When I first watched Breakfast at Tiffany’s, I fell in love. I learned the ukulele with the sole goal of learning Moon River. A poster of Holly Golightly with her extendo cigarette in hand and seductive smirk on her face (look at the corresponding page for reference) hangs on my bedroom wall. The fashion, the apartments, the city, the lifestyle, etc., I was enamored with it all. This classic New York fashion flick is the root of my Audrey Hepburn obsession. Ever since her graceful presence flashed onto my screen with technicolor joy and elegant nonchalance, I became fascinated with all things Audrey.
She is the epitome of iconic. Her cat-eye liner and bold eyebrows caused a global revolution. Her acting and modeling talent will forever live on as legendary standards for young individuals. And in the peak of my Audrey obsession, I dove completely in. And that means more than memorizing her filmography on IMDB; I learned her whole life story. And amidst this research, my definition of her became increasingly more complex and describing her as just an actress seemed so feeble in comparison to her other triumphant accomplishments.
During World War II, she survived a Nazi invasion in her hometown. She worked for the Dutch resistance by carrying secret messages in her ballet slippers. She performed in secret ballet shows to raise money for the rebels. At the age of 16, she was a volunteer nurse in a Dutch hospital. And later on in life, she donated all her salaries earned from her later movies to UNICEF, giving back to the organization that aided her when she needed medical relief after the war. She was a hero. Yet, she is continuously identified as just an actress or reduced down to her contribution to the rise of the LBD (little black dress). She was so much more than just a pretty face on the big screen. She was a hero and these actions need to be recognized in addition to her accomplishments in the world of film and fashion. She was an actress, a model, a nurse, a heroine, a survivor. Audrey Hepburn cannot be pinned down to one category. She is indeed an icon, but in so many different realms and in more ways than one.
childs play 