Henry Mancini said of her: "'Moon River' was written for her. No one else had ever understood it so completely. There have been more than a thousand versions of 'Moon River', but hers is inquestionably the greatest".
According to director William Friedkin, Audrey was Warner Bros. first choice for the role of Chris MacNeil in The Exorcist (1973) after her box-office successes with the studio's The Nun's Story (1959), My Fair Lady (1964) and Wait Until Dark (1967). She would only agree to star if the film were made in Rome. Both Friedkin and writer William Peter Blatty rejected the proposal.
According to her biography, "Audrey Hepburn: An Intimate Portrait", she made a vow to herself never to exceed 103 pounds. With the exception of her pregnancies, she succeeded.
After Wait Until Dark (1967) was offered the leads in Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1969), 40 Carats (1973), Nicholas and Alexandra (1971), The Exorcist (1973), One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), A Bridge Too Far (1977) and The Turning Point (1977) but decided to stay in retirement and raise her sons.
Although not diagnosed with appendicular cancer until 1 November 1992, her son Sean H. Ferrer believes it had probably been developing over the course of the previous five years.
Art was one of her longtime hobbies, she drew pictures of stories when she was a child to distract herself from chronic hunger pains during WWII. As an adult, she took up painting to pass time while pregnant with her son, Luca. Samples of her work can be seen in the book "Audrey Hepburn: An Elegant Spirit".
As of 2005, she is one of only nine performers to win an Oscar, a Tony, an Emmy and a Grammy Award.
As of 2007, she and Katharine Hepburn are the only "Best Actress" Oscar-winners to share a last name. Of course, they are not related.
Asked for the part of Emma Jacklin in The Turning Point (1977) but Anne Bancroft had already been cast in the role.
Audrey felt that she was miscast as Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961) although it was one of her most popular roles.
Broke her back during filming of a horse-riding scene in The Unforgiven (1960).
Broke her back during filming of a horse-riding scene in The Unforgiven (1960).
Chosen by Empire magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Stars in film history (#8). [1995]
Chosen by People magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the world. [1990]
Christened simply Audrey Kathleen Ruston, her mother Baroness Ella Van Heemstra temporarily changed the actress' name from Audrey to Edda during the war, feeling that "Audrey" might indicate her British roots too strongly. During the war, being English in occupied Holland was not an asset; it could have attracted the attention of the occupying German forces and resulted in confinement or even deportation. After the war, her father, Joseph Victor Anthony Ruston, found documents about his ancestors, some of whom bore the name Hepburn. This is when he added it to his name, which caused her daughter to have to legally add Hepburn to her name as well, thus Audrey Kathleen Hepburn-Ruston.
Died on January 20, 1993, the 67th birthday of Patricia Neal. They starred together in Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961).
Died on the day of Bill Clinton's first inauguration as President of the United States.
During his acceptance speech honoring her work for UNICEF, Sean H. Ferrer dedicated his mother's Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award to "the children of the world".
During World War II, 16-year-old Audrey was a volunteer nurse in a Dutch hospital. During the battle of Arnhem, Hepburn's hospital received many wounded Allied soldiers. One of the injured soldiers young Audrey helped nurse back to health was a young British paratrooper - and future director - named Terence Young. More than 20 years later, Young directed Hepburn in Wait Until Dark (1967).
Followed winning the Academy Award for Roman Holiday (1953) with winning Broadway's 1954 Tony Award as Best Actress (Dramatic) for "Ondine."