That’s Katharine Hepburn in her “dressing room” on the “set” of African Queen. One of my favorite pictures of her ever. And today is her birthday.
HEPBURN QUOTABLES:
“I just don’t like to be half-good. It drives me insane. And I’m willing to do anything to try to be really good. I’m very aware when I’m very good — and I like to be very, very good. Oh, I think perfection is the only standard for people who are stars.”
“Marriage is not a natural institution — otherwise why sign a contract for it?”
“I can’t stand Mary of Scotland. I think she was an absolute ass. I thought Elizabeth was absolutely right to have her condemned to death.”
“Being an actor is a humiliating experience. Because you are selling yourself to the public, your face, your personality, and that is humiliating. As you get older, it becomes more humiliating, because you’ve got less to sell.”
HEPBURN ANECDOTES:
1. Barbara Walters interviewed Hepburn, and asked the penetrating question: “Kate, you always wear pants. Do you even own a skirt?”
Hepburn replied: “I have one, Miss Walters. I’ll wear it to your funeral.”
2. There was an enormous hemlock tree in the front yard of the Hepburn home in Hartford. Kate loved to climb high up into the branches, and hang out up there. Apparently, a neighbor in the next yard saw Kate perched up high, and called over to Kate’s mother: “Kate is up way too high!”
Kate Hepburn’s mother replied, “Sh. Don’t scare Kate. She doesn’t know it’s dangerous.”
3. I love this story of her initial struggle with the comedy of Bringing Up Baby. Look at how willing she was to just say: I DON’T KNOW WHAT I’M DOING. HELP ME. Very rare.
I miss her too.
The story about her up in the tree – what her mother said – that’s one of my favorites.
I believe the first time I ever saw Lion in Winter was at your house – I think we all might have rented it?? Does that ring a bell?
It does ring a bell, now that you mention it…it’s very possible. That’s one of my favorites…I need to watch that again.
I also have this very vague memory of a Looney Tunes cartoon episode that had Little Bo Peep with Kate’s voice…(this is such a dim memory – I’m having a hard time describing it) – Little Bo Peep, wearing a pink shepherdess girl outfit was saying “I’m Little Bo Peep…I’ve lost my sheep” in Kate’s very distinctive voice. It stuck in my mind – I was very little – I didn’t even know who Katharine Hepburn was, so I didn’t get the humor intended by the voice…I just wondered why she talked like that…Bo Peep’s profile was Kate’s as well. Anyway, it stuck with me. Funny.
I read a bio of her and the story of her brother’s suicide was just about the saddest thing ever. I never knew how prominent her parents were in their work, how bohemian their lifestyle was, how “modern” their marriage.
It was fascinating. In fact, I got bored with all the movie/acting stuff; I wanted to know about her FAMILY.
Yeah – the Hepburns were some serious people there. They never really felt that acting was serious work – even when Hepburn went back to the stage and did Shakespeare for years. That KIND of consoled her serious issue-oriented parents – that she was doing Shakespeare – but not really. Kind of sad that they wouldn’t ‘get’ the particular brand of genius their daughter had.
How about their entire house floating away in the hurricane of 39? There’s a great picture of Hepburn lying in a random bathtub, surrounded by wreckage, with a scarf around her head. The entire house literally just FLOATED AWAY.
They rebuilt in the same spot – only raised it 3 feet off the ground.
And yeah – that suicide. Just horrible.
It seems like the family never ever ever dealt with it. Which is understandable, but still. Horrible.
I think what made it horrible for me (and them, too) was that he could have stopped it at any time. All he would have had to do was stand up — he was LEANING into the noose. Standing up would have broken the strain. The author (Scott Something? I don’t remember.) said he “must have badly wanted to die.”
That stayed with me for days.
Scott Berg?? I haven’t read his biography of Kate yet – I really have got to.
Just so tragic. And Hepburn found him, right?
Scott Berg? I think so. The cover I have is black and the picture is her in that white long-sleeved dress from The Philadephia Story, I think.
Yeah, she found her brother. They were at an aunt’s house, IIRC, and went up to get him so they could meet the train.
i think Dorothy Parker described Hepburn’s acting as having an emotional range of A to B…hahaha…if that was true..she knew how to work those two letters!
The Dorothy Parker quote came from an early performance of Hepburn’s on Broadway and Kate remarked, “I didn’t even get to B.”
I’m a big fan of Holiday — Linda Seton and Johnny Case are a couple of dreamers to ache for.
mmm, love her. miss her. need to read this biography i’m hearing about!
Holiday, Philadelphia Story, Dragon Seed, Bringing Up Baby, Guess Who’s Coming….etc.
So much good work from her. I wish she was still here, vital, working, and opinionated. Would be interesting.