Olivia de Havilland

At 104 years old, Olivia de Havilland has this physical status:

Dame Olivia Mary de Havilland (born July 1, 1916) is a British-American-French actress whose film career spanned 1935 to 1988.

She appeared in 49 feature films and is one of the last remaining movie stars of Classical Hollywood's Golden Age.

Joan Fontaine, her younger sister, was the actress. De Havilland first came to fame as a screen couple with Errol Flynn in adventure films such as Captain Blood (1935) and The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938).

Melanie Hamilton of Gone with the Wind (1939), one of her first five Oscar nominations and the only one for Best Supporting Actress.

De Havilland came from ingénue roles in the 1940s and was nominated for her appearances in Hold Back the Dawn (1941), To Each His Own (1946), and The Heiress (1949), winning for To Each His Own and The Heiress.

She has also excelled in theater and film.

Since the 1950s, De Havilland has lived in Paris, received prizes such as the National Medal of the Arts, the Légion d'honneur, and the appointment of Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire. De Havilland's acting career led to her appearance in the theatre, appearing three times on Broadway (1951), Candida (1952), and A Gift of Time (1962).

She has worked in television, appearing in Roots: The Next Generations (1979) and Anastasia: The Mysterious Anna (1986), for which she received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination and the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Television Movie or Series.

De Havilland has also received two New York Film Critics Circle Awards, the National Board of Review Award for Best Actress, and the Venice Film Festival Volpi Cup during her film career.

She was nominated for her contributions to the motion picture industry and was named on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her contributions to the motion picture industry.

Early life

Olivia de Havilland's family, which belonged to landed gentry that originated from mainland Normandy, by birth. Lilian Fontaine (née Ruse; 1886-1955), a British Academy of Dramatic Art student, was trained in London and became a stage actress. Lilian Williams performed with Sir Walter Parratt, the King of the Universe's Music, and Sir Walter Parratt also performed with the composer Ralph Vaughan Williams, as well as touring the United Kingdom. Walter de Havilland (1872–1968), Olivia's father, served as an English professor at the Imperial University in Tokyo City before becoming a patent attorney. Sir Geoffrey de Havilland (1882–1965), a helicopter designer and producer of the de Havilland aircraft company, was her paternal cousin.

Lilian and Walter married in Japan in 1913 and married the following year; but not in large part due to Walter's infidelity. Olivia Mary de Havilland was born on July 1, 1916. They migrated to a large house in Tokyo City, where Lilian gave informal singing recitals. Joan Fontaine, Olivia's younger sister (Joan de Beauvoir de Havilland) — later known as actress Joan Fontaine — was born on October 22, 1917. Both sisters became British subjects from birthright.

Lilian Persuaded her husband to return the family to the United Kingdom in February 1919 for a warmer environment for their elderly children. They sailed aboard the SS Siberia Maru to San Francisco, where the family stopped to attend Olivia's tonsillitis. Lilian was forced to stay in California, where they eventually settled in Saratoga, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of San Francisco, after Joan had pneumonia. Her father left the family and returned to his Japanese housekeeper, who later became his second wife.

Olivia was encouraged to love the arts from the age of four and piano lessons a year later. She learned to read before she was six years old, and her mother, who occasionally taught drama, jazz, and elocution, had her recite passages from Shakespeare to improve her diction. Joan, her younger sister, was first dubbed "Livvie," a term that would continue throughout her life. In 1922, De Havilland entered Saratoga Grammar School and did well in her studies. She loved reading, writing poetry, drawing, and once portrayed her grammar school in a county spelling competition, finishing in second place. Lilian had a new Tudor-style house built in 1923, where the family lived until the early 1930s. Lilian married George Milan Fontaine, a department store manager for O. d's province, in April 1925, after her divorce was finalized. A. Hale & Co. in San Jose is a San Jose company. Fontaine was a good serviceman and a decent businessman, but his tenacious parenting style fueled animosity and rebellion in both of his new stepdaughters.

De Havilland continued her studies at Los Gatos High School in Saratoga, just south of her home. Thereafter, she excelled in oratory and field hockey, competed in school plays and the school drama club, eventually becoming the club's secretary. She also attended Notre Dame Convent in Belmont, with the intention of becoming a schoolteacher of English and speech.

In 1933, a teenage de Havilland made her debut in amateur theatre in Alice, a youth group in Wonderland based on Lewis Carroll's book. She has appeared in several school productions, including The Merchant of Venice and Hansel and Gretel. Her obsession with drama culminated in a dispute with her stepfather, who barred her from participating in further extracurricular activities. When she learned she had won the lead role in Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, he told her that she had to choose between staying at home or being allowed to go to the theater, not being allowed home. She left home and joined a family friend rather than trying to let her classes and classmates down.

De Havilland, a 1934 high school graduate, was given a scholarship to Mills College in Oakland to pursue her chosen career as an English tutor. In the production of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream in Saratoga Community Theater, she was also given the role of Puck. Max Reinhardt, the Austrian director, arrived in California for a major new production of the same play, which premiered at the Hollywood Bowl. Since one of Reinhardt's helpers saw her perform in Saratoga, he offered her her the second understudy position for the role of Hermia. Jean Rouverol and lead actor Gloria Stuart all departed from the project one week before the premiere, leaving 18-year-old de Havilland to play Hermia. Reinhardt, who was ecstatic with her appearance, was subsequently granted the opportunity to participate in a four-week fall tour. Reinhardt learned that he'd be the director of his stage production in Warner Bros., and he offered her the role of Hermia. De Havilland's initial enthusiasm for teaching first started when she was unsure of becoming a teacher, but ultimately, Reinhardt and executive producer Henry Blanke persuaded her to commit to a five-year contract with Warner Bros. on November 12, 1934, the start of a professional acting career spanning more than 50 years.

