Fire Signs Edition: Aries, Leo, Sagittarius
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Aries: Bette Davis (April 5th, 1908)
When it comes to old Hollywood, there was no one stronger or more independent-minded than Bette Davis. As the story goes, when the first Hollywood studio representative went to meet her train, he actually left the station without her because he couldn’t find anyone who looked like an actress.
Yes, it was said that Davis didn’t have any sex appeal whatsoever, but that didn’t stop her from rising to the top. If anything, her deviation from the traditional beauty standard allowed her to take on roles that were stronger and more complex, in which she was able to showcase her acting talent, rather than be just another pretty face.
In terms of style, Davis was always the first to make bold and adventurous choices while always appearing like she didn’t care. But, I mean, we are talking about the same woman who, despite being stuck in an overcontrolling contract with Warner Bros, continued to turn down roles they assigned her. Warner Bros suspended Davis for this, so she sued to be let out of her contract.
At the time, actors and actresses were suspended on a whim with the suspension times added to their contract length. While she didn’t win the court case, she did earn their respect, and she started getting offered much better roles. On top of that, she paved the way for Olivia de Havilland to win against Warner Bros less than ten years later.
Yes, throughout her career, Davis earned the respect of everyone she encountered. She had a raw grace about her with a deep, throaty voice, and a signature smirk. She had a strong, uncompromising style. She wore lots of faux-fur, gloves, pill-box hats, and had pencil thin eyebrows which sat above sharp, gleaming eyes that could cut through glass.
But — in true Aries fashion — the style of Bette Davis wasn’t all about her clothes, it was her confidence. She could command any room she walked into. She was fiercely intelligent and very intense. She was married four times with three divorces because her career always came first, and — after her film career slowed to a standstill in the 1960s — she was bold enough to place a “Job Wanted” ad in the papers, which is rumored to have landed her one of her biggest roles ever at 54 and an Academy Award!
Davis proved she was a talent to be reckoned with. Her career spanned more than 50 years and, when she did finally pass away in 1989, many of her fans refused to believe she was gone.
Leo: Lucille Ball (August 6th, 1911)
We all know how much Leos love the spotlight and (as one of the first female comedic leads on TV) Lucille Ball is no exception.
With her bright red, curly-haired up-dos and lipstick to match, Ball’s look epitomized the 1950s housewife, and her style was described by Vogue as the “casual American look”. Her most recognizable ensembles are the popular collared fit and flare dresses, with a cinched waist and full A-line skirt, and an ironed blouse tucked into some fashionable cuffed jeans with ballet flats.
Unlike most on-screen women of the time, Ball wasn’t afraid to look like a mess on camera in order to amuse audiences. “I Love Lucy” episodes sometimes had Ball with blacked-out teeth, wearing a burlap sack (which turned out to be a precursor to the “sack dresses” that would hit runways a year later), or tumbling around in a vat of grapes.
She was also one of the first women to play a pregnant woman on TV while actually being pregnant, which gave her the opportunity to showcase maternity fashions of the ’50s. Another first — she and her then-husband, Desi Arnaz, were TV’s first interracial couple!
Not only was she a fashion icon, but Ball herself was a trailblazing feminist and one of the original girl bosses of her generation. Decked out in a tailored pantsuit and kitten heels, Bell bought out her husband from Desilu Productions after they divorced in 1960 and became the first woman to ever head a major studio!
She later sold the company for millions and started her own company, Lucille Ball Productions. Her character may have played a ditzy everywoman, but behind the scenes, Lucille Ball was a lion in pearls, whose groundbreaking career paved the way for, not only female comedians, but for all women in seeking to hold leadership positions in the entertainment industry.
Sagittarius: Geraldine Fitzgerald (November 24th, 1913)
A woman of many talents, Geraldine Fitzgerald perfectly epitomizes what it means to be a Sagittarius. She herself observed that she’d had at least four careers throughout her lifetime, proving that yes, women can do it all (even as early as the 1930s!).
By the time this Irish-born actress made her way to Hollywood, she had already fallen in love with live theatre and had worked with some of the top theaters in Europe. Her fiery auburn hair and lively face earned her a contract with Warner Bros, and she earned a nomination for an Academy Award after one of her first films, “Wuthering Heights.”
Her style occasionally reflected the traditional movie-star glamor of the time, with long, elegant gowns, dark red lipstick, and hair styled in the “Victory Rolls” popular in the 1940s. However, that’s about where Fitzgerald’s embracing of Hollywood style stopped. She usually wore light blouses, skirts or suit trousers, with loose, natural curls.
And similar to Bette Davis, Fitzgerald had the gall to turn down roles she didn’t like, earning her multiple suspensions. That never tripped up Fitzgerald, however, she earned a name for herself by playing fun character roles and after her film career faded in the late 1940s, she was able to return to her first true love — stage acting.
One of the most admirable things about Fitzgerald’s style was how she allowed herself to embrace her age, rather than force herself to stay young. She aged gracefully, preferring to play motherly roles once she became a mother herself, and she refused to color her hair or get any plastic surgery. Yet she still starred in roles written by Broadway’s most renowned playwrights, like Eugene O’Neill and Tennessee Williams!
Once she grew bored of the Broadway stage, she tried her hand at a singing career. Although she’d always been told her voice wasn’t that great, she had set her mind to the task, taking lessons and working hard to improve. She toured with a Cabaret troupe for a while, and even put on her own one-woman show, “Songs of the Street,” which she performed on museum steps, in parks, in discos, or wherever else she felt she could reach people and make a difference.
She also became one of the first female directors on Broadway, and started a summer theatre troupe for young adults, recruiting teenagers from high schools all over New York City, allowing anyone to join and creating a positive, beneficial atmosphere for young thespians after school.
Yes, Fitzgerald was able to accomplish so much in her 91 years of life! A true Sagittarius, she was always trying to expand her experiences and grow from them.
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