12 Curious Facts About Audrey Hepburn

Audrey Hepburn has a lot of passions. She was full of surprises and unexpected hobbys. Below you can find 12 interesting facts about her!

1.Her real name was Audrey Kathleen Ruston. She started calling herself Audrey Hepburn in 1948. The name Audrey Hepburn belonged to her great-grandmother.

2. She wasn’t director’s first choice to play Holly Golightly in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”. Marilyn Monroe was the first choice of Truman Capote’s , Sam Wasson, author of Fifth Avenue, 5 A.M.: Audrey Hepburn and Breakfast at Tiffany’s, told ABCNews.com. The reason why Monroe didn’t take the part was because Paula Strasberg, her acting coach and personal advisor, stated that Marilyn Monroe shouldn’t be playing a “lady of the evening”.

3. She had a pet baby deer named Pippin (and nicknamed ‘Ip’). According to AnOther magazine, on the set of her 1959 film Green Mansions the animal trainer suggested Hepburn take the deer home with so that it would follow her on-screen. The fawn became her sidekick and even went with her to the supermarket.

4. She loved spending some time alone. She said so herself in a 1953 interview with LIFE Magazine, explaining: “I have to be alone very often. I’d be quite happy if I spent from Saturday night until Monday morning alone in my apartment. That’s how I refuel.”

5. She was fluent in five languages. She could speak English, Dutch, Spanish, French and Italian (her second husband was Italian).

6. She was a member of the EGOT club. Audrey Hepburn is one of the 14th people in the world who won an Emmy (hosting Gardens of the World with Audrey Hepburn), a Grammy (spoken word album Audrey Hepburn’s Enchanted Tales), an Oscar (best actress in Roman Holiday), and a Tony award (best actress in Ondine).

7. She wore size 10 in shoes. Despite her small frame, Hepburn actually wore a size 10 in shoes. “I’d like to be not so flat-chested,” she once said. “I’d like not to have such angular shoulders, such big feet, and such a big nose.” She reportedly also bought her signature ballet flats half a size larger to avoid a squeezed-in look.

8. Before starting a career as an actress, Audrey wanted to become a ballet dancer. By 1944, she was a proficient ballet dancer and secretly danced for groups of people to collect money for the Dutch resistance. Unfortunately, she was told that she was too tall to be a ballerina 5’7”.

9. “The Princess Bride” and “E.T.” were two of her favorite movies

10. Right after winning the Academy Award for best actress in a leading role for “Roman Holiday” 1954, Audrey misplaced the Oscar statue leaving her in the restroom. Fortunately, she was able to find the statue on time for the official photographs.

11. One of her hobbies was knitting. She has been photographed several times on set knitting.

Audrey Hepburn with husband Mel Ferrer on the set of “Unforgiven”

12. A breed of Tulip was named after Hepburn. According to the Netherlands Flower Information Society, a new hybrid breed of tulip was named for Hepburn, “as a tribute to the actress’s career and her longtime work on behalf of UNICEF.”