AUDREY HEPBURN
Welcome to a tribute to award-winning actress and humanitarian Audrey Hepburn, our huckleberry friend and a commanding force of elegance and compassion.


THE PEOPLE
“The best thing to hold onto in life is each other.”
- Audrey Hepburn
PATERNAL GRANDPARENTS
Victor John George Ruston
Paternal Grandfather
12 August 1864 – 1940
Born: Vienna, Austria
Died: London, EnglandAnna Juliana Franziska Carolina Wels Ruston
Paternal Grandmother
23 July 1868 – 1889
Born: Kovarce, Nitriansky kraj, Slovakia
Died: Central Bohemia, Czechia
MATERNAL GRANDPARENTS
Aarnoud Jan Anne Aleid, Baron van Heemstra
Maternal Grandfather
22 July 1871 – 30 December 1957
Born: Vreeland, Netherlands
Died: Oosterbeek, NetherlandsBaronesse Elbrig Willemine Henriette van Asbeck
Maternal Grandmother
15 July 1873 – 28 March 1939
Born: Stad Almelo, Overijssel, Netherlands
Died: Oosterbeek, Gelderland, Netherlands
PARENTS
Joseph Victor Anthony Hepburn-Ruston
Father
21 November 1889 – 16 October 1980
Born: Uzice, Central Bohemia, Czechia
Died: Dublin, IrelandElla, Baroness van Heemstra
Mother
12 June 1900 – 26 August 1984
Born: Velp, Netherlands
Died: Tolochenaz, Vaud, Switzerland
SIBLINGS
Arnoud Robert Alexander Quarles van Ufford
Half-Brother
5 December 1920 – 18 June 1979
Born: Batavia, Indonesia
Died: San Pedro Alcántara, Málaga, Andalucía, SpainIan Edgar Bruce Quarles van Ufford
Half-Brother
27 August 1924 – 27 April 2010
Born: Jakarta, Jakarta, Indonesia
Died: Lima, Callao Region, Peru
UNCLES
Draft.
AUNTS
Draft.
STEPPARENT
Alice Fidelma Walshe Hepburn-Donnelly
Stepmother, second wife of Joseph Victor Anthony Hepburn-Ruston
31 May 1926 - 09 Feb 2019
Born: Carrick-on-Suir, County Tipperary, Ireland
Died: Dublin, County Dublin, Ireland
FIRST MARRIAGE
Melchior Gastón Ferrer, “Mel Ferrer”
First Husband
25 August 1917 – 02 June 2008
Married: 25 Sept 1954; Divorced: 05 Dec 1968
Born: New Jersey, United States
Died: Santa Barbara, California, United StatesSean Hepburn Ferrer
First Son
17 July 1960
Born: Lucerne, Switzerland
SECOND MARRIAGE
Andrea Paolo Mario Dotti
Second Husband
18 March 1938 – 30 September 2007
Married: 18 Jan 1969; Divorced: 21 Sept 1982
Born: Naples, Campania, Italy
Died: Rome, Lazio, ItalyLuca Dotti
Second Son
8 February 1970
Born: Lausanne, Switzerland
PARTNER
Robert Wolders
Soulmate, Spiritual Husband
28 September 1936 – 12 July 2018
Born: South Holland, Netherlands
Died: Malibu, Los Angeles, California, United States
CONFIDANTES / CLOSE FRIENDS
Hubert de Givenchy
Designer, Best Friend and Collaborator
20 February 1927 – 10 March 2018
Born: Beauvais, France
Died: Neuilly-sur-Seine, FranceConstance Emily Salkin, “Connie Wald”
Best Friend
13 August 1916 – 10 November 10
Husband: Jerry Wald, Hollywood Producer
Born: Parkersburg, Wood County, WV, United States
Died: Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California, United StatesDoris Kleiner Brynner
Best Friend
13 August 1931 – January 2025
Ex-Husband: Yul Brynner, Actor
Born: Zagreb, Croatia
Died: SwitzerlandGermaine Hélène Irène Lefebvre, “Capucine”
Best Friend, Actress
6 January 1928 – 17 March 1990
Born: Saint-Raphaël, Var, France
Died: Lausanne, Vaud, Switzerland
GODCHILDREN
Yvonne Audrey
Victoria
LA PAISIBLE
Giovanni
PERSONAL STAFF
Secretaries
Nanny
Maid
Cook
DATED / BOYFRIENDS / LOVERS
Marcel Le Bon
James Hanson, “Jimmy”
Michael Butler
William Holden, “Bill”
Robert Anderson, “Bob”
Albert Finney, “Abby”
Prince Alfonso de Bourbon-Dampierre
Ben Gazzara
FRIENDS FROM TINSELTOWN
Gregory Peck
Elizabeth Taylor
Sophia Loren
Jimmy Stewart
Roger Moore
Blake Edwards
Julie Andrews
Billy Wilder and Audrey Wilder
Deborah Kerr
Ingrid Bergman
Ava Gardner
FRIENDS FROM ITALY
Countess
AGENTS AND PR
Cecil
Jack
Kurt Frings
Henry Rogers
ACTING COACH
Sir Felix Aylmer
Catherine
MAKEUP AND HAIR
Albert do Rossi
His wife
