Rita Moreno Admitted She Was 'Addicted To' Marlon Brando After Elvis Presley Fling

Apr 27, 2022 by apost team

Rita Moreno is a walking Hollywood legend! After moving from Puerto Rico to New York City, the young star made her Broadway debut at 13. Moreno played Angelina in "Skydrift." Following her Broadway debut, Moreno's talents began to capture the attention of filmmakers and talent scouts in Hollywood. Moreno made her first film debut in "So Bad, So Young" in 1950, where she used her birth name Rosita Moreno in the credits. Shortly before her second film, "Toast of New Orleans," Moreno changed her name to Rita Moreno. Unfortunately, a large part of Moreno's Hollywood career was tainted by the roles she typecast in. Often, Hollywood ignored her tremendous talents and cast her in stereotypical ethnic roles or oversexualized her. According to Americans for the Arts, throughout Moreno's 70-year entertainment career, she made over 40 films. Her most notable roles are her role as Tuptim in "The King and I," her role alongside Marlon Brando in "The Night of the Following Day," and her performance in "Carnal Knowledge."

In 1961, Moreno landed her breakout role as Anita in "West Side Story." On April 9th, 1962, Moreno made history as the first Latina woman to win an Oscar for her performance in "West Side Story." Throughout her career, Moreno pushed Hollywood's stereotypical roles of race and gender. As a result, the Puerto Rican American actress made history as the first Latina actress to earn an "E.G.O.T." The E.G.O.T. represents four of the highest-ranking awards in the entertainment industry; an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar, and a Tony Award. 

Rising to fame during Hollywood's Golden Era, Moreno shared iconic stories of her famed Hollywood lovers, especially her eight-year on and off-again relationship with Marlon Brando. 

Rita Moreno and Marlon Brando met on the set of the Napoleon biopic “Désirée.” During an episode of Variety's "Actors on Actor" series, Moreno spoke with Jessica Chastain and recalled her relationship with Brando.

"Ultimately, it was exciting to be with Marlon," Moreno told Chastain. "He was extraordinary in many, many ways, but he was a bad guy. He was a bad guy when it came to women."

For eight years, Brando cheated on Moreno. In an interview with The View, the actress remembered her plot to get revenge on her lover after finding lingerie in his house. 

"I found lingerie in his house and, of course, I was heartbroken, and I went home in tears — really, I was naïve — and I was angry too, just furious," the E.G.O.T. winner recalled. "The next day, the phone rings, and I hear 'Miss Moreno?' I said, 'Uh, yeah?' 'This is Colonel Parker, my client is Elvis Presley, and Elvis spotted you at the 20th Century Fox commissary, and he liked what he saw.'

"...and he said, 'And he would like very much to meet you. Would you like to meet him?'" the actress continued, remembering the incident that influenced her decision the most. "And I thought of those panties, and I said, 'Yes, I would!'"

Moreno revealed that she "dated [Elvis] several times." She referred to The King of Rock as "sweet" but was adamant that he didn't compare to Marlon Brando. 

Moreno's fling with Presely drove Brando mad. 

"When [Brando] found out, it didn't take long." the actress told the outlet. "He started to throw chairs. He was so angry. It was wonderful. And I just sat there as he threw chairs and carried on."

Moreno felt elated by Brando's reaction, but their turbulent relationship nearly destroyed her.

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Throughout their eight-year relationship, Marlon Brando married multiple women and fathered their children. And yet, that wasn't enough to stop Rita Moreno's strong desire for him. In her 2011 memoir, "Rita Moreno: A Memoir," the award-winning actress shared how Brando's other relationships enticed her. 

"I was becoming addicted to the challenge of winning him over and over again," Moreno wrote.

Shortly after returning to Brando after her fling with Elvis Presley, Moreno discovered that she was pregnant with Brando's child. To her horror, he scheduled her for an abortion. 

"He asked somebody and somebody found a doctor for me who would do it — obviously Subrosa," Moreno recalled of the procedure in the 2021 documentary "Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go For It," according to Yahoo News!. "He put me to sleep and did the deed. Well, actually he didn't really do the deed. He disturbed the pregnancy is what I found out when for days and days I kept bleeding," Moreno said.

The botched surgery led to extreme pain for the rising movie star, and ultimately she had to be taken to the hospital to remove the dead fetus, according to the New York Post.

The whole ordeal led to Moreno attempting suicide at the height of her career. 

"I tried to kill myself out of self-hatred," The Hollywood icon revealed to Closer. "I was like, 'How could you allow yourself to let somebody treat you so badly,'" she says. "I took pills he had in his house, and I almost succeeded."

Moreno credits therapy and returning home to New York for her ability to leave her toxic relationship with Brando. She also believes marrying her late husband Leonard Gordon helped her get over Brando's hold on her. 

"We balance each other," she told PEOPLE in 1975.

Rita Moreno is a Hollywood icon. What is your favorite Moreno film? Let us know your thoughts, and be sure to pass this on to other Moreno fans you know!