Personal life

Although de Havilland and Errol Flynn were never engaged in a romantic relationship, they were one of Hollywood's most exciting on-screen couples. When Flynn first met her at Warner Bros. in August 1935, she was attracted to the 19-year-old actress with "warm brown eyes" and "extraordinary charm." In turn, de Havilland fell in love with him but held her emotions inside. "I was in love with her" when she first announced The Charge of the Light Brigade, Flynn later wrote. On March 12, 1937, Flynn finally expressed his love at the coronation ball for King George VI at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, where they danced together to "Sweet Leilani" at the hotel's Coconut Grove nightclub. "I was completely affected by him," she later remembered, "It was impossible for me not to be." The evening came on a somber note, with de Havilland claiming that, despite his divorce from his wife Lili Damita, he wanted to divorce her before their union could proceed. Flynn and his wife were reunited later this year, and de Havilland never expressed her displeasure with Flynn.

De Havilland's first tycoon, aviator, and filmmaker Howard Hughes, who had just completed his record-breaking flight around the world in 91 hours, began in July 1938. He began escorting her around town, and taught her the first flying lessons. "He was a rather shy guy," she later wrote. "And yet, here was this man who was a true hero" in a whole neighborhood where the men were heroes on television and didn't do anything heroic in life."

She began a romantic relationship with actor James Stewart in December 1939. Stewart was escorting Havilland to the New York premiere of Gone with the Wind at the Astor Theater on December 19, 1939, at the request of Irene Mayer Selznick. Stewart took her to the theatre several times and the 21 Club over the next few days. In Los Angeles, where Stewart provided occasional flying lessons and romance, they continued to see each other. Stewart proposed marriage to her in 1940, but she was dissatisfied that he was not ready to settle down. When de Havilland began a romantic relationship with film producer John Huston while filming In This Our Life, they ended in late 1941. "John was a wonderful love of mine," the woman would later admit. "He was a man I wanted to marry."

Marcus Goodrich, a US Navy veteran, journalist, and author of the book Delilah (1941), married her on August 26, 1946. In 1953, the couple ended in divorce. Benjamin Goodrich, who was born on September 27, 1949, was the father of one child. He was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma at the age of 19 and graduated from the University of Texas. He worked as a statistical analyst with Lockheed Missiles and Space Company in Sunnyvale, California, as well as as an international banking representative for the Texas Commerce Bank in Houston. He died in Paris on September 29, 1991, at the age of 42 of heart disease brought on by treatments for Hodgkin's disease, only three weeks before his father's death.

de Havilland married Pierre Galante, an executive editor for the newspaper Paris Match, on April 2, 1955. Galante's marriage brought her to Paris. The couple divorced in 1962, but they stayed in the same house for another six years to raise their daughter together. Galante strode the streets and the two stayed close long after the annulment of the divorce in 1979. During her last bout with lung cancer before he died in 1998, she looked after him. Gisèle Galante, who was born on July 18, 1956, was their only child. She worked as a journalist in France and the United States after studying law at the University de Nanterre School of Law. De Havilland lived in a three-story house near the Bois de Boulogne in Paris, since 1956.

De Havilland was raised in the Episcopal Church and remained an Episcopalian throughout her life. She was one of the first female lectors at the American Cathedral in Paris, where she was on the regular rota for Scripture readings in the 1970s. She was doing readings on major feast days, including Christmas and Easter, as recently as 2012. "It's a challenge I love doing," she once said. "You must convey the deep meaning, you see," she wrote about her readings, and she had to start with your own faith. But first, I always pray. I pray before starting to prepare as well. In fact, I'd always say a prayer before shooting a scene, so this isn't so different in a way." De Havilland preferred to use the Revised English Bible for its poetic style. Benjamin Benjamin was raised in the Episcopal Church of Episcopal Church, and Gisèle in the Roman Catholic Church, honoring each child's parent's faith.

De Havilland, a citizen of the United States, became involved in politics as a way of fulfilling her civic duties. She ran for Democratic President Franklin D. Roosevelt's reelection bid in 1944, which was ultimately fruitful. Bette Davis, Gregory Peck, Groucho Marx, and Humphrey Bogart were among the national public-policy advocacy organizations that included Bette Davis, Gregory Peck, Groucho Marx, and Humphrey Bogart in its Hollywood chapter following the war. She was asked to speak at the committee that followed the Communist Party's ideology in June 1946, and — the party was later designated as a communist front group. She deleted the pro-communist material from her speeches and rewrote them to reflect Democratic President Harry S. Truman's anti-communist platform, dissatisfied with seeing a select group of communist members manipulating the committee. "I knew a nucleus of people was governing the organization without the majority of the board being aware of it," she later recalled. And I knew they had to be Communists."

She led a movement to recover control of the committee from its pro-Soviet leadership, but her reform attempts fell short. Future President Ronald Reagan's resignation from the committee sparked a wave of resignations by 11 other Hollywood celebrities, including future President Ronald Reagan. She was covertly called before the House Un-American Activities Committee in 1958 and recalled her experiences with the Independent Citizens' Committee.

