All About Merle Oberon, the First Asian Best Actress Oscar Nominee Who Hid Her Heritage from Hollywood

Merle Oberon.Photo: George Rinhart/Corbis via Getty

BeforeMichelle Yeohmade history as the second Best ActressAcademy Awardnominee of Asian heritage, there was Merle Oberon.

Born in India, Oberon is perhaps best known for her roles inThe Scarlet Pimpernel(1934) and 1935’sThe Dark Angel— the latter of which nabbed her a Best Actress nod in 1936, making her the first Asian woman to do so.

Meanwhile, Yeoh, 60, just received her first-everOscar nomination for Best Actress, for her role inEverything Everywhere All at Once— making her the second actress of Asian descent to hold the honor, 87 years later.

Read on to learn more about Oberon’s life, career and legacy.

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From left: Merle Oberon inThe Scarlet Pimpernel(1934) andThe Dark Angel(1935).Courtesy Everett Collection (2)

She began her career in British films, starting with bit parts before a bigger break asAnne Boleynin 1933’sThe Private Life of Henry VIII.

Oberon would soon star as Lady Blakeney inThe Scarlet Pimperneland Kitty Vane inThe Dark Angel. The latter role landed Oberon her Best Actress Oscar nomination. (She lost the award toBette Davis.) She also starred as Cathy in 1939’sWuthering Heights.

The actress — who was married four times and had two children — had more than 50 screen credits to her name before retiring from acting following a final film role in the 1973 romantic dramaInterval. Oberon died in 1979 at age 68, after suffering a stroke.

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Oberon’s biracial heritage is not widely known because she herself hid it from the public during her life.

According to thePost, which cites the podcastYou Must Remember This, Oberon used white makeup and products to help bleach her skin, as well as a British accent, to try and obscure her origins. She also claimed she was born in the Australian state of Tasmania, per thePost.

In his 2008 bookMerle Oberon: Face of Mystery, historian Bob Casey said in part, “Merle Oberon set out as a charming, good-looking girl with a lovely smile who made the most of her looks and her luck,” according to Australian outlet theHerald Sun.

“But she kept painting herself into a corner with these lies about being born in Tasmania, which I believe she paid a heavy price for,” he added.

Merle Oberon.Kobal/Shutterstock

“I’m very ordinary. I just work very hard,” she added. “There are so many brilliant actresses, actors out there who knowthat they have a seat at the table. All they have to do is find an opportunity and get there.”

The Malaysian-born actress — who is considered a Best Actress frontrunner at the upcoming Academy Awards for her performance as Evelyn Wang inEverything Everywhere All at Once— toldTIMElast monththat she has “thought about” the fact that no Asian woman has ever won Best Actress atthe Oscars, adding, “And not just me — I feel like myfull Asian community has thought about it.”

“They come up to me and they say, ‘You’re doing it for us,’ " Yeoh toldTIME.

The 95th Academy Awards will air live on ABC March 12.

source: people.com