How Young Starlet Dolores Hart Went From Thriving In Hollywood To Becoming A Nun At Just 24-Years-Old
In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Dolores Hart was an increasingly well-known name. The young actress had starred alongside Elvis Presley in his film Loving You and even shared a passionate kiss with the King himself.
But, by 1963, Dolores began to rethink her Hollywood career and decided to go in a holier direction. More specifically, the twenty-four-year-old left California altogether to join the order in Bethlehem, Connecticut.
Dolores Hart’s Early Life
From the start, Dolores was no stranger to Hollywood stardom-chasing. Her parents, Bert Hicks and Harriett Hicks, were both aspiring actors who had even moved to California to chase their dreams.
So, Dolores lived with her grandparents in Chicago and attended St. Gregory Catholic School. But, her grandparents did not enroll her because of the school’s religious education. Instead, they liked that its campus was close to their home.
Nonetheless, by age ten, Dolores had decided to convert to Catholicism anyway. And funnily enough, her decision also was not based on the religion’s teachings. Instead, she wanted to indulge in the same treats other children were afforded after receiving communion.
“That’s how they got me– the chocolate milk and doughnuts,” Dolores said.
Still, her Catholic adolescence did not detour her from falling in love with cinema. Her grandfather first introduced her to movies while he was working as a projectionist.
CBS Television, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons; pictured above is Dolores
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Then, following college graduation, Dolores decided to try her hand in the industry. She was born Dolores Hicks but, after setting her sights on Hollywood, decided her stage name would be Dolores Hart.
And she quickly made waves with this new pseudonym. Dolores was first signed on to Loving You to be a supporting actress and the love interest of Elvis Presley. Then, once the film debuted in 1957, the young star quickly became a hot commodity.
She went on to star in another famous Elvis film entitled King Creole before landing roles in other major motion pictures such as Where The Boys Are (1960), Francis of Assisi (1961), and The Inspector (1962).
Her starring role in The Inspector even earned Dolores a Golden Globe nomination for Best Drama picture.
From Hollywood To The Order
Dolores’ final role came in 1963 when she was featured on the television series The Virginian. There, she played the character Kathy Maywood, a Catholic missionary who risked her life to help a community of sick Indian tribes. Perhaps this role inspired the future nun?
Regardless, Dolores went on to meet Don Robinson– an architect from Los Angeles– who she immediately hit it off with. They quickly got engaged, sent out invitations to their wedding, and got Edith Head– an Oscar-winning costume designer– to custom-design Dolores’ wedding dress.
Nonetheless, the pair never got to say their vows. Instead, Dolores abruptly broke off her engagement and announced her plans to become a nun at 24-years-old.
Apparently, all of the stardom had proved stressful for the young actress. So, in between filming, Dolores would often travel to the Regina Laudis Abbey convent in Connecticut to clear her mind.
And by 1963, she had decided that her life would be better spent there among the order.
“I began to notice each time I went, it was becoming harder and harder to leave. I had this feeling. I was home,” Dolores said.
“I felt in my heart this [Hollywood] was not my path. God was calling me, and I felt it in my heart that I needed to answer.”
Dolores’ Lasting Legacy
Dolores has now been a cloistered nun for fifty-eight years and continues to live at the Abbey of Regina Laudis in Connecticut.
Over the years, she has used her fame and notable network– including Patricia O’Neal and Paul Newman– to foster community connection and expansion projects for the Abbey.
Dolores has also been the subject of an HBO documentary entitled God Is The Bigger Elvis, which premiered in 2012. The documentary was nominated for Best Documentary at the Academy Awards that year, where Dolores actually attended her first red-carpet event since 1959.
Finally, Dolores penned an autobiography entitled “The Ear of the Heart: An Actress’ Journey From Hollywood To Holy Vows” and released it in 2013. There, the former starlet discusses her physical, emotional, and spiritual evolution that has continued to fascinate the public for decades.
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