They seemed to have it all – glamour, power, wealth and adoration. Grace Kelly, Coco Chanel, Audrey Hepburn, Indira Gandhi, Madame Chiang Kai-shek... they were worshiped, loved and sometimes even feared by millions the world over. These were the pioneers who showed that a woman could be the equal of any man. But behind the public success, there was so often private heartache and personal tragedy. Featuring archive, interviews and dramatic re-enactment, this series reveals the price these extraordinary women paid for their achievements. Yet in the end, they overcame all adversities to emerge as triumphant, inspirational icons of the 20th century.
"Hedy Lamarr" - With her smoldering femme fatale looks, Austrian Hedy Lamarr was known as the most beautiful woman in film. She was also one of the most controversial. Hedvig Kiesler, as she was born, launched her film career by performing cinema’s very first nude scenes. Released in 1932, "Ecstasy," in which she played the central role, Eva, shocked audiences and brought condemnation from critics across the world - it was banned in Germany, in America and by even the Pope.
Her notoriety continued as she traveled from Europe to Hollywood. Although she would star in a string of box office hits, such as Cecil B. Demille's sumptuous technicolor extravaganza "Samson and Delilah," her endless pursuit of love and stability led to six disastrous, high-profile marriages. And her desperate struggle to combine career and motherhood led to her rejecting her children.
Then, as her looks faded so did her career. She resorted to drastic plastic surgery and found a new way to make headlines - shoplifting. This could have been the tragic end to a once glamorous life on the silver screen.
Yet, one aspect of her life remained largely a secret. Hedy Lamarr was an inventor. Fueled by a deep hatred of the Nazi regime and her fervent desire to help her fellow Austrian Jews back home, Hedy Lamarr propelled herself into the war effort: she volunteered at the Hollywood Canteen for American troops and raised millions of dollars in war bonds.
But, that's not all Hedy did. Most impressive of all, she invented a secret communication system designed to allow Allied submarines to guide torpedoes more accurately toward their enemy targets. Although the idea was not taken up by the Allied commanders at the time, her invention did eventually place her amongst the greatest minds at the forefront of modern communication technology. Her invention was developed to form the basis of all our wireless communications today. Laptops and mobile phones can send texts and surf the internet thanks to an invention of Hedy Lamarr's. The role of inventor was the best she ever played.
Distributed by BBC Worldwide
