《瘋狂英語》精選輯:永遠(yuǎn)的奧黛麗·赫本

瘋狂英語精選輯 A Tribute to the Late Great Audrey Hepburn

Her stunning combination of vulnerability, sophistication, elfin beauty and indomitable spirit engaged both men and women alike. But while Audrey Hepburn's loveliness may have gotten her noticed, it was her talent that made her a legend, as well as her heart.

Audrey Hepburn was born in Brussels, Belgium, on May 4, 1929. Although she was the daughter of a Dutch baroness and a wealthy English banker, Audrey had a difficult childhood. Her parents divorced when she was young and Audrey went to live with her mother in the Netherlands. Soon after, the German army invaded Holland. During the Nazi occupation, Audrey's uncle and a cousin were executed for supporting the Resistance and her brother was placed in a labor camp. Her family faced starvation and Audrey suffered from severe anemia, and respiratory problems.

Audrey was sixteen when the occupation ended. She and her mother returned to London, where Audrey earned a ballet scholarship and began dancing in small revues, modeling, and playing bit parts in films. Her big break came when the French novelist Colette discovered her in a crowd and insisted that Hepburn be cast as Gigi in a Broadway adaptation of her novel. In spite of Hepburn's inexperience, audiences and critics alike were captivated by her performance. Subsequently, William Wyler chose her to be the lead in Roman Holiday, opposite Gregory Peck. For her role as Princess Ann, she won the 1953 Academy Award for Best Actress and began a string of box office hits, among them "Sabrina" (1954),"Love in the Afternoon"(1957), and "The Nun's Story"(1959).In "Breakfast at Tiffany's"(1961), her sad, soulful rendition of the movie's theme song, "Moon River", remains a truly indelible moment in the history of film. After winning a fifth and final Oscar nomination for the chilling "Wait Until Dark"(1967), Audrey worked less and devoted more time to her family and various charities. Her longtime marriage to actor Mel Ferrer ended in divorce in 1968. After a second short-lived marriage to an Italian psychiatrist, she settled down with another Dutch actor, Robert Wolders.

Audrey Hepburn became a goodwill ambassador and spokesperson for UNICEF in 1986. Traveling to areas afflicted by famine and devastation, Hepburn worked to raise public awareness of the plight faced by children in times of crises-for example, in Ethiopia during the famine and in war-torn Somalia. Her commitment to improve the welfare of children across the world was intense and genuine. This commitment earned her the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Humanitarian Award from the Congress on Racial Equality.

Soon after her trip to Somalia in 1991, Hepburn was diagnosed with colon cancer and was too ill to accept in person the Screen Actors Guild award for lifetime achievement in 1992.

In 1993, Audrey Hepburn died at the age of 63. She was posthumously awarded the 1993 Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Jean Hershold Humanitarian Award.