Weird. I totally never knew this, but apparently they were married and had a rather tumultuous relationship.
I listen to a film history podcast from time to time called You Must Remember This and they did an entire episode on the couple. Go check it out if you're into the history of Hollywood.
I've known it for years. Since I'm related to him, it allowed me to include Rita Hayworth in my Family Tree. That usually gets a few double-takes when I show it to family members.
shareHe reportedly ended the relationship by telling friends "She bores me", which always made me feel very sorry for Hayworth.
shareYeah, that sucks.
At least according to the podcast I listened to, Rita Hayworth always suffered from low self-esteem and insecurity issues. Apparently the real Rita was not much like her public sex symbol persona that was crafted by films like Gilda. She even said as much when she said, "Men go to bed with Gilda and wake up with me."
I think Orson eventually grew tired of her neediness and lack of self-confidence. Too bad he couldn't foresee that happening before he married her. In any case, it seems that Orson still treated her much better than any of her previous husbands and she pined after him long after the relationship was over and hoped to win him back.
"...it seems that Orson still treated her much better than any of her previous husbands"
Or the subsequent ones. A bunch of rat-bastards, by all accounts. But then her father was by all accounts the worst rat-bastard of them all, she was brought up to take abuse and continued the pattern as an adult. It really is amazing, on screen she radiated the warmth and glow that seemed to come from an inner wellspring of joy, but her life was almost completely unhappy.
And the thing with Hayworth does make me think a bit worse of Welles, but not a lot worse.
I know what Welles cheated on her later in the marriage, and that does make me think worse of him. I never approve of infidelity. But as you say, not just a whole lot worse. I don't think he was a bad guy, and he certainly was a filmmaking legend.
And yeah, it's strange how someone like Hayworth just could not manage to end up with a nice guy who would appreciate her. Like you mentioned, her father apparently treated her very poorly and was abusive, and she just continued to subject herself to abuse later in life. It's hard for me to believe that decent men never showed an interest in her, so it must be that she was just very poor at choosing the right suitors.
BTW speaking of Orson, did you ever see this? If not, then enjoy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fs5YwFONswQ
Thanks for the video, it makes me think a little better of Welles! One of the most sincere celebrity endorsements EVER!
And yeah, Hayworth was a sad person, and it's doubly sad that the deeply flawed Welles was the best chance for happiness she ever had. It really is amazing how she managed to look so sunny onscreen, while she was such a mess inside.
Orson was hilarious and always came across as very genuine with his don't-give-a-fuck attitude.
If you want to learn a little more about Welles, I would highly recommend PBS's American Experience episode on The War of the Worlds. I thought it was very well done. I know it used to be on Netflix and I wouldn't be surprised if Prime has it as well.
I love You Must Remember This podcast. Hope she will make more episodes.
shareJust wanted to let you know in case you missed it; You Must Remember This podcast has started a new season recently.
shareHuge fat sweaty dude with cigar stink got to handle those goods. Life ain't fair.
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