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IMDbPro

Rita Moreno(I)

  • Actress
  • Producer
  • Soundtrack
IMDbProStarmeter
Top 500316
Rita Moreno
Take a closer look at the various roles Rita Moreno has played throughout her groundbreaking career.
Play clip1:38
Rita Moreno | Career Retrospective
29 Videos
99+ Photos
Rita Moreno is one of the very few performers to win an Oscar, an Emmy, a Tony and a Grammy, thus becoming an EGOT. She was born Rosita Dolores Alverío in the hospital in Humacao, Puerto Rico on December 11, 1931 (but raised in nearby, smaller Juncos, which had no hospital), to seamstress Rosa María (Marcano) and farmer Francisco José "Paco" Alverío. Her mother moved to New York City in 1937, taking Rita with her while leaving her reportedly unfaithful husband and Rita's younger brother behind. Rita's professional career began before she reached adolescence.

From the age of nine, she performed as a professional dancer in New York night clubs. At age 11, she landed her first movie experience, dubbing Spanish-language versions of US films. Less than a month before her 14th birthday on November 22, 1945, she made her Broadway debut in the play "Skydrift" at the Belasco Theatre, costarring with Arthur Keegan and a young Eli Wallach. Although she would not appear again on Broadway for almost two decades, Rita Moreno, as she was billed in the play, had arrived professionally. In 1950, she was signed by MGM, but the studio dropped her option after just one year.

The cover of the March 1, 1954, edition of "Life Magazine" featured a three-quarters, over-the-left-shoulder profile of the young Puerto Rican actress/entertainer with the provocative title "Rita Moreno: An Actresses' Catalog of Sex and Innocence". It was sexpot time, a stereotype that would plague her throughout the decade. If not cast as a Hispanic pepper pot, she could rely on being cast as another "exotic", such as her appearance on Father Knows Best (1954) as an exchange student from India. Because of a dearth of decent material, Moreno had to play roles in movies that she considered degrading. Among the better pictures she earned featured roles in were the classic Singin' in the Rain (1952) and The King and I (1956).

Director Robert Wise, who was chosen to co-direct West Side Story (1961) (the film version of the smash Broadway musical, a retelling of William Shakespeare's "Romeo & Juliet" with the warring Venetian clans the Montagues and Capulets re-envisioned as Irish/Polish and Puerto Rican adolescent street gangs, the Jets and the Sharks), cast Moreno as "Anita", the Puerto Rican girlfriend of Sharks' leader Bernardo, whose sister Maria is the piece's Juliet.

However, despite her talent, roles commensurate with that talent were not forthcoming in the 1960s. The following decade would prove kinder, possibly because the beautiful Moreno had aged gracefully and could now be seen by filmmakers, TV producers and casting directors as something other than the spitfire/sexpot that Hispanic women were supposed to conform to. Ironically, it was in two vastly diverging roles--that of a $100 hooker in director Mike Nichols' brilliant realization of Jules Feiffer's acerbic look at male sexuality, Carnal Knowledge (1971), and Milly the Helper in the children's TV show The Electric Company (1971)--that signaled a career renaissance.

Moreno won a 1972 Grammy Award for her contribution to "The Electric Company"'s soundtrack album, following it up three years later with a Tony Award as Best Featured Actress in a Musical for "The Ritz" (a role she would reprise in the film version, The Ritz (1976)). She then won Emmy Awards for The Muppet Show (1976) and The Rockford Files (1974).

She has continued to work steadily on screen (both large and small) and on stage, solidifying her reputation as a national treasure, a status that was officially ratified with the award of the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush in June 2004.
BornDecember 11, 1931
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BornDecember 11, 1931
IMDbProStarmeter
Top 500316
  • View contact info at IMDbPro
  • Won 1 Oscar

Photos291

Sally Field, Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno, and Lily Tomlin in 80 for Brady (2023)
Rita Moreno in Carnal Knowledge (1971)
Jack Nicholson and Rita Moreno in Carnal Knowledge (1971)
Rita Moreno in The King and I (1956)
Rita Moreno in West Side Story (2021)
Rita Moreno in West Side Story (2021)
Rita Moreno
Rita Moreno
Rita Moreno
Marlon Brando and Rita Moreno in Listen to Me Marlon (2015)
Rita Moreno, Gloria Estefan, Melissa Fumero, Justina Machado, and Stephanie Beatriz in One Day at a Time (2017)
Marlon Brando and Rita Moreno in The Night of the Following Day (1969)

Known for

"West Side Story" (Saul Bass Poster) 1961
West Side Story
7.6
  • Anita
  • 1961
Rachel Zegler and Ansel Elgort in West Side Story (2021)
West Side Story
7.2
  • Valentina
  • 2021
Deborah Kerr and Yul Brynner in The King and I (1956)
The King and I
7.4
  • Tuptim
  • 1956
Oz (1997)
Oz
8.7
TV Series
  • Sister Peter Marie Reimondo

