Pinup Girl of the Month: July: Rita Hayworth

"We are all tied to our destiny and there is no way we can liberate ourselves."

My first Pinup Girl of the Month choice is the illustrious Rita Hayworth. Most people know I am a HUGE Marilyn Monroe fan and if I am why would I choose Rita has my first Pinup Girl? Honestly-she caught my attention when I learned she was Latina and then as I began reading about her I became more and more fascinated with her life. Just as you might be after reading this here little blog entry. She lived an incredibly full life-whats not fascinating about that?

Interesting Facts about Rita Hayworth:

• Was born Margarita Carmen Cansino in 1918.
• Her father was Spanish and her mother a  Ziegfeld Girl.
• Danced her whole life and referred to herself as a dancer first.
• Because she was being type cast for Hispanic roles only she had painful electrolysis to broaden her forehead and accentuate her widow's peak as well as dying her hair red!

  

As Rita Cansino, 1935

• Became the number TWO pinup in the country in 1941 when she posed for the first photo above in her negligee perched seductively on her bed. It was taken in December, 1941.
• "Everybody else does nude scenes," Hayworth said, "but I don't. I never made nude movies. I didn't have to do that. I danced. I was provocative, I guess, in some things. But I was not completely exposed." Gotta admire a girl for holding onto her beliefs!
• Was married five times...yes five times! And had two daughters: Rebecca Welles with the infamous Orson Welles and Princess Yasmin Aga Khan.

Nothing more lovely than a mother with her children.

• Wanted to study singing but the studio executives wouldn't let her so her voice was always dubbed.
• Her one glove strip tease in the clip below drove the censors crazy but it fueled her bombshell status.
• In 1946, it is said that her likeness was painted on the first nuclear bomb (kind of crazy cool) but some film historians say it was just the name "Gilda". Talk about making an impression.
• She danced with both Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire (lucky gal!)
• It is said that Rita got her big break in the business because she was willing to die her hair for a movie while the other starlets weren't.
• In 1949, Hayworth's lips were voted best in the world by the Artists League of America.
• She became a pinup girl for the servicemen during WWII.
• Late in her life she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's.
• Her daughter, Princess Yasmin, took care of her during her later years.
• She passed on May 14th, 1987 at the age of 68 and left behind an amazing career as a dancer and an actress.      

Rita and Fred Astaire in 1941's, "You'll Never Get Rich"

Slidehow of Rita Hayworth

xox