Funeral farewell to actress Vivien Leigh. The inimitable Scarlett O'Hara. Hospital. Shock therapy

Actress Vivien Leigh, one of the greatest performers in the history of cinema, was born on November 5, 1913. Her full name is Vivian Mary Hartley, Lady Olivier. The actress owed her title to her husband, the famous English actor and director Laurence Olivier. Vivien Leigh, whose biography opened another page on the amateur theater stage, is the owner of two of the most prestigious film awards - an Oscar and a Golden Globe, which she received for her performance as Scarlett O'Hara in the film Gone with the Wind, filmed in 1939 , and Blanche DuBois in the 1951 film A Streetcar Named Desire. Being a talented theater actress, Vivien Leigh played the role of Blanche DuBois on the stage of London's West End theater many times.

Film career

The talented actress collaborated for a long time with her husband Laurence Olivier, who directed several films in which she played leading roles. Over the course of a thirty-year career, Vivien performed dozens of roles, including comedies based on the works of Bernard Shaw and dramatic ones based on the plays of the great Shakespeare. Cleopatra, Ophelia, Lady Macbeth, Juliet Capulet - this is not a complete list of characters brilliantly played by the actress.

Health

Vivien Leigh, whose biography had ups and downs, was constantly in a slight state of tension - believing that her extraordinary beauty prevented people from seeing her as a dramatic actress. In addition, the actress was in poor health; her physical suffering became the cause of mental illness. At first she experienced frequently recurring bouts of depression, then melancholy took on a permanent form, and this began to affect her creativity. Nevertheless, Vivien Leigh tried to overcome the difficulties of her existence, and to some extent she succeeded.

Childhood

Vivian Mary Hartley was born in one of the provinces of India, in the small city of Darjeeling. Her father, Hartley Ernest, an Englishman, served in the Indian cavalry as an officer. Mother, Robinson Gertrude, of Irish descent, was involved in charitable and social activities, and in her free time she staged amateur performances. It was on the stage of this improvised theater that Vivian, at the age of three, first performed in front of the public, reciting the poem “Baby Bo Peep.”

The mother tried to instill in her daughter an interest in literature, introducing her to the works of Kipling, Lewis Carroll, and Christian Andersen. The girl was especially interested in the legends and myths of ancient Greece. She sincerely empathized with the heroes of mythology, wished everyone well, and was outraged by the injustice reigning on Olympus.

Monastery

At the age of seven, Vivien Leigh - her biography was then replenished with another page - was sent for some time to the English monastery "Sacred Heart" so that the girl would become familiar with holiness as a way of life. There she became close to Maureen O'Sullivan, who was older and was able to teach her younger friend a lot.

Enrollment in the Academy

Two years later, Vivian moved to Europe, where she entered a comprehensive school. After graduating in 1931, the future actress returned to her parents; by that time they were already living in England. There the girl entered the London Academy of Dramatic Art. Vivien Leigh, whose photo, biography and external parameters were carefully examined upon admission, entered a kind of beauty register.

Marriage

At the end of 1931, Vivienne had a meeting with a certain Herbert Lee Holman, a thirty-year-old lawyer who, as it later turned out, did not like theater. The young people got married a year after they met, on December 20, 1932, were happy, and their daughter Suzanne was born. The young mother devoted a lot of time to work and was rarely at home. My father was also constantly traveling on his lawyer’s business. Suzanne was under the supervision of a nanny. Vivien Leigh always kept a photo of her daughter in a prominent place and looked at the girl for a long time, dreaming of returning home as soon as possible and hugging the child.

Soon she made her film debut. It was the film “Things Are Looking Up,” where the girl played a small cameo role. But nevertheless, the aspiring actress hastened to take the creative pseudonym “Vivien Leigh”, with which she spent her entire life. At the same time, Vivian hired herself an agent, whose duties included concluding contracts, which, however, had not yet existed and were not even planned.

First leading role in the theater

In 1935, Vivien Leigh, whose biography was replenished with a new episode, played in the play “The Mask of Virtue” on the stage of the London Ambassadors Theater. The play on a historical theme was staged by director Maxwell Wray, and Vivien played the main role - street wench Henriette Duquesnoy. The performance created a sensation, newspapers were full of articles containing positive reviews from critics and enthusiastic responses from the sophisticated theater audience of London. Actress Vivien Leigh, whose photos appeared on the front pages of all publications, felt what real popularity was.

However, soon after Vivien Leigh signed a contract with the theater for further cooperation, she had psychological problems. The premiere of the new play failed due to the actress’s inability to communicate with the audience. She lived and played on stage too detached. After some time, everything got better, but Vivien Leigh's popularity declined.

Laurence Olivier

The famous actor first saw Vivien in “The Mask of Virtue”; after the performance he congratulated her, and they soon became friends. Joint filming of the film “Flame over England” brought the young people even closer together. Since Vivien Leigh always kept a photo of her daughter in the most visible place, Olivier immediately realized that his chosen one had a child, but this did not bother him. Thus began a romance that soon ended in marriage.

Producer and Vivienne

At the end of 1937, the actress read the script for the film, based on the novel Gone with the Wind by American writer Margaret Mitchell. She insisted on talking with the film's producer, David Selznick. After this meeting, the producer watched A Yankee in Oxford and Fire Over England, thought about it and decided that Vivien Leigh was a serious contender for the leading role in Gone with the Wind.

Actress Vivien Leigh, whose biography once again took a sharp turn, moved to Los Angeles to be closer to Olivier. David Selznick took advantage of the opportunity and arranged a screen test. In a conversation with his wife, he stated: “Paulette Goddard, Jean Arthur, Joan Bennett and Vivien Leigh are contenders for the role of Scarlett.” Soon Vivian was confirmed as the only performer of the role of the main character.

The actress foresaw that the role of Rhett Butler would not be played by Laurence Olivier, although logically he was the one most suitable for this role. However, as Olivier himself noted, he lacked that gloss in the hero’s appearance, which was simply necessary. And Butler became the famous actor Clark Gable, who had more than enough of this gloss.

"Gone With the Wind"

Work on the film based on Margaret Mitchell's novel began in the fall of 1937, and immediately disagreements arose on the set. Vivienne's explosive character constantly provoked the actress into quarrels with Victor Fleming, the film's director. She never managed to prove that she was right, and this depressed Scarlett. Fleming tried to understand the eccentric actress, but their differences interfered with their work. In the end, some kind of compromise was found, and the situation returned to normal.

To top it all off, Vivienne missed Laurence Olivier, who was in New York at the time. The actress was nervous and couldn’t find a place for herself. In letters to her husband Lee Holman, she complained: “I hate Hollywood, I hate acting in films...”. Nevertheless, Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh quickly found ways to contact, and this not only saved the film, but also brought it into the category of masterpieces of world cinema. Thousands of girls all over the world dreamed of being like Scarlett, boys tried to imitate the image of Butler. Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh no longer crossed paths on film sets, but their duet had already done its job.

“Gone with the Wind” brought Vivien Leigh worldwide fame and glory, but she stated in another interview: “I am not a movie star and will never be one. This is a false life among false values, for the sake of popularity, nothing more. I agree to be an actress, it will last for a long time and , maybe even forever."

The film received ten Oscar awards, one of which was awarded to Vivien Leigh in the Best Actress category.

Personal life

In March 1940, Laurence Olivier's wife, Hollywood actress Jill Esmond, finally gave her consent to the divorce. And Vivien Holman’s husband also decided not to keep his half. Thus, the tension that had been in the air for the last few years disappeared. All four remained good friends. On August 30, 1940, Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier were married in Santa Barbara, California.

"Family" roles

Vivien Leigh, in her naivety, believed that, having become Olivier’s legal wife, she would participate in all of his films, and exclusively in the leading female roles. The first disappointment befell her after the actress auditioned for a role in the film “Rebecca” directed by Alfred Hitchcock and... was not approved. “He doesn’t play sincerely and childishly enough,” that’s what the resume looked like. It turned out that Vivien Leigh could not pull herself together as a performer if Laurence Olivier was not on the set. As a result, the role went to actress Joan Fontaine.

And the Olivier couple met on the set of “Lady Hamilton,” where Vivienne played Emma Hamilton and Lawrence played the role of Horatio Nelson. After this film, the actress received the status of a Hollywood star, which she did not particularly crave, but she had to reconcile.

