The Life and Times of Audrey Kathleen Ruston

If the late Audrey Hepburn was alive today, Sunday, 4 May, 2014, she would have been 85-years-old; she is my most favourite classic actress, whilst the late Sir Charlie Chaplin is my most favourite classic actor. Like the late Sir Charlie Chaplin, I have many Audrey Hepburn memorabilia; I even
 plan on getting tattoos of both the former and latter in the near future.

Introduction

Audrey Hepburn was a British-Belgian actress and humanitarian; she is recognised for being a beauty icon, which has earned her the title as the “most beautiful woman of all time” and the “most beautiful woman of the 20th century”; she is also recognised as being a fashion icon, which has also earned her place in the International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame in 1961; she is also recognised as being a film icon, which has also earned her one of the few entertainers to win three BAFTA Awards and Golden Globes, two Oscars and Tonys, and one Emmy, Grammy, and SAG Award; she is also recognised for being one of the few entertainers to retire from the entertainment world for a humanitarian career.

Birth

Audrey Hepburn was born on Saturday, 4 May, 1929, in Ixelles (or Elsene), in Brussels (officially the Brussels-Capital Region), Belgium (officially the Kingdom of Belgium), as Audrey Kathleen Ruston, also known as Audrey Kathleen Hepburn-Ruston, pseudonymously known as Edda van Heemstra.

Family and Ancestors

Audrey Hepburn’s ancestors (or forebears) are of Austrian, Bohemian (mainly modern-day Czech), British, and Slovak descent from her father’s side and Dutch descent from her mother’s side.

Audrey Hepburn’s paternal grandmother, Anna Ruston née Wels, was born on Thursday, 23 July, 1868, in Kovarce, Slovakia, and was baptised in the same year on Monday, 3 August, as Anna Juliana Franziska Karolina, in Kovarce. From the time her paternal grandmother was born until half a century or so after her death, Slovakia was once the part of the then Kingdom of Hungary, a province of the Habsburg Monarchy (or Austrian Monarchy, or just Empire).

Audrey Hepburn’s paternal grandfather, Victor Ruston, was the son of the entrepreneurial British immigrant brothers to the Habsburg Monarchy; he would later found and co-own a sugar factory in Kovarce; his ownership would be short-lived after dying of pulmonary oedema at the age of 45 on Friday, 18 August, 1876.

Audrey Hepburn’s father, Victor John George Ruston (1889–1980), was a British subject (a limited class of people defined by Part IV of the British Nationality Act 1981 under British nationality law); he married Cornelia Bisschop, a Dutch heiress, having no kids with her; he married her during his service as a one-time British Honorary Consulate in the Dutch East Indies, or Netherlands East Indies (modern-day Indonesia following World War II). The Dutch East Indies were a Dutch colony that was formed from the nationalised colonies of the Dutch East India Company, which came under the administration of the Dutch government in 1800.

Audrey Hepburn’s father ended up having the double-barrelled name (or double surname) Hepburn-Ruston; there are various sources on why that was, but two of those various sources stand-out more reliable:

• One source is that he had mistakenly believed himself that he was a descended of James Hepburn, 1st Duke of Orkney (c. 1534 to Monday, 14 April, 1578), better known by his inherited title as 4th Earl of Bothwell; he was unaware of his error throughout his life until sometime after his death when his daughter discovered that her father was not a descended of the 4th Earl of Bothwell; Audrey Hepburn opted to keep the surname Hepburn, despite discovering that her father was not a descended of James Hepburn, 1st Duke of Orkney.

• The other source is from a book titled “The Audrey Hepburn Treasures”, published by Atria and released on Tuesday, 3 October, 2006, and written by both Ellen Erwin and Jessica Z. Diamond and forwarded by Audrey Hepburn’s eldest son, Sean Hepburn Ferrer, stating that Audrey Hepburn adopted the name “Audrey Hepburn-Ruston” for her ballet performances during World War II, as attested language by a programme and some photos in the same book.

• The same second source also states that before Audrey Hepburn adopted the aforementioned name, there was a lot of confusion regarding her name; many biographies incorrectly stated her birth name as Edda, including many of the press that based their reports on her. The reason for this is because she adopted the pseudonym Edda van Heemstra, modifying her mother’s documents to do so, due to an “English-sounding” name was considered dangerous during the German invasion and occupation of World War II in the Netherlands (officially the Kingdom of Netherlands).

According to many, especially both her fans and die-hard fans, the second source seems to be a more reliable source, since the book is presented in the form of a scrapbook, preserving Audrey Hepburn’s personal and family history, especially the fact that it is her eldest son that forwarded the book.