De Havilland and her sister Joan Fontaine are the only siblings to have received Academy Awards in a lead acting category. Olivia had an uncomfortable relationship with her older sister from the start of childhood, and Joan resented that her mother preferred Olivia over her older sister, according to biographer Charles Higham. Olivia would wear the clothes that her sister was given as a hand-me-down, causing Joan to stitch them together again. Fontaine's frequent childhood illnesses exacerbated the crisis, prompting her mother to use the phrase "Livvie can't," rather than Joan's overly protective one. De Havilland was the first woman to enter the theater, and Fontaine was overshadowed by her sister's achievements for many years. When Mervyn LeRoy offered Fontaine a personal contract, her mother told her that Warner Bros. was "Olivia's studio" and that she could not use the name of de Havilland.

de Havilland and Fontaine were both nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress in 1942, according to Havilland for Holding Back the Dawn and Fontaine for Suspicion. De Havilland retorted de Havilland's enthusiastically announcing Fontaine's name as a winner. Fontaine's efforts to congratulate her by de Havilland's demands disappointed her, leaving de Havilland distraught and humiliated.

The couple's marriage was strained even more in 1946 when Fontaine made derogatory remarks towards an interviewer about de Havilland's new husband Marcus Goodrich. De Havilland was greatly distraught and waited for an apology that never was given. De Havilland returned from her sister de Havilland the following year after winning her first Academy Award for To Each His Own; Fontaine extended her hand to congratulate her; de Havilland was approached backstage by Fontaine. The two people did not speak for the next five years after the incident. Fontaine's own children may have been estranged by this, who may have had a clandestine relationship with their aunt.

Following her sister's divorce from Goodrich, de Havilland reconnected with her sister, visited Fontaine's New York apartment, and spending Christmas together in 1961. The final break between the two parents came in 1975 after differences over their mothers' cancer diagnosis; de Havilland wanted to consult other specialists and supported exploratory surgery, but Fontaine refused. Fontaine later said that de Havilland had not informed her of their mother's death when she was touring with a play, but de Havilland had sent a telegram that took two weeks to reach her sister. However, de Havilland did not bother to dial to find out where she could be found, according to Fontaine in a 1979 interview with the CBC. Fontaine's death on December 15, 2013, a sibling feud came to an end. De Havilland released a statement the following day saying she was "shocked and sad" by the news.

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Career

De Havilland made her screen debut in Reinhardt's A Midsummer Night's Dream, which was shot at Warner Brothers studios from December 19, 1934, to March 9, 1935. De Havilland learned film acting techniques from William Dieterle's co-director William Dieterle and camera techniques, who was captivated by his curiosity in his work. She had learned how she appeared on film and how to find her best lighting by the end of filming. The film was released on October 30, 1935, following premieres in New York City and Beverly Hills. Despite the publicity, the film did not inspire much enthusiasm among viewers. Although the initial reaction was mixed, de Havilland's success was lauded by The San Francisco Examiner critic. Winston Burdett wrote an article in the Brooklyn Daily Eagle that she "acts generously and does more justice to Shakespeare's word than any other actor in the cast." Alibi Ike with Joe E. Brown and The Irish in Us (both 1935) with James Cagney, followed by two minor comedies. In both films, she played the sweet and charming love interest, a part in which she would later be cast as typecast. de Havilland was dissatisfied with her regular heroine roles after being a Reinhardt performer. De Havilland and her mother moved to a Chateau des Fleurs flat on 6626 Franklin Avenue in Hollywood in March.

Though Warner Brothers studio had expected that the many costumed films that studios such as MGM had earlier produced would never succeed during the years of the American Great Depression, they nevertheless took a chance by releasing Captain Blood (also 1935). 63 The film is a swashbuckler action drama based on Rafael Sabatini's book and directed by Michael Curtiz. With the equally little-known de Havilland, 63 Captain Blood starred a then little-known contract actor and former extra. Both actors had "classic good looks, cultured speaking voices, and a sense of distant aristocracy about them," according to film historian Tony Thomas. Captain Blood gave de Havilland the opportunity to appear in her first costumed historical romance and adventure epic, which was in her right proportions given her beauty and elegance. In the film, she played Arabella Bishop, the niece of a Jamaica plantation owner who sells an Irish physician to servitude who is incorrectly condemned to servitude. From their first scenes together, de Havilland and Flynn's on-screen chemistry was evident, where clashes between her character's spirited hauteur and his character's playful braggadocio did not mask their mutual attraction to each other. Arabella is a feisty young woman who knows what she wants and is willing to fight for it. The film's bantering tone — the healthy give-and-take and mutual admiration — became the underlying factor in their on-screen relationship in subsequent films. Captain Blood was first published on December 28, 1935, and it gained critical praise and widespread public attention. In The New York Times and Variety, De Havilland's appearance was lauded. The film was nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Four's a Crowd (1938) The popularity of the film, as well as the critical reaction to the on-screen couple, culminated in seven additional collaborations: The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936), The Adventures of Robin Hood (1939), And the People Who Died With Their Boots On (1941) Four's a Crowd (1939), The Adventures of Elizabeth and Essex (1938), The Adventures of Robin Hood (1939), The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex (1941) The on (2004) The Unin (1941)

De Havilland appeared in Mervyn LeRoy's historical drama Anthony Adverse (1936) with Fredric March. The film, based on Hervey Allen's best-selling book, follows an orphanage raised by a Scottish merchant whose lust for wealth separates him from the innocent peasant girl he loves, marries, and eventually loses. Angela, a peasant girl who was separated from her slave trader husband, became opera singer Mademoiselle Georges, Napoleon's mistress. The film received six Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture. It gave de Havilland good exposure and the opportunity to play a character as she develops. Howard Barnes of the New York Herald Tribune found her later scenes as Mademoiselle Georges "not very credible," but Frank S. Nugent of The New York Times described her as "a winsome Angela." She was reunited with Flynn in Michael Curtiz's period action film The Charge of the Light Brigade (also 1936), starring Flynn's brother (playing Flynn) and David Niven. The picture was taken during the Crimean War and became a major box office hit.

de Havilland renegotiated her deal with Warner Bros. on April 14, 1936, earning a seven-year deal, equivalent to $9,800 in 2021). In the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles, 20-year-old de Havilland and her mother migrated to 2337 Nella Vista Avenue near the end of the year.

