As far as Old Hollywood starlets go, Rita Hayworth just might be one of the most iconic of the era. Best known for her roles in movies like Gilda and Only Angels Have Wings, Rita's personal life was also on display during her career, including her five marriages and two children. The actress died in 1987 after being diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's disease, and much like the circumstances around her death, she faced tragedy during her life as well.
Keep reading for five surprising facts you may not have already known about Rita Hayworth.
She was known for her dancing — which she hated.
As The Take explains, Rita was born into a family full of dancers, so naturally, she began lessons as soon as she could walk … and yes, she was talented. But she was also really unhappy as a dancer, not that it mattered to her allegedly abusive father, who forced her to continue. By the age of 13, she was dancing at a professional level.
Her first husband was controlling.
Rita signed her first contract with Fox in 1935 and also married her first agent, Edward Judson, who was 22 years older than her and said to be extremely controlling.
She also had yet another controlling man in her life during this time: Harry Cohn, who signed her to a seven-year contract with Columbia. Rita said in a 1968 interview that Harry was a "monster" who was possessive over her and wouldn't allow her to go out with friends while she worked for him.
Things didn't work out with her other husbands, either.
Rita was married to actor Orson Welles from 1943 to 1947. Later, she became a princess when she married Prince Aly Khan in 1949. But the couple would end up divorced just a few years later after he reportedly cheated on her.
She would be married two more times in her life: to Dick Haymes from 1953 to 1955, and to James Hill from 1958 to 1961.
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Her Alzheimer's diagnosis came early.
Starting as early as the late 1960s, when Rita would have been in her late 50s and early 50s, she started showing symptoms of Alzheimer's disease. At the time, her behavior was chalked up to her alcohol intake. She wouldn't be diagnosed until 1980, seven years before she died at age 68.
Rita died on May 14, 1987.
The actress passed away in her New York City apartment, months after she entered a semicoma that February.
Her legacy lives on — both in the art she left behind and the awareness she brought to Alzheimer's disease.