The film was a huge success all over the world, and for Vivien personally the film became her favorite.

Prime Minister of England

The popularity of "Lady Hamilton" was so high that Winston Churchill organized a screening of the film for Franklin Delano Roosevelt and his entourage, and after viewing he addressed those present: "Gentlemen, the film reflects great events like those in which you took part." The Olivier couple overnight became Churchill's favorites; he looked after them in every possible way, inviting them to all dinner parties and other events. He considered Vivien a role model; for him, the actress was a goddess who had descended from cinematic Olympus, and Vivien Leigh’s husband only complemented his wife’s charm. Churchill remained a faithful admirer of the talent of this couple until his death.

Vivien Leigh, filmography

The actress starred in two dozen films over the course of thirty years; she devoted the rest of her time to the theater. Films with Vivien Leigh are included in the golden fund of world cinema, and the performer herself is awarded a personal Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. It is known that she is not a supporter of such surroundings and has preached modesty all her life. The whole story of Vivien Leigh speaks about this. However, sometimes you have to obey the laws dictated by the reality of the social environment, and most importantly - the popularity and love of the people.

The actress’s role did not lend itself to numerous roles, but Vivien Leigh, whose filmography contains 18 films, is forever inscribed in the annals of cinema.

The most famous roles of the actress in films:

- “Things are going well”, 1935;

- "A Yankee at Oxford", 1938;

- "Gone with the Wind", 1939;

- “Waterloo Bridge”, 1940;

- "Lady Hamilton", 1941;

- "A Streetcar Named Desire", 1951.

External data of the actress

Hollywood's requirements for the appearance of actors and especially actresses are quite strict. There are certain standards that must be followed. Vivien Leigh, whose height, weight and figure parameters fully corresponded to Hollywood standards, never went on a diet or exhausted herself with jogging or other physical exercise. She could lose a little weight if she had to be nervous, but it did not affect her figure in any way.

Actress Vivien Leigh, whose height, weight and waist circumference could become an example or even a standard of female appearance, was the subject of adoration of millions of moviegoers, not only men, but also women. Many girls dreamed of being like their idol in female form. And Vivien Leigh herself, whose height was only 161 centimeters, wanted to be a little taller. Her weight of 53 kilograms suited her quite well, and her waist of 56 centimeters was even a source of pride.

Romeo and Juliet

Vivien and Lawrence formed a creative duo, deciding to work together. However, their first joint production, the classic Shakespearean story they created for the Broadway theater in New York, Romeo and Juliet, was not a success. Critics compared the actress's voice to the voice of a market trader, and called the game "some kind of similarity." Romeo-Lawrence received similar reviews.

Most of the newspaper notes began with the words: “Despite the beauty and youth of Miss Lee and the charm and masculinity of Mr. Olivier, their performance...”. To top the failure, it turned out that the couple invested a significant part of their personal funds into the production, and this money was irretrievably lost. Vivien Leigh chose her subsequent roles more carefully.

Continuation

The disappointed couple left for England. In 1943, Vivien Leigh decided to tour North Africa. The trip took place, and everything went well; the actress traveled through Egypt, Algeria, and Morocco. Then she felt unwell and developed a fever, accompanied by a debilitating cough. I had to spend two weeks in hospital and then return to the UK. In 1944, doctors made a terrible diagnosis - tuberculosis. The form is advanced, chronic, affecting most of the left lung. The operation was no longer possible.

But after Vivienne underwent a course of intensive medical therapy, the disease subsided. In the spring of 1945, the actress returned to work and played one of her most successful roles - Cleopatra in the film "Caesar and Cleopatra" based on the play by Bernard Shaw.

Laurence Olivier did not take part in the work on the film; he never even entered the set. But nevertheless, he supported his wife in every possible way in her aspirations. Vivien felt bad: she was pregnant, she had to hide it, contradictions arose. The actress took out her bad mood on her husband, attacked him almost with her fists, physically attacked him until she fell exhausted to the floor. These emotional breakdowns occurred more and more often. But when, unfortunately, Vivienne had a miscarriage, she instantly came to her senses and found peace of mind.

Knighthood of Olivier

In 1947, Lawrence was knighted at Buckingham Palace. Actress Vivien Leigh, whose biography opened one of its main pages that day, accompanied her husband to the ceremony and was present there from beginning to end. Having become the titled Lady Olivier, the actress rejoiced like a child, because in her life there was no such public recognition, and the popularity of the famous performer of film roles did not appeal to her. Therefore, Vivienne tried to maintain the prestigious title bestowed by the Queen of Great Britain even after her divorce from Lawrence. The couple divorced in 1960, and the actress continued to be Lady Olivier. But to millions of moviegoers she remained known simply as Vivien Leigh. The children that Laurence Olivier dreamed of never appeared, and life for the once happy couple continued as usual.

Tours, performances, filming

In 1948, Laurence Olivier joined the Board of Directors of the Old Vic Theater and, together with his wife, went on a long tour of New Zealand and Australia to raise funds. For six months, the couple successfully performed in various performances, the tour was a smashing success, and everything would have been fine if not for Vivienne’s illness. During attacks, the actress was replaced by an understudy, and she herself tried not to give in to despondency, and she succeeded. Lawrence also noticed how charming his wife was when communicating with the press.

But the relationship between the spouses became increasingly tense, mutual irritation increasingly worried both. One day, Vivien, under the influence of a momentary mood, refused to go on stage. Lawrence flared up and slapped his wife, she was not at all offended and responded in kind, so much so that Olivier flew to the other end of the room. And Vivienne straightened up and, as if nothing had happened, went to play her role, being in a great mood. Then both felt devastated and even refused to give interviews.

England again

Returning to the UK, the couple appeared together in the West End, thereby dispelling rumors of major differences. Vivien and Lawrence played several old plays and added one new one, called Antigone. The actress had long dreamed of trying her hand at the tragedy genre and achieved her participation in the production of Tennessee Williams' play A Streetcar Named Desire. The director was Laurence Olivier.

The public's reaction to the performance was mixed; many were shocked by the obvious allusions to the basest manifestations of human nature, which formed the basis of the production. The debate was heated, with most audiences believing that vice had no place on the British theater stage. Lee and Olivier were extremely upset and puzzled by the way the events surrounding the play unfolded. But, surprisingly, disputes and disagreements provided the theater with tremendous commercial success, and the audience flocked in droves.

Vivien Leigh played more than three hundred times in the play A Streetcar Named Desire, and then the actress received an invitation to participate in the film version of the production. She had to play with the controversial Marlon Brando. The role was exhausting for Vivienne, but she coped with the task brilliantly. Based on the results of her work, the actress received her second Oscar for Best Actress. All films with Vivien Leigh were nominated in one way or another, and she also received other awards.

In the spring of 1967, the actress’s illness worsened, tuberculosis progressed, and treatment did not help. Vivienne passed away in July.

The future star was born in the Indian town of Darjeeling, where his father, a British subject, performed his military duty. Vivien Leigh's mother came from ancient Irish and French families. The mixture of blood gave the girl extraordinary beauty and freed the actress from truly British stiffness.

She was seven when her parents returned to England and sent the girl to the Monastery of the Sacred Heart so that she could receive a decent education and slightly pacify her ardor, which appeared on the carefree Indian beaches. Only after 11 long years of study did she return to her parents’ family.

Lee

She never became a respectable Englishwoman. The influence of an extraordinary dad with extraordinary charisma and acting abilities brought the little girl out of the state of humility instilled in school. She once spent the entire summer holidays with her father, who took her to the races, bought low-cut dresses and showed her off to her friends. Men began to be interested in the girl early, and she became interested in them.

After receiving her education and returning to the family nest, Vivien met the 31-year-old successful lawyer Herbert Lee Holman. He was engaged, but that didn't stop her. A few months later, 18-year-old Vivienne got married. Three years later, looking for something she liked, she became interested in the theater, where she first saw the unusual, too temperamental Romeo for this role - Laurence Olivier.

They say that then she left the performance with the thought of becoming an actress of Olivier’s level and conquering him with her talent.

Opening

Soon Vivienne tried herself on stage in the play “The Mask of Virtue”. The beautiful girl surprised the director quite a bit, showing real talent, a serious attitude to work and a desire to learn even at the first audition. After the premiere, Vivien was called a discovery and recommended to find an agent.