In Archie Mayo's comedy Call It a Day (1937), a middle-class English family is struggling with the sexual consequences of spring fever in a single day. De Havilland had her first top billing in Call It a Day (1937). Catherine Hilton, the de Havilland's daughter, fell in love with the handsome artist who was hired to paint her portrait. The film did not do well at the box office and did not do well in advance her career.

In Mayo's screwball comedy It's Love I'm After (also 1937) with Leslie Howard and Bette Davis, she did a better job. Marcia West, a debutante and theatre enthusiast who decides to assist the girl's fiancée by pretending to be an abominable cad. The film received rave reviews, with Variety naming it "new, clever, well-produced, and directed, and performed by an ensemble that clicks from start to finish" and lauding De Havilland.

Another period film with de Havilland, beginning with The Great Garrick, a dramatic romantic comedy about the 18th-century English actor's encounter with cynical characters from Comédie-Française who plot to embarrass him on his way to Paris, was released during 1937. Garrick, keen to get the last laugh from a delightful young aristocrat named Germaine Dupont, who mistakenly believes to be one of the participants. According to Judith Kass, de Havilland gives a performance that is "lighthearted and completely believable." Variety praised the film, calling it "a masterpiece of rare workmanship." Despite the positive reviews, the film did not do as well at the box office.

Gold Is Where You Find It is a film by Michael Curtiz directed romantic drama Gold Is Where You Find It is a film about the late nineteenth-century war in the Sacramento Valley between gold miners and their hydraulic machinery, and farmers whose property is being flooded. Serena Ferris, the daughter of a farmer who falls in love with the mining engineer who was responsible for the flood portrayed by George Brent, was de Havilland. Claude Rains appears in the film as well. The film was released in February 1938 and was her first appearance in a Technicolor film but not her last. She will make three more Technicolor films in the next two years, two of which will undoubtedly be her most vividly remembered by audiences decades after their release.

Warner Bros. studio head Jack L. Warner selected de Havilland (1937) to play Maid Marian opposite Errol Flynn in The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938). Principal photography for this Technicolor film took place between September 26, 1937, and January 14, 1938, including location photography at Bidwell Park, Busch Gardens in Pasadena, and Lake Sherwood, California. The film, directed by William Keighley and Michael Curtiz, is about King John, the tyrant and cruel King of Norman lords, although good King Richard is away fighting in the Third Crusade. Maid Marian, the King's ward, initially opposes Robin Hood, but she later supports him after learning that his true intention is to assist his oppressed people. Marian, a mere bystander to life, puts her life in jeopardy by supplying Robin with a plot for his escape. Marian is both a beautiful fairy-tale heroine and a spirited, intelligent woman "whose behavior are governed by her mind as well as her heart," according to author Judith Kass. The Adventures of Robin Hood was published on May 14, 1938, and it was a huge critical and commercial success, receiving an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture. It went on to become one of the Classical Hollywood era's most popular adventure films.

The success of The Adventures of Robin Hood increased de Havilland's fame, but it wasn't reflected in her subsequent film appearances at Warner Bros. Her next three roles were more standardized and less demanding. Lorri Dillingwell, a feist rich girl being courted by a young public relations professional struggling to land an account with her eccentric grandfather, appeared in the romantic comedy Four's a Crowd (also 1938). Margaret Richards, another frivolous rich girl whose desire to exact revenge on a gas station attendant leads to her own comeback. In the summer of 1938, she portrayed the love of two US Navy pilot brothers in Wings of the Navy, which were released in early 1939. Although de Havilland was certainly capable of portraying these types of characters, Judith Kass's message was more appropriate to larger and more dramatic roles. De Havilland had serious reservations about her Warner Bros' career by this time.

1939 is considered by some film scholars to be the pinnacle of Classic Cinema's golden age, with award-winning, box office hits in various genres, including the Western. Dodge City, Michael Curtiz's Technicolor journey (1939), Flynn and De Havilland's first Western film, Warner Bros. The film, set during the American Civil War, follows a Texas trailblazer who witnesses Dodge City, Kansas,'s brutal lawlessness and becomes sheriff to clear the town. De Havilland's initial hostility against Flynn's character Wade Hatton is changed by events, and the two actors' relationship fell in love — a tried and true formula for their on-screen relationships. Curtiz's chase sequences, Sol Polito's cinematography, Max Steiner's rich film score, and perhaps the film's "definitive saloon brawl in cinema history" all contributed to the film's success. Variety characterized the film as "a lusty western with a lot of action." Dodge City was the emotional low point of her career to that point for de Havilland, who appeared only in supporting love in a limited capacity. "I was in such a depressed place that I could hardly recall my lines," she later said.

"I would give something if we had Olivia de Havilland under contract to us so that we could portray her as Melanie," film producer David O. Selznick wrote in a letter dated November 18, 1938. Jack L. Warner was unable to loan her out for the film he was shooting the Technicolor epic Gone with the Wind. De Havilland had read the book, and, unlike many other actresses, she wanted to be Melanie Hamilton, a character whose quiet dignity and inner strength she understood and felt she could bring to life on film.

