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Born on May 4, 1929 Audrey Kathleen Ruston began her life in Brussels, Belgium. She was the only child of an Anglo-Irish banker, Joseph Anthony Rustin, and Baroness Ella van Heemstra, a Dutch aristrocrat who was descended from French and English kings. Her father later added the name Hepburn to his surname, making her Audrey Hepburn-Ruston. She had two half-brothers, Alexander and Ian Quarles, by her mother's first marriage to a Dutch nobleman.

As a child, Audrey attended private schools in England and The Netherlands. Her life was a bubble until her parents divorced in 1935 and she went with her mother to live in The Netherlands during the Nazi invasion and occupation of Holland. Here she saw and experienced hunger and deprivation for the first time in her sheltered life. She suffered from malnutrition and sustained health problems that plagued her for the rest of her life. She joined a ballet group and collected money for the underground movement. The impact of these terrible times would never leave her mind and shaped her life and her values.

After the war, she moved with her mother to London where she studied ballet. In 1951, after appearing in a few films, she was offered the leading role in the Broadway play, "Gigi." Soon after real stardom came with a leading role opposite Gregory Peck in "Roman Holiday." Even though she was not yet a star, Peck insisted she share top billing with him. For this role, she won the 1953 Academy Award for Best Actress and became a star in her own right.

"Sabrina" followed in 1954 and then in 1961 the role that made her a cultural icon, Holly GoLightly in "Breakfast at Tiffany's".

She was a spokesperson for UNICEF and a great humanitarian. She died on January 20, 1993 at the age of 64, leaving two sons and a beloved significant other behind, not to mention a world of adoring fans. Her career spanned more than three decades and almost thirty films.

What are some of YOUR favorite Audrey Hepburn films?

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