Maureen O’Hara called out sexual harassment in Hollywood in 1945
I always confuse Maureen O’Hara and Deborah Kerr. Both were famous and talented redheads in the Golden Age of Hollywood, but Kerr was Scottish and O’Hara was Irish. O’Hara was one of John Wayne’s favorite actresses, and they did so many films together (and reportedly adored each other in real life). But O’Hara was, I suppose, sort of an outsider with the Hollywood studio system. She was also tough as nails, which is why she spoke out about sexual harassment in Hollywood back in 1945!!! In a recently rediscovered interview, check out with O’Hara had to say:
This was reported in 1945. What a woman
— James Rhodes (@JRhodesPianist) November 4, 2017
She was only 25 years old when she said this:
“I am so upset with it that I am ready to quit Hollywood. It’s got so bad I hate to come to work in the morning. I’m a helpless victim of a Hollywood whispering campaign. Because I don’t let the producer and director kiss me every morning or let them paw me they have spread word around town that I am not a woman — that I am a cold piece of marble statuary. I guess Hollywood won’t consider me as anything except a cold hunk of marble until I divorce my husband, give my baby away and get my name and photograph in all the newspapers. If that’s Hollywood’s idea of being a woman I’m ready to quit now.”
[Via The Daily Mail]
If you’ve ever seen O’Hara’s old movies, you know that she actually has so much chemistry with every one of her leading men. She’s very sexy and fiery and fierce. Back then, the studio system was all-powerful, and studio executives could use and abuse women however they liked. It’s shocking how little has changed. It’s crazy how O’Hara really talked about it back in 1945 though, isn’t it? Yikes.
Studio stills courtesy of IMDB.
Source: Maureen O’Hara called out sexual harassment in Hollywood in 1945
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