Rita Hayworth Biography: Hollywood’s Iconic Femme Fatale

Born Margarita Carmen Cansino in New York in 1918, Rita Hayworth was of Spanish descent and began her performing career as a dancer at just 12 years old in a nightclub. Throughout her adolescence, she performed in various bars and casinos along the U.S.-Mexico border. In 1935, she signed with Fox, where she initially took on small roles, appearing in over 25 films. Her first significant success came with “Only Angels Have Wings” (1939).

She went on to star in “Blood and Sand” (1941), a vibrant remake of the Rudolph Valentino classic, and “You’ll Never Get Rich” (1941). Shortly thereafter, she moved to Columbia Pictures, changing her name from Rita Cansino to the unforgettable Rita Hayworth. At Columbia, she starred in films like “The Strawberry Blonde” (1941) with James Cagney. She famously danced with two of Hollywood’s greatest dancers, Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire. Her image as the ultimate femme fatale was cemented in the iconic 1946 film “Gilda,” where she mesmerized audiences with her sensual dance and (dubbed) singing.

The fiery redhead underwent a radical image transformation for “The Lady from Shanghai” (1947), directed by her second husband, Orson Welles, by cutting her hair short and dyeing it blonde. Her final film was “The Wrath of God” (1972). Rita Hayworth passed away in 1987, shortly before her 69th birthday, due to complications from Alzheimer’s disease, a battle that brought significant public awareness to the illness.

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Carla Marinho Leal

Writer, traveler and above all, curious about many subjects. She has studied cinema since 2002 and is a Specialist in Cinematographic Studies from UNICAP. Founder of the blog Purviance and the website Cinemaclássico. She loves Charles Chaplin, Raj Kapoor and constantly browses films from all over the world.

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