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Intro

Rita Hayworth was famously crowned Hollywood's "Love Goddess"—a title that became her golden cage. On screen, she was a breathtaking, flame-haired enchantress who could bring an entire room to a standstill with a flip of her hair or a slow pull of a satin glove. Off-screen, she was Margarita Cansino: a shy, quiet, and deeply sensitive woman who spent her life searching for genuine love away from the blinding studio spotlights.

Here is the ultimate look at the complex, breathtaking life of Rita Hayworth.

Backstory

Born Margarita Carmen Cansino in Brooklyn, New York, in 1918, she belonged to a legendary family of Spanish dancers. Her father, Eduardo Cansino, was a strict taskmaster who forced her onto the dance floor by age three. By her early teens, she was her father’s regular dance partner in Mexican casinos, working grueling hours.

She was discovered by a Columbia Pictures executive, but the studio felt she looked "too Mediterranean." To transform her into an American starlet, they changed her name to Rita Hayworth, aggressively raised her low hairline through two years of agonizing electrolysis, and dyed her naturally jet-black hair into her signature, fiery auburn. Her explosive dance sequences and magnetic performance in Gilda (1946) cemented her as one of the greatest icons of the 1940s.

Vitals

AttributeProfile & Data

Height 5' 6"

Weight 115 to 125 lbs (Lean, firm, and extraordinarily toned from dancing)

Measurements 36B - 24 - 36

Body Type Athletic, graceful, lithe, and naturally curvaceous

Looks Cascading auburn hair, high cheekbones, sparkling brown eyes, and a radiant, wide smile

Age Lived to be 68 years old (October 17, 1918 – May 14, 1987), passing away after a long, tragic battle with Alzheimer's disease.