See 1970s icon Faye Dunaway now at 83

Among the few living real legends is Faye Dunaway.

The legendary actress, well-known for portraying strong, resentful, and challenging women, is among the best in movie history.

And the eighty-three-year-old continues on…

Dunaway is best known for her twisted cry in the campy cult film Mommie Dearest, “No more wire hangers!” She also starred in Hurry Sundown with Michael Caine and Bonnie & Clyde, winning the main part over Jane Fonda and Natalie Wood.

The Florida native actress, who was also awarded three Golden Globes and an Emmy, was born in Bascom.

It’s difficult to discuss Faye Dunaway’s career without bringing up the film Mommies Dearest. Channeling Joan Crawford’s energy, Faye Dunaway shocked the Mommie Dearest crew when she initially appeared from the dressing room in the legendary role of the four-year-old actress.

The sensationalized movie Mommie Dearest (1981) is based on Christina Crawford’s memoir of the same name, which describes her troubled connection with the late actress Joan Crawford, who was her adopted mother.

Dunaway managed to create a combination of charm and terror.

In her unsettling portrayal of Crawford, Dunaway blurred the boundaries between reality and resurrecting Joan, both on and off the set. She was so desperate that she declared, “I want to climb inside her skin,” to a Hollywood biographer.

Dunaway either developed her method acting skills to a high degree or her spirit took over. In her memoir, Looking for Gatsby, she writes. “I was told by one that it felt like Joan herself had risen from the dead.”

In reality, the media began to believe that Crawford was haunting Dunaway.”(Dunaway) appears to have borrowed it for 12 weeks from the ghost of Joan Crawford,” the Los Angeles Times remarked about her voice.

In a part that will live in legend, Dunaway expresses remorse. She told Entertainment Tonight, “I think it turned my career in a direction where people would irretrievably have the wrong impression of me—and that’s an awful hard thing to beat.” “I should have known better, but sometimes you don’t know what you’re getting into and you’re vulnerable.”

Working with some of the sexiest men in Hollywood, like Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Kirk Douglas, and Johnny Depp, Dunaway showed extreme self-control and maintained a platonic connection with her co-stars.

A few individuals were drawn to particular things; perhaps Jack (Nicholson) and Warren (Beatty), but not many. Though Steve McQueen was contentedly devoted to someone at the time, Warren was at that point in his bachelorhood. “I wouldn’t mess around with something like that even if it were offered, but it wasn’t,” Warren said.

“You simply don’t,” she remarked in a Harper’s Bazaar interview. “You don’t do that because you know it will ruin the performance and the movie. That’s my rule.

The dapper, Italian award-winning actor Marcello Mastroianni, broke the rules for the timeless beauty with her delicate high cheekbones because he was too much of a temptation.

Life imitates art in her connection with the Italian celebrity. starring in the 1968 film A Place for Lovers, which Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times referred to as the “most godawful piece of pseudo-romantic slop I’ve ever seen!”-Dunaway portrays a fashion designer who is having an extramarital romance with Mastroianni, a race car driver. She had a brief but intense three-year romance with the actor in real life, which she ended when he refused to leave his wife.

Dunaway stated, “I was deeply in love with him,” in a People interview. I had never encountered a man like him before, and I felt incredibly safe with him.

She wed musician Peter Wolf, the lead vocalist of The J. Geils Band, in 1974; they separated after five years.

According to a Marie Claire article from 2017, Dunaway began an affair with renowned British photographer Terry O’Neill because she was dissatisfied in her marriage to Wolf. With her Oscar from the movie The Network on the table next to her, O’Neill captured a picture of her lounging by the pool at The Beverly Hills Hotel.

After being married in 1983, Dunaway misled the public for many years, claiming that her son Liam, who was born in 1980, was actually her biological child. In 1987, Dunaway and O’Neill were divorced.

Dunaway is alleged to be a manipulative diva who is very difficult and unpredictable for co-stars, production personnel, and even hotel employees.

She was fired from her role as Audrey Hepburn in the off-Broadway production of Tea at Five in 2019 for creating a “dangerous” and “hostile” environment, and she was fired by Andrew Lloyd Weber from his Sunset Boulevard production in Los Angeles, California, in 1994.

She was dubbed the “gossamer grenade” by one of her leading men, Jack Nicholson, and when Johnny Carson questioned her in 1988, “Who’s one of the worst people you know in Hollywood?” “Faye Dunaway and everybody you can put in this chair would tell you exactly the same thing,” was the swift response from the feisty and unrepentant Bette Davis. “I don’t think we have the time to go into all the reasons—she’s just uncooperative,” the woman said. For Miss Dunaway, Miss Dunaway is Miss.

Dunaway is still a very talented performer despite her challenging, frequently harsh, and nasty demeanor.

She was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1996, and in 1997, People magazine listed her as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People.

Regarding her romantic status, she is now single.

She stated in a 2016 People interview that she was still open to dating. She says, “I’m very much a loner.” “I always think that if I could find the right person, I would like to have a partner in life, and I would.”

