Audrey Hepburn, who would have turned 85 Sunday, was not only one of Hollywood’s revered and beautiful actresses, but a real-life heroine.
The daughter of aristocrats-turned-Fascist sympathizers, she joined the resistance in World War II Belgium. And she spent years traveling the world as a high-profile spokeswoman for the United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund.
Though contemporary actresses like Carey Mulligan and Julia Ormond (who starred in a forgotten 1995 remake of “Sabrina’’) have sometimes been compared to her, they’re light years away from the style and gamine charm of the original.
And while Hepburn died in 1993, she’s even had a busy posthumous career — thanks to the miracle of digital technology — in commercials for Dove Chocolate and the Gap.
To celebrate her birthday, Turner Classic Movies is showing “Love in the Afternoon’’ and “Wait Until Dark’’ on Sunday. Two of her other classics, “Funny Face’’ and the original “Sabrina,’’ recently debuted on Blu-ray and were reviewed by me.
Here are clips from the four movies:
‘Love in the Afternoon’ (1957)
Hepburn, as a French detective’s daughter, bewitches much older businessman Gary Cooper in this Billy Wilder comedy.
‘Wait Until Dark’ (1967)
In this thriller, Audrey plays a blind woman who evens the score against drug smugglers who’ve invaded her Manhattan home.
‘Funny Face’ (1957)
The former ballerina shows off her footwork for a flabbergasted Fred Astaire in this musical masterpiece, set in Paris.
‘Sabrina’ (1954)
The legendary (and much older) Humphrey Bogart lays on the charm with Audrey, who plays the girlfriend of brother William Holden in yet another Billy Wilder comedy classic.