DEBORAH KERR A LEGACY OF Love

THE ACCLAIMED SCOTTISH ACTRESS CARVED HER OWN PATH THROUGH HOLLYWOOD

- Fortune Benatar

In From Here to Eternity, Deborah Kerr and Burt Lancaster shared a passionate kiss as a wave broke over their bodies. "Nobody ever kissed me the way you do," she breathlessly told him.

By 1953, movie fans had grown used to seeing Deborah in largely virtuous roles. Playing Karen, an Army wife consumed by an extramarital affair, was a big departure for the actress. "I knew I could be sexy," said Deborah, who dyed her hair blonde and learned an American accent.

That memorable role was part of a career that spanned 50 years and earned her six Best Actress Oscar nominations. Deborah noted that she played everyone "from nuns to nymphos," but one of her favorites was the tired Australian sheepshearer's wife who longs for a real home in The Sundowners. "She adored the character of Ida Carmody," her daughter Francesca Shrapnel tells Closer. "It's such a tender and thoughtful performance."

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