Modern Leading Men & Women Codexery

Rita Moreno

Puerto Rican actress, EGOT winner, and Golden Age star.

Last updated

Rita Moreno

via Wikipedia: Rita Moreno · see source

Rita Moreno is a Puerto Rican actress, dancer, and singer whose career has spanned eight decades.[1] Moreno was the first Hispanic woman to win an Academy Award, for her role in West Side Story (1961).[2] Among performers, Moreno is part of a select group who have collected an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar, and a Tony, a combination known as EGOT.[3]

Key facts and history

Her parents divorced when she was young, and she was raised in Juncos.[4] Her mother moved with her to New York City in 1936, and Moreno later adopted the surname of her first stepfather.[5] She began dancing lessons soon after arriving in New York and had her first Broadway role at age 13 in the 1945 production of Skydrift.[6] She appeared in Singin' in the Rain (1952) and The King and I (1956) before her breakout role as Anita in West Side Story (1961).[2][7][8]

Rosa Dolores Alverío Marcano, later known as Rita Moreno, was born on December 11, 1931, in a Humacao, Puerto Rico hospital.[4] For her portrayal of Anita in West Side Story, Moreno received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the initial Hispanic woman to achieve an Oscar win.[2][9] Cardiologist Leonard Gordon became Moreno's husband in 1965, and their marriage lasted until his death in 2010.[10]

What the cited sources add

The Television Academy notes that Moreno has starred on Broadway and London's West End, appeared in more than 40 feature films, and performed in numerous regional theaters including her one-woman show.[11] Moreno wrapped production on "Eighty for Brady" and "Fast X," where she plays Vin Diesel's grandmother.[11] A Berkeleyside article reports that Moreno's autobiographical show, "Rita Moreno: Life Without Makeup," was created by Berkeley Rep's artistic director Tony Taccone after hours of interviews with Moreno.[12] The same source states that Moreno won her first Broadway role in 1944 at age 13 and quickly moved to Hollywood, where she was typecast as a generic ethnic.[12]

The Guardian review describes Moreno as "vampish, feisty and fun" and notes that her biggest side-hustle next to acting is collecting endless lifetime achievement awards.[13]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Rita Moreno" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Gettell, "SAG Awards 2014: Rita Moreno receives lifetime achievement award", Los Angeles Times, January 18, 2014; "Rita Moreno | Biography, West Side Story, Movies, Oscar, & Facts", Encyclopædia Britannica (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Rita Moreno" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Rita Moreno becomes the first Hispanic woman to win an Oscar", History Channel, September 26, 2019 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Rita Moreno" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "16 stars who are EGOT winners", July 27, 2020; Nicole Lyn Pesce, "Oscars 2014: Bobby Lopez becomes youngest person to get an EGOT with Best Original Song win for 'Let It Go'", Daily News, March 3, 2014 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Rita Moreno" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: ; "Rita Moreno: A Memoir", Celebra (Penguin Group), 2013; filmreference.com blacklisted (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Rita Moreno" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Rita Moreno Says It Was "Spooky" Working Alongside New Anita in "West Side Story"", YouTube, December 1, 2021 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Rita Moreno" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: .; (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Rita Moreno" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go For It—American Masters Season 35, Episode 19 (documentary); ; ; ; ; Schallert, "TV Tempts Crawford' Betty Garrett Ending MGM Pact; "Mother" Set", Los Angeles Times, March 22, 1950 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Rita Moreno" (CC BY-SA 4.0) en.wikipedia.org
  9. Wikipedia, "Rita Moreno" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Rita Moreno fan site" (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  10. Wikipedia, "Rita Moreno" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Leonard Isadore Gordon Obituary", Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2010; Brunati, "Who Is Rita Moreno's Husband? Get to Know the 'West Side Story' Star's Late Spouse Leonard Gordon", Closer Weekly, December 11, 2019; Johnson, "Review: 'Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go for It' a feisty documentary that matches its fascinating subject", Datebook, June 15, 2021; Guthrie, "Rita Moreno reflects on her remarkable career", SFGATE, 18 September 2011; "Gordon, Leonard", San Francisco Chronicle, February 2026; "Leonard Isadore Gordon", Los Ange en.wikipedia.org
  11. "Rita Moreno", Television Academy. facts only, no text reused. emmys.com
  12. "Rita Moreno's life laid bare in 'Life without Makeup'", Berkeleyside, September 8, 2011. facts only, no text reused. berkeleyside.com
  13. "Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go For It review – vampish and sharp as a stiletto", The Guardian, December 2021. facts only, no text reused. theguardian.com

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Rita Moreno (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

More in Modern Leading Men & Women

Olivia ColmanOssie DavisPatricia ArquettePatricia HeatonPeter DinklagePhilip Seymour HoffmanRachel WeiszReese WitherspoonRegina KingRobert Downey Jr.Rose McGowanRuby Dee

Sources

Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

Spotted an error? Know more?

Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced

Comments

Loading…
Open in the interactive codex →