Notes:Joseph: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=763429627180271&id=751779995011901&set=a.751785085011392Andrea: https://www.instagram.com/p/CGult1ODxVB/Remembrance: https://web.archive.org/web/20050609012734/http://www.audrey1.com/articles/index.htmlChildhood: https://www.findmypast.com/blog/discoveries/audrey-hepburn-surnameKent: https://www.the-sun.com/news/8400728/picturesque-village-iconic-hollywood-star-audrey-hepburn-secret/Easy Read: https://www.encyclopedia.com/people/literature-and-arts/film-and-television-biographies/audrey-hepburnHumpty Dumpty Context: https://audreyhepburninblackandwhite.tumblr.com/post/691884862434623488/audrey-hepburn-rightmost-in-the-second-row-inChildhood Photos: https://art-sheep.com/rare-photographs-from-audrey-hepburns-childhood-and-teenage-years/More Childhood with Date: https://www.pressreader.com/uk/kentish-gazette-canterbury-district/20190815/2819216596853141942 - https://art-sheep.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/YoungAudreyHepburn11.jpg__________Other Notes
ACTORS & ACTRESSES
Ingrid Bergman, Deborah Kerr, Elizabeth Taylor, Leslie Caron, Sophia Loren, Gregory Peck, Billy and Audrey Wilder, Jimmy Stewart, Noel Coward, Roger Moore, Peter Ustinov.Jimmy Stewart
https://filmtalk.org/2016/12/08/sean-hepburn-ferrer-talks-about-audrey-hepburn-the-actress-the-mother-the-style-incon-and-the-humanitarian/https://rareaudreyhepburn.com/post/32564265877/audrey-with-jimmy-stewart-mel-ferrer-billyNoel Coward, Roger Moore, Peter Ustinov
https://filmtalk.org/2016/12/08/sean-hepburn-ferrer-talks-about-audrey-hepburn-the-actress-the-mother-the-style-incon-and-the-humanitarian/SERGIO RUSSO
Draft
https://erenow.org/biographies/audrey-hepburn/8.phpNotes Links
https://people.com/parents/audrey-hepburn-son-kids-book-little-audreys-daydream/https://people.com/movies/audrey-hepburn-touching-letter-from-love-of-her-life/https://people.com/movies/audrey-hepburn-photos-from-son/https://people.com/celebrity/audrey-hepburns-son-didnt-know-his-mom-was-a-movie-star/
THE FAVORITE LIST
"I'm afraid I'm pretty dull. I like walking; music, from Bach to Duke Ellington; and reading. Kipling is one of my favorite writers."
- Audrey Hepburn, 1957
ACTORS – Spencer Tracy, Phillipe Noiret, Michael Douglas, Michael Caine, Jeremy Irons
ACTRESSES – Meryl Streep, Michelle Pfeiffer, Cher, Julia Roberts, Raffaella Carrà
“Michelle Pfeiffer, I think she's gorgeous.”
- Audrey Hepburn
The Phil Donahue Show, January 26th, 1990.
"We talked about movies. She told me that Julia Roberts was one of her favorite young actresses."
- Jeffrey Banks, designer and friend
A Tribute to Audrey Hepburn, Winter 1993, People Extra.
“She was for instance a great fan of Raffaella Carrd, an Italian entertainer who, according to Mum, would have become a big star in America.”
- Luca Dotti, her son
Luca Dotti, June 16th, 2015, Audrey at Home: Memories of My Mother's Kitchen, Harper.
"My mother loved Meryl Streep. She loved Michelle Pfeiffer. She looked at these actresses because she felt that they, they all had something special, something unique."
- Sean Hepburn Ferrer, her son
Paul Jon Caña, Audrey Hepburn's Son Says These Hollywood Actresses Remind Him of His Mother, August 7, 2023, Esquire Mag Ph.
FILMS – Cyrano de Bergerac, Prizzi's Honor, The Mission, Witness, E.T., Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, The Princess Bride, Les Enfants du Paradis, Lili
In 1964, she told a journalist that her favorites were Waterloo Bridge, Camille (both versions), Sundays and Cybele.
“Lavender Hill Mob, Les Enfants du Paradis —and Lili.”
- Audrey Hepburn
AH press release, The Playwrights Company, Fall 1953: William Fields, Press Representative, New York.
“She also said she’d seen me three times in the movie Lili.”
- Mel Ferrer, her first husband
Ian Woodward, 1984, Audrey Hepburn, St Martins Press.
“My mother starts jiggling, crying, laughing, loving, killing my hand. At movie’s end — E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial—I have remembered this all my life—she said, ‘This man is not just a director. He’s the best storyteller I have ever experienced!’”
- Luca Dotti, her son
Robert Matzen, September 28, 2021, Warrior: Audrey Hepburn, GoodKnight Books.
