Ethnic Makeovers

From the most beautiful Hollywood star to the most downloaded woman on the Internet, 'ethnic makeovers' have always been worryingly prevalent. Like the Dutch, German, Spanish, Scott people that came to America when it was first born, many still feel that in order to properly assimilate they must get rid of their former heritage and work towards achieving an ideal image of what it means to be American.

Rita Hayworth

Thinking of Rita Hayworth, you probably think of a cigarette dangling invitingly from her lips, of a beautiful dress, of Gilda, of dancing, of lasting beauty. You probably don't think of Margarita Carmen Cansino, or of her ever looking like this



This is Rita Hayworth before she was signed to Columbia Pictures. Somewhere in between the time this photo was taken and her first films in the late 30's, she had electrolysis to move back her hairline, her skin lightened and her hair dyed, and thus Rita Hayworth, sex Goddess, was born. She had a long and illustrious career, danced with Fred Astaire, sang with Frank Sinatra, and ended up being one of the most iconic women in the 'Golden Age' of Hollywood, yet the Hayworth we remember couldn't be more different from the girl she once was. However, in the context of history, one could understand why her ethnicity might have been a problem, especially to a very conservative audience, but the idea of changing your physical appearance in order to fit in to the norm seems a uniquely American problem. This is also seen in Crèvecœur's Letters from an American Farmer, where he discusses what it meant in the early days of America's inception to identify oneself as American "He is an American, who, leaving behind him all his antient prejudices and manners, receives new ones from the mode of life he has embraced..." This passage indicates even then that previous life, beliefs or attitudes no longer matter when you are seen as American, something which to the modern reader seems very unusual and somewhat optimistic; the idea that they really are all all the same regardless of background because of their status as Americans seems very idealised, yet when looking at the before and after pictures of Rita Hayworth above, you start to wonder how true that statement may be, and whether its more superficial than that.