Her most recent credit dates back to 2022, when she costarred in the Italian film L’uomo che disegnò Dio with Kevin Spacey.

Woman Discovers a Photo of Herself as a Newborn with a Birthmark She Never Had, Her Mother Finally Reveals the Truth — Story of the Day

While helping her mother, Sarah, move into a new house, Natalie stumbles upon an old photograph hidden in a box. It shows a young Sarah holding a newborn baby with a distinctive birthmark on its cheek. But Natalie never had a birthmark. Confused and unsettled, she realizes there’s a secret her mother has been hiding.

Natalie adjusted her grip on the heavy box, glancing at Sarah, who was busily sorting through their belongings. It felt strange, this new feeling—admiration. For years, she had begged her mother to leave Ross, warning her about his manipulative ways.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

“You deserve better,” she’d say, but Sarah never listened. Each time she walked away from Ross, she’d return, swayed by a shiny necklace or an expensive dinner. But now, things were different. Sarah had finally found the strength to break free.

Watching her mother carry on despite the fear in her eyes, Natalie couldn’t help but feel a new kind of respect.

“I can’t believe this is actually happening,” Sarah said, her voice trembling as she looked around the empty house. It was a new beginning, but fear lingered in her eyes.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

Natalie paused, watching her mother. “How do you feel about everything?”

“I’m scared, Natalie,” Sarah admitted, her shoulders slumping. “I don’t know if I can do this.”

“I get it, Mom. It’s okay to be scared. But remember, you did the right thing.”

Sarah wrung her hands, glancing at the floor. “What if I go back to him again? What if I can’t make it on my own? What if I fail?”

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

“You won’t, Mom,” Natalie said firmly. “You’ll figure it out, and I’ll be here with you. You’re not alone in this. You have me, your one and only daughter, and I’m not going anywhere.”

Sarah looked up, and her eyes filled with unshed tears. Her brow furrowed, lips quivering.

“Mom, are you okay?” Natalie asked, concerned.

“Yes, yes. Sorry, I just got lost in thought.” Sarah forced a smile.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

They started unpacking, trying to focus on the small tasks. “You sure kept a lot of stuff, Mom,” Natalie remarked, lifting another heavy box.

Sarah called from the other room, “Oh, really? I seem to remember a certain college student with a mountain of boxes.”

Natalie chuckled, shaking her head. “Okay, okay, you got me there. But I’m different now. I’ve learned to let go.”

She pulled open a dusty box, revealing a stack of old photo albums. She brushed off the top one and flipped it open, smiling as she saw herself as a toddler, playing in the backyard, dressed in funny Halloween costumes, and grinning with a gap-toothed smile.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

Page after page, she saw Sarah’s smiling face next to hers, but she avoided the photos that showed Ross. She flipped past those quickly, a sour feeling building in her chest whenever his face appeared.

Once she finished the albums, she reached the bottom of the box and noticed an old envelope. It looked out of place, hidden away like a secret. Curiosity took over, and she carefully opened it.

Inside was a single photograph. It showed a much younger Sarah, looking tired but joyful, cradling a newborn in her arms at the hospital. Natalie squinted at the baby, her smile fading. A large birthmark covered the baby’s cheek.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

She flipped the photo over and read the date. It matched the day of her own birth. Her heart skipped a beat, confusion filling her mind. “But I never had a birthmark,” she whispered to herself, scanning the photo again. A chill ran down her spine as dread settled in. Something wasn’t right.

Natalie stormed into the bedroom, gripping the photograph tightly. “Mom? Don’t you have something to explain?” she demanded, holding the picture up for Sarah to see.

Sarah’s eyes widened, and she froze, clearly flustered. “Uhh… Natalie… where did you find that?” she asked, her voice shaky.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

“In the box with the photo albums,” Natalie replied coldly.

Sarah swallowed hard. “I can explain. It’s… it’s just the baby of a woman who was sharing the hospital room with me.”

Natalie narrowed her eyes. “Really? And you’ve kept it all these years? Why would you hide it in an envelope?”

“I—I don’t know,” Sarah stammered, rubbing the back of her head. “It’s nothing, Natalie.”

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

“Don’t lie to me, Mom,” Natalie shot back. “You always do that when you lie. What’s going on? Who’s this baby?”

Sarah sighed, her hands trembling. “It’s complicated, Natalie. It was a long time ago…”

Natalie crossed her arms. “Then start explaining.”

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

Sarah took a deep breath, sitting down on the edge of the bed. “Alright. But promise you won’t hate me.”

“I can’t promise that,” Natalie replied sharply. “Just tell me.”

Sarah closed her eyes for a moment, collecting her thoughts. “When your father and I first got married, we didn’t have much. We were poor, barely scraping by.”

Natalie huffed, her impatience growing. “I know all that, Mom.”

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

Sarah nodded. “Then, when I got pregnant, we were excited but scared. We didn’t have the money, but we wanted to keep the baby. When we went for the second ultrasound, they told us we were having twins.”

