I always confuse Maureen O’Hara and Deborah Kerr. Both were famous and talented redheads in the Golden Age of Hollywood, but Kerr was Scottish and O’Hara was Irish. O’Hara was one of John Wayne’s favorite actresses, and they did so many films together (and reportedly adored each other in real life). But O’Hara was, I suppose, sort of an outsider with the Hollywood studio system. She was also tough as nails, which is why she spoke out about sexual harassment in Hollywood back in 1945!!! In a recently rediscovered interview, check out with O’Hara had to say:
This was reported in 1945. What a woman 🙏🏻 pic.twitter.com/6cTFGgadNf
— James Rhodes (@JRhodesPianist) November 4, 2017
She was only 25 years old when she said this:
“I am so upset with it that I am ready to quit Hollywood. It’s got so bad I hate to come to work in the morning. I’m a helpless victim of a Hollywood whispering campaign. Because I don’t let the producer and director kiss me every morning or let them paw me they have spread word around town that I am not a woman — that I am a cold piece of marble statuary. I guess Hollywood won’t consider me as anything except a cold hunk of marble until I divorce my husband, give my baby away and get my name and photograph in all the newspapers. If that’s Hollywood’s idea of being a woman I’m ready to quit now.”
If you’ve ever seen O’Hara’s old movies, you know that she actually has so much chemistry with every one of her leading men. She’s very sexy and fiery and fierce. Back then, the studio system was all-powerful, and studio executives could use and abuse women however they liked. It’s shocking how little has changed. It’s crazy how O’Hara really talked about it back in 1945 though, isn’t it? Yikes.
Studio stills courtesy of IMDB.
She seemed so fierce & independent.
Also, she was gorgeous in Miracle on 34th Street.
I didn’t know I could love her anymore ♡
She was on a yacht once with the Director John Ford and his wife when she (O’Hara) and Ford got in to an argument, it got so heated that Ford exploded and punched her in the face, when asked why she didn’t hit him back she said “I wanted him to see I could take a punch like a man”
That makes me so uncomfortable. Ford was a pig
Ford and Wayne were both pigs. The fact she worked with them both so much and enjoyed it has always given me pause.
It breaks my heart to know that Ford punched her, and I hate that she forced herself to “take it”. He was an obvious dick, and there’s no doubt in my mind that he also beat his wife. I forgot how beautiful Maureen was.
I loved her in the Parent Trap. So beautiful. And I totally agree, every leading man she worked with she had chemistry with. She was gorgeous, smart and strong.
Me too!
One of my all-time favorites!
My favorites with John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara are The Quiet Man (1952) and McLintock! (1963). 🙂
Good.for.her.
This breaks my heart. I adored Maureen when I was a young child. My parents made it a point for me to watch classic Disney movies like The Parent Trap and she was amazing in it. I would be absolutely devastated if it came out that Brian Keith treated her poorly. I hate all of this so much.
Love Her!
Its said that Wayne and Ford liked her because she was “tough” and a “broad”. It always makes me cringe a bit because you shouldn’t have to be able to withstand punches – whether verbal or physical – to get a man’s stamp of approval.
After reading her 1945 comment, I now wonder if she later selected what she considered the lesser of two evils to stay in the industry?
She was quoted as calling Ford talented/genius, though intolerable at times. Her favorite three performances were non-Ford productions, too.
Sounds like the Cool Girl description of those days. I hate it. Women need to learn that this stamp of approval is bs. We don’t need it AT ALL. Men still come up with these terms that they deem compliments to manipulate you into behaving a certain way. I don’t know if it’s age or what, but I’m out of f*cks to give about men’s opinions.
She really was a tough, candid person. She successfully sued a tabloid in the 1950s, too.
Maureen did her own stunts, including the mud slide scene in McLintock! She was described as being like one of the guys, so maybe this explains how she did several Ford/Wayne movies in the 1940s and beyond. She was also quoted as saying HW didn’t allow her “talent to triumph over my face.”
She was also one of the few stars who stood up to CONFIDENTIAL in the 50s.
She stayed in the business, obviously, so she found a way to deal with all the crap. I have always adored her as she seemed so real to me, not plastic or phony. How Green Was My Valley was the first time I saw her. And The Quiet Man. Men like Ford and John Wayne we’re friends, and she often spoke of their mutual respect. No one was a better match for Wayne than Maureen O’Hara. I am happy to hear about that article and that she spoke out back in 1945. Not surprised she spoke out, just proud of her.
The Quiet Man is such a great romantic comedy.
I love The Quiet Man so very, very, very much, even though I acknowledge how incredibly problematic it is. For all that it was made in the 50s (early 60s? I forget exactly when), it remains one of the best depictions of an actual adult relationship between two people who ultimately respect each other AND want each other. (The casual acceptance of beating women is of course incredibly troubling).
I keep saying this about the “golden era” — it’s no coincidence that so many of these women died with a pill bottle in one hand and a bottle of liquor in the other. The stories are probably even more horrifying.
Hell yeah. I can think of three off the top of my head that aren’t named Marilyn Monroe: Carole
Landis, Rita Hayworth and Barbara Payton.
Also Judy Garland, and possibly Vivian Leigh.
Rita Hayworth died of Alzheimers when she was in her 60s, but I don’t doubt she consumed her share of alcohol and pills.
To be fair to Rita Hayworth she suffered from alzihmers in her 50’s which is quiet early its really sad to hear some of her interviews were you can hear lost she is. For along time people assumed it was just alcoholism which she did suffer with earlier in life most of her odd behaviour later on was due to the alzihmers.
@Termolli – I was referring more to the history of abuse she suffered at the hands of men. From her father, all of her husbands and most of all, Columbia boss Harry Cohn, the Weinstein of his day.
I still think Marilyn was murdered.
Otaku, so do many of Marilyn’s friends. And they would know. Marilyn was planning for the future. She was buying furniture for her home and was talking with filmmakers about upcoming roles. I don’t believe it was suicide, accidental or intentional.
Go back even further and you have people like Barbara La Marr and Betty Hutton. The Fatty Arbuckle scandal.
Fatty Arbuckle was an innocent man in that case.
She was one of the all-time great beauties of the screen and she is never gets put on lists for that.
Loved Maureen in the original Parent Trap with Hayley Mills! What a beautiful woman.
Does this mean Vintage Gossip Tuesday’s are back??? Pretty please!!
I would like that!
+1000!!!
actually, anita page did it in the early 30’s.