Audrey Hepburn

A few short years after WWII ended, Audrey Hepburn was discovered in a Monte Carlo hotel lobby by the French novelist Colette to assume the title role in the Broadway production of Gigi. Having barely survived the war in her home in Arnhem, Netherlands, Audrey was forced to give up her dream of being a prima ballerina because she was both too tall and too malnourished from the starvation and deprivation she suffered during the war years. An immediate success as Gigi, Audrey was whisked away to Rome to film Roman Holiday with Gregory Peck. The role of Princess Anne would win her an Oscar for Best Actress, the first of five nominations throughout her career. This book tells the story of Audrey Hepburn, one of only ten actors to win a competitive Oscar, Tony, Emmy, and Grammy. But, in her eyes, possibly the best role of her career was that of Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF. Her first-hand experiences in the Netherlands during WWII uniquely qualified her to relate to children devastated by war and famine and to convincingly advocate on their behalf to some of the most powerful men and women of the 1980s and 1990s.