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For a generation of adults, Julie Andrews has always been there. She was there the first time they went to the movies to see “The Sound of Music,” “Mary Poppins” and “Bedknobs and Broomsticks.” Since then, she has made countless television appearances and was there when they started showing VHS tapes to their own children on rainy Saturday afternoons.
Yet, it sometimes takes a lot of hard work to become an overnight success.
In terms of success, her story is impressive. Julie Andrews began performing on stage in her native England at the age of 12. She made her film debut in Mary Poppins (1964) and won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance. She then starred in The Sound of Music (1965), playing Maria von Trapp, and won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress. In 1965, the album Sound of Music spent 382 weeks in the British charts and was the best-selling album in the UK in 1965, 1966 and 1968 and the second best-selling of the decade, spending a total of 70 weeks at No. 1.
After making a career out of playing wholesome, sympathetic characters, Andrews broke the mold in spectacular fashion to play both a male and female character in the 1982 musical parody “Victor/Victoria,” directed by her husband Blake Edwards.
Random things you might not know about Julie Andrews:
- Julie Andrews starred in “My Fair Lady” on Broadway. Based on George Bernard Shaw’s “Pygmalion,” “My Fair Lady” had a difficult birth but became a Broadway sensation that was revived several times and also performed in London.
- But she lost the role in the film version of “My Fair Lady” to Audrey Hepburn. When it came time to cast the musical “My Fair Lady,” producers chose the better-known Audrey Hepburn over Andrews. It was disappointing for Andrews, but it led to her starring in “Mary Poppins,” at the time the biggest box-office hit in Disney history.
- Andrews’ favorite song from “Mary Poppins” was “Stay Awake.” In a film filled with unforgettable melodies, “Stay Awake” was considered a weak link by the producers and had to be cut from the film. Andrews wrote a letter to the writer, P. L. Travers, asking him to ask Disney to keep the song, which they did.
- She had a rose named after her , it’s called the Julie Andrews Rosa Hybrid Tea.
- She is one of the “greatest Britons of all time”, according to a 2002 BBC poll.
- She received a knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II.
- In 2000, Julie Andrews was honored by Queen Elizabeth II, who awarded her the title of Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire.
- She lent her voice to the character of Queen Lillian in the “Shrek” films.