Audrey Hepburn’s paternal grandmother was Elbrig Willemine Henriette, Baroness van Asbeck (1873-1939), who was the granddaughter of Audrey Hepburn’s great-great-grandfather Dirk, Count van Hogendorp (Monday, 18 December, 1797, to Tuesday, 18 March, 1845), a Dutch jurist who later on became a council gentleman (raadsheer) in the Provincial Court of South Holland and who later married his full cousin Marianne Cathérine Jonkvrouw van Hogendorp; Audrey Hepburn’s paternal grandfather was married to Aarnoud Jan Anne Aleid, Baron van Heemstra (Saturday, 22 July, 1871, to Monday, 30 December, 1957), who was a Dutch jurist and politician that served as Mayor of Arnhem (Netherlands) from 1910 to 1920, and as Governor of Surinam (a Dutch colony that was and still is problematically unofficially and semi-officially referred to as Dutch Guiana) from 1921 to 1928.

Audrey Hepburn’s mother, Ella, Baroness van Heemstra (Tuesday, 12 June, 1900, to Sunday, 26 August, 1984), was a Dutch aristocrat; she was married to Jonkheer (Esquire) Hendrik Gustaaf Adolf Quarles van Ufford (1894–1955); they had two sons, Jonkheer Arnoud Robert Alexander Quarles van Ufford (1920–1979) and Jonkheer Ian Edgar Bruce Quarles van Ufford (1924–2010); she and her husband divorced in 1925.

Audrey Hepburn’s parents married on Friday, 24 September, 1925, at Batavia, on Java Island, in the Dutch East Indies (modern-day Indonesia following World War II), but ended up divorcing on Saturday, 24 June, 1939, after her mother caught her father in bed with the nanny that took care of Audrey Hepburn and her two half-brothers.

On Tuesday, 7 September, 1971, Audrey Hepburn’s mother was named the Dame of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, also referred to as the Order of St. John, by Queen Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; born on Wednesday, 21 April, 1926) for her volunteer work for American soldiers that had returned from Vietnam (officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam).

Relationships and Marriages

Audrey Hepburn was known to have been involved in relationships that were both confirmed and unconfirmed before her three marriages.

The first confirmed relationship was with James Hanson (James Edward, Baron Hanson; born Friday, 20 January, 1922; died on Monday, 1 November, 2004), who was an English Conservative industrialist; they were engaged to be married until Audrey Hepburn saw that she was not ready to marry after having her wedding dress fitted and wedding date set.

Audrey Hepburn’s somewhat first and last unconfirmed relationship was with Gregory Peck (Eldred Gregory Peck; born on Wednesday, 5 April,1916; died on Thursday, 12 June, 2003), during the filming of their 1953 film “Roman Holiday”; they both denied being involved in a relationship, despite Audrey Hepburn had somewhat hinted that they were in a relationship.

After Audrey Hepburn ended her relationship with James Hanson, her second confirmed relationship was with Michael Butler (Friday, 26 November, 1926), who is an American theatrical producer; her relationship with Michael Butler ended a short time after they first confirmed their relationship.

Audrey Hepburn’s third confirmed relationship was with William Holden, (William Franklin Beedle, Junior; born on Wednesday, 17 April, 1918; died on Thursday, 12 November, 1981), who was married to Brenda Marshall (born as Ardis Ankerson on Wednesday, 29 September, 1915; died on Thursday, 30 July, 1992),  whilst being in a confirmed relationship with Audrey Hepburn; Audrey Hepburn broke off the relationship; she broke it off not because of William Holden being married to Brenda Marshall, but because of him revealing that he had undergone a vasectomy.

Audrey Hepburn’s fourth confirmed relationship, who would soon be her future husband and later the father of her only child with him, and fellow “Ondine” co-star was Mel Ferrer (born as Melchor (often incorrectly spelled by some sources as Melchior) Gastón Ferrer on Saturday, 25 August, 1917, until his death of heart failure; died on Monday, 2 June, 2008); they both met at a cocktail party that was hosted by Gregory Peck; it was in the 1954 Broadway drama “Ondine” that made her a star and that earned her a Tony Award (officially Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre) under the category the Best Performance by a Leading Actress; she rehearsed for the role as Ondine after agreeing to take the title role that Mel Ferrer vied her to take; she and Mel Ferrer married on Saturday, 25 September, 1954, and divorced on Thursday, 5 December, 1968.

After Audrey Hepburn’s divorce to Mel Ferrer, her fifth confirmed relationship, who would soon be her future husband and later the father of her only child with him, was Andrea Dotti (Count Andrea Paolo Mario Dotti; born on Friday, 18 March, 1938; died on Sunday, 30 September, 2007); they divorced sometime in 1982 after his countless affairs with younger women.

In 1979, during her later stages of her marriage to Andrea Dotti, Audrey Hepburn’s sixth confirmed relationship was a romantic one with her “Bloodline” co-star Ben Gazzarra (Biagio Anthony Gazzarra; born on Thursday, 28 August, 1930).