Anne De Havilland of Warner's wife was consulted by De Havilland for assistance. "Olivia, who had a computer hidden behind those fawn-like eyes, went to my wife and decided to change my mind," Warner later reported. Warner relented, and de Havilland was signed to the project a few weeks before beginning principal photography on January 26, 1939. The film is set in the American South during the Civil War and Reconstruction period, featuring Scarlett O'Hara's fierce-willed daughter of a Georgia plantation owner in love with her sister-in-law Melanie's husband, whose kindness stands in sharp contrast to those around her. De Havilland's sophisticated and subtle portrayal of this tale of selfless love and silence in a way that keeps her relevant and interesting throughout the film. On December 15, 1939, the Gone with the Wind made its world premiere in Atlanta, Georgia, and was well received. Melanie de Havilland "is a compassionate, dignified, tender gem of characterization," according to Frank S. Nugent of Variety, and John C. Flinn Sr. described her as "a standout." The film received ten Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and de Havilland received her first nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

De Havilland returned to Warner Bros. in June 1939, shortly after finishing her Gone with the Wind in June 1939, along with Bette Davis and Errol Flynn, to film Michael Curtiz's historical drama The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex (also 1939). She had hoped that her appearance in Selznick's prestige photo would result in first-rate appearances at Warner Bros. But instead, she received third billing below the queen's lady-in-waiting. She was lent out by Samuel Goldwyn Productions for Sam Wood's romantic caper film Raffles (also 1939), about a high-society cricketer and jewel thief in early September. "I had nothing to do with that kind of film," she later complained.

De Havilland refused to appear in many films attributed to her in early 1940, beginning the first of her suspensions at the studio. She did decide to participate in Curtis Bernhardt's musical comedy drama My Love Came Back (1940) with Jeffrey Lynn and Eddie Albert, who performed as a classical music student and swing jazz bandleader. Amelia Cornell, a violinist whose life is complicated by a wealthy sponsor's help, was de Havilland. Bosley Crowther's article in The New York Times referred to the film as "a featherlight frolic, a rollicking roundelay of deliciously pointed nonsense," finding that de Havilland "plays the role with vigor and humour."

In the days leading up to the American Civil War, de Havilland was reunited with Flynn in their sixth film together, Michael Curtiz's Western adventure Santa Fe Trail, set against the backdrop of abolitionist John Brown's fanatical anti-slavery attacks in the days leading up to the American Civil War. As they travel west, west Point cadet J. E. Stuart, played by Flynn, and George Armstrong Custer, played by Ronald Reagan, are battling for the affection of de Havilland's Kit Carson Halliday. According to Tony Thomas, de Havilland develops a character with real substance and dimension by playing Kit in a provocative, tongue-in-cheek manner. Following a world premiere on December 13, 1940, at the Lensic Theatre in Santa Fe, New Mexico, viewed by cast members, journalists, and over 60,000 viewers, Santa Fe Trail became one of the top-grossing films of 1940. De Havilland, who accompanied Flynn on the well-publicized train ride to Santa Fe, did not attend the premiere because he had been symptomatic of appendicitis and rushed into surgery the morning.

de Havilland began a lengthy period of convalescence in a Los Angeles hospital, during which she rejected several scripts offered to her by Warner Bros. She appeared in three commercially successful films released in 1941, beginning with Raoul Walsh's romantic comedy The Strawberry Blonde with James Cagney. The story, set in the Gay Nineties, follows a man who marries an outspoken advocate for women's rights after a rival kidnails his beautiful "strawberry blonde" wife and later discovers he has a loving and understanding wife. The film was both a critical and commercial success. In Mitch Leisen's romantic drama Hold Back the Dawn with Paramount Pictures, she changed to a new role for herself — an ordinary, decent small-town teacher whose life and sexuality are enhanced by a modern European gigolo, whose own life is positively affected by her love. Leisen's thoughtful direction and advice to Havilland was much more than her Warner Bros. directors' focused on workmanlike methods. According to Bosley Crowther of The New York Times, the actress "plays the school teacher as a woman with romantic fancies whose honesty and admiration are her own — and the film's chief support. She is, of course, an excellent performer." She received her second Academy Award nomination for her latest appearance, this time for Best Actress.

For their eighth film together, De Havilland was reunited with Flynn, Raoul Walsh's epic They Died with Their Boots On. The film is loosely based on George Armstrong Custer and Elizabeth "Libbie" Bacon's courtship and union. Flynn and de Havilland were both forced to leave the previous year due in large part to the roles she was given — but she did not want to work with him again. "She was sick to death of playing "the doll" and wanted a few good roles to tell herself and the world that she was a good actress," even Flynn admitted. De Havilland accepted after Warner told her that Flynn had come to his office and that he wanted her to be in the film. Lenore Coffee, a screenwriter, was brought on to write several romantic scenes and raise the overall dialogue. The result is a film that features some of their best work together. Custer's farewell to his wife is Custer's last appearance on film. "Errol was extremely sensitive," de Havilland would later recall, "I think it would be the last time we worked together." "Walking through life with you, ma'am, has been a wonderful thing." They died with their boots On was published on November 21, 1941, and although some reviewers criticized the film's historical accuracy, most celebrated the action sequences, cinematography, and acting. De Havilland's "completely captivating" was Thomas M. Pryor of The New York Times. Warner Bros' second-largest money maker of the year went on to earn $2,550,000 (equivalent to $47,000,000 in 2021).

De Havilland appeared in Elliott Nugent's romantic comedy The Male Animal (1942), about an idealistic professor struggling for academic tenure while also trying to hold onto his position and his wife Ellen, which was portrayed by de Havilland. Although her role was not particularly challenging, de Havilland's delineation of an intelligent, compassionate woman struggling to cope with the film's unsettling circumstances contributed greatly to the film's success, according to Tony Thomas. The film was a critical and commercial success, with Bosley Crowther of The New York Times noting that de Havilland "concocts a remarkably pliant and saucy woman as the wife."

