ChronoFive
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Setting the scene
Audrey Kathleen Ruston was born in Brussels on May 4, 1929, to a Dutch baroness mother and British father. She spent part of World War II in the Netherlands, suffering malnutrition during the Dutch famine.
What happened
She studied ballet in London, modeled, and won an Oscar for her first major Hollywood role in Roman Holiday (1953). Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961) and My Fair Lady (1964) fixed her image as elegant, gamine, and fashion-forward.
Why it still matters
From 1988 she served as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, visiting famine-stricken Ethiopia and vaccination campaigns in Latin America. Memorable detail: Givenchy designed much of her personal and screen wardrobe; Hepburn called him her best friend and wore his perfume L'Interdit.
Background
She later became a UNICEF ambassador.