02-15-2023, 10:11 PM
Career[edit]
1963–1966: Early works and breakthrough[edit]
Welch initially intended to move to New York City from Dallas, but moved back to Los Angeles in 1963[17] and started applying for roles with film studios. During this period of time, she met one-time child actor and Hollywood agent Patrick Curtis who became her personal and business manager.[21] They developed a plan to turn Welch into a sex symbol.[17] To avoid typecasting as a Latina, he convinced her to use her husband's last name.[17]
She was cast in small roles in two films, A House Is Not a Home (1964) and the musical Roustabout (1964), an Elvis Presley film. She also landed small roles on the television series Bewitched, McHale's Navy and The Virginian and appeared on the weekly variety series The Hollywood Palace as a billboard girl and presenter. She was one of many actresses who auditioned for the role of Mary Ann Summers on the television series Gilligan's Island.
Welch's first featured role was in the beach film A Swingin' Summer (1965). That same year, she won the Deb Star while her photo in a Life magazine layout called "The End of the Great Girl Drought!" created buzz around town.[24] She was noticed by the wife of producer Saul David, who recommended her to 20th Century Fox, where with the help of Curtis she landed a contract.[17] She agreed to seven-year nonexclusive contract, five pictures over the next five years and two floaters.[21] Studio executives talked about changing her name to "Debbie". They thought "Raquel" would be hard to pronounce. She refused their request. She wanted her real name, so she stuck with "Raquel Welch".[25][26]
She was cast in a leading role in the sci-fi film Fantastic Voyage (1966), in which she portrayed a member of a medical team that is miniaturized and injected into the body of an injured diplomat with the mission to save his life. The film was a hit and made her a star.[17]
1963–1966: Early works and breakthrough[edit]
Welch initially intended to move to New York City from Dallas, but moved back to Los Angeles in 1963[17] and started applying for roles with film studios. During this period of time, she met one-time child actor and Hollywood agent Patrick Curtis who became her personal and business manager.[21] They developed a plan to turn Welch into a sex symbol.[17] To avoid typecasting as a Latina, he convinced her to use her husband's last name.[17]
She was cast in small roles in two films, A House Is Not a Home (1964) and the musical Roustabout (1964), an Elvis Presley film. She also landed small roles on the television series Bewitched, McHale's Navy and The Virginian and appeared on the weekly variety series The Hollywood Palace as a billboard girl and presenter. She was one of many actresses who auditioned for the role of Mary Ann Summers on the television series Gilligan's Island.
Welch's first featured role was in the beach film A Swingin' Summer (1965). That same year, she won the Deb Star while her photo in a Life magazine layout called "The End of the Great Girl Drought!" created buzz around town.[24] She was noticed by the wife of producer Saul David, who recommended her to 20th Century Fox, where with the help of Curtis she landed a contract.[17] She agreed to seven-year nonexclusive contract, five pictures over the next five years and two floaters.[21] Studio executives talked about changing her name to "Debbie". They thought "Raquel" would be hard to pronounce. She refused their request. She wanted her real name, so she stuck with "Raquel Welch".[25][26]
She was cast in a leading role in the sci-fi film Fantastic Voyage (1966), in which she portrayed a member of a medical team that is miniaturized and injected into the body of an injured diplomat with the mission to save his life. The film was a hit and made her a star.[17]
This promotional still of Welch in the deerskin bikini became a bestselling poster and turned her into an instant pin-up girl.[url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Raquel_Welch_in_deer-skin_bikini.jpg]![[Image: 220px-Raquel_Welch_in_deer-skin_bikini.jpg]](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b7/Raquel_Welch_in_deer-skin_bikini.jpg/220px-Raquel_Welch_in_deer-skin_bikini.jpg)
The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the dedicated Communist but instead the people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction, true and false, no longer exists -- Hannah Arendt.