She appeared in John Huston's drama In This Our Life (also 1942) with Bette Davis around the same time. The book, based on Ellen Glasgow's Pulitzer Prize-winning book of the same name, is about two sisters whose lives are shattered by one of the sisters' anger and lust. Crowther gave the film a scathing review, but praised de Havilland's "warm and comfortable presence" on the film. De Havilland and Huston began a three-year love affair during the film.

According to de Havilland, one of the few truly memorable roles she played in Warner Bros. was the title character in Norman Krasna's romantic comedy Princess O'Rourke (1943), starring Robert Cummings. The film, which was shot in July and August 1942, depicts a European princess in New York City visiting her diplomat uncle, who is trying to locate her American husband. She boards a plane heading west and falls in love with an American pilot who is unaware of her true identity. The film was released on October 23, 1943, and it did well at the box office. Bosley Crowther called it "a film that is in the best tradition of American screen comedy" and that de Havilland's performance was "charming."

De Havilland was told that six months had been added to her deal for the times she had been suspended after serving her seven-year Warner Bros. deal in 1943. At the time, the studios had adopted the idea that California law permitted them to suspend contract players for refusing a position, and a period of suspension could be added to the contract term. The majority of contract players accepted this, but a few others tried to challenge this belief, including Bette Davis, who brought an unsuccessful lawsuit against Warner Bros. in the 1930s. De Havilland, a woman on the advice of her counsel Martin Gang, filed a lawsuit against Warner Bros. in Los Angeles County Superior Court on August 23, 1943, arguing that an old section of the California Labor Code forbade an employer from enforcing a contract against an employee for longer than seven years from the date of first appearance. The court found in de Havilland's favour in November 1943, and Warner Bros. appealed immediately. The California Court of Appeal for the Second District's appeal ruled in her favor just over a year later. The decision was one of the most significant and far-reaching court decisions in Hollywood, reducing the control of the studios and giving actors greater creative autonomy. The De Havilland Law, California's newly established "seven-year court" as outlined by the Court of Appeal in analyzing Labor Code Section 2855 in the De Havilland case, is also known as the De Havilland Act. De Havilland's legal win, which was equal to $200,000 in 2021, earned him the respect and admiration of her peers, including her own sister Joan Fontaine, who later said, "Hollywood owes Olivia a great deal." Warner Bros. responded to Havilland's complaint by sending a letter to other studios that had the effect of a "virtual blacklisting." As a result, de Havilland did not work in a film studio for nearly two years.

On November 28, 1941, ten days before the United States entered World War II militarily, De Havilland became a naturalized citizen of the United States. She was instrumental in the war effort during the war years. She joined the Hollywood Victory Caravan, a three-week train tour of the United States that raised funds by the selling of war bonds. She began attending Canteen activities later this year, meeting and dancing with troops. De Havilland's wound soldiers in military hospitals on a USO tour that travelled through the United States and South Pacific in December 1943. For visiting the Pacific's isolated islands and battlefronts, she earned the troops' respect and admiration. She was able to fly in a faulty plane and a bout of viral pneumonia that needed several days in one of the island's barrack hospitals. "I loved traveling because it was a way for me to help my country and help with the war effort," she later noted.

de Havilland signed a two-picture contract with Paramount Pictures after the California Court of Appeal releasedd her from her Warner Bros. contract. She began filming Mitchell Leisen's To Everyone His Own (1946) in June 1945, about an unwed mother who gives up her child for adoption and then spends the rest of her life trying to undo her decision. De Havilland insisted on bringing Leisen as director, relying on his eye for detail, his love for actors, and the way he handled emotions in their previous collaboration, Hold Back the Dawn. The role called for de Havilland to live nearly 30 years as a child in a small town to a shrewish, ruthless businesswoman devoted to her cosmetics business. Although de Havilland never pursued acting, she did read Stanislavsky's autobiography My Life in Art and applied one of his "methods" for this role. She used a different fragrance for each period to help her identify her character during the four main periods of the tale. In addition, she gradually lowered the pitch of her voice in each period until it became a mature woman's voice. Her appearances earned her the Academy Award for Best Actress for 1946, her first Oscar. According to film historian Tony Thomas, the award was a vindication of her long fight with Warner Bros. as well as a confirmation of her acting abilities.

Her next two roles were challenging. De Havilland played twin sisters Ruth and Terry Collins, one loving and normal, the other psychotic in Robert Siodmak's psychological thriller The Dark Mirror (also 1946). De Havilland also had to portray two distinct and psychologically opposite people in addition to the technical difficulties of displaying her as two characters on television at the same time. Although critics generally agreed with the film's message, de Havilland's performance was lauded by Tony Thomas, who said the film was "gets lost in a maze of psychological devices and speculators," according to Variety. "A very frightening piece of acting." "her playing is thoughtful, quiet, precise, and well-founded," James Agee wrote in The Nation, and as such new talent isn't available, it's an undivided pleasure to watch." De Havilland's second professional stage appearance in Westport, Connecticut, her second professional stage appearance, and author of the novel Delilah (1941) began dating Marcus Goodrich, a US Navy veteran, journalist, and author of the book Delilah (1941). The couple married on August 26, 1946.

