Hedy Lamarr was an Austrian-American actress and inventor who rose to fame in Hollywood during the 1940s and 1950s. Lamarr was born in Vienna in 1914 and began her acting career in Austria at the age of 16. She quickly gained fame for her beauty and talent, and soon caught the eye of Hollywood producers.
In the United States, Lamarr starred in a number of successful films, including “Algiers” (1938), “Ziegfeld Girl” (1941), and “Samson and Delilah” (1949). She became known for her sultry on-screen persona and was often compared to other Hollywood icons such as Greta Garbo and Marlene Dietrich.
However, Lamarr’s talents extended far beyond the silver screen. In her spare time, she was an avid inventor and developed a technology known as frequency hopping. This technology, which was designed to prevent radio-controlled torpedoes from being jammed, was later used as the basis for modern Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
Despite her scientific contributions, Lamarr’s wealth was often overshadowed by her Hollywood success. In fact, it wasn’t until after her death in 2000 that her net worth was revealed to be around $10 million.
Lamarr’s wealth was a result of her successful acting career and shrewd investments in real estate and other ventures. She also received a percentage of the profits from her frequency hopping invention, although she was not fully credited for her contributions until later in life.
Overall, Hedy Lamarr was a trailblazer in both the entertainment industry and the field of technology. Her wealth was a testament to her talent, intelligence, and business acumen, and her legacy continues to inspire generations of inventors and performers alike.
Below is a timeline of her life:
1914 – Hedy Lamarr is born in Vienna, Austria.
1930 – Lamarr begins her acting career in Austria.
1933 – She appears in her first film, “Ecstasy.”
1937 – Lamarr marries Austrian munitions manufacturer Fritz Mandl.
1938 – She divorces Mandl and flees to Paris, then to the United States.
1940 – Lamarr stars in her first Hollywood film, “Algiers.”
1941 – She stars in “Ziegfeld Girl” and becomes a U.S. citizen.
1942 – Lamarr and composer George Antheil develop the technology for frequency hopping.
1949 – She stars in “Samson and Delilah,” which becomes her biggest box office success.
1957 – Lamarr retires from acting and begins to focus on her inventions.
1997 – She is honored with the Electronic Frontier Foundation’s Pioneer Award for her contributions to the development of modern technology.
2000 – Lamarr passes away in Florida at the age of 85.
2014 – She is posthumously inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame for her work on frequency hopping.
Here are five interesting facts about her and five quotes:
Five Interesting Facts:
- Lamarr invented a radio guidance system for torpedoes that was ahead of its time and laid the foundation for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth technologies.
- She was one of the highest-paid actresses of her time, earning $125,000 per film.
- Lamarr was fluent in several languages, including German, French, and English.
- In addition to her acting and inventing, she was an accomplished pianist.
- Lamarr was arrested for shoplifting in 1966, but the charges were later dropped.
Five Quotes:
- “Any girl can be glamorous. All you have to do is stand still and look stupid.”
- “I have not been that wise. Health I have taken for granted. Love I have demanded, perhaps too much and too often. As for money, I have only realized its true worth when I didn’t have it.”
- “I’ve never been nude in a movie. And I’ve never had any trouble keeping my clothes on.”
- “The ladder of success in Hollywood is usually a press agent, actor, director, producer, leading man; and you are a star if you sleep with each of them in that order. Crude, but true.”
- “I am not ashamed to say that no man I ever met was my father’s equal, and I never loved any other man as much.”