In the following year, 1980, despite still being married to Andrea Dotti, Audrey Hepburn’s seventh and last confirmed relationship was with Robert Wolders (born on Monday, 28 September, 1936); both she and Robert Wolders lived together up until her death.

According to Audrey Hepburn during an interview with Barbara Waters (Barbara Jill Waters, commonly goes by the name Gill; born on Wednesday, 25 September, 1929), in 1989, Audrey Hepburn stated that she and Robert Wolders never married, but were formally married, and that her relationship with him are the happiest years of her life.

Children and Miscarriages

Audrey Hepburn was a mother to two children; she would have been a mother to seven children if it had not for her five miscarriages.

The year 1955 would have been the year for Audrey Hepburn on being a first-time mother, but it did not happen after having a miscarriage in March of 1955; both she and Mel Ferrer grieve privately.

In 1959, Audrey Hepburn is pregnant for the second time and is in Mexico (officially called the United Mexican States), riding a horse during a shoot in the film “The Unforgiven”; her fall had broken her back, with four broken vertebrae, torn muscles in her lower back, and a badly sprained foot; she returns back on set with the support of an an orthotist (commonly known as orthopaedic brace, also known as orthotics);  she was pregnant at the time of the fall and was lucky to have not miscarried, but was unlucky shortly after the filming of “The Unforgiven” after tragically finding out that she miscarried for her second time due to being induced by physical and mental stress from the fall; her tragic loss causes her to go into a deep depression, losing weight, and smoking heavily.

Later in 1959, less than six months after her second miscarriage, Audrey Hepburn is pregnant for the third time; hoping that her third pregnancy becomes a successful one, she turns down the films “West Side Story” and “The Cardinal”, including the unproduced Hitchcock (Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, commonly known as Alfred Hitchcock; born on Sunday, 13 August, 1899, to Tuesday, 29 April, 1980)  project “No Bail for the Judge”; her turn downs were a shell-shock to many, especially the unproduced Hitchcock project, but the right move to her and to many others; they were the right move because her hope of having a successful third pregnancy became successful one after giving birth to her first child, on Sunday, 17 July, 1960, in Lucerne, Switzerland (officially called the Swiss Confederation), a healthy baby boy named Sean Hepburn Ferrer; this was Mel Ferrer’s fifth and last child, as he had four other childrenfrom two previous marriages.

In 1965, Audrey Hepburn is pregnant for the fourth time. Having this time not thinking too much of her first two miscarriages after having a successful pregnancy with her first child, she tragically has another miscarriage a month after having find out that she was pregnant.

In 1965, Audrey Hepburn is pregnant for the fourth time. Having this time thinking too much of her first two miscarriages after having a successful pregnancy with her first child, she is disappointed and saddened that she has another miscarriage a month after having find out that she was pregnant.

In 1967, Audrey Hepburn is pregnant for the fifth time; hoping that she will not have a fourth miscarriage, and tries her best to thinking positive, she, once again, is disappointed and saddened that she has another miscarriage.

In mid 1970, after her third miscarriage, Audrey Hepburn is pregnant for the sixth time; hoping that her sixth pregnancy becomes a successful one, she settles down into motherhood; she even goes on to turning down the films “Forty Carats”, “Nicholas”, and “Alexandria” after somewhat retiring from acting and deciding to only act in Rome, Italy (officially called the Italian Republic); her turn downs were not as a shell-shock as her earlier turn downs, but were still a somewhat shell-shock especially; her turn downs and somewhat retirement were, once again, the right move because her hope of having a successful sixth pregnancy became a successful one after giving birth in Caesarean section (often abbreviated to C-section) to her second and last child, on Sunday, 8 February, 1970, in Rome, a healthy baby boy named Luca Hepburn Dotti; this was Andrea Dotti’s first and last child.

In 1974, Audrey Hepburn is pregnant for the seventh and last time. Having this time thinking too much of her four miscarriages, despite having a successful pregnancy with her second and last child, she is disappointed and saddened that she has another miscarriage for the fifth and last time.

Films

Audrey Hepburn began her acting career in 1948; her first film was in an educational travel Dutch film “Nederlands in Zeven Lessen” (Dutch for “Dutch in Seven Lessons”); she played as an air stewardess working for KLM (Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij, Dutch for Royal Dutch Airlines, seldom abbreviated as KLM N.V., the N.V. stands for Naamloze vennootschap, Dutch for Nameless Partnership, or Anonymous Venture); her last film was a 1993 documentary film “Audrey Hepburn: In Her Own Words”.

In 1954, Audrey Hepburn set a record by becoming the very first actress to win three film awards in one year for her a single performance in the film “Roman Holiday” (1953). The three awards were a BAFTA Award (also known as British Academy Film Awards, officially known as the British Academy of Film and Television Arts), a Golden Globe (officially known as Golden Globe Award), and an Oscar (commonly known as The Oscars, or just Oscars, or the Academy Awards, officially known as an Academy Award of Merit); she had also won one more award in the same year, which was a Tony Award (officially known as the Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre) for her role in the eponymous heroine in the 1954 Broadway drama “Ondine”.