According to film critic Philip French, De Havilland was praised for her role as Virginia Cunningham in Anatole Litvak's drama The Snake Pit (1948), one of the first films to explore a realistic representation of mental illness and an important reminder of the harsh conditions in state mental hospitals. The film, based on a Mary Jane Ward novel and directed by Darryl F. Zanuck, is about a woman who is sent by her husband to help her recover from a nervous breakdown. Virginia Cunningham was one of the most demanding of all her film roles, requiring significant preparation both mentally and physically — she intentionally lost weight to help create her gaunt appearance on film. She worked with psychiatrists hired as consultants on the film and visited Camarillo State Mental Hospital to study her role and observe patients. For the little 5-foot-3-inch (160 cm) actress, the extreme physical discomfort of the hydrotherapy and simulation electric shock therapy scenes were particularly challenging. She showed her mental anxiety by physically changing her face with furrowed eyebrows, wild staring eyes, and grimacing mouth in her appearance.

de Havilland gave a performance that was both "restrained and electric" portraying various aspects of her personality, from a shy young woman to a terrified and disorientated woman, according to author Judith Kass. de Havilland received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress, the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress, and the Venice Film Festival Volpi Cup for her role in The Snake Pit.

De Havilland appeared in William Wyler's period drama The Heiress (1949), the fourth in a series of critically acclaimed performances. De Havilland called Wyler and begged him to fly to New York to see what she thought would be a good role for her after watching the Broadway play. Wyler obliged, loved the play, and with de Havilland's assistance, Wyler obligedoutput: Wyler obliged, and, de Havilland's aideda de Havilland's help, Paraphrasedo havoca he managed to gain the film rights for Paraphrased's help, de Havilland was hehe obtained the film rights for The film, which is based on Henry James' 1880 novel Washington Square, is about a young na's woman who falls in love with a young man (Montgomery Clift), who suspects the young man of being a fortune seeker. De Havilland portrayed her character's transition from a shy, trusting innocent to a well-oiled mature woman over a period of years in Hold Back the Dawn. Catherine Sloper's delineation is achieved by a deliberate movement, gesture, and facial expressions that portray a young woman who is disadvantaged and impoverished. Her tense voice, tense hands, downcast gazes, and careful movements all reveal that the model is too timid to speak. Wyler worked with Havilland to instill the necessary physical attributes of the role throughout the production. Rather than using a planned dialogue in the original script, Catherine's mother, who was jilted, had the actress carry a suitcase filled with heavy books up the stairs to emphasize Catherine's physical pain. The Heiress was released in October 1949 and was well-reced by commentators. She received the Golden Globe Award, the Academy Award for Best Actress, and her second Oscar for her appearances.

De Havilland, a mother of two children who died on September 27, 1949, took time off from filming to spend with her infant son. Blanche DuBois, who appeared in A Streetcar Named Desire, later explaining that becoming a mother was a "transforming experience" and that she did not identify with the role. She and her family moved to New York City in 1950, where she began rehearsals for Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet's big new stage production; it was her lifelong wish to play Juliet on stage. The play opened at the Broadhurst Theatre on March 11, 1951, to mixed reviews, with some commentators claiming that the 35-year-old actress was too old for the role. After 45 performances, the production was called off. And de Havilland, an unashamed narrator, accepted the role of narrating George Bernard Shaw's comedy Candidate, which opened at the National Theatre on Broadway in April 1952. Although evaluations of the play were mixed, de Havilland's appearance was well-received, and the company went on tour with the group and gave 323 additional performances, many to sold-out audiences. Although de Havilland's career was fruitful, her marriage to Goodrich, 18 years her senior, had been tense due to his temperament. In August 1952, she applied for divorce, but it was not until the following year that she became a member of the Royal Innuity.

She travelled to Cannes Film Festival in April 1953, where she met Pierre Galante, an executive editor for the French journal Paris Match. de Havilland and Galante married in the village of Yvoy-le-Marron's south of Paris' 16th arrondissement, following a long-distance courtship and the mandatory nine-month residency test, and settled in a three-story house near the Bois de Boulogne park. In the same year, she returned to the screen in Terence Young's period drama That Lady (1955), about a Spanish princess and her unrequited love for King Philip II of Spain, whose admiration she earned in her youth after losing an eye in a sword fight defending his dignity. According to Tony Thomas, the film uses authentic Spanish locations effectively, but it suffers from a convoluted plot and unnecessary dialogue, and though de Havilland's performance as Ana de Mendoza was disappointing, it was disappointing. de Havilland gave birth to her second child, Gisèle Galante, on July 18, 1956, following her appearances in the romantic melodrama Not as a Stranger (1955) and The Ambassador's Daughter (1956), neither of whom were well-received at the box office.

After witnessing the tragedy, De Havilland returned to the screen in Michael Curtiz's Western drama The Proud Rebel (1958), a film about a young Confederate soldier (Alan Laddd) whose wife was killed in the war and whose son lost the ability to speak after witnessing the tragedy. Linnett Moore, a tough yet feminine frontier woman who cares for the boy and loves his father, was the subject of a De Havilland play. The film was shot on location in Utah, where de Havilland learned to hitch and ride a team of horses as well as hold a pistol for her role. The Proud Rebel was launched on May 28, 1958, and audiences and commentators were extremely appreciated. A. H. Weiler's review for The New York Times called the film a "fully sensitive effort" and "heartwarming drama," and praised de Havilland's ability to convey the "warmth, love, and sturdiness required in the role."