She entered into a contract with director and producer Alexander Korda, taking the first part of her legal husband’s surname, Lee, as a pseudonym. She chose Cord because he was supposed to direct Olivier in Fire Over England. Vivien begged for a role in the film. Korda agreed, but laughed at the aspiring actress’s love, warning her that Olivier loved his wife.

Maybe Olivier loved his wife until he met Vivienne. Later, he admits that the shining emerald eyes of his future lover made him confused and in extraordinary confusion. He had never been attracted to any woman as strongly in his life as he was to the fragile, but so stubborn Vivienne.

At the time of the meeting of both lovers, their other halves and children were waiting at home. Vivienne had a three-year-old daughter, and Larry had recently given birth to a son.

They didn't care. Unearthly love consumed the actors. They begged their spouses for a long time to give them a divorce, but neither Lee Holman nor Mrs. Olivier agreed to create a scandal and break the bonds sacred to England.

They didn't care again. As if in a dream, they ran away from their families and began to live together. Much later, left without Larry, Vivien will torment herself with remorse - after all, she abandoned her only daughter. However, Lee never experienced maternal feelings like that. The child was born immediately after marriage, when the girl was only 19. She placed the baby in the care of her mother, and the only public confirmation of her motherhood occurred during Vivien Leigh’s first interview. Then the three-year-old baby sat on the lap of her already becoming famous mother and played with her cigarette.

Scarlett

In happy love with Olivier, Vivien became pregnant again. But by that time, attacks of mental illness had already begun to manifest themselves. Vivien experienced hyperactivity for several days, followed by a nervous breakdown. She could scream, fall to the floor, punch and kick the floor, tear off her clothes until her strength left her. After the attack, the actress suddenly calmed down and sat silently for a long time, looking at one point. And then she wildly repented for such indecent behavior.

First, Vivien Leigh's fame exploded in England, then in Europe. At home, the actress read the novel Gone with the Wind and asked her agent to find her the role of Scarlett. She understood this character and felt that she would play her as accurately as possible. Such a role was found overseas. To play her, the director, David Selznick, had to appear. The eternal producer of the star, Korda, did not agree to her work in Hollywood for a long time. But by a lucky coincidence, Olivier was filming in the USA, and under the pretext of seeing her beloved, Vivien left for America.

There, of course, auditions took place for a petite brunette with delicate and stern features, Selznick was captivated, and Vivien got that very role. Could she have imagined that the difficult filming would exhaust her and deplete her health so much that by the end of it she would be screaming about hating Hollywood and working in the film industry? The role was difficult, I had to work around the clock, there were no days off. Exhausted Lee began to have seizures again. Some of the crew will even call her behavior manic in their biography. However, this will be refuted: the film’s director will take Vivienne’s side. He will tell you that the actress behaved extremely professionally, and gave herself to the role without reserve.

Blanche

After the release of Gone with the Wind, the whole world learned about Vivien. Admiration came from across the ocean, and the actress’s new successes left much to be desired. Several unsuccessful works, a disastrous performance together with Olivier... A new rise awaited Lee in a new role.

She persuaded the director to play Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire. The verbal blows that Elia Kazan generously gave to his Blanche soon bore fruit: the role was called the most accurate reincarnation, and after filming, Lee complained that she had been Blanche for nine months, and the heroine still lives in her.

This role took a toll on her mental health more than any other. In addition, the actress was diagnosed with tuberculosis of the left lung.

Sick but stubborn, she will courageously and talentedly play in several more projects, but ultimately both illnesses will take their toll. Olivier was tired of the actress’s unstable mental state. Vivien herself was tired of tuberculosis. At first, her husband left her, and after a short time, as if not wanting to live without him, Vivien died in her apartment. Having learned about the death of his beloved, Olivier did not leave his place for several hours. He prayed for forgiveness for all the troubles that happened between them.

Spectators called her “Miss Vitamin B” - such was her cheerful beauty, which evoked a feeling of happiness. She was and still remains one of the most beautiful women in the world, and her Scarlett O'Hara has been laughing and crying victoriously from the screens for more than 60 years. “Once in a generation, a lady appears from whom the entire continent cannot take its eyes off,” said about Vivien Leigh, actor and director Orson Welles.

Vivien Leigh's childhood

Vivian Mary Hartley was born on November 5, 1913 in India, which was then a British colony. Vivienne attracted everyone's attention from early childhood - unusual, exotic, fragile. She was short, with very pale skin, with a characteristic somewhat elongated face, she had a very graceful, slender and, moreover, feminine figure.

Her mother, a devout Catholic, sent her seven-year-old daughter to a convent school, already in England. The girl did not like the monastic asceticism, but it was he who instilled in her a strong will and the ability to move towards her goal. Studying excellently and especially delving into history, music, painting and literature, she eventually received an excellent education. And at the age of 18, decisively overcoming her mother’s resistance, Vivian entered the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.

Immediately after school, Vivian married lawyer Lee Holman, who was 14 years older than her. A year later they had a daughter. Vivienne's birth was difficult and painful. Vivienne's husband and mother were frightened by her daughter's apparent lack of interest in raising a child. The offer to act in films caused her much more delight than the birth of her daughter. She did not remain faithful to her husband for long and, soon after the start of her acting career, the first infidelities began. Her daughter was raised by her grandmother.

She went towards her goal in every possible way. Vivien was a very good psychologist, she could find an approach to different people and in the end she almost always got her way. She had highly developed intuition and foresight. She talked about playing the role of Scarlett and, later, Cleopatra long before the decision to participate was made.

Vivien Leigh's views

Since childhood, Vivien hated being called “lovely” and “beautiful.” She believed that these epithets constrained her and prevented her from embodying the drama of her passions. She was always shy about her hands (she considered her hands too large) and often hid them by crossing her arms and clasping her sides, and later she liked to decorate her fingers with rings and rings, which in her opinion hid the real size of her palm. “The washerwoman’s hands,” that’s what Vivien called them.

Vivian’s friends recommended her for a small role in the film “Things Are Looking Up,” which was released in 1935 and became the actress’s debut on the silver screen. Having hired agent John Giddon, who assured her that her name was not suitable for an actress, and, having rejected the proposed pseudonym "April Morne", she chose her pseudonym "Vivien Leigh". Her first success came when Vivien Leigh played in the play “The Mask of Virtue” in 1935 - the actress received excellent reviews, followed by interviews and articles in newspapers.

Meanwhile, Viaien experienced a real shock - actor Laurence Olivier became her idol both in heart and in art. She went to all his performances, met Larry, and firmly decided to link her destiny with him forever. But the actor was married, Vivienne herself was also married, and at first their relationship remained just sympathy.

with husband Laurence Olivier

Together they went to Hollywood to film the film Fire Over England. Here passionate love broke out, as it turned out for Vivien - until the end of her life. Only six years later they would be able to get a divorce from their halves and get married only in August 1940 in Santa Barbara, with Katharine Hepburn and Ronald Colman as witnesses.

However, even before that, Olivier, who was working in Hollywood on Wuthering Heights, called Vivienne there after learning about an open casting for the role of Scarlett O'Hara in Gone with the Wind. The novel Gone with the Wind was almost a national treasure of the United States. When the message came that a film adaptation of it was being prepared, all of America was watching who would play the main roles in the future film. Almost one and a half thousand actresses, including the most famous Hollywood stars, applied for the role of the main character Scarlett. And when the producer chose the Englishwoman Vivien Leigh, many were overcome by doubts.

Vivien Leigh and Gone with the Wind

Confident, in love with this role, she believed that no one understood Scarlett as much as she did. She promised Margeret Mitchell to embody Scarlett O'Hara as she was in the writer's imagination. Many found common features in the actress and her heroine. And Vivien certainly felt it. She loved her role, she existed in it sincerely. For this role she received an Oscar as best actress (and after that she propped up the door with this statuette so that it would not slam shut).

Numerous performances made Vivien “one of the most outstanding theater actresses. Everyone noted her mobility, variability, comedic gift, her temperament allowed her to play on the verge of a nervous breakdown.” Each role she played undermined her health and mental state; she got used to the role so much that it deprived her of strength and caused a mental disorder.

Every time she played the same role for a long time, which cost her a lot of nervous tension and breakdowns, the created image would not let her go for a long time, she could not even forget the lines of the text. During periods of crisis, the past inevitably made itself felt in unexpected and uncontrollable manifestations.

