Anthony Hepburn Research Paper

Audrey Hepburn: More than a Female Actress Audrey Hepburn once said, "People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; never throw out anyone” (qtd. in Connors). Audrey truly lived by this philosophy, she volunteered many years for UNICEF, and encourages all females to live beyond the labels. To truly understand how Audrey Hepburn was a revolutionary figure we have to look at her early life, acting career, and her work for UNICEF. Hepburn was a very influential woman who put others needs before her own.
To begin, Audrey Hepburn was born on May 4, 1929, in Brussels Belgium, to Joseph Victor
Anthony Ruston and Ella Van Heemstra. Audrey was one of three children, she had two brothers, Arnoud Robert
Alexander Quarles Van Ufford, and Ian Edgar Bruce Charles Van Ufford.
When Audrey was young Joseph (father) left and later her parents divorced. Audrey was a little girl when World War II took place. Her family moved from Belgium to Holland because her mother thought they would be safer. Her family swore to stay neutral even though her parents secretly supported the Nazis. The Nazi force invaded Holland even though they wanted to be a neutral country. As a little girl Audrey was very malnourished due to the Nazis cutting off the food supply. Hepburn was a supporter for the resistance and was often times a courier for them.
The resistance was an underground movement durning the war that fought the occupying forces
Rasmussen 2 and Vichy Government. She delivered papers and money to different resistance groups. The resistance used young kids to be their couriers because it was very unlikely for a child to be questioned.
Hepburn raised money for the resistance by putting on little ballet productions for money that she would donate to the resistance (Bibel).
Audrey once said," How shall i sum up my life? I think I have been particularly lucky...
I've always had- how shall i say it? -The prize at the end. My whole life shows that" (qtd in Conners).
As Audrey said her fame and fortune just happened, she never really imagined that she would ever be on broadway or play the main role in many popular movies and tv shows. After the war was over Audrey continued dancing and was being cast in small productions for her ballet.
She was soon discovered and was cast the main role in a broadway production called Gigi.
Audrey was 22 when she got her "big break" on broadway. She was good at ballet but she improved daily and was soon very popular for her acting and dancing (Hepburn Biography).
She starred in multiple popular films some including Roman Holiday (1953), went back to broadway to star in Ondine. She then moved to the big screen filming in Sabrina (1954), the musical Funny
Face with Fred Astaire (1957). She is most well known for her main role in the popular movie
Breakfast at Tiffany's in 1961 , these are just a few of the many movies, tv shows, broadway productions, and musicals that Hepburn starred in.
Finally, Hepburn was always in the spotlight and so when she retired from acting she wanted to take time off with her family. Later she got involved with the United Nations International
Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF). In the late 80's she became a good will ambassador for the UNICEF. She travelled to multiple countries volunteering her time for the cause she loved. She visited over 50 countries a few of which include Central America, Africa, Asia
Rasmussen 3 and South America. While she was in these countries she raised awareness for kids in need. This organization was important to her because she knew all to well what it was like to go without food or the latest toys. She wanted to make sure that no child went hungry because she
knew how hard it was not to have food for long periods of time. Audrey Hepburn was one of fourteen people to receive an EGOT. An EGOT is a special actor or actress who has won an Emmy Award, Grammy Award, Oscar Award, and a Tony award (Bibel). She was also chosen for a special Academy Award for her humanitarian work in
1993, but she did not live long enough to receive her award. She was diagnosed with colon cancer and died on January 20, 1993. There is now a memorial fund at UNICEF in honor of all the donations and work she put towards helping children who aren't as fortunate (Hepburn Biography).
Audrey touched many lives on screen and in person, although her work is done her legacy still lives on.