TELEVISION – Hart to Hart, L.A. Law, Dynasty (1981 – 1989)
“I had seen nearly every episode of Hart to Hart in French, Italian and Spanish. I loved the show, and maybe that’s one reason why I wanted to do this film (Love Among Thieves) with RJ (Robert Wagner).”
- Audrey Hepburn
Ivor Davis, Wagner Lures Audrey Hepburn Back to Work, February 10th, 1987, pg 53, Star.
FILM ROLE – The Nun’s Story
PERSONAL FILM – Roman Holiday
DIRECTOR – William "Willie" Wyler
“Yes. I really adored so many of them. I don't want to be unfair to anyone, but I think Willy's entitled to that title in my heart. Of all the directors, also, he became so much of a friend.”
- Audrey Hepburn
Stephanie Mansfield, Audrey Hepburn, 11th August 1985, Th Washington Post.
MUSIC – Johann Sebastian Bach, Duke Ellington, Mstislav Rostropovichz, George Shearing, Noël Coward, Julio Iglesias
"… a large collection of long-playing records—from classics, Broadway musicals, to hot jazz.”
- Audrey Hepburn
AH press release, The Playwrights Company, Fall 1953: William Fields, Press Representative, New York.
"I'm afraid I'm pretty dull. I like walking; music, from Bach to Duke Ellington; and reading."
- Audrey Hepburn
Hal Boyle, February 16th, 1957, Audrey Hepburn's Charm Makes All Men Fall in Love with Her, The Courier News.
“Audrey liked well-ordered music. She liked Bach very much, but found it difficult to have music on unless she could sit and listen to it. She loved jazz and George Shearing’s music.”
- Robert Wolders, her partner
Pamela Keogh, January 1st, 2008, What Would Audrey Do?, Aurum Press.
PERFORMER – Michael Jackson
“Nobody knows I'm a Michael Jackson fan.”
- Audrey Hepburn
Cheryl Lavin, Vital Statistics by Audrey Hepburn, November 8th, 1989, pg 106, St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
“It's not like I’m Michael Jackson and have to perform a great dance.”
- Audrey Hepburn
Pat O’Haire & Larry Sutton, Sharing a cup with Hepburn, 2nd Oct 1990, pg 307, Daily News.
SONG – Audrey by Dave Brubeck
"I am thrilled to have the Brubeck C.D. with ‘My Song,’ the ultimate compliment."
- Audrey Hepburn
Doug Ramsey, June 24th, 2013. Take Five: The Public and Private Lives of Paul Desmond, Parkside Publications, Inc.
“My wife listened to that song every night before she went to bed.”
- Andrea Dotti, her second husband
Doug Ramsey, June 24th, 2013. Take Five: The Public and Private Lives of Paul Desmond, Parkside Publications, Inc.
AUTHORS – Rudyard Kipling, Jeffrey Archer, Ken Follett, Graham Greene, Tom Wolfe, Willa Cather, Lawrence Sanders
"... Kipling is one of my favorite writers."
- Audrey Hepburn
Hal Boyle, February 16th, 1957, Audrey Hepburn's Charm Makes All Men Fall in Love with Her, The Courier News.
“Alexander’s (her brother) the original bookworm, and when we were children, he was devoted to Kipling, and I read all Kipling’s books because I wanted to be like him. I followed everything else he read, too. Before I was thirteen, I had read nearly every book by Edgar Wallace and Edward Phillips Oppenheim, who wrote a long series of romantic mysteries about secret international documents, shifty diplomats, and seductive adventuresses… To me as a girl, they had far more appeal than books like Topsy Goes to School.”
- Audrey Hepburn
Ian Woodward, 1984, Audrey Hepburn, St Martins Press.
CHILDHOOD BOOKS – The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling, Heidi by Joanna Spyri
"She spoke of The Secret Garden as one of her favorite books..."
- Robert Wolders, her partner
Barry Paris, Audrey Hepburn, September 1st, 2001, Penguin Publishing Group.
"At the age of nine, her mother gave her a copy of Heidi just before they embarked on a train trip from Holland to Italy. She started it instantly and, by the time she finished, they were in Italy without her having a glimpse of Switzerland."
- Robert Wolders, her partner
Barry Paris, Audrey Hepburn, September 1st, 2001, Penguin Publishing Group.
"... We actually have quite a few good drawings that my mother made during the war. She told us many times that in order to forget hunger, she would stay in bed and read and dream and draw."
- Luca Dotti, her son
Wesley Yiin, Luca Dotti: Food comes in seasons, not cans and boxes, June 29th, 2015, Salon.com.
POETS – Rabindranath Tagore, John Keats
ARTISTS – El Greco, Mary Cassatt, Bob Paul Kane
BALLERINAS – Margot Fonteyn, Anna Pavlova
“I had decided to become a dancer and I was very serious about it, and I wanted to dance solo roles. Pavlova was my ideal.”
- Audrey Hepburn
Ian Woodward, 1984, Audrey Hepburn, St Martins Press.
“I was studying and dreaming of Pavlova and Diaghilev.”
