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• Katharine Hepburn was an iconic American film star. Her fierce independence, outspoken nature and sharp wit endeared her to generations of film-goers. Hepburn began her acting career on stage, but quickly moved to making films. She earned her first of four Best Actress Oscars very early in her career, for playing an actress in 1933's Morning Glory. Her outspoken attitude was unlike anything Hollywood had every seen, and it cost her roles over the years. In 1938, after a string of flops, she was famously dubbed "box office poison" but came back quickly with the stage and screen versions of The Philadelphia Story. Her career after was composed of a rich variety of critically acclaimed roles. She starred in nine movies with off screen love Spencer Tracy, who was married to another woman. Hepburn continued to act into her 80's. She died in 2003.

• Fast Facts

  1. Birthname: Katharine Houghton Hepburn
  2. Born: May 12, 1907
  3. Birth place: Hartford, Connecticut
  4. Height: 5 feet, 7 inches
  5. Graduate of Bryn Mawr College
  6. Spouse: Ludlow Ogden Smith (1928-1942)
  7. Long-time on and off-screen romance with Spencer Tracy, with whom she made 9 films
  8. Sportswoman who played golf, swam, rode horses, and played tennis
  9. Voted the greatest American female screen legend by the American Film Institute
  10. Nominated for 12 Academy Awards for Best Actress and won 4
  11. Almost took the role of Scarlet O'Hara in Gone with the Wind, though she felt she wasn't right for it
  12. 1991: Published autobiography Me
  13. Died: June 29, 2003

• Katherine Hepburn Notable Roles

  1. 1981: Ethel Thayer in On Golden Pond
  2. 1968: Eleanor of Aquitaine in The Lion in Winter
  3. 1967: Christine Drayton in Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
  4. 1951: Rose Sayer in The African Queen
  5. 1940: Tracy Lord in The Philadelphia Story
  6. 1938: Susan Vance in Bringing Up Baby
  7. 1937: Terry Randall in Stage Door
  8. 1933: Jo in Little Women
  9. 1933: Eva Lovelace in Morning Glory

• Related Mahalo Pages

  Spencer Tracy | Cary Grant | Humphrey Bogart | Howard Hughes | Greta Garbo

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