Natalie blinked, the revelation hitting her like a wave. “Twins?”

Sarah nodded, tears welling up in her eyes. “Yes. But your father… he didn’t take it well. He said we couldn’t afford two children. He wanted me to have an abortion, but it was too late.”

Natalie’s breath caught in her throat, but she remained silent, waiting for her mother to continue.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

“When you were born,” Sarah whispered, “you had a sister. But then… your father brought two strangers into the hospital room. He said… one of you had to go. I begged him, Natalie, I did. But he had already made up his mind.”

Natalie’s hands tightened into fists. “You let him take her?”

“I didn’t have a choice,” Sarah sobbed. “I didn’t want to lose either of you.”

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

Natalie stood, her chest heaving with anger. “So, I have a sister—a twin—and you never told me? You let her go, and you stayed with him after that?”

“I loved him,” Sarah whispered, tears falling freely.

Natalie glared at her, her voice trembling with rage. “You loved him more than your own child! I knew you weren’t the best mother, but this… this is worse than I ever imagined!” She turned toward the door, her mind racing.

“Natalie, please—”

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

But Natalie didn’t stop. She ran out of the room, out of the apartment, leaving her mother’s cries behind her.

Back in her apartment, her hands shook as she typed out a message to Sarah:

Who did you and Dad give her to?

Minutes passed, each one feeling like an hour. When Sarah finally replied with the information, Natalie’s heart hardened. She blocked her mother’s number without hesitation, determined to find answers on her own.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

Through a few quick searches on social media, she found out her sister’s name—Amber. She lived in a neighboring state. Without a second thought, she booked a plane ticket and boarded the flight that same afternoon, her mind racing with questions.

When she landed, Natalie called a cab, and the driver took her to Amber’s address. The cab stopped in front of a charming, two-story house with a big, well-kept yard. Natalie sat in the backseat, nerves building as she stared at the house.

“Lady, I can’t sit here all day; some of us have jobs,” the cab driver snapped.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

Natalie shot him a quick, irritated look and got out of the car, her legs unsteady. She walked up to the fence, clutching it tightly for support. Her breath caught when she spotted a woman who looked just like her, except for a birthmark on her cheek—Amber.

Amber was playing with a little boy while a man, probably her husband, laughed beside them. An elderly couple sat nearby, holding hands, their smiles warm and gentle. When they leaned in for a kiss, it reminded Natalie of a love she had never seen between her parents.

“Mom, Dad, come on, show some restraint,” Amber said with a grin as she watched her parents kiss.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

Just then, two older women walked by and noticed Natalie by the fence. “Hi, Amber!” one of them greeted her warmly, mistaking her for her twin.

Natalie hesitated, caught off guard. “Oh, uh… hi,” she replied awkwardly, forcing a smile.

The women continued walking, not noticing the confusion, while Natalie tried to steady her nerves.

Natalie took one last look at Amber’s family. They seemed so content, like a picture-perfect scene from a commercial. Amber was laughing with her little boy, while her husband joined in, and her parents sat nearby, relaxed and happy.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

It was clear they were close, a real family, and Natalie felt a sharp pang in her chest. She realized then that she couldn’t disrupt that happiness. With a heavy sigh, she turned away, her heart aching but resolute.

She couldn’t be the one to ruin Amber’s peace. As much as it hurt, she knew it was the right thing to do.

The next morning, Natalie flew back home, still haunted by what she’d learned. Without fully understanding why, she found herself calling a cab to her mom’s house.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

As she arrived, she saw her dad’s car pulling away. Her heart sank, and she feared the worst. She stepped out and knocked, and Sarah opened the door almost immediately.

Natalie looked at her mom, her voice sharp. “Was Dad here?”

Sarah hesitated, then nodded. “Yes.”

Natalie felt her stomach drop. “So, you forgave him. Again.”

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

Sarah glanced down, fidgeting with her hands. “He brought me a necklace,” she said softly. “It’s beautiful…” Her voice faded as she spoke.

Natalie sighed, her shoulders slumping. “I see,” she said, turning to leave, feeling the familiar sting of disappointment.

Before she could step away, Sarah spoke again, her voice stronger. “But I told him to go to hell.”

Natalie stopped, stunned. She turned back, searching her mom’s face. Seeing the truth there, she stepped forward and pulled her into a tight hug. They clung to each other, tears streaming, finally finding a sense of relief.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

Tell us what you think about this story and share it with your friends. It might inspire them and brighten their day.

If you enjoyed this story, read this one: When a new boss named Mr. Brecker arrived at the company, the staff hoped for the best. But he quickly turned out to be a nightmare—strict, rude, and dismissive, especially towards Kira, the hardworking manager. Instead of backing down, Kira decided to fight back, leading to a bold plan that would change everything.

This piece is inspired by stories from the everyday lives of our readers and written by a professional writer. Any resemblance to actual names or locations is purely coincidental. All images are for illustration purposes only. Share your story with us; maybe it will change someone’s life.

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