But for many years earlier in her career, she was pigeonholed in stereotype roles as a Latin spitfire or exotic dancer.
Rita Moreno is famous for roles as diverse as Anita in the 1961 film adaptation of 'West Side Story,' an original cast member of the kids' program 'The Electric Company' and a tough nun who's a prison psychologist in the brutal HBO prison series 'Oz.'Īfter becoming the first Latina to win an Oscar for 'West Side Story,' she became the first Latinx person to be an EGOT, a winner of an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony. The documentary traces her life from her birth in Puerto Rico in 1931 through her 87th birthday, when she was costarring in the reboot of the Norman Lear sitcom 'One Day At A Time.' She moved to New York City with her mother in 1936.
My guest Rita Moreno is the subject of a new documentary called 'Just A Girl Who Decided To Go For It.' It will premiere in theaters nationwide on June 18 and will be broadcast on the PBS 'American Masters' series in October. She says her W est Side Story role is 'the only part I ever remember where I represented Hispanics in a dignified and positive way.' Moreno moved to New York from Puerto Rico as a child.