Scarlett O'Hara in Gone with the Wind

Vivien Leigh's fame on both sides of the Atlantic was unheard of. Films with her participation (for example, the well-known 'Lady Hamilton' and 'Waterloo Bridge') were received with delight. The husband began to treat Vivienne’s success with a degree of irritation and jealousy. Relations in the acting family were not so rosy. The acting couple acted in films together, played on stage together, and from the outside their life looked like a happy fairy tale. But, as in fairy tales, behind the façade of success and joy a cruel drama was brewing.

Vivien Leigh's work

Vivienne refused good offers and lucrative roles in order to be close to Larry and work for their tandem. Olivier did not need their theatrical union to the same extent as Vivienne. For her sake, he did not refuse filming or acting in the theater. The failure of Vivien's film Anna Karenina coincided with the triumph of Olivier's Hamlet and his being awarded the title of knight. This made Vivien feel like just the wife of a famous actor. Vivien often sacrificed her personal creative interests to please Larry and their duet. Because of this, during her lifetime she was often unfairly considered less gifted than Olivier.

Three pregnancies from Olivier ended in miscarriages. This happened in 1942, 1944 and 1956. In 1944, while filming Caesar and Cleopatra, she lost her child for the second time. After this, she began to experience deep depression, which developed into hysteria. Back in 1945, she was diagnosed with pulmonary tuberculosis.

The disease affected the actress’s psyche; fits of madness began, during which Vivienne threw herself at her husband with her fists, and then did not remember anything. She was treated for both tuberculosis and mental illness, including terrible electric shock sessions, but it only got worse. Vivienne was not a very diligent patient; she believed that the best medicine was Larry's love.

When the attacks approached, Vivien organized noisy parties that lasted all night, she forced everyone to play and have fun, wore revealing outfits and flirted with young people. “One of the symptoms of Vivien’s illness was her increased sexuality. At that time, little was known about manic depression. "Vivienne, in a sense, developed her own antidepressant, which took the form of increased sexual activity."

Vivien Leigh's misfortune

From the notes of Jack Merivale (Vivienne’s last love): - “At her parties, she came up with the game “ways to kill a baby.” Participants were asked to imagine some way of getting rid of an unwanted baby. In September, during filming, she suddenly suddenly began shouting at the costume designer, her voice became shrill, and her eyebrows formed an angry line. Vivien was in a manic-depressive state for several weeks. She did not remember later how she behaved or what she did. I asked who she should apologize to.”

Gliddon, agent: “She literally came at me. She didn't scream anymore. But this was even worse. Her voice suddenly became hard and hoarse. But the worst thing was her eyes, their gaze. These were the eyes of a person I didn’t know.” Selznick, director: “Now she attacked me with the fury of a hysteric. She developed a habit of screaming on set, at which point she would suddenly burst into tears."

Tired of hopelessness, Laurence Olivier started an affair with a young actress. On Vivienne’s 45th birthday, he gave his wife a wildly expensive Rolls-Royce and immediately announced a divorce. This was the hardest blow for Vivien Leigh. And even when he left her, deep down she always hoped for his return.


Charles Castle: “It seems to me that until the very hour of her death, Vivien could not believe that Olivier could not be returned.” Peter Highley: “She has learned to appreciate her friends more, especially those who stayed with her after the divorce. She became less detached and began to care about the consequences of her actions."

After her death, it was discovered that doctors, while prescribing her treatment for tuberculosis, prescribed a drug that turned out to cause mental disorders. It turns out that the more she was treated, the more she was destroyed. The actress needed peace, affection, love, and gentle treatment most of all. But that was precisely what she lacked.

Vivien Leigh's disease

And the attacks were very severe - once, in a fit of madness, Vivien even tried to jump out of the plane while moving. Despite her long illness with tuberculosis, Vivien Leigh remained a heavy smoker all her life and could smoke four packs of cigarettes a day.

Only the strong-willed character of a girl from a convent school allowed Vivien to find the strength for many years to smile and joke, to be a good friend to her friends, and to remain a great actress who continues to delight fans of theater and cinema. The actress continued to act in plays, starred in two more films, and received a Tony for her Broadway role in the musical Comrade.

She tried to prove to everyone - and to herself - that she was still young, beautiful, and full of strength. “I’ll play until I’m 90,” she said. But the forces changed. After performances on Broadway, where the actress performed in a musical comedy, she often had to call a doctor. She was brought from the tour to London on a stretcher.

In the last days of May 1967, the attending physician informed Vivien that tuberculosis had invaded both lungs, that the situation was critical and she needed to immediately go to the hospital. Tired of the useless treatment, Vivien refused. And a month and a half later, on July 7, 1967, the greatest actress of the 20th century died.


On July 8, 1967, the stage lights went out for a minute in all London theaters. Actors and spectators honored the memory of the deceased Vivien Leigh with mournful silence. She was just over fifty years old, her talent had not yet dried up, she could also dance on stage and play a tragedy. But evil fate made her life and death a tragedy. The last wind carried Vivien Leigh into the now posthumous glory. The actress's ashes were scattered over the lake at her estate in Tickerage on October 8th of the same year.

Vivien Leigh is tender and vulnerable, beautiful like an angel, illuminated by the light of unearthly tragic love. This is from the myth of the last romantic actress of the twentieth century. But what really?

And Juliet, and Ophelia, and even Margarita Gautier were in Vivien Leigh’s repertoire. However, a completely different heroine brought her worldwide fame: the tough, calculating, tenacious and cheerful Scarlett O’Hara. Maybe because this heroine was much more consistent with the character of the actress herself?

For the time being, fate generously gave Vivien Leigh everything she wanted - be it roles or men - but then also set a considerable price. And the first gift and curse of fate is, of course, Scarlett. From the very beginning, the coincidences here are downright mystical, if you believe in the magic of numbers. Everything revolves around the number thirteen.

Vivien Leigh - Vivian Hartley - was born in 1913, she is thirteen years younger than the author of Gone with the Wind. When Vivian turned thirteen, Mitchell wrote the first sentence of her famous novel. And thirteen years later, Vivian got the role of Scarlett O’Hara and absolutely fit into it, without any shame. Margaret Mitchell seemed to create this charming bitch according to Vivian's standards. Even the details of the biography coincided. Scarlett had French-Irish blood in her veins.

Vivian's father Ernst Hartley is an Englishman, a Yorkshireman, but they say that the Hartley family also had French roots. And Vivian’s mother, Gertrude Yakji, is Irish by birth. Scarlett was raised in the spirit of Catholicism. Gertrude Yakji-Hartley was also a devout Catholic, so Vivian at the age of six entered the school at the Convent of the Sacred Heart (the best in England).

Vivian liked the strict regularity of school life, but she was not deeply religious. Her faith in God, like Scarlett O’Hara’s, is akin to a child’s faith in Santa Claus: if I pray fervently, God will certainly grant my wish. Therefore, as she grew up, Vivian hardly remembered God. (And forty years later, when making her will, to the great chagrin of her believing mother, she ordered the body to be cremated and the ashes scattered over the lake).

The Devil's Dozen and the Good God

The nuns had no idea about the nature of Vivian’s relationship with God and sincerely admired this very beautiful, but so reserved and disciplined, quiet girl. And in the still waters, as you know... One of her classmates later recalled a conversation that took place immediately after Vivian’s seventeenth birthday. The end of school was approaching. — It would be great to become a pilot, wouldn't it? - said friend Vivian. - When I finish school, I will become a great actress.

No subjunctive - “I wish I could become” - I will, and that’s it! Like Scarlett, Vivian had no shadow of a doubt that any of her wishes should - simply must - come true. And there is no man who, if she wants it, would not fall at her feet.

“I will marry him” - 1

The first time Vivian saw Lee Holman was when she was visiting her friends Claire and Hilary Martin in the village of Holcombe. The girls stood at the window, admiring the Dartmoor hunters passing along the street. One of them was especially good - a wonderful seat, as if born in the saddle, a real Englishman and gentleman! "Who is this?" - "Lee Holman." - “I will marry him.”

Lee Holman was courting another girl and was almost engaged to her, but that didn’t stop Vivian. It simply never occurred to her that Lee and the other one might have their own plans and desires. Herbert Lee Holman was formally introduced by Vivian Hartley at a ball given by the South Devon Hunting Society.