Credits

Edit
IMDbPro

Actress

  • Fast X
    • Post-production
  • Family Leave
    • In Production
  • Lopez vs. Lopez (2022)
    Lopez vs. Lopez
  • Sally Field, Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno, and Lily Tomlin in 80 for Brady (2023)
    80 for Brady
  • Rita Moreno, Martin Short, David Alan Grier, Shania Twain, Rizwan Manji, Josh Groban, Leo Abelo Perry, Jon Jon Briones, Joshua Henry, and H.E.R. in Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration (2022)
    Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration
  • Rita Moreno, Emily Kinney, and Justin Gaston in Santa Bootcamp (2022)
    Santa Bootcamp
  • Jacob Tremblay and Gaten Matarazzo in My Father's Dragon (2022)
    My Father's Dragon
    • (voice)
  • Michael Douglas and Adam Devine in Green Eggs and Ham (2019)
    Green Eggs and Ham
    • (voice)
  • The Prank (2022)
    The Prank
  • Rachel Zegler and Ansel Elgort in West Side Story (2021)
    West Side Story
  • Gabriel Iglesias, Diego Luna, Zoe Saldana, Allen Maldonado, and Stephanie Beatriz in Maya and the Three (2021)
    Maya and the Three
    • (voice)
  • Torch (2021)
    Torch
  • Rita Moreno, Dee Bradley Baker, Jeff Bennett, Jesyca C. Durchin, Doug Murphy, Frank Welker, Kimberly Brooks, Hiromi Dames, Luka Jones, Christopher Swindle, and Dara Taylor in Curious George: Cape Ahoy (2021)
    Curious George: Cape Ahoy
    • (voice)
  • Rita Moreno, Gloria Estefan, Melissa Fumero, Jolie Jenkins, Justina Machado, Eric Nenninger, Mackenzie Phillips, Tony Plana, Ed Quinn, Judy Reyes, Stephen Tobolowsky, Danny Pino, James Martinez, Fiona Gubelmann, Alex Quijano, Todd Grinnell, Nicky Endres, India de Beaufort, Jay Hayden, Ariela Barer, Thomas Barbusca, Isabella Gomez, Sheridan Pierce, Froy Gutierrez, Raquel Justice, and Marcel Ruiz in One Day at a Time (2017)
    One Day at a Time
  • Bless This Mess (2019)
    Bless This Mess
  • Gina Rodriguez in Carmen Sandiego (2019)
    Carmen Sandiego
    • (voice)
  • Gina Rodriguez in Jane the Virgin (2014)
    Jane the Virgin

Producer

  • Rachel Zegler and Ansel Elgort in West Side Story (2021)
    West Side Story

Soundtrack

  • Rachel Zegler and Ansel Elgort in West Side Story (2021)
    West Side Story
  • MsMojo (2016)
    MsMojo
    • (uncredited)
  • Anne Hathaway, Jamie Foxx, Kristin Chenoweth, Jesse Eisenberg, George Lopez, Jemaine Clement, Will.i.am, Pierce Gagnon, Rachel Crow, and Amandla Stenberg in Rio 2 (2014)
    Rio 2
  • Banda sonora (2007)
    Banda sonora
  • Casa de los babys (2003)
    Casa de los babys
  • Oz (1997)
    Oz
  • Fran Drescher in The Nanny (1993)
    The Nanny
    • (uncredited)
  • The Love Boat Fall Preview Special
  • American Playhouse
    American Playhouse
  • Frank Oz, Jim Henson, Dave Goelz, Richard Hunt, and Jerry Nelson in The Muppets Go Hollywood (1979)
    The Muppets Go Hollywood
    • (uncredited)
  • Es begann bei Tiffany (1979)
    Es begann bei Tiffany
    • (uncredited)
  • The Boss' Son (1978)
    The Boss' Son
  • The Great Gonzo, Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, and Fozzie Bear in The Muppet Show (1976)
    The Muppet Show
    • (uncredited)
  • The Ritz (1976)
    The Ritz
    • (uncredited)
  • Jack Benny in The Jack Benny Program (1950)
    The Jack Benny Program

Videos29

Rita Moreno | Career Retrospective
Clip 1:38
Rita Moreno | Career Retrospective
Essential Guide to Rita Moreno
Clip 8:44
Essential Guide to Rita Moreno
The King and I
Clip 1:34
The King and I
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:41
Official Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 3:08
Official Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 3:41
Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 1:01
Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:11
Official Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 3:04
Official Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:16
Official Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:07
Official Trailer
Teaser Trailer
Trailer 1:31
Teaser Trailer

Personal details

Edit
    • Official Instagram
    • Twitter
    • December 11, 1931
    • Humacao, Puerto Rico
    • June 18, 1965 - June 30, 2010 (his death, 1 child)
    • Fernanda Gordon
    • (Grandchild)
  • Other works
    TV commercial (PSA): American Association of Blood Banks.
  • Publicity listings
    • 1 Print Biography
    • 3 Interviews
    • 9 Articles
    • 2 Pictorials
    • 24 Magazine Cover Photos

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    When her star was unveiled on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, she fell on top of it, openly and uncontrollably weeping. She later commented, "I had been dreaming of this day since I was six!".
  • Quotes
    Bigger than life is not difficult for me. I am bigger than life.

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