The true meaning of celebrity

"I'm a personality as well as an actress.  Show me an actress who isn't a personality, and you'll show me a woman who isn't a star." Katharine Hepburn

When we talk about celebrities and personalities today we are usually referring to a television soap star or a contestant from a reality show enjoying their fifteen minutes of fame.  Once upon a time actresses (and actors) were celebrities in the truest sense of the word.  They were larger than life personalities who shone so brilliantly they were called 'stars'.  Katharine Hepburn was one such star of stage and screen with a career that spanned seven decades.  A talented actress who was by far the most decorated actor of her generation with 12 Academy Award nominations for Best Actress and four wins in the category.  She was also nominated for four Emmys.  She died on the 29th of June 2003 at her home in Old Saybrook, Connecticut.  She was 96.

You can hang many labels on Katharine Hepburn: bold, strong, unconventional, independent, determined, adventurous, competitive, private, witty, shrewd, vulnerable, hard-working, courageous, ambitious, athletic, eccentric, complex, driven.  For me, she is a wonderful symbol for all modern woman.  By choosing to live her life her way, she was an early pioneer of the feminist movement.

Katharine was extremely competitive and ambitious.  She quickly learned that to succeed in Hollywood, and to get that fame she craved so much, she would have to "cook it up".  In 1935, having just flopped in 'Sylvia Scarlett', she told the director George Cukor they had to fix her public image in order to make it up to the public.  Katharine would continue to "cook it up", reinventing herself in each decade of her career.

It was a big sacrifice as Katharine didn't enjoy playing by Hollywood rules.  She lived her life the way she wanted, had once lived openly with another woman, had very unfashionable left-wing opinions and was more comfortable wearing men's trousers.  We might not bat an eye at such behaviour now, but in 1930s Hollywood this was considered scandalous!

In contrast to her fierce independence, Katharine dedicated a large part of her life to one man.  That man was Spencer Tracey.  Spencer was a devout Catholic and wouldn't divorce his wife. However, their love lasted 27 years.

In the last few years of her life, she was no longer able to receive fan mail because she was so frail. However, she loved flowers and was happy for fans to send her favourites through a local florist. Even in her latter years she was quite strong in her opinions and was able to state quite categorically which flowers she liked - Casablanca Lilies, also pink roses and small sweetheart roses for her nightstand. She didn't want anything yellow and definitely no carnations!

Katharine Hepburn lived a long and very full life.  Her life wasn't without struggle and she had to work hard for everything she achieved.  The reward was the kind of fame, success and recognition that very few actresses today can lay claim to.  Despite all of this, apparently Katharine died lamenting "I could have accomplished three times as much.  I haven't realised my full potential."  For me, she defines the word 'celebrity'.  She is a true legend and an inspiration.