Celebrity

Katharine Hepburn Biography

Katharine Houghton Hepburn was an American actress in film, stage, and movies. She has a very inspiring personality. She had spent 60 years ruling Hollywood. In 1999 she was named the most outstanding female star of classic Hollywood cinema by the American Film Institute.

At a young age, she liked to call herself a tomboy.

Her father, Thomas Norval Hepburn, always encouraged his children to speak their minds and exercise their bodies and taught them to swim, dive, wrestle and play golf and tennis. Golf became a passion of Katharine, and she qualified for the semi-final of the Connecticut Young Women’s Golf Championship. She was a fan of movies at a very young age and used to mimic film stars’ different roles in front of her siblings and friends. She loved swimming and used to take ice baths in the morning.

Birth May 12, 1907
Birth nameKatharine Houghton Hepburn
Nick NamesKateFirst Lady of CinemaThe Great KateKathy
DeathJune 29, 2003,
OccupationActress
Years active1928- 1995
HobbiesSwimming & Playing Golf
Spouse Ludlow Ogden Smith

Early Life:

Katharine Houghton Hepburn was born on May 12, 1907, in Hartford Connecticut. His father, Thomas Norval Hepburn,  was a urologist at Hartford Hospital and her mother, Martha Houghton Hepburn, was a feminist campaigner. Her parents were significant entities of America, and they fought for social change in the US. Katharine realised at a young age that she was the ‘product of two remarkable parents’. She remained very close to her family throughout her entire life.

Education:

On March 30, 1921,  she found her older brother’s dead body. His brother hanged himself and committed suicide. Katharine was very disturbed after his death. She shied away from other children and soon dropped out of Oxford school. She was then tutored privately. In 1924, She was admitted to Bryn Mawr College. She was uncomfortable and self-conscious there. She was suspended once for smoking in her room. In his final years, he performed the Lead role in The Woman in the Moon production and received excellent remarks for her acting skills.

She graduated with a degree in history and philosophy in 1928.

Career:

Hepburn left university to become an actress. After graduating, she travelled to Baltimore to meet Edwin H. Knopf, who ran a theatre company. Knopf cast her in his production, The Czarina. She received good reviews for her short role in the movie.

As An Actress:

She worked with the producer  Arthur Hopkins and accepted the role of a schoolgirl in These Days. She made her Broadway debut on November 12, 1928, at Cort Theater, but the show’s reviews were abysmal. In 1929 she was given the role of the leading actress in Death Takes a Holiday. She felt the role was perfect, but she was fired soon.

The Warrior’s Husband proved to be Hepburn’s breakout performance. The show ran for three months, and Hepburn started receiving positive reviews. Hepburn’s second movie was Christopher Strong in 1933, which was the story of an aviator that has an affair with a married man. By the end of 1933, she was regarded as a good actress, but she had the urge to prove herself on  Broadway.

Famous Movies:

  • Bringing Up Baby
  • The African Queen
  • The Philadelphia Story
  • The Lion in Winter
  • Suddenly, Last Summer
  • Woman of The Year
  • SummerTime
  • On Golden Pond
  • Song of Love
  • The Rainmaker
  • Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner
  • Alice Adams
  • Holiday
  • Undercurrent
  • Stage Door

Relationships:

Hepburn was married to Ludlow Ogden Smith, a businessman from Philadelphia whom she met when she was a student at Bryn Mawr. They got married on December 12, 1928. But she prioritised her career and filed a divorce on April 30, 1934.

Hepburn began her relationship with her agent, Leland Hayward. They had an affair for four years, but the couple broke up when she started an affair with entrepreneur Howard Hughes. He wished to marry Hepburn, but she refused and concentrated on her career. Rumours existed that she was a lesbian and Bisexual.

Death:

Her health began deteriorating after her final screen appearance in 1993. She was hospitalised with pneumonia in the winter of 1996. She had become fragile in 1997. She died on June 29, 2003, due to cardiac arrest. She was buried in Cedar Hill Cemetry in Hartford.

Awards & Honors:

  • Academy Awards for Best Actress In Leading Role (1982,1969, 1968)
  • Golden Medal for Best Actress (1934)
  • BAFTA Award for Best  Actress In Leading Role (1983, 1969)
  • Kennedy Center Honors (1990)
  • Cannes Best Actress Award (1962)
  • David di Donatello for Best Foreign Actress (1968)
  • Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award (1979)
  • Prime Time Emmy Award for Outstanding Leading Actress (1975)

Mian Tajamul

Mian Tajamul is a passionate content writer with a flair for storytelling. With a deep fascination for the lives of remarkable individuals, he specialize in crafting engaging biographies of well-known personalities. Through their words, he brings history to life and inspires readers to explore the extraordinary journeys of these iconic figures. When not immersed in writing, you can find Mian Tajamul exploring new horizons and seeking inspiration for their next captivating biography.

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