Publisher's Synopsis
Rita Hayworth, born Margarita Carmen Cansino, on October 17th, 1918, Brooklyn, New York, U.S., was an actress and dancer. Rita became famous during the '40s, being one of the decade's top stars, going on to appear in 61 movies over 37 years. The media labelled Hayworth "The Love Goddess" after she became a glamorous screen idol, having been the top pin-up girl for GIs during World War II. Rita is well known for her performance in the film noir, Gilda (1946), opposite Glenn Ford, portraying the femme fatale in her first major dramatic role. Fred Astaire, with whom she made 2 films, said Hayworth was his favourite dance partner, her biggest hit having been in the Technicolor musical Cover Girl (1944), with Gene Kelly. Rita was listed as one of the top 25 female movie stars of all time in the American Film Institute's survey, AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars. Hayworth was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease during 1980, which contributed to her death at the age of 68. The publicity given to her illness drew attention to Alzheimer's, which was then little known, having helped to increase public and private funding research into the disease.
