Maureen O'Hara: The Biography

13. Grande Dame

203 13 grande Dame When O’Hara was in her late eighties, a journalist asked her the secret of her longevity. She replied, “Say your ‘Hail Mary’ every night when you go to bed.”1 Such a devotion seems to sum her up. No matter who she kissed or killed onscreen, no matter how many convolutions attended her lengthy life, she hung on to the simple “ave Maria” for direction. Once a Catholic , always a Catholic. She often made statements that affirmed her faith. “How could you have had such a wonderful life as me,” she asked, “if there wasn’t a god directing?”2 even in matters of religion she used a cinematic metaphor. The fact that many people didn’t have wonderful lives didn’t seem to enter her quasi-theological equation. Was god directing them, too? She often promised (threatened?) to become frumpish in later life and to wave her walking stick at people she disagreed with, but this didn’t happen . instead, she preserved her serenity and sense of self, slipping into her golden years like a comfortable old shoe. When asked in January 2010 about the special highlights of her career, she gave an interesting answer: “When i look back at the movies i’ve made, the honors and awards i’ve received, the people i’ve met in the industry and loved, it all seems to blend into one big highlight.” it was a gracious paean to her near half century of screen time.3 But had she achieved all her ambitions? “i’ve never lost the desire to be an opera singer. it was always a passion with me but a passion that did not come to pass.”4 it was one of the few unfulfilled ambitions of this indomitable lady. as her ninetieth birthday was approaching, she was as busy as ever. a journalist described her roster of activities: “She’s caught up in meetings, suppers, a backlog of fan letters and she’s the honorary president of the glengariff golf Club. She also attends film festivals and fashion shows. She goes to Mass and she watches soccer and gaelic football.”5 Very little had changed since her youth. 204 Maureen O’Hara glengariff was buzzing with excitement over the upcoming milestone. She confided to Conor power that she planned to mark the occasion with a “quiet party comprising 55 to 70 people.”6 By irish standards, that was very quiet indeed. She was uncharacteristically humble in some of the interviews she gave as her birthday approached. Maggie armstrong wrote: “These days she has a certain punchy, streetwise self-mockery when reflecting on her talent and the astral beauty that propelled her to fame.” O’Hara confided to Dublin broadcaster ryan Tubridy that she was a “ham” of an actress.7 asked to sum up her career, she said simply, “i worked hard and knew my lines.”8 Mary Kennedy interviewed O’Hara in her home on the day before her birthday. “you have some nice awards,” Kennedy observed, gazing around the living room. “Well i never won the academy award,” O’Hara replied grumpily, “and i think i should have for The Quiet Man.” She would never stop chewing on that particular bone. She went on to say that many of her period costumes had been very hard to wear, necessitating what she referred to as a “BiCO” resolve. When Kennedy expressed puzzlement at the term, the grand lady explained, “Belly in, chest out.” “The wonderful thing,” she ended elegiacally, “is to have gone out in the world and to have been a success and then to have been accepted again by the country of your birth.”9 But why shouldn’t she be? Hadn’t she been ireland’s prime cinematic ambassadress for the past six decades? She entered into the spirit of her birthday celebration in the buzzy manner people had come to expect of her. greeting cards and goodwill messages flooded through her door. She spent the day with Bronwyn, Conor Beau, and other family members and friends in Blair’s Cove, Durrus, where she was greeted by St. Michael’s Bandon pipe Band. a dinner hosted by the glengariff golf Club followed in Casey’s Hotel. in September she traveled to Dublin to celebrate ireland’s Culture Night and to launch a local arts festival in ranelagh, the suburb where she grew up. “Be proud of where you came from,” she exhorted the crowd, insisting on delivering...