Katharina Buczek
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
Sign up for Chip Chick’s newsletter and get stories like this delivered to your inbox.
