It dismayed me I began to feel demeaned, that my dignity was on the line. The characters all sounded the same, because I had no idea how these nationalities sounded, but nobody else did either. 'I always had to have an accent, even though I spoke better English than many of the people (who hired me). Mankiewicz at the March on Washington for Freedom and Jobs, Washington DC, August 28, 1963. American singer and actor Sammy Davis Jr (right) sits next to Puerto Rican singer, dancer, and actress Rita Moreno (center), and American film director Joseph L. I could play a Polynesian, East Indian princess, whatever.' She also played Native Americans, Southeast Asians, and of course the Latin spitfire. Any character who had dark skin, I got all those parts. It taught me that I had to find value in myself.' There were occasional career highlights, like a small part in 'Singin' in the Rain,' which gave her the chance to observe Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen in action, and as Tuptim in 1956's 'The King and I,' which she says was 'lovely role.'īut most of the parts were 'embarrassing,' she said. It sent me into psychotherapy, which is one of the smartest things I ever did. She told Variety: 'I was not treated like a serious young actress and that was very hard. She arrived in Hollywood in the days of the 'starlet' and was under contract to MGM, then Fox. She is always busy: If it's not film, 'I do theater, I do television, concerts, I do talks, lectures, I do a lot of fundraising as a performer.'Īt first, she acted under the name Rosita Moreno (taking the surname of one of her stepfathers) and soon became Rita.

'I still feel that way!' she told Variety shortly after the book came out in 2013. In 'Rita Moreno: A Memoir,' she expresses frustration at not working more.

Moreno won an Oscar for her performance in 'West Side Story.' Bettmann Archiveīut she has no intention of resting on her laurels. Oscar winners George Chakiris and Rita Moreno with Rock Hudson, 9th April 1962. She's also received the 2004 Presidential Medal of Freedom, the 2009 National Medal of Arts, 2013 SAG Life Achievement Award, Kennedy Center Honors in 2015, and a Peabody Career Achievement in 2019, to name a few. 11, is one of the few people to win an EGOT: Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony. In the past decade or so, Rita Moreno has received multiple lifetime achievement awards, and would probably receive even more - except that she's too busy working.

Rita moreno young west side story