Austrian and American actress Hedy Lamarr (1914-2000) went down in world history not only as one of the most famous actresses of her time, but also as a scientist. She also won the palm in the scientific field, patenting the technology that marked the beginning of the Wi-Fi era.
Hedwig Eva Maria Kiesler was born at the beginning of the First World War in Vienna. As the daughter of wealthy parents, she escaped many of the hardships of the war years. Her family belonged to the highest social circles, and everything around her contributed to the development of her future popularity. Hedwig was interested in the noble arts, was educated at a theater school, and at the age of 16 left her family to pursue a career as an actress.
Filming
The young film star made her debut in the film “Girl in a Nightclub” (1930). However, the film with the flashy title “Ecstasy” gave her the greatest popularity. Filmed in 1933, it caused a lot of noise and managed to get on the list of films banned from showing. The reason for this is the bathing scene. In the same year, she married weapons manufacturer and owner of millions Fritz Mandl. It is interesting that he tried to buy out all the existing copies of the scandalous film with the participation of his wife that were available in Vienna at that time. He also forbade her to act in films. And although their marriage did not last long, this ban became fateful in Hedwig’s life.
After the breakup, Frau Mandl moved to America, where he signed a contract with Louis Mayer, who founded the MGM film studio. On his advice, she takes a pseudonym so as not to evoke associations with the image of the girl from Ecstasy. In total, during her career, Lamarr took part in the filming of 31 films, in each of which she played the role of a fatal beauty, which she was in life.
Who is Hedy Lamarr and what is she famous for?
Monday, November 9, marks the 101st anniversary of the birth of the famous Hollywood actress Hedy Lamarr . She became famous not only for her role in the first erotic film, but also for her contribution to the world of torpedo construction.
AiF.ru tells who Hedy Lamarr was and what she became famous for.
Hedy Lamarr (real name Hedwig Eva Maria Kiesler ) was born on November 9, 1914 into a Jewish family in the capital of Austria, Vienna. Mother was a pianist, father was a banker. The girl grew up as a difficult teenager; at the age of 16 she decided to run away from home.
Article on the topic
Silent images. 5 Russian silent film actresses
Relatives then predicted a future for her at the panel, but this did not happen. In 1930, Lamarr made her debut in the German film Girl in a Night Club (1930). And just three years later, she wrote her name in the history of world cinema, becoming the first actress to appear completely naked on screen. Her 10-minute scene of swimming in a forest lake in the film “Ecstasy” caused a storm of emotions and made Lamarr a real sex symbol of the 30s and 40s.
That same year, Lamarr married 33-year-old Austrian arms magnate Fritz Mandl, who made a huge fortune shipping his products around the world. Mandl was very jealous and categorically forbade his wife to act in films.
The husband always took the beautiful Lamarr to various important receptions. During them, the actress, in particular, met Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini.
Article on the topic
Lucky or unlucky? All the husbands of Marilyn Monroe Finding herself without her favorite job, the actress began to educate herself out of boredom. She often visited her husband’s production laboratories and tried to understand all the technical intricacies of the process. At that time, work was underway at the Mandla factories to create torpedoes controlled by radio waves. Austrian specialists sought to create underwater projectiles that could operate stably in conditions of interference created by the enemy. Without any special education, Lamarr was able to figure out how to do this. Whether the actress managed to make this discovery herself or whether someone helped her is still a matter of debate.
Not wanting to share her discovery with Hitler and his allies, Lamarr sailed to New York in 1937. On the Normandy ship, the girl signed a contract with the founder of the Metro Golden Mayer studio, Louis Mayer , and at the same time took the pseudonym Hedy Lamarr - in honor of the American film actress Barbara La Mar.
In 1942, Lamarr patented a system for remotely controlling torpedoes using a radio transmission that was very difficult to intercept or jam. It was subsequently used by the US Navy during World War II.
US President Franklin Roosevelt loved her films . He believed that such films helped Americans cope with economic difficulties and overcome the consequences of the Great Depression.
During her life, Lamarr married six times and had three children. On January 19, 2000, the actress, at the age of 86, died in Orlando, Florida. The actress’s ashes, according to her will, were scattered in her homeland in the Vienna Woods.
Barbara La Mare (July 28, 1896 – January 30, 1926) was a legend of American silent cinema, dancer, screenwriter, and became famous as a vamp.
Scientific activity
The actress's first husband moved in high circles. Mandl was so kind to his Hedwig that he even took her to meetings dedicated to discussing military-political issues. Constant presence at such conferences made her knowledgeable in matters relating to weapons. Since acting was banned, Lamarr delved into self-education and, without a technical education, was nevertheless able to put forward a scientific hypothesis, which later found application.
This was a technology that made it possible to effectively control torpedoes using radio frequencies. The fact is that the signal transmitted at a distance to radio-controlled missiles and torpedoes was neutralized by opponents through “jammers.” Hedy Lamarr proposed dividing this signal into several parts and transmitting each of them on different radio frequencies, which would make it possible to resist interference. This technology is called FHSS, also known as the "variable frequency" method, and is now used in modern protocols such as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and also GSM.