Audrey Hepburn also set another record by winning a record three BAFTA Awards for Best British Actress in a Leading Role and another record by remaining one of few people to have won a BAFTA Award, a Golden Globe, an Oscar, a Tony, an Emmy (officially known as Emmy Award), a Grammy (officially known as Grammy Award, originally called Gramophone Award), and a SAG Award (officially known as the Screen Actors Guild Award).

Audrey Hepburn won special awards and honours; she had won a Special Tony Award and also a Cecil Blount DeMille (officially known as the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award, seldom known as the Golden Globe Cecil Blount DeMille Award).

Audrey Hepburn was also honoured for awards; she had one a George Eastman Award, which was given by the George Eastman House, a Golden Plate Award at the Academy of Achievement (sometimes known as the American Academy of Achievement), and a Master Screen Award at the USA Film Festival (seldom known as the United Sates of America Film Festival).

Audrey Hepburn was also honoured for other awards at the Commandeur de L’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (French for Commander of the National French Order of Arts and Letters), New York Film Critics Circle (NYFCC, also known as The Bull Moose Moving Picture Society of the 1934 World’s Fair Bambi (often simply called Bambi Awards, stylised as BAMBI), Film Society of Lincoln Center Gala Tribute, and the Women in Film Crystal + Lucy Awards (the “+” is sometimes replaced with the word “Plus”), by the Women in Film (officially known as the Women in Film and Television International, or Women In Film & Television International, abbreviated as WIFTI).

Audrey Hepburn has also been honoured on the United States postage stamps and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and has been repeatedly recognised for her talent by the AFI (officially known as the American Film Institute), placing her third on its list of the top 100 female stars of all time; they have also placed several of the films she starred in under under the their category AFI’s 100 Years…100 Movies in its AFI 100 Years… series.

Audrey Hepburn is recognised for appearing in the films “Roman Holiday” (1953), “Sabrina” (1954), “War and Peace” (1956), “Love in the Afternoon” (1958), “Green Mansions” (1959), “The Nun’s Story” (1960), “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” (1961), “The Children’s Hour” (1961), “Charade” (1963), “My Fair Lady” (1964), “Two for the Road” (1968), and “Wait until Dark” (1968).

Of all the aforementioned films, “Roman Holiday”, “Sabrina”, “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”, and “My Fair Lady” are considered to be Audrey Hepburn’s most recognised films. Albeit they are considered to be her most recognised films, it is the film “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” that is considered to be her most memorable and identifiable role of her entire film career and a film that the book titled “Enchantment: The Life of Audrey Hepburn”, published by Harmony Books and written by American biographer and theologian Donald Spoto (Saturday, 28 June, 1941), stating on page 204 that she regarded it as one of her most challenging roles, since she was a trait of extraversion–introversion. In other words, she was an introvert required to play an extravert.

Then there are both her films “The Nun’s Story” and “Wait until Dark”; they are considered to be the two most overshadowed films of her entire film career, despite the former film earned her a Best Actress award at both the BAFTA Awards and the New York Film Critics Circle Awards and earning her a Best Actress nomination at both the Oscars and Golden Globes, and also despite the latter film had earned her another Best Actress nomination at both the Oscars and Golden Globes and also at the New York Film Critics Circle Awards.

Humanitarian Career

She began her humanitarian career in 1988 up until her death on Wednesday, 20 January, 1993; she was appointed as the Goodwill Ambassador of the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (now called as the United Nations Children’s Fund, acronymically known as UNICEF).

Death

Audrey Hepburn died in her sleep at her home in Switzerland, on the evening of Wednesday, 20 January, 1993, at 22:00 Central European Time, at 63-years of age of appendix cancer (or appendiceal cancer), a seldom type of disease; her funeral service occurred four days after her death at the parish church of Tolochenaz, in the Canton of Vaud, Morges District, Switzerland; her grave sits atop a hill overlooking the parish of Tolochenaz at a gravesite officially known as the Chemin des Plantèes, but that is commonly known as the Audrey Hepburn Cemetery. In fact, the common name is often mistaken as an official name and has become a very popular tourist attraction.

Websites and Sources

Audrey Hepburn
Audrey Hepburn Bibliography
Audrey Hepburn Filmography
List of Awards and Honours Received by Audrey Hepburn
Black Givenchy Dress of Audrey Hepburn
White Floral Givenchy Dress of Audrey Hepburn
Quotes by Audrey Hepburn
Audrey Hepburn Gallery
Audrey Hepburn Fan Website
Audrey Hepburn Doodles