- Audrey Hepburn
Ian Woodward, 1984, Audrey Hepburn, St Martins Press.
“I wanted very much to become a choreographer and Rambert was known for developing young choreographers. So I wanted to be Margot Fonteyn and a choreographer as well.”
- Audrey Hepburn
Wogan (BBC Show), June 10th, 1988.
FRENCH COUTURE – Hubert de Givenchy
ITALIAN COUTURE – Valentino Clemente Ludovico Garavani
READY-TO-WEAR – Ralph Lauren
COSTUME JEWELER – Kenneth Jay Lane
Audrey and Elizabeth Taylor warmly embraced at one of the Academy Award parties. She pointed at one of Elizabeth's largest jewels, "Kenny Lane?"
...
"No, Richard Burton," replied Taylor, and both screamed with laughter.
Barry Paris, Audrey Hepburn, September 1st, 2001, Penguin Publishing Group.
SHOES – Salvador Ferragamo, René Mancini
SUNGLASSES – Oliver Goldsmith (60s, 70s), Christian Dior (80s, 90s)
BALLET FLATS – Capezio, Repetto, Delman in black
“Bundles of these shoes (Capezio) arriving, folded flat, fastened by a rubber band.”
- Sean Hepburn Ferrer, her son
Two Pairs of Leather Ballet Pumps, May 9th, 2018, Christie's.
JEWELRY – Pearls
“Her serious jewelry was pearls, either pearl earrings or the pearl necklace Ferrer had given her, because pearls are warm.”
- Luca Dotti, her son
Laura Jacobs, May 2013, Audrey’s Dolce Vita, Vanity Fair.
“She hated the idea of spending a fortune on diamonds and gold... What she really loved were pearls because of their purity, the fact that they were made by nature.”
- Luca Dotti, her son
A Pair of Cultured Pearl Earrings, May 9th, 2018, Christie's.
PASTA – Spaghetti al Pomodoro
“Her favorite meal was pasta with tomato sauce. This was always everywhere, when she was coming home from a trip. Pasta with tomato sauce may sound easy, but to make it well is difficult, and no two results are always the same. Tomato sauce is not only tomatoes. Maybe with a little bit of potato, or carrot.”
- Luca Dotti, her son
Molly Shea, Potatoes, Passion, and ‘Detox’ Days: Audrey Hepburn's Secrets To A Healthy Life, June 16th, 2015, Yahoo Beauty.
VEGETABLE – Potatoes
“... We did have a yearly feast of caviar in a baked potato.”
- Mel Ferrer, her first husband
Barry Paris, Audrey Hepburn, September 1st, 2001, Penguin Publishing Group.
“Sometimes we tend to forget, she was Dutch, so potatoes were a big, big part of her diet. … [And] her father was Irish. Potatoes for her, they were a sustainable thing.”
- Luca Dotti, her son
Molly Shea, Potatoes, Passion, and ‘Detox’ Days: Audrey Hepburn's Secrets To A Healthy Life, June 16th, 2015, Yahoo Beauty.
“Even if we were to lose everything, we have a garden, we can grow potatoes and eat them."
- Audrey Hepburn
Luca Dotti, June 16th, 2015, Audrey at Home: Memories of My Mother's Kitchen, Harper.
JAM – Cherry
“If she was alone, she had breakfast in bed. I prepared a tray with coffee, milk, toast (sometimes five-grain), her favorite jam-cherry-curls of butter, and I always included a small rose from our garden.”
- Rochita Orunesu, part of the La Paisible family
Luca Dotti, June 16th, 2015, Audrey at Home: Memories of My Mother's Kitchen, Harper.
“For making jam, there were plums, prunes, blackberries, mulberries, quinces, and cherries, both black and red-Mum preferred red cherry jam for breakfast.”
- Luca Dotti, her son
Luca Dotti, June 16th, 2015, Audrey at Home: Memories of My Mother's Kitchen, Harper.
DESSERT – Vanilla Ice Cream with Fudge Sauce
“... Audrey would come to my house and we’d have pasta and vanilla ice cream and fudge sauce. That was our great treat.”
- Doris Brynner, her close friend
Barry Paris, Audrey Hepburn, September 1st, 2001, Penguin Publishing Group.
“… She had an excessive passion for ice cream, which she ate with a greediness worthy of a mischievous little scamp. Her very favorite flavor was vanilla…”
- Luca Dotti, her son
Luca Dotti, June 16th, 2015, Audrey at Home: Memories of My Mother's Kitchen, Harper.
DUTCH DESSERT – Gort met Pruimen
“It’s a wonderful porridge of groats with stewed prunes on it. Maybe you have to grow up with a dessert like that to appreciate it.”
- Audrey Hepburn
Dutch Treats a la Audrey Hepburn, May 20th, 1958, Binghamton Press.
CHOCOLATE – Swiss, Scharffen Berger, Mint
DRINK – J&B Scotch (2 glasses) after 6pm, Chivas Regal Black Label
TEA – Mint
“Pouring herself a cup of mint tea.”