Thus, Hedy broke the movie stereotype of herself as a stupid beauty. Inventor's Day, celebrated on November 9 in Austria, Germany and Switzerland, is identified with her name.
Career development
In 1930, the aspiring actress was able to get a small role (a girl at a table in a nightclub) in the romantic comedy Money on the Street for a fee of $5. A year later, she appeared in the comedy film “Storm in a Glass,” the premiere of which was timed to coincide with the opening of the Sascha-Filmpallast cinema in Vienna, as well as in the satirical film “Mr. O.F.’s Luggage.”
Hedy Lamarr's height is 170 cm
At that time, a talented debutante with an impeccable appearance impressed the famous director and head of the capital's German Theater Max Reinhardt. He invited Hedy to Berlin and gave her drama lessons.
In 1932, the girl was entrusted with playing the main role in the film “Money Can’t Buy Happiness,” where her colleagues on the set were the stars of those years - Hans Moser and Heinz Rühmann. But she gained worldwide fame a year later, with the release of the sensational melodrama with elements of eroticism “Ecstasy.”
Hedy Lamarr in the movie "Money Can't Buy Happiness"
For the first time in the history of cinema, a “nude” scene was shown on the screen - the heroine Hedy swam naked in the lake. The public and the church condemned the picture. Authorities in a number of countries have banned its showing. Nevertheless, at the Venice Film Festival the film was awarded the Cup for Best Director, and was subsequently included in the Top 10 most famous Czechoslovak film works of the pre-war period.
In 1937, the girl ran away from her millionaire husband to Paris, received a divorce and went to London, where she met Louis Barth Mayer, the founder of the MGM film studio.
Mayer considered her a "delightful brunette" and "the most beautiful woman in the world" and offered her a contract for $125 a week. The young, but far from stupid beauty rejected him. But then, finding herself on the same ship with him heading to New York, Hedy managed to get a more profitable contract - for $500 a week. Then, on the advice of a film producer and his wife Margaret, a fan of silent film legend Barbara La Marr, she decided to change her name to the pseudonym Lamarr in order to distance herself from the reputation of “that same lady from Ecstasy.”
The actress's debut in American cinema took place in 1938. She played the role of the lover of the main character Pepe (actor Charles Boyer) in the drama "Algiers". Critics called this film a source of inspiration for the screenwriters of the famous film “Casablanca”. Subsequently, her career took off dizzyingly and brought in fabulous fees of $30 million.
Hedy Lamarr in the movie "Algiers"
In 1939, the film “Lady from the Tropics” was released, where she played the key role of Manon, and her partner was the most popular actor Robert Taylor in the role of Bill. Then she starred with the “King of Hollywood” Clark Gable in the adventure film “Noisy City”, as well as in the comedy drama “Comrade X”. At the same time, the film “I'll Take That Woman” was released, where Hedy again played the central character, and her colleague on the set was the famous Spencer Tracy.
Hedy Lamarr in the movie I'll Take That Woman
In 1941, three films with Lamarr's participation were released: “Come Live with Me,” “Ziegfield Girls” and “H.M. Pulham Esquire.” Her co-stars in these projects were such famous people as James Stewart, Ian Hunter, Judy Garland, Van Heflin. A year later, she appeared in the detective story “Crossroads,” in the comedy “Tortilla Plain,” as well as in the drama “White Cargo,” an adaptation of Ida V. Simonton’s novel “The Devil’s Playground.” This film work is considered the most famous and successful of her films of the MGM era.
Hedy Lamarr in the movie The Devil's Playground
In 1944, the thriller “Risky Experiment” was released. The film actress played the key character Alida, who suffered from the control of an insanely jealous husband (Paul Lucas). In real life, by that time the star was bored with her roles in MGM films, where the directors relied exclusively on her beauty and did not give her the opportunity to fully demonstrate the art of transformation.
Therefore, having played the beautiful Princess Veronica in the last film under the contract, “Her Highness and the Messenger,” she left the studio system for a while, created her own film production company in partnership with the famous producer Jack Chertok, and presented the noir film “The Strange Woman” in 1946. She managed to break out of the role of a sexy beauty and embody the multifaceted, psychologically inspired role of Jenny. Many critics called this work the best in the movie star's career.
Hedy Lamarr in the movie "Strange Woman"
In 1949, the actress played the main character of the historical drama Samson and Delilah, which became her most successful film project of that period. The film turned out to be the highest-grossing film of the year and received two Oscars out of five nominations - for best direction and costume design.
After 1950, the career of the beautiful film star began to decline; she began to appear on screen only occasionally. In 1957, she played in the fantasy film “The History of Humanity”, and a year later the last film with her participation was released - the drama “Female”, where Hedy appeared in the image of an aging actress, fed up with fame.
Hedy Lamarr in the movie "Female"
In his free time from filming, the Hollywood movie star indulged in his favorite hobby - inventions. Her successful experiments included improving traffic lights, protecting the signal of guided torpedoes, optimizing the plane of her lover, aviation pioneer and director Howard Hughes, and her unsuccessful ones included effervescent tablets to create carbonated drinks.
