Katharine Hepburn was born on November 8, 1909 in Hartford, Connecticut. She was the second child of six children. She was an athletic tomboy as a child. She cut her hair short and asked people to call her "Jimmy."
She grew very attached to her older brother, Tom. They would play sports and do other "boyish" things.
Kate's first theatre experience ended in tragedy. Her parents took her and her brother Tom to a theatrical production of "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court," which included a scene in which a character avoids death during a hanging by tightening his neck muscles. A few days later, on Easter Sunday, Kate went to wake her brother, Tom, and found that he was not in his room. She searched the attic and found Tom hanging from the rafters.
After Tom died, Kate became moody and withdrawn. She turned to acting to relieve her sorrow.
She was tutored at home and entered Byrn Mawr College at the early age of fifteen.
She took roles in college plays and soon went off to Broadway. Her family was dismayed, thinking acting was frivolous, but she continued to follow her dream.
Her first Broadway play was "The Czarina," where all she had to do was curtsy. She had no lines in this play.
In "The Big Pond," she had a minor role and was the star's understudy. The star was suddenly fired and Kate got the part.
Her opening night for "The Big Pond" was a disasater. She had developed a terrible case of stage fright. Kate found herself mixing up lines, tripping over herself, and talking faster and faster. Even the other actors couldn't understand her. She was fired as soon as the curtain went down.
Kate married Ludlow Ogden Smith on December 12, 1928. She hated her new life, especially her lack of freedom. They seperated just three weeks after the wedding and divorced shortly after.
Kate starred in "The Warrior's Husband" and was a great success. Scouts brought her to Hollywood where she starred in her first movie, "A Bill of Divorcement." Critics called her "exceptionally fine."
She was a hit soon after that and starred in many movies including: "Chrisopher Strong," "Morning Glory," and "Little Women." She recieved an Academy Award for Best Actress for "Morning Glory."
The publicity soon wore off and critics began calling her "Box Office Poison." Kate got fed up with the critics and fled Hollywood.
She returned to her home in Connecticut but soon grew lonely. She wanted to return to Hollywood.
Kate returned to Hollywood and signed a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer(MGM). Her reputation was horrible. People still thought of her as "Box Office Poison." She starred in "Holiday" with Cary Grant.
Kate bought the script of "The Philadelphia Story." She first starred in it on Broadway, then in the screen version. It was an instant hit. Soon people began to like her again. One critic wrote of Kate: "All may be forgiven and forgotten."
Kate starred in "Woman of the Year" with Spencer Tracy. She began a lifelong friendship with him. They starred in "Adam's Rib," "Pat and Mike," "Keeper of the Flame," "Without Love," "The Sea of Grass," "State of the Union," "Desk Set," and "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner."
Kate became one of the top names in Hollywood. She starred with Humphrey Bogart in "The African Queen." She recieved another Academy Award nomination for Best Actress.
She starred in "Summertime" where she played a schoolteacher who vacations in Venice and falls in love with an Italian shopkeeper only to find he is married and has children. One scene included her falling backwards into a canal. She refused to have a stunt double do the scene and permanently damaged her eyes because of the pollution in the canal.
Her friend Spencer Tracy became very ill. Kate gave up her film career to become an aide and companion to the dying former movie star. He died on June 10, 1967.
Kate mourned over the loss of Tracy, or "Spence" as she called him. She plunged into work to get over his death.
She recieved her fourth Academy Award for her performance in "On Golden Pond" with Henry Fonda.
She starred in "The Ultimate Solution of Grace Quigley," in 1984. She still from time to time does cameo appearances in recent films. She wrote two books: "The Making of the African Queen" and "Me: Stories of My Life." She still resides in New Haven, Connecticut and is usually found playing some kind of sport.
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