- Michiko Kakutani, author and journalist
Michiko Kakutani, Audrey Hepburn credits directors with her acting success, Sunday, June 15th, 1980, Austin American-Statesman.
FLOWERS – White Tulips, Lily of the Valley
"... We talked about gardening. Her favorite flower was lily of the valley."
- Jeffrey Banks, designer and friend
A Tribute to Audrey Hepburn, Winter 1993, People Extra.
"Her favorite flower the white tulip."
- Luca Dotti, her son
Laura Jacobs, May 2013, Audrey’s Dolce Vita, Vanity Fair.
SEASON – Winter, Spring
“Winter was always to be Audrey's preferred season.”
- Alexander Walker, biographer
Alexander Walker, Audrey: Her Real Story, December 15, 1997, St. Martin's Griffin.
“... Every spring, especially here in Rome, you have this smell of orange blossom in the air. Spring is coming and it was her favorite season. It makes me think of her.”
- Luca Dotti, her son
Laura Jacobs, May 2013, Audrey’s Dolce Vita, Vanity Fair.
COLOR – White, Cyan
“She also takes many objects in her favorite color of white."
- Eleanor Harris, journalist
Eleanor Harris, Audrey Hepburn, Good Housekeeping August 1959.
"Her favorite color was cyan—a light blue."
- Luca Dotti, her son
Laura Jacobs, May 2013, Audrey’s Dolce Vita, Vanity Fair.
CIGARETTE– Wills’ Gold Flake Cigarettes in the 50s, Kent in her later years, Parliament
“In a pastel-colored suite at The Savoy, Audrey Hepburn is relaxing on a large sofa with the help of a generous Scotch and water and a pack of Kent cigarettes.”
- Marilyn Murray Willison, Journalist
Marilyn Murray Willison, Audrey Hepburn – THE DEVINE MISS HEPBURN, Marie Claire.
LINEN – Swiss
CHINA – Limoges
GLASSWARE – Murano
“My linen is Swiss; my china is French, all Limoges, of purest white, because we love white best. Our glassware is mostly Italian, from Murano; dark green heavy glass, and we love them because they fit into our rural home.”
- Audrey Hepburn
Audrey Hepburn, The Secret of My Happiness, Photoplay December 1961.
DECADE – 1980s
LUCKY NUMBER – 55
PUBLIC FIGURES – Gandhi, Dalai Lama
PAST TIMES – Reading, Gardening, Watching movies on television, Listening to music, Walking with her dogs, Shopping at the local supermarket and shopping malls
"Audrey loved supermarkets and shopping malls, because when we were little... we had nothing. Walking into big supermarkets was a treat."
- Robert Wolders, her partner
Lisa Gutierrez, After Audrey, 29th October 1994, pg 25, Democrat and Chronicle.
"That is an important thing because she always said she had a very close relationship with soil. In certain ways, you could say that my mother was a peasant at heart. She loved the garden to see her flowers - but also food - grow."
- Luca Dotti, her son
Wesley Yiin, Luca Dotti: Food comes in seasons, not cans and boxes, June 29th, 2015, Salon.com.
Sources
Jane Wilkie, The Most Exciting New Star of 1953 – Audrey Hepburn, November 1953, Modern Screen Magazine.
Hal Boyle, February 16th, 1957, Audrey Hepburn's Charm Makes All Men Fall in Love with Her, The Courier News.
The Associated Press, December 21st, 1987. Audrey, 58, likes gardening, music, The Clarion-Ledger.
WITS AND GIN
"I love people who make me laugh. I honestly think it's the thing I like most, to laugh. It cures a multitude of ills. It's probably the most important thing in a person."
- Audrey Hepburn, Vanity Fair, May 1991
ROME – Audrey Hepburn has learned to cook in five languages, but her favorite recipes are still those from her native Holland. “The Dutch treat that is a real treat to me is a bowl of good, filling Dutch soup with sausages swimming in it,” she said, closing her eyes like a child recalling remembered goodies.Audrey, who recently has been filming “The Nun’s Story” in Rome, explained that to her and her countrymen the expression “Dutch treat” has nothing to do with who pays the bill. To really “go Dutch” is to do something some very substantial eating.THE PRINCIPAL meal is at night and may start with oysters, mussels, herring or a thick soup. The Dutch pride themselves on heavy meat and chicken dishes, and have a deserved reputation for the best gravies in the world.The cheese course is a ritual with Edam, Leiden, Gouda and Alkmaar among the favorites. Then comes a pudding dessert, fruit and tea or coffee.Audrey is disappointed that her American husband, Mel Ferer, does not share her enthusiasm for the Dutch dessert called Gort met Preinen.When Audrey cooks Dutch style, these are some of her favorite recipes.
GORT MET PRUIMEN
Audrey: “It’s a wonderful porridge of groats with stewed prunes on it. Maybe you have to grow up with a dessert like that to appreciate it.”
GLOSSARY
An alphabetical list of interesting facts about Audrey sourced from interviews, articles, and books.
