Within this luminous memoir, Rita Moreno stocks her remarkable trip from a girl with simple beginnings in Puerto Rico to Hollywood legend-and mostly of the performers, as well as the only Hispanic, to win an Oscar, Grammy, Tony and two Emmys.

Given birth to Rosita Dolores Alverio in the idyll of Puerto Rico, Moreno, at age group five, embarked on the harrowing ocean voyage with her mom and wound up in the harsh barrios from the Bronx, where she discovered dancing, singing, and performing as methods to escape a about Rita Moreno: A Memoir tumultuous child years. Producing her Broadway debut by age group thirteen-and shifting to Hollywood in its Golden Age group just a few years later-she proved helpful alongside such celebrities as Gary Cooper, Yul Brynner, and Ann Miller.

When discovered simply by Louis B. Mayer of MGM, the wizard himself declared: “She appears like a Spanish Elizabeth Taylor.” Cast by Gene Kelly while Zelda Zanders in Singin’ in the torrential rain and then on to her Oscar-winning overall performance in West Side Tale, she catapulted to fame-yet discovered herself frequently typecast while the “power ethnic,” a job she found almost impossible to elude.

Here, for the first time, Rita reflects on her challenges to break through Hollywood’s racial and sexual barriers. She explores the wounded litttle lady behind the gorgeous façade-and what it got to discover her put in place the globe. She talks candidly about her relationship with Elvis Presley, her encounters with Howard Hughes, and the passionate romance with Marlon Brando that drove her to attempt suicide. And she stocks the illusiveness of a “perfect” marriage and the matchless joys of motherhood.

Infused with Rita Moreno’s quick wit and deep insight, this memoir may be the dazzling portrait of a stage and screen star who longed to be who she really is-and triumphed.