Tributes are flowing following the passing of Olivia de Havilland, one of the last surviving stars of Hollywood’s Golden Age who, away from the screen, took on the studio system and won a landmark legal case.
The two-time Oscar winner, who lit up the silver screen in Gone With the Wind, The Adventures of Robin Hood, The Snake Pit, The Heiress, and more, died Sunday (July 26) at her home in Paris. She was 104.
Aside from her considerable acting talents, De Havilland is also remembered for helping to change Hollywood’s studio system when she successfully sued Warner Bros. to gain freedom from the studio after her contract had expired. The 1940s case is now known in legal circles as The De Havilland Decision, and many actors have since enjoyed higher compensation and greater creative freedom thanks to her actions.
Bryan Adams, Slash, Jared Leto, William Shatner and other stars of music and entertainment worlds paid their respects to the late Hollywood great.