G - L
G
GARLIC
Audrey used garlic in some of her recipes, even though she was not the biggest fan of it. Her first husband, Mel Ferrer, and her mother, Baroness Ella van Heemstra, were allergic to garlic.
Audrey Hepburn by Barry Paris, Chapter 7: Nights Off for Givenchy (1965-1967)
GODDAUGHTERS
She has two goddaughters from her brother Ian and best friend Doris Brynner’s Victoria. Fun fact: Victoria’s other godparents are Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton.
On the fourth of May 2014, Google Doodle paid tribute to Audrey Hepburn’s 85th birthday.
© Google
Artist Jennifer Hom was selected to work on this project; “Finding the right solution for someone as timeless as Audrey proved a tricky task,” Hom explains in a Google blog post. “Not only was she a classically beautiful actress, she also dedicated her life to philanthropy. I wanted to show both sides of her life’s work.”
H
HERMÈS KELLY
Glenda Bailey, former editor of Harper’s BAZAAR of 19 years, on winning Audrey’s Hermès bag:“I met Audrey twice. She had the most tremendous grace, incredible strength, courage and a real sense of daring. I was fortunate to win a chocolate-brown Hermès Kelly bag of hers at an auction for UNICEF - it’s one of my treasured possessions. I remember when I opened it up for the first time, hidden inside was a pair of her long suede gloves. It was my Cinderella moment. I wear them and love carrying the bag, too.”Glenda Bailey selected Audrey’s granddaughter, Emma Kathleen Hepburn Ferrer, to be on the Harper’s BAZAAR prestigious September cover, 2014. Photographed by Richard Avedon's grandson, Michael Avedon.
I
INTERVIEW SET-UP
On the set of My Fair Lady with Hepburn and Seidenbaum, 1963. Photographed by Bob Willoughby.
“I had a series of set-side talks with Audrey Hepburn. She leaned against a leaning board, one of those diagonal people-props, so as not to rumble a bejeweled Beaton ball gown. I sat below on a folding chair, so as to have a thigh for my notebook. Audrey asked whether it made me uncomfortable to have my subject above me. I said no, then asked whether a tape recorder would make her uncomfortable. It might inhibit her, she allowed; it was constraining enough to see everything being written down.”
- Art Seidenbaum, 1964
INNER FORTRESS
Audrey was a deeply private person; even among good friends and colleagues, she would have a protective wall and draw boundaries of what and what not to share.
The director, Stanley Donen, who worked with Audrey in Funny Face (1957), Charade (1963), and Two for the Road (1967), was drawn to her and tried to be close with her.Stanley Donen: “(Audrey) had polished her personality until it didn’t have a rough spot anywhere. But there was another, hidden part of her persona. With all of her manners, she kept me from getting totally intimate. So, I longed to get closer, to get behind whatever was the invisible but decidedly present barrier between her and the rest of us mere mortal human beings. Something, some unseen screen, was there, holding me back from getting as close as I wanted. That barrier made her all the more desirable. I don’t mean to imply that I thought she was playing a game with me. But she always kept a little part of herself in reserve, which was hers alone, and I couldn’t ever find out what it was, let alone share it with her.”
What Would Audrey Do? by Pamela Keogh, Chapter 3: Zen Audrey, pg. 77-78.
At the height of her career in film, she was a client of the famous Parisian hair salon of Alexandre. He recommended his former assistant, Sergio Russo, when she moved to Rome. They spoke in Italian on various topics of remodeling of the house, gardening, and birds, but never really dove in personally about herself.Sergio Russo: “She was not chatty about her personal feelings. She was British in that way—friendly, kind, but with that reserve of ‘Don’t get too close to me.’”Audrey Hepburn by Barry Paris, Chapter 8: Roman Holiday II (1968-1979)
INTROVERT
"The last thing you want to be in acting is an introvert, which I am. I’ve never loved to perform. Oh, I liked it beforehand – all the preparation – and I liked it afterward, if it went well. But the thing itself is scary!”
- Audrey Hepburn
Parade Magazine, pg. 4, 5th March 1989.
J
JAPANESE WIG COMMERCIALS
Video courtesy by Timeless Audrey.
Since her Hollywood debut in Roman Holiday, Audrey has been highly regarded as a national treasure in Japan. The Japanese wig company, Varie, reached out to her and agreed to pay $100,000 for two days of work shooting video campaigns in Rome. As part of the contract, Varie agreed to her condition that the commercials would never be televised outside of Japan.
JAZZ
She once boasted of having over a hundred records by Brahms and Beethoven, including those by Benny Goodman, Mel Powell, and Jerry Mulligan.“I like jazz best now. It makes me want to move. But I was stiff as a poker as a jazz dancer, always offbeat on the simplest syncopation. That was all gradually broken down. I’m so lucky to be married to Mel Ferrer, who is such a good dancer and adores jazz.”
- Audrey Hepburn, 1956
K
KENNETH JAY LANE
From "Audrey Hepburn: The Personal Collection."
© Christie's.