And then the novel developed in much the same way as with Scarlett O'Hara and Frank Kennedy: Vivian was so touchingly young, so defenselessly charming with her sweet smile and dimples on her cheeks... In general, Vivian did not even have time to really want Herbert Lee Holman , as I already received.

The wedding took place on December 20, 1932. The groom was thirty-two years old, the bride nineteen. After the wedding, at first everything went according to the rules: a honeymoon in Germany and Austria, a return to London, setting up a house - a mansion in the center of London... Vivian and Lee Holman's daughter Suzanne was born on October 12, 1933. In her diary, Vivian wrote: “A child has appeared - a girl.” And she said to a friend who came to visit her at the Marylebone maternity clinic: “It was all so confusing. I don’t think I’ll be doing this again in the near future.”

And here she finally showed her acting ambitions. After several unsuccessful attempts to get roles in the theater, Vivian found a person who managed to bring her into the desired orbit. In the fall of 1934, she became the first client of John Gliddon, a former actor who opened his own theatrical agency. With his light hand, she began to be called Vivian Lee - her husband’s name was used as a stage name.

Lee Holman was not at all happy about this, but what could he do? Again, everything was going like with Scarlett O'Hara and Frank Kennedy: the husband dreamed of a wife - a domestic cat, and married a cat who walked on her own. Thanks to John Gliddon, Vivian received the role of a young prostitute in the play “The Mask of Virtue”, whom love returns to the path of virtue.

Vivian had almost no experience, her acting technique had not yet been developed, her voice was too weak and high, nevertheless, after the premiere, newspaper headlines announced the “emergence of a new British star” and “the triumph of a young debutante.” The shortcomings of her acting disappeared into a sea of ​​charm; she was charming, natural and very, very beautiful.

By the way, the stage name had to be changed again: Vivian turned into Vivienne. This is how Vivien Leigh’s life in art began—her lawyer husband and little daughter had no place in it. Auditions for roles in the theater, screen tests, photography for fashion magazines and, as was customary in the theatrical environment, light love affairs.

Vivien was an addicted person, religious principles flew away from her like husks, and she did not feel any remorse over fleeting betrayals of her husband: “Since this has happened, there is no need to think about it!” Of course, Vivien attended all the premieres. At this time, the play “Royal Theater” was released at the Lyric Theater. One of the roles was played by twenty-seven-year-old Laurence Olivier.

He seemed smart, handsome, seductive and incredibly sexy. He was married to actress Jill Esmond, who came from an influential theatrical family. “What she couldn’t have, she wanted. What others had, she also sought to get,” Vivian Hartley’s school friend Patsy Queen used to say. She was referring to the story of how Vivian met Lee Holman, but the same thing happened later with Laurence Olivier. “I will marry him,” Vivienne said again. The first glance, the first impression, a burning desire and an instant decision, which is then methodically and steadily implemented - this is what she is all about.

“I will marry him” - 2

If it weren’t for Vivien’s initiatives, her romance with Olivier would most likely have remained just a romance. He had no intention of getting a divorce. Moreover, Olivier and his legal wife decided to have a child to strengthen their marriage. Vivienne knew about this, but she did not consider the child an insurmountable obstacle - she herself had little Suzanne, but this was not a chain that chained her to Lee Holman for the rest of her life! Tarquin, the son of Larry and Jill, was born in mid-August 1936, by which time Olivier’s marriage was already falling apart at the seams because of Vivienne.

In addition, fate once again played into her hands: in the film “Flame over the Island,” Vivienne and Larry were partners. They played so selflessly that Graham Greene (who was a newspaper reviewer at the time) quipped: “Elizabeth Tudor would never have allowed so much hugging and kissing in her presence.”

Vivienne stubbornly followed her line, and Olivier happily followed her lead. “Alex, we have to reveal one big secret,” she told the film’s producer, Alexander Korda. “Larry and I love each other and are going to get married.” “Everyone already knows this secret,” Korda chuckled. At the reception for Tarquin's christening, Jill Esmond received guests alone. It was said that Olivier was busy filming and would appear later.

He appeared... but not alone. “There was a girl with him in trousers and a red jumper,” one guest later recalled. “They didn’t even enter, but stood at the door, and a confused whisper ran through the hall: here you go... Wow... They were together, there was no doubt about it.” After a few minutes they disappeared." Then, however, Olivier returned, without Vivien, but with traces of lipstick on his cheek.

The scandalous behavior of the husband and father, but in the acting community they treated endless romances and infidelities quite leniently, and the guests “showed understanding.” And yet, in telling Korda her great secret, Vivien was clearly wishful thinking. “Getting married” was still a long way off. After filming “Flame over the Island” and the birth of the heir, the Olivier couple went to Capri together. Vivienne immediately invited her husband to go on vacation to Italy. But Lee Holman could not leave London, and Vivien volunteered to accompany a family friend, Oswald Frewen, a typical respectable English gentleman, twice Vivien's age.

It was not difficult to carry it out: once in Rome, Vivien stated that she had always dreamed of seeing Naples, and from Naples to Capri it was just a stone’s throw away... In general, on Capri at the Quisiana Hotel, Vivien and Frewen “quite by accident” met Olivier and Jill Esmond... After Capri, Olivier tried to backtrack again: before Vivien and Frewen had time to return to Rome, a telephone call rang in Vivienne’s room: Olivier, tormented by remorse, asked her not to meet with him for a while.

However, Vivienne did not know how to give up her desires. She pursued Olivier with the same tenacity with which Scarlett pursued Ashley. Throughout the winter of 1936-37, Vivienne, barely having time to wipe off her makeup (she was filming another film) and without going home, ran to watch Olivier in the role of Hamlet. In the spring, “Hamlet” was going to be played in Denmark, at Elsinore Castle, and Vivien did everything to get the role of Ophelia in this performance. Got...

After Hamlet, Twelfth Night is staged at the Old Vic, with Olivier playing the comic Sir Toby Belch and his wife Jill Esmond playing Viola. Vivien Leigh is beside herself: not only is her lover back in the family duet, but such a winning role was given not to her, but to her rival! And Vivienne goes for broke: she demands that Olivier leave his wife and go to her. But he is still not ready to take a decisive step. ..

Road to Scarlett

The year was 1938. Vivien starred in the film “21 Days”. Her partner was again Olivier, and the film was produced by Alexander Korda. Korda never neglected the press, so one evening after work, film critics from London publications were invited to take a ride along the Thames with the film crew. The topic of the day not only in America, but also in Europe at that time was David Selznick’s project - the film adaptation of Gone with the Wind. That evening, those gathered discussed who would play the title roles.

A total of 1,400 candidates applied for Scarlett, and 900 tests were conducted. The ladies were interested in who would get Rhett Butler, and someone jokingly suggested Olivier. Then Vivien Leigh suddenly spoke up: “Larry won’t play Rhett Butler, but I will play Scarlett O’Hara.” Everyone was somewhat taken aback by such impudence. What does she think about herself, this Vivien Leigh? And she was again sure that the desire, her desire, was already a reality.

Fate, or the good God, or whoever is in heaven, will arrange everything in the best possible way, and she will play along with fate as it should. To begin with, Vivienne demanded that her agent Gliddon arrange for her to audition for Selznick. Gliddon recalled that Vivienne was already bound by a contract with Korda. As a result, Vivienne (bypassing Gliddon) acquired an American agent - David S. Selznick's brother Myron. He was also Olivier's American agent. And at the end of 1938, Vivienne and Larry went overseas to conquer Hollywood.

First, Olivier went to America - he was supposed to play Heathcliff in the film adaptation of Emily Brontë's novel Wuthering Heights. Vivien followed him some time later. She didn't have any specific proposals. But Vivien knew that Scarlett was actually waiting for her. She hurried to her, and, of course, to Larry.

By that time, they had already left their previous families and lived together. True, they lived in sin: neither Jill Esmond nor Lee Holman had yet agreed to a divorce. Such adultery could not arouse the approval of respectable Americans, but the couple did not think about it. The introduction of Vivien and Selznick was superbly staged. Scarlett had not yet been found, and filming of Gone with the Wind had already begun.

