Dolores Hart Theatre World Award Winning Actress Turned Nun

Dolores Hart is a former Hollywood actress of late 50s to the early 60s. She is for denouncing the glitz and glamour of Hollywood and becoming a Roman Catholic nun. Hart was born on October 20, 1938, as Dolores Hicks. She is the daughter of Ben Hicks, a Catholic actor.

Dolores Hart is also the niece of singer Mario Lanza. Harts parents got divorced when she was only a child. She then became close to her grandfather to find peace and comfort from him. Her grandfather was a movie theatre projectionist and his love for films influenced Hart to pursue her career in acting.

Dolores Hicks first took to her new stage name Dolores Hart in 1956 when she signed for a movie Loving You in 1956. In this film she played a supporting role as the love interest of Elvis Presley. The film Loving You released in theatres in 1957 and Hart soon rose to fame. She did two more films before she again signed a film with Presley in King Creole, in 1958. There were rumors of Harts having intimate relations with Presley off screen, but obviously she denied it.

Dolores Hart did almost a dozen of films in her short span of 6 years in her film career. Some of the films are Loving You (1957), Wild Is The Wind (1957), Lonely Hearts (1958), King Creole(1958),The Plunderers (1960), Where The Boys Are (1960), Francis Of Assisi (1961), Sail A Crooked Ship (1961), Lisa (1962), Come Fly With Me (1963) Hart has won the Theatre World Award in 1959, from her debut on Broadway. She has also received Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actress for her role in The Pleasure Of His Company.

Dolores Hart left Hollywood when she was only 25 years old. Her last film was Come Fly With Me in 1963 with Hugh OBrian as her co-star. Hart was at that time engaged with Don Robinson, a Los Angeles businessman. She broke off the engagement and became a Roman Catholic nun at the Benedictine Abbey of Regina Laudis in Bethlehem, in Connecticut. She then gradually became the Prioress of the Convent.

The Reverend Mother Dolores Hart is now the Prioress of the Abbey. She is the only nun to become an Oscar –voting member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts And Sciences. Hart visited Hollywood after 43 years in 2006 for spreading awareness among people regarding peripheral idiopathic neuropathy disorder. This is a neurological disorder, which is affecting many Americans. Hart herself is also affected by the same neurological disorder. Dolores Hart