Maureen O'Hara

Maureen FitzSimons (17 August 1920 - 24 Oct 2015) was an Irish actress, singer and actor who gained fame in Hollywood during the 1940s through 1960s. Her natural redhead was and was well-known for her fiery but sensible heroines, often in Westerns and adventure films. Her talent for stardom was first discovered by the actor Charles Laughton, who brought her to Hollywood and at numerous times she collaborated with director John Ford and longtime friend John Wayne. O'Hara was born in Dublin, Ireland and was raised Catholically. She had aspired since the age of 10 to become an actor. She was trained by the Rathmines Theatre Company from the age of 10 and attended the Abbey Theatre at the age of 14. After passing a screen test, she was rejected. However, Charles Laughton recognized her potential and offered her perform in Alfred Hitchcock's Jamaica Inn in 1939. RKO Pictures gave her a contract. In the years following, she enjoyed an extensive and lucrative career. She was known as "the Queen Of Technicolor". In films such as How Green Was My Valley (1941) (her first collaboration with John Ford), The Black Swan with Tyrone Power (1942), The Spanish Main (1945), Sinbad the Sailor (1947), the Christmas classic Miracle on 34th Street (1947) with John Payne and Natalie Wood, and Comanche Territory (1950). O'Hara first appeared in Rio Grande (1950), together with John Wayne (the actor with whom she is most associated). The Quiet Man (1952), The Wings of Eagles(57), McLintock were the subsequent films. (1963) as well as Big Jake (2001). Many assumed that Wayne and O'Hara were either in an affair or were married because of their strong connection. O'Hara became more maternal as she aged, appearing in films like The Deadly Companions (1961) as well as The Parent Trap(61) and The Rare Breed (1966). O'Hara resigned from the film industry in 1971. She returned to the industry twenty years later, appearing in John Candy (1991).