The first scene filmed was the “Fire of Atlanta”: it was necessary to burn the old scenery of the city left over from previous filming. David Selznick and George Cukor (the film's first director) watched the fire from a tower. And so, when Atlanta was already burning down, Myron Selznick, Olivier and Vivien appeared on the set. “Hello, genius! - Myron shouted. “Meet your Scarlett!” Vivienne stepped forward. Her face was illuminated by the glow of the dying flame, her mink coat fell open, her light silk dress emphasized her incredibly thin waist: “Good evening, Mr. Selznick!” And Selznick realized that fate itself brought him and Vivien together.

Filming took nine months. For nine months, Vivien worked with the same dedication as Scarlett worked, restoring the devastated Tara. Vivienne's relationship with David Selznick became more intense every day. Selznick removed from the script everything that, from his point of view, could reduce the audience's sympathy for the heroine. Vivien fought for every line.

Her nerves were at the limit, more and more often, while explaining to the producer, she broke into a hysterical cry, and then burst into tears. “David would have paid Vivienne a percentage of the net income for Gone with the Wind,” Selznick’s executive director later admitted, “if she had not behaved so disgracefully during filming. This lady with greetings,” And Vivien behaved exactly like Scarlett - she, if something didn’t go her way, turned into an angry fury, she could even throw a vase.

By the way, Scarlett was very intemperate with her tongue. Margaret Mitchell, sparing the feelings of Americans, replaced swear words with dots in the book, and Vivien easily and naturally replaced dots with words. The American group was amazed: such things often came from the lips of this English lady...

Finally, the hard work on the film was completed. America has never known such a triumph, and so far (in 70 years!) not a single film has repeated it. And Vivien Leigh, before the film just a young talented actress among others, immediately rose to unattainable heights. This was the first step into the legend. The premiere screening of Gone with the Wind took place, of course, in Atlanta, and on a grand scale.

When the military cadet band played the Southern anthem “Dixie” and Vivienne burst out: “Oh, they’re playing a melody from our picture!”, the scandal was extinguished by declaring the exclamation a joke. In fact, this act simply once again confirmed Vivienne’s complete compliance with the role she played: Scarlett, when the Duke of Borgia was mentioned in front of her, inquired who it was, and, having learned that the Borgias were Italians, immediately lost all interest in them: “Oh, foreigners ..."

Spending a year in America, portraying a lady of the American South on screen and somehow not paying attention to the fact that “Dixie” is a national treasure... Quite in the spirit of Scarlett, who was not interested in anything that did not directly concern her.

Perfect couple

While the film was being made, Selznick tried by hook or by crook to keep Olivier away from Vivienne. He did not need a scandal at all, and a scandal could not be avoided if it turned out that his Scarlett, having a husband and a little daughter, was openly living with her lover. And the lover also has a wife and a small son... America will not understand.

At the time, major film studios could hold back journalists, and not a word appeared in any newspaper before the premiere. And then the popular weekly Photoplay published an article by Ruth Waterbury about the romantic relationship of Olivier and Vivienne - “Heathcliff” AND “Scarlett”: “They may have to listen to a lot of cruel things about themselves. But most of all they think about each other.

More than about money and career, more than about friends or cruel words, more than about life itself.” This is how the legend of one of the most famous couples of the twentieth century began, the legend of “Larry and Viv.” In 1940, the film “Lady Hamilton” was released, where Olivier and Vivien starred together again - another triumph for Vivien.

By removing the vulgarity of the real Emma Hamilton and adding a romantic flair, she highlighted the main thing: this woman, like Vivien herself, had incredible sex appeal. The result is that Emma Hamilton, played by Vivien Leigh, still captivates men. But an attempt to become Olivier’s partner in another film – Hitchcock’s “Rebecca” – turned out to be a complete failure.

When Vivienne tried to portray a modest, timid girl at the audition, even her favorite director, George Cukor, could not contain his mocking laughter. Before leaving Hollywood, Vivienne managed to star in another film that became a classic, “Waterloo Bridge.” It is a melodramatic love story between an aristocrat and a dancer, and Myra's role did much to establish the latter's image as a romantic actress.

However, the footage where Myra, no longer an innocent girl, but a prostitute who came to the port in search of a client, suddenly meets her “dead” lover, has become a classic. Innocent girls didn't work out well for Vivien, but women with a past trying to bring back the irrevocable were a different matter. Myra is the first step to Blanche DuBois from A Streetcar Named Desire, a role that has become as iconic in Vivienne’s life as Scarlett. But between Scarlett and Blanche DuBois lay a whole life.

In early 1940, both Vivien's husband, Lee Holman, and Lawrence's wife, Jill Esmond, finally filed for divorce. By spring, the divorces were finalized, and both plaintiffs received custody of the children. For Vivienne, separation from her daughter was by no means a tragedy: in her mind, marriage was not associated with either home life or raising children.

Now “Larry-and-Viv” were together not only on screen or on stage, they became the Olivier couple, the Ideal Couple. Beautiful as gods, talented to the point of genius, rich and very famous, in love with each other - all at once! This doesn't happen to ordinary people. It wasn't quite like that for them either.

I don’t want to call this a publicity stunt, but The Ideal Couple is in some way a fairy tale created by Vivien on a completely real-life basis. Olivier was certainly more talented than her as an actor. Or rather, he was a genius, unique, and Vivien was just a very good actress at that time. And she knew and accepted this, and always gave the palm to Larry in professional matters.

But in life, Vivienne was the lead in this couple: she played an impeccable lady, and through her efforts he turned into a socialite. And the point is not only that she softened his rudeness and simplicity, polished his manners. “The king is played by his retinue” - Vivien was both the retinue and the queen who creates the king.

They returned to England - both did not want to stay away from their warring homeland. Their joint theatrical triumph coincided with Victory Day: on May 15, London hosted the premiere of the play based on Thornton Wilder’s play “Breath of Death,” a satirical allegory about humanity’s attempts to survive after the apocalypse.

The director was Olivier, the main role was played by Vivienne. Her Sabina - a soulless beauty, never aging and eternally desired, a chameleon who turns into a maid or a queen - perfectly corresponded to Vivienne herself. The success was amazing, unconditional: constant sell-outs and laudatory reviews in all newspapers. A year before, Olivier, as a director, signed a contract with the Old Vic theater, one of the best in England, which staged mainly classics, and brilliantly produced three premieres during the 1944-45 season.

The Olivier couple's career continued to go uphill. And then NotleyAbby was purchased for life. In the 13th century it was an abbey, then the building became private property. In the mid-40s of the twentieth century, decline and destruction reigned here; Vivien it reminded Tara, plundered by looters. She energetically got down to business, and in a very short time Notley was transformed: a fairy-tale house and a fairy-tale garden, where the Ideal Couple fabulously received guests...

After the performance, the hosts brought the guests to Notley Abbey in two cars. Everyone went to the library, where a light buffet with alcohol was served. The clock was zero forty-five, but the buffet table was followed by a full lunch of several courses. The conversation did not subside for a minute; after coffee (served already at the beginning of four), the guests again went to the library, where new drinks were waiting for them.

It was getting light. Olivier looked tired, Vivienne was fresh and cheerful and invited her old friend Godfrey to take a walk in the garden. He, pretending not to hear, slipped away to his room and fell asleep. It seemed that not even two hours had passed before the maid sent by Vivien appeared. She brought breakfast and an invitation from the hostess to join her for a game of bowls as soon as possible. Entertainment followed one after another (games of croquet, tennis, walks and work in the garden), new guests arrived.

After lunch, Olivier asked for mercy: let one of his friends at home act as host, but he would like to go to work. No such luck: “But, Larry, we haven’t had tea yet!” And then more entertainment, and a late lunch, and table games, and dancing until midnight. “Thank God we can go to bed early tomorrow,” said Olivier, finally released to rest. - “Not tomorrow!” - "Why?" - “Because tomorrow Bee has the opening of Café de Parus, and we promised to go.”

One weekend, the same Godfrey accidentally witnessed such a scene: passing by Olivier’s office, where Vivien had just entered, he looked into the room and saw Olivier sitting with his head in his hands. “I still have ten years of performing, and I should be able to sleep!” - Larry pleaded with his charming and unforgiving wife.

Road to Blanche

You have to pay for everything. And Vivienne began to receive her first bills from fate when all her wishes seemed to come true. In July 1944, while filming Caesar and Cleopatra, she lost her child. Shortly after the miscarriage, she had a nervous breakdown right on the set. Vivien suddenly froze, the features of her face instantly changed, became sharper, and instead of the text prescribed for the role, she began to vilify the costume designer.

