Charles continues his conversation with legendary actress Rita Moreno. Rita talks about how her encounter with choreographer Jerome Robbins led to her casting on the 1961 film adaptation of West Side Story, which, in turn, led to an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Rita explains that this role was the first in which she finally played a Puerto Rican character. In this online-only expanded interview, Rita talks about the awful accents she had to use in her early roles, why she was disappointed that the Hispanic actors in West Side Story had to have their skin darkened, and why West Side Story "saved her life."
Rita Moreno was recently honored at the 38th annual Kennedy Center Honors.
Originally aired March 8, 2014.
Aired January 23, 2016
.