Audrey loved Kenneth Jay Lane’s four clover crystal earrings so much that she owned a few in different variations. At a film function, Audrey once pointed at the largest piece of jewelry on Elizabeth Taylor.Audrey: "Kenny Lane?"Elizabeth: "No, Richard Burton."And they roared with laughter.
L
LANGUAGES
The first language she learned was French.
In March 7th, 1987 there was an interview where Audrey Hepburn presented the César Award for Best Actor.
Interviewer: “Where did you learn to speak our language (French) so well?”
Audrey: “I don’t know about this. In the end, it was my first language. Because as a child, I don’t know, I directly spoke French. Moreover, I was born in Belgium and then the Dutch, the English came and so on.”Linguist.
Fluent in French, Dutch, English, and Italian. She was able to communicate with some fluency in Spanish and German.Timeline.
1. "For eight formative years (1939 to 1947), I spoke Dutch. My mother is Dutch, my father English, but I was born in Belgium. So I had heard English and Dutch inside our house and French outside," said Audrey.
2. Educated in Kent, England from 1936 to 1939, her primary language was English.
3. The family moved to Holland in 1940. Baroness Ella van Heemstra wanted Audrey to brush up her Dutch quickly so the Nazis won't pick up that Audrey is an British citizen. "I didn't even speak the way other youngsters did. I was all stilted and shy."
4. During Nazi occupation from 1940 to 1945, Audrey had picked up the German language from school. Her mother, Ella, was fluent in the language even before pre-war days.
5. Audrey learned some Italian while filming Roman Holiday. She really became familiar with the language when an Italian cook and nanny, Gina, was hired in the Ferrers household.
6. Mel Ferrer was fluent in French and Spanish, and both bought a home in Madrid, Spain. Her environment propelled her to advance in learning and speaking Spanish.In both marriages at home, Audrey mostly spoke Italian.
"His (Sean) first language is Italian, the language spoken in our home, the language of his nanny and our Italian cook. Mel and I hadn't confused him by trying to make him speak two languages while he was so young."
- Audrey Hepburn, 1963Multitasking Lingual.
A respected columnist named Art Seidenbaum followed Audrey during the filming of My Fair Lady, and he noticed how trilingual the Ferrer household was; Audrey speaks to her son Sean in Italian, her husband in English, and her Yorkie Assam in French.Runs in the Family
Her father, Joseph, is a polyglot, too. “He was highly educated,” says Sean Hepburn Ferrer. “He spoke thirteen languages. He was a beautiful horseman. He knew how to fly a glider. He used to take my mother up in the glider; she remembered it vividly. So he had a sort of dying-aristocracy upbringing. I don’t think he worked very hard in his life but he was a very intelligent man.”Dutch Accent.
“Her Dutch was heavenly, the most palatable I ever heard—the kind spoken prior to the war, learned from her mother and grandfather.”
- Robert Wolders
SIR LAURENCE OLIVIER
Getting ready for the London Premiere of The Nun's Story. July 27, 1959.
Considers Laurence Olivier one of the greatest actors and called him a "talent virtuoso."
LEFT SIDE
Audrey prefers being photographed on her left side. A columnist commented that she couldn't possibly have a bad side. "Oh, I do," she protests. "I mean, I have a better side."
LILI
Lili (1953) Original 1952 U.S. One Sheet Movie Poster
Audrey loved the 1953 film Lili, so much so that she went to see it three times in theater. Unknowingly, the male lead, Mel Ferrer, would become her husband, and the leading lady would compete with her for the Best Actress category at the Oscars. Audrey would end up winning the golden statue.
LIP AUTOGRAPH
Audrey Hepburn's Lipograph auctioned at Sotheby's in 1979.
A collection of nearly a hundred ‘lipographs’ of famous actors and actresses was donated by Felicity Bosanquet to aid the Diamond Jubilee of the Save the Children Fund. Famous lips include Audrey Hepburn (pictured above), Sophia Loren, Sean Connery, Elizabeth Taylor, Marlene Dietrich, Bette Davis, Mae West, Farrah Fawcett, David Bowie, Olivia Newton-John, and Christopher Reeve. The pieces were auctioned off at Sotheby’s on June 18th, 1979, and raised $15,000. The money went to healthcare for children in 50 developing countries.
ARCHIVE
The most invaluable way to discover the real Audrey Hepburn is through her letters, interviews, and articles she wrote herself, including reports from people who knew her.

ARTICLES AND INTERVIEWS
WRITTEN BY AUDREY HEPBURN
MY FURRED AND FEATHERED FRIENDS
A charming story where Audrey describes her experiences working with the animals from work: Felix the monkey and the exotic birds from The Nun’s Story, Ip the muntjac from Green Mansions, as well as her very own Yorkie, Famous. 1959.
AUDREY HEPBURN'S FASHION FORMULA
In Paris, Audrey wrote about her own personal journey with fashion and her guide for wearing and buying clothes. This Week Magazine, November 11th, 1961.
THE SECRET OF MY HAPPINESS
Often private, Audrey shared intimate details of her life with husband Mel Ferrer, her son Sean, her Yorkie Famous, and life in her little cottage in Bürgenstock, Switzerland. Photoplay, December 1961.
FRANKLY AND INTIMATELY
Audrey detailed when she received the call that she had won the role of Eliza Dolittle in the musical My Fair Lady. Woman’s Own, January 30th, 1965.
MY SUCCESS SECRETS
Audrey contributed a piece to the Australian magazine detailing the illustrative journey of her career. New Idea Magazine, pg. 5, July 9th, 1966.
MY FASHION TIPS
At 58 years old, Audrey dots down her golden rules of fashion, what she likes to wear at home, and her beauty secrets. New Idea Magazine, pg. 29, February 20th, 1988.
WRITTEN BY MEL FERRER
THEIR HOMES IN MALIBU AND BEVERLY HILLS
Her first husband, Mel Ferrer, reflected on his life with Audrey and spoke about their homes, the filming of The Unforgiven, and her deer companion. Architectural Digest, pg. 160, March 2006.
WRITTEN BY FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES
EVERYTHING HAPPENS TO AUDREY HEPBURN
Written by Anita Loos, playwriter of Broadway's Gigi, The American Weekly, pg. 11, September 12th, 1954.
AUDREY HEPBURN'S EXQUISITE LEGACY
Written by Peter Bogdanovich, the director of They All Laughed. Premiere 1999.
AUDREY, DARLING
Written by Leslie Caron, an Actress and Friend, Vogue UK, pg. 180, April 1993.
REMEMBERING AUDREY
Written by Bob Willoughby, Photographer, InStyle, pg. 188, June 2002.
INTERVIEWED BY A JOURNALIST
LES CONFIDENCES D'UN COUPLE
An exclusive find from the 4May1929 collection. Conducted in French, the translated one-on-one interview with Audrey and her husband, Mel Ferrer, is a rare and honest insight into their troubled marriage. Lectures D’hui, October 10th, 1964.
AUDREY AT 50
Celebrating the big five-o, Audrey gave an exclusive on her personal style, beauty routine, and her role as Elizabeth Roffe in the thriller Bloodline. Woman’s Own, March 1979.
US INTERVIEW: AUDREY HEPBURN
A two-hour interview where Audrey discussed the war, her parents, her co-stars, her role in UNICEF, and her life with Robert Wolders. US Weekly, October 17th, 1988.
VIDEO CONTENT
DOCUMENTARIES & VIDEO ESSAYS
A list of biographic videos that explore the real-life events of Audrey Hepburn and recommended short videos that analyze a specific segment in her life.
TREASURES
Books and DVDs were the earliest acquisitions of my Audrey Hepburn collection; as years go by, I manage to add unique pieces from her official estate as well as her handwritten letters. I am immensely honored to be the caretaker of these items and to share them with fellow fans and collectors.
CHRISTIE'S
FROM THE OFFICIAL AUDREY HEPBURN ESTATE
LA GRIFFE AUSONI SHOES
The undimmed star of the collection that is protectively stored in my glass cabinet.
EMPORIO ARMANI VEST
A knitwear stitched with floral patterns that was worn on her friend’s birthday.
ENAMEL EARRINGS
Italian earrings with a centered paste with a beige enamel frame.
RED SILK CARNATION
Audrey’s love for flowers holds no bounds; it's one of my sacred treasures.
PHOTOGRAPH BY MILTON H. GREENE
A gelatin silver print from Look, a biweekly magazine that ran from 1937 to 1971.
LOVE IN THE AFTERNOON PHOTOGRAPHS
A series of gelatin silver prints.
LETTERS FROM AUDREY
HANDWRITTEN IN HER USUAL TURQUOISE OR BLUE INK
CONNIE WALD
A Christmas card that she drew for UNICEF addressed to one of her best friends.
LILLIAN GISH
A two-page letter written to her co-star in the western film The Unforgiven.
RENEE JOURDE
Addressed to the salon of Givenchy, the letter is entirely in French.
GARSON KAUIU
Responding to a gift she received from a New York resident.
AUTOGRAPHS
SIGNATURES ON BOOKS, POSTCARDS, AND PHOTOS
ONDINE: A RANDOM HOUSE PLAY
Signed by Audrey Hepburn, Mel Ferrer, and almost the entire cast of the Broadway show.
GARDENS OF THE WORLD: THE ART & PRACTICE OF GARDENING
Signed by Audrey Hepburn and Penelope Hobhouse.
SIGNED PUBLICITY PHOTO
Love in the Afternoon photo signed by Audrey Hepburn and co-star Maurice Chevalier.
SIGNED ARGENTINA POSTCARD
Audrey's portrait by Bud Fraker for Paramount that was signed in the early 50s.
SIGNED POSTCARD
Audrey's portrait by Bud Fraker for Paramount that was signed on Dec 9th, 1991.
Audrey Hepburn's greatest role
By Jimmy Carter
Audrey’s greatest role by Jimmy Carter, Asbury Park Evening Press, 21 Feb 1993, pg. 47.