Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress of film, stage, and television. A film icon, in 1999, she was ranked by the American Film Institute as the greatest female star in the history of American cinema.
Raised in Connecticut by wealthy parents, after graduation, Hepburn turned to acting. Favorable reviews of her work on stage in 1932 brought her to the notice of Hollywood. After a few early film successes, including her first Oscar for Morning Glory, she endured a string of flops, which led to her being voted "box office poison". Fortunately, she had a great triumph starring in the Broadway play The Philadelphia Story. She obtained the film rights with the help of Howard Hughes and sold them to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer on the condition that she reprise her leading role as Tracy Lord. The hit film adaptation revived her flagging career.
Over the course of her long life, she costarred with such screen legends as Cary Grant (Bringing Up Baby, Holiday, The Philadelphia Story), Humphrey Bogart (The African Queen), John Wayne (Rooster Cogburn), and Henry Fonda (On Golden Pond). However, her greatest teaming, both on-screen and off, was with Spencer Tracy, beginning with 1942's Woman of the Year. They fell in love and conducted a decades-long affair that was kept secret from the general public. (Tracy was married and, as a Catholic, could not divorce his wife.) The last of their nine films together was Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967), which was completed shortly before his death.
Hepburn holds the record for the most Best Actress Oscar wins with four, out of 12 nominations. Hepburn won an Emmy Award in 1976 for her lead role in Love Among the Ruins, and was nominated for four other Emmys, two Tony Awards and eight Golden Globes.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katharine_Hepburn
www.imdb.com/name/nm0000031/
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks