Julie Andrews. Outstanding British actress and singer of the 60s and 70s.
Biographical synthesis
Her real name Julia Elizabeth Wells, was born on October 1 , 1935 , in Walton-on-Thames, Surrey , England . His father Ted Wells was a teacher and his mother Barbara a piano teacher . Much of his family was dedicated to show business, more specifically to the music hall. Thus, when she was just over ten years old, little Julie, who learned ballet at her maternal aunt’s school, began starring in music magazines with her mother and stepfather, singer and actor Ted Andrews, achieving great success among the British audience.
Labor trajectory
In 1954 he managed to debut on Broadway , where he triumphed with the play “The Boyfriend”. Later it would be the star of two well-known musicals, “My fair lady” (interpreting the paper of Eliza Doolittle next to Rex Harrison) and “Camelot”. These theatrical performances would later be performed in the cinema by Audrey Hepburn and Vanessa Redgrave. After achieving success on the New York scene, Julie Andrews made her television debut , starring in some series and starring in a musical telefilm about Cinderella, directed in 1957 by director Ralph Nelson.
The same year that Audrey Hepburn was chosen to play Eliza in “My fair lady” (after rejecting Julie Andrews for her lack of experience as an actress on the big screen), Julie made her film debut with “Mary Poppins” ( 1964 ) , a musical comedy that Disney studios produced with their usual outpouring of fantasy and that made its protagonist a star. The film was a resounding success, earning thirteen Oscar nominations and earning five statuettes, one of them for Julie as best actress. The other nominees for the famous award were Sophia Loren for “Italian Marriage”, Anne Bancroft for “I’m Always Alone”, Kim Stanley for “Sinister plan “andDebbie Reynolds for “Molly Brown Always Afloat”. That same year he also took part in “The Americanization of Emily” ( 1964 ), a commendable film by Arthur Hiller that co-starred with James Garner , James Coburn and Melvyn Douglas . The following year, Julie Andrews obtained another huge artistic triumph with “Smiles and tears” ( 1965 ), a Robert Wise film based on the Oscar Hammerstein and Richard Rodgers musical, which Julie co-starred with Christopher Plummer and Eleanor Parker. She was nominated for an Oscar again, but did not get the statuette, which went to Julie Christie for her role in John Schlesinger’s film “Darling.”
The problem for Julie was that her image as a performer was pigeonholed in these sugary family musicals, valuable in their essence of bonhomie and entertainment for all audiences, encountering a certain critical rejection when she played roles outside the aforementioned genre. Until 1970 , Julie starred in interesting titles such as “Hawaii” ( 1966 ) by George Roy Hill, “Torn Curtain” (1966) by Alfred Hitchcock, “Millie, a modern girl” ( 1967 ), again directed by Roy Hill, ” The Star “( 1968 ) by Robert Wise and” Darling Lili “( 1970 ), a film co-starring Rock Hudson and directed by Blake Edwards. After “Smiles and tears”, the commerciality of Julie Andrews’ films declined considerably, a fact that caused her momentary withdrawal from the big screen in 1970. During this decade she mainly dedicated herself to continuing with her musical shows and intervening on television, presenting a show of his own called “The Julie Andrews Hour.” In the cinema, we could only see her in two productions, both directed by her husband Blake Edwards, “The Tamarind Seed” ( 1974 ) and “10, the perfect woman” ( 1979). For the next several years, this was the keynote in Julie’s career, appearing on rare occasions in film projects, and generally under the direction of Blake Edwards. Thus, we could see her in “SOB” (1981), a film in which she appeared with her breasts exposed, breaking her pristine image, or in “Victor o Victoria” (1982), a film in which the actress offered one of her best performances. , getting a new Oscar nomination. The award would go to Meryl Streep for “Sophie’s Choice.” Where he found greatest success was in the play “Victor o Victoria”, which Julie performed on Broadway since 1995, getting a Tony Award nomination. She also wrote children’s books using her married last name, Julie Edwards. The play, starring the sensual Raquel, would last a little over a month on the bill. In 1999 Julie Andrews was named a Lady of the British Empire.
Personal life
Robert Wise’s “The Star” ( 1968 ) and “Darling Lili” ( 1970 ), a film co-starring Rock Hudson and directed by Blake Edwards , who had been her husband since 1969 . Julie had previously been married to Tony Walton, her childhood boyfriend and costume designer for “Mary Poppins”, whom she had married in 1959 , and later separated in 1967 . In 1998 she had to undergo throat surgery and due to this she had to abandon the interpretations of “Victor o victoria”, being replaced by Raquel Welch.
Awards and decorations
In September 2019, he won the Golden Lion Award for Achievement in Life during the 76th Venice International Film Festival .
Filmography
- 1964 : The Americanization of Emily
- 1964: Mary Poppins – Mary Poppins
- 1965 : The Sound of Music (Smiles and tears – Spain ; The rebel novice – Latin America ) – Fräulein María, María von Trapp.
- 1966 : torn curtain
- 1967 : Millie, a modern girl
- 1968 : Star!
- 1970 : Darling Lili – Lili
- 1974 : The tamarind seed
- 1979 : 10, the perfect woman
- 1981 : (SOB) You are honored bandits
- 1982 : Victor Victoria
- 1983 : My problems with women
- 1986 : This is life!
- 1986: Longing to live
- 1991 : Cin Cin
- 1992 : A fine romance
- 2000 : People with class (Relative values)
- 2001 : Princess by Surprise (The Princess Diaries) – Queen Clarisse Renaldi of Genovia
- 2003 : Eloise at the Plaza
- 2004 : Shrek 2 (voiced by Queen Lillian).
- 2004: The princess diaries 2: Royal engagement – Queen Clarisse Renaldi of Genovia
- 2005 : The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants -Helen
- 2007 : Enchanted (voice).
- 2007: Shrek the Third (voiced by Queen Lillian).
- 2010 : Despicable Me (voice).
- 2010: Shrek Happily Ever After (voice).
- 2010: Tooth Fairy