Well, she has. Tomorrow, July 1st, 2016, the incomparable Olivia deHavilland will celebrate her 100th birthday. She has outlived all her former co-stars, nearly every person she acted with in movies, and her younger sister Joan Fontaine, who died in December of 2013.
Everyone has their favorite Olivia deHavilland role from her long and storied career. Mine shall always be Olivia as Maid Marian in the fun, freewheeling version of the timeless legend: The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938). Maybe Maureen O'Hara might have made a good paring with Errol Flynn in the role, as she was with him in 1952's Against All Flags. But Olivia's verve, her soft femininity, her sparkling personality and strength as an actress matched against both Claude Rains and Basil Rathbone makes it impossible for me to imagine anyone else paired with Errol in the depths of Sherwood Forest. She is simply dazzling in this picture, in a role she seems to be having such fun playing. And that's what makes her light up the screen for me whenever I watch this film, as much so now as the I first time I ever sat down to watch the movie years ago. She has reached her century, and will always be timeless, beautiful, and magnetic.
Happy 100th Birthday.
