--- title: Olivia de Havilland at 100—See 10 Vintage Photos of the Star description: The 'Gone With the Wind' actor was born on July 1, 1916. Here, see 10 glamorous photos from the early days of her career. canonical: https://time.com/4375422/olivia-de-havilland-photos-100/ author: Lily Rothman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-06-30T18:00:12.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T04:50:27.928Z article:section: History og:title: Olivia de Havilland at 100—See 10 Vintage Photos of the Star og:description: The actor celebrates her 100th birthday on July 1 og:url: https://time.com/4375422/olivia-de-havilland-photos-100/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt55eaae757e405cf8/698898abf887dc4b48e96540/160620-oliva-dehavilland-031.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Olivia de Havilland og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Olivia de Havilland at 100—See 10 Vintage Photos of the Star twitter:description: The actor celebrates her 100th birthday on July 1 twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt55eaae757e405cf8/698898abf887dc4b48e96540/160620-oliva-dehavilland-031.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Olivia de Havilland at 100: See Classic Photos of the Star by [Lily Rothman](https://time.com/author/lily-rothman/) and [Liz Ronk](https://time.com/author/liz-ronk/) Jun 30, 2016 6:00 PM UTC  Portrait of Olivia de Havilland, circa 1938. Portrait of Olivia de Havilland, circa 1938.John Kobal Foundation—Getty Images by [Lily Rothman](https://time.com/author/lily-rothman/) and [Liz Ronk](https://time.com/author/liz-ronk/) Jun 30, 2016 6:00 PM UTC  The Dec. 20, 1948, cover of TIME Cover Credit: BORIS CHALIAPIN [Olivia de Havilland](http://time.com/3768918/joan-fontaine-olivia-de-havilland/) appeared on the cover of TIME in 1948 for her starring role in the movie _The Snake Pit_, a film based on Mary Jane Ward’s book of the same name about mental illness. The article [noted](http://time.com/vault/issue/1948-12-20/page/1/) that even though “she made her first movie 14 years ago, and has since done some skilled acting _(Gone With the Wind,_ _Hold Back the Dawn_, _To Each His Own_—which won her the Academy Award in 1947), few people in or out of Hollywood know very much about Olivia de Havilland.” What was known: she feuded with her sister, the actor Joan Fontaine; she had been romantically linked to people like Jimmy Stewart and Howard Hughes; and she took “a hardheaded, serious-minded approach to her career.” But Hollywood observers were able to piece together enough about her life to know that though her face had gotten her a start in the movies—as TIME told it, she was first noticed when she understudied in a 1934 production of _Midsummer Night’s Dream_ by a producer who dropped by a rehearsal and thought she had an “esthetic face,” which is on full view in the glamor shots seen here—it was her mind that turned that start into a career. Locked into a restrictive deal with Warner Bros., even after being “loaned out” for a role in [_Gone With the Wind_](http://time.com/3628199/gone-with-the-wind-facts/), the biggest movie of its day, she ended up successfully suing the studio over its attempt to make her work beyond the terms of her contract. [_Get your history fix in one place: sign up for the weekly TIME History newsletter_](http://time.com/newsletter) After that, the jobs she took were on her own terms—in films including _The Snake Pit_ and _The Heiress_. Her most recent acting [credit](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000014/) came in 1988, in _The Woman He Loved,_ and in the years since she has received the [National Medal of Arts](http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/18/arts/18arts-ARTSMEDALSAW%5FBRF.html?scp=1&sq=Olivia%20de%20Havilland%20national%20medal%20of%20arts&st=cse) in the U.S. and the [Legion of Honor](https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1A1-36593d70f8324080ab3c5b267b79c3dc.html) from France, her adopted homeland_._ Her centennial birthday will be celebrated on [television](http://www.newsday.com/entertainment/movies/turner-classic-movies-to-screen-olivia-de-havilland-films-in-honor-of-100th-birthday-1.11948240) and with [film screenings](http://www.yourhoustonnews.com/greater%5Fhouston/entertainment/mfah-celebrates-olivia-de-havilland-s-th-birthday-with-screenings/article%5F01a98080-c67d-56dc-8042-987ba1f973ea.html).  Portrait of Olivia de Havilland, circa 1936. John Kobal Foundation—Getty Images  Portrait of Olivia de Havilland, circa 1936. John Kobal Foundation—Getty Images  Portrait of Olivia de Havilland, circa 1938. John Kobal Foundation—Getty Images  Portrait of Olivia de Havilland, circa 1938. John Kobal Foundation—Getty Images  Portrait of Olivia de Havillland, circa 1939. Alexander Paal—Condé Nast/Getty Images  Portrait of Olivia de Havilland, circa 1940. George Hurrell/John Kobal Foundation—Getty Images  Portrait of Olivia de Havilland, circa 1940. George Hurrell/John Kobal Foundation—Getty Images  Portrait of Olivia de Havilland, circa 1940. Pictorial Parade/Moviepix—Getty Images  Portrait of Olivia de Havilland, circa 1940. John Kobal Foundation—Getty Images  Portrait of Olivia de Havilland, circa 1945. 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