Margarita Carmen Cansino, famously known as Rita Hayworth, was born on October 17, 1918, in Brooklyn.
She would later become a revered s** symbol, starring in iconic films such as Gilda, You Were Never Lovelier, and Separate Tables.
However, beneath her glamorous persona, Hayworth carried deep scars from her childhood, as Barbara Leaming reveals in her poignant biography If This Was Happiness, published in 1989.
Hayworth possessed an exceptional talent for dancing and entertaining.
According to Leaming, her co-star Fred Astaire once remarked, “She learned steps faster than anyone I'd ever known.”
Astaire further added, “I'd show her a routine before lunch.
She'd be back right after lunch and have it down to perfection.
She apparently figured it out in her mind while she was eating.”
Despite her brilliance on stage, there were moments when Hayworth retreated into silence, unable to communicate with those around her.
Perhaps, this was an indication of the underlying trauma she endured during her formative years.
Throughout her life, Hayworth was married five times and engaged in affairs with influential men like Howard Hughes, Victor Mature, David Niven, and Kirk Douglas.
However, these relationships failed to bring her solace.
As Hayworth once famously stated, “Men go to bed with Gilda, but awaken with me.”
Douglas, reflecting on their affair, recalled feeling a profound sense of sadness and loneliness within her that seemed to drag him down.
He confessed, “I had to get away.”
Despite her attempts to escape her past and troubles, Hayworth found herself trapped.
Her second husband, Orson Welles, spoke candidly to Leaming, saying, “You see what she was.
All her life was pain.”
Hayworth's father, Eduardo Cansino, a Spanish-born vaudeville performer, was once a sensation on the stage.
Hayworth's school principal described her as a kind and nurturing girl, but not an exceptional student.
“She did the best she could, which wasn't too good,” the principal remarked.
However, at the age of 12, Hayworth discovered her talent for dance.
In 1931, in desperate need of money, Eduardo decided to revive their family act, the Dancing Cansinos, with his daughter as his partner.
To make her appear older and more “Latin,” Hayworth's dark brown hair was dyed black.
They began performing on the lively floating casinos along the Southern California coast.
As Leaming writes, their earnings were often squandered by Eduardo's addiction to gambling and alcohol.
When they returned empty-handed after a fishing trip, he would punish Hayworth with his fists, always careful not to leave any visible marks for the audience to see.
Hayworth's journey through