Having come to her senses, she did not remember what she had done or said, and asked everyone for forgiveness. Filming had to be interrupted for several weeks, but then Vivienne seemed to have completely recovered. In 1945, a new misfortune occurred: she was diagnosed with open tuberculosis. A year of confinement in Notley Abbey followed. Everything seemed to work out fine, but the year of forced break in Vivienne’s career became a year of rapid growth in Olivier’s career.

The British public's love for Olivier (especially its female part) reached mass hysteria. After the performance, hundreds of girls outside the theater chanted: “We want Larry!” The theater that once brought Larry and Vivien together was now separating them. The theater became its main rival. And she was not happy when Laurence Olivier was knighted in 1947.

Her husband's next triumph acted like a depressant on Vivienne. Vivienne returned to the stage in the fall of 1946. She wanted to play with Olivier, and he was just about to film Hamlet. Naturally, he reserved the main role for himself. And Vivien was already too old for Ophelia, and she indignantly refused the role of queen - Hamlet's mother.

Meanwhile, she really needed success, she needed to prove to the city and the world that she still owned the hearts of the public. And Vivien accepts the offer to star in the film “Anna Karenina.” The director’s interpretation of the role did not coincide with Vivien’s interpretation at all: she wanted to play passion, obsession, tragedy, but romantic love and melodrama were imposed on her. In addition, during filming she experienced another attack of depression. The failure was enormous.

The success of Olivier's film is quite comparable in scale to the failure of Anna Karenina. Olivier finally received his Oscar for Hamlet - until now the only Oscar in the family was Vivien's for Scarlett. When Hamlet was playing in London, the Oliviers and the Old Vic Theater were on tour in Australia.

Olivier included three performances in the tour program, where Vivien had the main roles. She was again Olivier's partner on stage, but now it turned out not to be a joy, but a difficult ordeal. In the eyes of the whole world they were still inseparable, “Larry-and-Viv,” but in fact their paths had already diverged. He was consumed by work, she by illness. In addition, a third stood between them. Thirty-year-old Peter Finch was not yet world famous; only Australia knew him.

He was talented, funny, reckless, very reminiscent of Olivier in his youth, and Vivienne fell in love. The romance began to develop rapidly after the Australian tour, in London, where Finch arrived at Olivier’s invitation with his wife. Olivier had in mind to make Finch Vivien's stage partner. He, of course, could not help but assume that the Australian’s “pirate beauty” would not leave Vivien indifferent, but he did not mind the little affair.

One of the symptoms of Vivienne's illness was increased sexuality. For her, sex became a kind of antidepressant, so Olivier took Finch’s appearance calmly, almost with relief, believing that it did not in the least threaten his and Vivien’s union. However, everything went a little further than Olivier would have liked.

The romance, fading and flaring up again, lasted almost nine years. All these years, Vivienne's mental illness has been gaining momentum. Either retreating, then again taking possession of her victim, she made life for her and those around her similar to life near a sleeping volcano: it’s calm now, but what will happen tomorrow? Back in 1947, after reading Tennessee Williams's play A Streetcar Named Desire, Vivien became “sick” of Blanche in the same way that Scarlett once became “sick.”

And in the same way, she then “fit” into this role without any shame. Blanche DuBois, like Scarlett, is American, Southern, “lady,” incredibly sexually attractive - but with much less strength of character.

Once she had everything, now she has almost nothing left. She has no future, and no strength to live only in the past, and it is impossible to openly face the truth. If Scarlett is a victory, then Blanche is a defeat, and a final one: if the gods want to punish someone, then they deprive him of his mind. The play premiered in London on October 11, 1949. In 1950, a film was made based on this play in Hollywood.

Vivienne's partner in the film was Marlon Brando. Vivien Leigh received her second Oscar for her role as Blanche. According to critics, it was this role that made her a great actress. And the mental and physical stress with which she paid for it would later result in deep depression and morbid delirium: almost a mirror image of the final scene of the film, Blanche's madness.

“I'm not Scarlett! I'm Blanche DuBois!

Despite everything, in the early 50s the Olivier couple still remained the Ideal Couple for the whole world. In 1951, the “Two Cleopatras” project, as they would now say, was a huge success: Larry and Vivien played the leading roles in the plays “Caesar and Cleopatra” by Shaw and “Antony and Cleopatra” by Shakespeare. The plays were performed in London, then Olivier took them on tour to New York. Vivienne's success was followed by another nervous breakdown, depression, electroshock treatment and another renewal of her romance with Peter Finch.

At the beginning of 1953, Vivien Leigh and Peter Finch starred together in Ceylon in the film “The Elephant Trail.” An exotic place, an exotic environment, the proximity of a lover - Vivien was tireless, practically did not sleep, then she began to talk, calling Finch “Larry”, trying to seduce the director...

The real Larry was urgently summoned from England. After spending four days in Ceylon, Olivier returned home with a feeling of amazing indifference to what was happening. And Vivien was getting worse. Filming had to be interrupted and the group returned to Hollywood. When the plane took off from the ground, Vivien began to fight against the window and beg to be let out. Olivier was called again. Before his arrival, Vivien was placed in a rented mansion.

She was already insane, attacks of unmotivated aggressiveness alternated with a depressed state. It is impossible to pump her with tranquilizers and place her in a hospital; the press will immediately get wind that one of the halves of the legendary couple is not herself. Still, I had to call psychiatrists. The nurse, trying to calm Vivienne, began talking to her like a child: “I know who you are. You are Scarlett O'Hara, right?" “I’m not Scarlett O’Hara,” Vivien objected, “I’m Blanche Dubois,” Olivier moved Vivien to England.

A few weeks in the Nitern psychiatric clinic, then in the University College clinic, a course of electroshock therapy, and a calm, rested and rejuvenated hostess returned to Notley Abbey. Olivier looked at her and realized that there was nothing left of their great love. But the decor had to be respected.

And Vivien’s romance with Finch continued. She even tried to run away with him twice. Both “escapes” happened in 1955. The first time, the lovers spent several days in France, and the second time they went to New York, but the flight did not take place due to fog. From the airport they returned to Notley Abbey, to Olivier, and a scene occurred that could only happen between actors. Instead of sorting things out, Larry and Peter immediately started drinking, improvising on the theme of “master and vassal.”

And when, after a while, with a cry: “Which of you will go to bed with me?” Vivienne burst in, all three of them burst into laughter. This escapade was the finale of a “little nine-year affair.” Olivier makes his last attempts to save the marriage. In 1955, he staged three Shakespearean plays, where he and Vivien played. According to critics, Olivier is again a genius, and Vivien is just “pleasant to the eye.”

In July 1956, Vivien announced at a press conference that she and Larry were expecting a child. In August she leaves the stage and, secluded in Notley Abbey, will prepare for the event that should take place in December. Vivienne is forty-two years old. Olivier was filming The Prince and the Choir Girl with Marilyn Monroe at that time. Monroe was then married to playwright Arthur Miller, whom Olivier idolized.

Observing Miller and Monroe closely, Olivier could not help but notice how destructive this marriage was for Miller. All his strength was spent on the emotionally and mentally unstable Monroe, all the time trying to find a rational solution to her insoluble mental problems. This was the most creatively barren period in the life of the American playwright. Naturally, Olivier projected Miller and Monroe's relationship onto himself and Vivien.

The future in this light seemed absolutely hopeless to him. However - who knows? - if Vivien had a child, maybe everything would not have turned out so bad. But the child was not born - Vivien had a miscarriage in August. And again a nervous breakdown, depression, electric shock. The end of the 50s was the beginning of the world theater revolution, the “overthrow of authority,” a time of risky experiments and shocking behavior.

The street, a living language, people in jeans and T-shirts came onto the scene. A sign of change was Osborne's play Look Back in Anger, which Olivier did not like after the first viewing, and after the second converted him to a different faith.

The traditional theater began to seem to him a stagnant and musty swamp. But Vivien did not accept the “new theater” - it all seemed quite vulgar to her. There was no place for her there. This put an end to the story of "Larry-and-Viv." Olivier was going to stage one of the “new plays” - “The Comedian”, a story from modern life.

