died while sleeping peacefully under sedation. He said the wife and daughter took the death calmly. And he disclosed that Mrs. Cooper had known since December that her husband's illness was incurable. Cooper, reared as an Episcopalian, was converted in 1959 to Catholicism, the faith of his wife and daughter. He had received no visitors for two weeks, and his family remained constantly at his bedside. Gary Cooper, Hollywood's homespun hero, was another product of its big star era—the same era in which names like Clark Gable, John Wayne, Errol Flynn and Tyrone Power became household words to millions. It was an era which Hollywood itself believes is gone forever. Cooper brought to the screen a personality that was all his own. His taciturn drawl, shy grin and the loose-jointed way he carried his 6 ft. 3 in. frame came to typify something as American as buckwheat cakes. Moreover, he was Hollywood's own creation. He came here almost directly from a ranch near Helena, Mont., his birthplace, rather than by way of the stage, radio or other entertainment media. Aspired to Be Artist The son of a state supreme court justice, Cooper originally aspired to be an artist and from 1922 to 1924 he studied art at Grinnell College in Iowa. But in Los Angeles he found he could make more money as a screen extra and stunt man. He was introduced to many Hollywood figures by Grace Kingsley, a film society columnist for the Los Angeles Times. Cooper accompanied her on some assignments. But the film colony was unimpressed. "He's too bashful," was the usual comment. Cooper acquired an agent, Nan Collins, then a casting director at United Studios. It was Miss Collins who suggest he change his real name from Frank James Cooper to Gary Cooper. The new name clicked.