In Guy Green's romantic romance Light in the Piazza (1962) with Rossano Brazzi, one of de Havilland's best known performances during this period was one of his best known performances during the time. The film, which is based on Elizabeth Spencer's book of the same name, is about a middle-class American tourist on extended vacation in Italy with her gorgeous 26-year-old daughter (Yvette Mimieux), who is physically injured as a result of a childhood injury. Faced with the possibility of her daughter's sex with a young Italian, the mother wrestles with her daughter's future with conflicting emotions. Through the majority of the film, De Havilland portrays a quiet maternal serenity, with only showing glimpses of the worried mother who is anxious for her child's happiness. The film was released on February 19, 1962, and was well received, with a Hollywood Reporter reviewer calling it "an extraordinary love tale" with rare delicacy and power," and Variety noting that it "achieves the delicate and delicate balance of artistic beauty, romantic content, explosive novelty, and commercial appeal." Variety characterized Havilland's appearance as "one of utmost consistency and subtle projection."

In early 1962, de Havilland travelled to New York City and began rehearsals for Garson Kanin's stage play A Gift of Time. The play, which was based on Lael Tucker Wertenbaker's autobiographical book Death of a Man, examines a woman's coping with her husband's death as a result of her husband's slow death. The performance debuted at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre on Broadway to rave reviews, with de Havilland receiving her best reviews as a stage actor. "As shadow increases, the actor gains in stature," theater critic Walter Kerr wrote about her last scene. "It is Miss de Havilland who gives the play its unbroken continuity," the New York World Telegram and Sun reviewer said. "Lael is portrayed as a unique and admirable woman" by this renowned actress. She remained with the company for 90 years. Every Frenchman Has One, De Havilland's first book, a lighthearted glimpse at her often amusing attempts to comprehend and adapt to French life, manners, and customs, appeared in the year 1962. The book was out before the publication date and went on to become a best-selling copy.

De Havilland appeared in her final motion picture leading roles in two films released in 1964, both of which were psychological thrillers. She played a wealthy poet who becomes trapped in her mansion's elevator and faces the possibility of three terrorizing hooligans in her own home in Walter Grauman's Lady in a Cage. Critics reacted angrily to the graphic violence and cruelty on television. The New York Times' A. H. Weiler called it a "sordid, if suspenseful exercise in aimless violence." De Havilland appeared in Robert Aldrich's Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte with her close friend Bette Davis in the same year. Davis had Aldrich fly to Switzerland to convince a reluctant Havilland to accept Miriam Deering's role as a caring, cultured woman behind the charming façade of a polite and cultured lady. Davis' tiniest, restrained appearance gave her a counterbalance. Tony Thomas, a film scholar, characterized her appearance as "a subtle piece of acting" that was "a crucial part of the film's success. The film was largely well received and received seven Academy Award nominations. She was the first female to do so in 1965.

De Havilland began working in television dramas as film roles became more accessible, a common theme among many Hollywood veterans from her time, despite the networks' practice of breaking up story lines with commercials. Sam Peckinpah's debut into the medium was Noon Wine (1966), a tragic tale about a farmer's act of murder that results in suicide. Ellie, the farmer's wife, was well-received for her role in the production and her appearance as the farmer's wife. She appeared in her first television film, The Screaming Woman, about a wealthy woman recovering from a nervous breakdown in 1972. Mrs. Warner, the wife of a former Confederate officer played by Henry Fonda, appeared in the ABC miniseries Roots: The Next Generations in 1979. An estimated 110 million viewers — over a quarter of American households with television sets — enjoyed the miniseries. De Havilland's film work was limited to smaller supporting roles and cameo appearances during the 1970s. The Fifth Musketeer (1979), her last film feature film. De Havilland began speaking engagements in cities around the United States, including "From the City of the Stars to the City of Light," a series of personal reminisces about her life and work. With the Wind, she paid tribute to Gone.

Murder Is Easy (1982), Agatha Christie's television film The Royal Romance of Charles and Diana (1982), in which she appeared as the Queen Mother, and the 1986 ABC miniseries North and South, Book II. As Dowager Empress Maria's Best Supporting Actress in a Series, Miniseries, or Television Film, her role in Anastasia: The Mysterious Anna (1986), earned her a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Series, Miniseries, or Television Film. De Havilland appeared in the HTV romantic television drama The Woman He Loved in 1988; it was her last screen appearance.

In retirement, de Havilland remained active in the film industry. In 1998, she travelled to New York City to assist with the promotion of a special display of Gone with the Wind. She appeared as a host at the 75th Academy Awards in 2003, receiving a standing ovation upon her entrance. Melanie Remembers, Turner Classic Movies' first retrospective film on the 65th anniversary of the original publication of Gone with the Wind in 2004, was released. She made appearances at tributes to her 90th birthday at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in June.

The National Medal of Arts was given to an individual artist on behalf of the people of the United States on November 17, 2008. President George W. Bush praised her "for her persuasive and persuasive performance as an actress in roles from Shakespeare's Hermia to Margaret Mitchell's Melanie." Her self-confidence, honesty, and grace have earned creative accolades for herself and her fellow film actors." The following year, de Havilland narrated The documentary I Remember Better When I Paint (2009), a film about the importance of art in Alzheimer's disease treatment.

With James Ivory's intended adaptation of The Aspern Papers, de Havilland came close to returning to the big screen in 2010. "You thank France for choosing us," de Havilland told the actress on September 9, 2010, "you thank France for choosing us." In February, she returned to France for the César Awards, where she was greeted with a standing ovation. On July 1, 2016, De Havilland celebrated her 100th birthday.

In June 2017, two weeks before her 101st birthday, de Havilland was named Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 2017 Birthday Honours for services to Queen Elizabeth II's drama. She is the first woman to be honoured. "It's the most gratifying of birthday gifts," she said in a tweet. She did not attend the investiture service at Buckingham Palace but was honoured by the British Ambassador to France in her Paris apartment four months before her 102nd birthday. Gisèle's daughter was by her side when she was born.

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