He himself was supposed to play Archie Rice, a music hall comedian, but there was no role for Vivien: she was too beautiful for Archie’s wife, and too old for her daughter. Olivier invited the young actress Joan Plowright to play the role of his daughter. From now on, she will be his partner on stage, and then Olivier’s second lady, will bear him children. Will be to him what Melanie was to Ashley Wilkes. And another man will take care of Vivien.

Last Hero

Jack Merivale first met Vivien at the Old Vic Theater in 1937. He was urgently called in to replace the actor. Jack hurried to his dressing room and then met Her. “She was like a dream,” he later recalled. The vision stopped in front of Olivier's dressing room and, having already grabbed the door handle, turned to Jack: “Good luck!” Beautiful face, charming smile. A moment - and the vision disappeared behind the door. Then he saw her as Titania, Queen of the Fairies, in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream.

But the real acquaintance took place a couple of years later in Hollywood. Jack's stepmother, Gladys Cooper, starred with Olivier in Rebecca, and one day, going to Larry-and-Viv's for a Saturday night party, she took Jack with her. Olivier was just starting work on the production of Romeo and Juliet, and Jack got the role of Romeo in the second cast. Olivier's understudy on stage, could he then have imagined that he would have the same role in Vivien's life...

Olivier had already left her, but there was no official divorce yet. Notley Abbey is for sale. It is unbearable to remain in England, and this is where Vivienne came in for the 1959-60 season. offered the role in New York. Her partner was Jack Merivale, who by this time had managed to get married, divorced, and make a good theatrical career. But Vivien remained the Fairy Queen for him. At first their relationship was simply friendly. “To tell the truth, I was shy.

It was clear that everything had gone wrong, but Vivienne was still terribly attached to Larry. She surrounded herself with photographs of him. One day during rehearsal, when I was wearing a plaid suit, she extended her hand and, crumpling the fabric, said sadly: “Larry had the same one. God, how I want him to be here!” This alone was enough for me to think about nothing but friendship.”

They became lovers on Vivien's initiative. Jack was still working up his courage when she asked bluntly, “When are we going to make love properly?” But he knew nothing about her illness. Vivienne could be overly excited, impulsive, she could, for example, at night when they were making love, jump out of bed and rush to call London. After talking with Olivier for an hour about her melancholy and separation, she returned to Jack’s arms.

Such antics, of course, worried Jack, but he attributed them to alcohol abuse. David Selznick's wife Irene opened his eyes - with Larry's permission. For the last seven years of Vivienne's life, Jack was everything to her: lover, friend, nurse, psychotherapist. He was just the kind of man that Blanche Dubois was looking for and did not find.

Vivienne was luckier - as if fate had taken pity on her at the last moment and replaced her grimace with a smile. Gradually, step by step, he pulled her out of the whirlpool of illness, he was patient, affectionate, and persistent. And Jack almost succeeded. And Vivien worked in the theater and acted in films. “I will work until I drop dead!” - and all this alternated with bouts of depression and electroshock treatment. She wants treatment, they are trying new remedies.

The last strong attack happened in 1966, in America, where Vivien and Jack played in Chekhov's Ivanov. They returned to England, and Vivien recuperated at her home, Tickeridge Mill. The treatment seemed to be working, and in June 1967, Vivienne planned to begin rehearsing for Albee's play A Delicate Balance.

Vivien Leigh is one of the most striking actresses in the history of the film industry. Her rare beauty, rich inner world, as well as her unique talent for transformation made her a legend of world cinema during her lifetime. It remains so today. That is why it is especially difficult to talk about her career and fate. After all, our today's heroine is not an ordinary actress.

Vivien Leigh's childhood and family

Vivien Mary Hartley was born on November 5, 1913 in the Indian city of Darjeeling. Her father, an ethnic Englishman, was an officer and served in the Indian cavalry. Mom, in whose veins Irish, French and Armenian blood was mixed, took care of the house and household chores. The actress's parents got married in London, and after that they began to travel around the world, moving from one city to another. They lived in Darjeeling for some time and then moved to Bangalore. It was in this city that Vivien spent most of her childhood.

As reported in a number of authoritative sources, our today’s heroine began performing on stage at the age of three. At that moment, she appeared in front of the British soldiers, reading from the stage a short poem, “Little Bo Peep.” The performance of the young actress was presented as a preamble to the performance of the theater troupe, in which Vivien’s mother performed.

After that day, the parents of our today’s heroine paid great attention to her creative upbringing. The girl studied with private teachers, studying literature, poetry, music and other forms of art. In 1920, Vivien Hartley went to England for the first time. There she lived and studied at the convent of the Sacred Heart. At that time, her best friend was the well-known Maureen O'Sullivan, with whom Vivienne dreamed of becoming a famous actress.

Vivien Leigh's first marriage

In the thirties, our today's heroine, with the support of her father, managed to move to London and enter the prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. It was during this period that the girl began to rapidly develop her talent and improve as an actress. Around the same period, the girl met her first husband, lawyer Herbert Lee Holman, who was thirteen years older than her. Moreover, brought up in a conservative English society, he was strongly against his wife's career. As a result, Vivien had to alternate studying at the academy with cooking, cleaning and constant housework. This state of affairs became a kind of compromise between the spouses.

Vivien Leigh wins an Oscar. 1940

Vivienne became even more worried after her daughter Susan appeared in her life. Due to the birth of a child, the girl completed her studies at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. However, despite this, even before receiving her diploma, she managed to play a small role in the film “Things Are Going Well,” which became her first screen work. It is very noteworthy that it was after this that the actress shortened her surname Vivien Leigh Holman to a more euphonious one - Vivien Leigh.

Vivien Leigh's roles in the theater

In 1935, our today's heroine also appeared in the theater. She played one of the main roles in the project “Mask of Virtue”, and soon after that the girl’s first success came. Critics praised the actress's acting very highly.

As a result, immediately after this, the director of the play decided to move the production to a larger hall. But, as it turned out, this was his serious mistake. Vivien's weak voice was difficult to hear in distant parts of the room, so the audience often left the performance before it ended. Because of this, the production was soon closed.

The best films with Vivien Leigh

However, the production of “The Mask of Virtue” still played a decisive role in the fate of Vivien Leigh. After one of the shows, the legendary British actor Laurence Olivier visited the girl in the dressing room. After a short conversation, a friendship began between them. Soon after this, Vivien Leigh and her new friend played together in the film “Flame over the Island,” in which they played the roles of lovers. The on-screen romance soon turned into a real one. The lovers were crazy about each other, even despite the fact that both were still not free at that time.

Famous people. Vivien Leigh

As a result, the scandalous romance between the young actress and the famous British actor turned out to be in Vivien Leigh's favor. Her name began to appear frequently in the press, and directors began to offer her new roles more often.

Vivien Leigh as Scarlett

As a result, already in the second half of the thirties, the girl played several leading roles in various films. The bright career of the English actress allowed her to easily break into Hollywood. One of the results of this in 1939 was the film “Gone with the Wind,” which instantly made the Englishwoman one of the most famous actresses of her time.

For her role as Scarlett O'Hara, the girl received an Academy Award, and with it international recognition. At this moment, the pretty Englishwoman established herself as a full-fledged star, and therefore the public accepted all subsequent roles of Vivien Leigh with special warmth. “Lady Hamilton”, “Waterloo Bridge”, “Caesar and Cleopatra”, “Anna Karenina” - each of these films brought the actress a new share of popularity, and later became classics of world cinema.

Vivien Leigh's new awards

In 1951, Vivien Leigh received her second Oscar for the film A Streetcar Named Desire. Critics subsequently called the actress’s role in this film one of the most thorough transformations of all time. As a result, for this role the British woman received a BAFTA award, a prize at the Venice Film Festival, as well as some other prestigious awards.

However, surprisingly, after this the actress played only seven films. Her scrupulous attitude to each role secured her role as a capricious and wayward actress. In addition, her poor health was a strong blow to the celebrity’s career. The actress suffered from constant depression, which was later accompanied by tuberculosis. As a result of all this, the actress died. Her body was cremated and her ashes were subsequently scattered over a lake near a village in East Sussex.

Personal life of Vivien Leigh

There were two men in the actress's life - her first husband, Herbert Lee Holman, with whom she later gave birth to a daughter. And also Laurence Olivier, with whom Vivien Leigh lived for twenty years (from 1940 to 1960).