Hollywood star, singer, Puerto Rican by birth, Rita Moreno has remained in show business for seventy years. She has several prestigious awards to her credit. Among them are the "Golden Globe" and "Oscar".
Among the most significant works of the actress included supporting roles in the film versions of the musicals "The King and I" and "West Side Story".
The beginning of the road to success
In Puerto Rico, in 1931, Rosita Dolores Alverio was born on December 11 in the town of Humacao in the family of a seamstress and a farmer. Soon the future actress had a younger brother.
Parents broke up when Rita was five. The brother stayed with his father, and the mother and daughter moved to New York. In America, the future celebrity was educated and later began to play on the stage of the theater.
The girl started taking dance lessons early. The famous choreographer Paco Kanzino became her teacher.
As an actress, eleven-year-old Rita participated in the translation of American paintings into Spanish. The path to fame turned out to be difficult. In the paintings of the fifties, Moreno got only small roles.
In 1944 Moreno received one of her first stage works on Broadway. The future celebrity at the time was a thirteen-year-old teenager. However, the spectacular bright girl could not remain unnoticed by Hollywood directors and viewers.
The most famous performances with Rita Moreno are "Ritz" and "Gantry". For her work in the latter, the performer won the Tony Theater Award. In 1985, Rita received the Sarah Siddons Award for theatrical performance in Chicago.
Career ladder
Rita received an invitation to filming after several successful productions. In the films "New Orleans Darling" and "Singing in the Rain", the girl got her debut small roles.
Despite the episodic nature of the characters, the aspiring performer received her success. A gradual advancement began to rise to the cherished fame and glory.
Simultaneously with filming, Rita continued to work on Broadway. The audience loved her very much, over time, the actress began to be given the main roles in musicals.
In the children's educational series The Electric Company and most seasons of Prison of Oz, Rita has appeared on television. In The Electric Company, the actress handled several characters. The heroine of Rita in "Prison of Oz" is a nun who helps the prisoners psychologically.
Moreno has received many prestigious awards in the world of show business. In history, she remains the only woman to have won all the major awards in cinema, theater, television and music.
Rita received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest US civilian award for her contribution to the country's cultural life.
Deserved recognition
The girl did not have to complain about the lack of work. She received offers of filming all the time. True, Rita's assessment of most of her works in those tapes is very mediocre: the plots were stereotyped.
All directors invited the actresses of the Latin American type only to embody the stereotyped ideas about the inhabitants of Spain. But not all films turned out to be commonplace for Rita.
Together with Yul Brynner, the performer took part in the film "The King and I". The reviews from critics and viewers were rapturous. In 1961, the film version of the musical West Side Story was followed by an Oscar.
The image of Anita Moreno embodied perfectly. Her performance could not leave millions of spectators' hearts indifferent. The real glory was waiting for the performer after such work. Both "Golden Globe" and "Oscar" Rita received for the best female supporting roles.
Rita was the first Puerto Rican actress to win the golden statuette. She hoped that now the choice of roles would significantly expand. But reality was disappointing. Hispanic type was assessed as suitable only for participation in westerns and gangster tapes. The Oscar did not change the situation.
Leaving and returning
Rita left Hollywood and did not appear in films for seven years.
Shortly after West Side Story, two Moreno tapes appeared on screen. The first leading role of the actress was the drama "Summer and Smoke" based on the work of Tennessee Williams. The actress also took part in "Battle Cry". Before the beginning of the voluntary exile, these were the last works.
The performer returned in 1968. Together with the famous Marlon Brando Moreno, she played in the crime drama "The Night of the Next Day". Then there were Popi, Marlowe, Four Seasons, Ritz.
Rita took part in three episodes of the Rockford Detective Dossier. For her work in 1978 she received an Emmy, the television equivalent of an Oscar.
Rita Moreno took part in the work on the TV series "Kane" and "Ugly". On the big screen in 2010 came the tape "4Chosen",. In it, Rita got the character of Anna Maria Rajas.
Family life
According to the stories of the actress, in the fifties for eight years she had an affair with Marlon Brando. She even got pregnant from him, but he insisted on getting rid of the child. Moreno tried to commit suicide, took a huge dose of sleeping pills. In an interview, Rita confessed to romances with Edvis Presley, Anthony Quinnoy and Dennis Hopper.
In 1965, the actress married cardiologist Leonard Gordon. He later became the manager of his wife, an actress. In marriage, Rita gave birth to a daughter, Fernanda. The couple already have two grandchildren.
After the wedding, Rita was more worried about family and home, not shooting. Only after becoming a wife and mother did the actress decide to return to the world of the film industry. She took part in the films "Marlow", "The Passion for Wood", "The Boat of Love." In 2010, the star's husband died.
Rita continues to work in film and television. She's not going to retire.
