Goldie Hawn is one of those celebs who radiates positivity wherever she appears, whether it’s interviews, premieres, or the red carpet. I would say she’s one of a kind. She has spent her entire life under the spotlight but is very grounded and enjoys a peaceful life with her partner of many years, actor Kurt Russel. What these two have is an exception to the rule that Hollywood marriages don’t last. Well, maybe it’s because they never really married and believe that is exactly what kept them together for so long.
Born on November 21, 1945, in Washington DC, to father Rut and mother Laura who ran a dance school, it wasn’t surprising that Hawn herself fell in love with dancing and ballet. Her first public performance was in the Ballett Russe de Monte Carlo production of The Nutcracker when she was just 10.
Pretty much everyone who knew Hawn and her inner talent for dancing knew she would make it big in the industry. And so it was. Young Hawn appeared in the television series Good Morning, World and stole millions of hearts.
A year later, in 1968, she had her first film debut as a dancer in the Disney film The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band, and the rest is history. This movie not only helped boost her career, but it was also when she met Russel for the first time. He was younger than her and despite she thought he was very handsome, the two didn’t embark on an adventure.
“I was 21 and he was 16,” Hawn recalled during a BBC Radio 4 interview. “I thought he was adorable, but he was much too young. Then, years later we met up again, and I remembered that I liked him very much when I first met him. We both said we would never go out with another actor so it just shows you never can tell.”
Years later, during the filming of Swing Shift, Hawn and Russel met again, and that was it. He couldn’t resist her charm and used the pick-up line “Man, you’ve got a great figure.”
After that, they went on a date and have been together ever since. They are now grandparents and love their new roles so very much.
However, no matter how awesome her life sounds, Hawn had her struggles throughout her life. When she was just 21, she experienced depression and had a hard time coping with her mental state.
During a Good Morning Britain appearance, the award-winning actress spoke up of her struggles openly saying: “When I was young, I became depressed. I was 21 and I was rising to success.
“I know it sounds terrible, but it’s a very, very difficult thing, I didn’t necessarily want that.”
She also recalled how she was afraid of going out of home and be under the spotlight. That was a difficult thing to do, however, because the world of film was already a huge part of her life and the public was interested in the young and stunning blonde lady who became a celebrity almost overnight.
“I didn’t want to be a big deal, I wanted to go home, I wanted to get married, I wanted to be a dancing school teacher,” she continued.
“I did have a plan and I didn’t have delusions of grandeur on any level, I was extremely realistic. This is something that, for me, I worked through,” she added. “I went to a doctor, I went to a psychologist, I learned about quieting my mind and what happens to the brain.”
Having someone so famous who many young people look up to speak up about such a sensitive subject is truly a great deal.
Hawn does all in her power to help others who are going through a hard time because of depression and speaks of the importance of a good mental health through her organization MindUp. It focuses primarily on young children. Hawn believes that offering help is even more crucial in the times of the pandemic because all this chaos affects the mental state of pretty much everyone to one extent or another.
“When this pandemic happened, it gobsmacked everyone,” Hawn said on Good Morning Britain. “We didn’t know how to handle our children, we were dealing with ourselves. It’s just a plethora of problems.
“For every one of us, we may have a different reason why we may feel low, or anxious, or depressed,” she added. “All I want to say is that if you really aren’t happy, we do need to be able to tend to ourselves, to go to a doctor. Don’t be embarrassed.”
Thank you Goldie Hawn for everything you are giving to the world.