Features new interviews with Moreno, Lear, Miranda, Gloria and Emilio Estefan, Morgan Freeman, Whoopi Goldberg, Eva Longoria, Justina Machado, Terrence McNally, Chita Rivera and others
BEVERLY HILLS, CA; July 29, 2019 -- Today at the Television Critics Association Press Tour, PBS and THIRTEEN announced a new documentary about the EGOT-winning entertainer Rita Moreno, slated to premiere in 2020. AMERICAN MASTERS “Rita Moreno: The Girl Who Decided to Go For It” (w.t.) is a partnership between THIRTEEN’s AMERICAN MASTERS series and Norman Lear’s Act III Productions in association with Maramara and executive producer Lin-Manuel Miranda.
Over a career spanning more than 70 years, Rita Moreno defied both her humble upbringing and relentless racism to become a celebrated and award-winning actor. Born into poverty on a Puerto Rican farm, Moreno and her seamstress mother immigrated to New York City when Moreno was five years old. After studying dance and performing on Broadway, Moreno was cast as any ethnic minority the Hollywood studios needed filled: Polynesian, Native American, Egyptian and so on. Despite becoming the first Latina actress to win an Academy Award for her role as Anita in “West Side Story” (1961), the studios continued to offer Moreno lesser roles as stereotypical ethnic minorities, ignoring her proven talent.
Beyond the racism she experienced as a Latina actor, AMERICAN MASTERS “Rita Moreno: The Girl Who Decided to Go For It” (w.t.) will explore the lesser-known struggles Moreno faced on her path to stardom, including pernicious Hollywood sexism and sexual abuse, a toxic relationship with Marlon Brando, and an attempted suicide a year before she won her Oscar. The documentary will demonstrate Moreno’s talent and resilience as she broke barriers and paved the way for new generations of artists by refusing to be pigeonholed and fighting for Latinx representation in a variety of genres.
AMERICAN MASTERS “Rita Moreno: The Girl Who Decided to Go For It” (w.t.) will show the star’s rich, decades-long career using vérité footage of Moreno today, archival footage of her roles and appearances, reenactments of her childhood, interviews with Moreno, those close to her and performers she influenced, and animation. Film interviewees include Norman Lear, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Gloria and Emilio Estefan, Morgan Freeman, Mitzi Gaynor, Whoopi Goldberg, Eva Longoria, Justina Machado, Terrence McNally and Chita Rivera. Her most notable roles include “The Electric Company” (PBS), the Broadway and feature film versions of “The Ritz,” “The Four Seasons,” “Where on Earth is Carmen Sandiego?” “Oz” and, most recently, “One Day at a Time.”
“Rita Moreno has won every major award – the Peabody, Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony – for good reason,” said Michael Kantor, AMERICAN MASTERS series executive producer. “She is not just an American Master, she is an American treasure.”
“How I wish my Puerto Rican mother were alive to see this: her child’s story being celebrated by the likes of AMERICAN MASTERS,” said Rita Moreno. “It is not something she or I could ever have imagined. I’m astonished. I’m humbled.”
“When I learned from my producing partner, Brent Miller, that a film had not yet been made on Rita Moreno, I couldn’t believe it and suggested we make it together,” said executive producer Norman Lear. “There’s no woman more deserving of the AMERICAN MASTERS stamp. Her talent, her activism, her life – all worthy of an audience. And her story, an inspiration to so many, is one that should live on forever.”
“Rita is La Reina. Punto. Full stop,” said executive producer Lin-Manuel Miranda. “Her life, talent and career is a masterclass in the American dream. It is about time that she takes her rightful place amongst her peers on AMERICANMASTERS.”
“As a filmmaker, woman and Puerto Rican, I am proud to have the opportunity to tell Rita’s story,” said director Mariem Pérez Riera. “Her many victories in the face of prejudice are an inspiration to me. Hopefully, this film will give strength to the women all over the world, who today, face a similar fight towards equality.”
Launched in 1986, AMERICAN MASTERS set the standard for documentary film profiles, accruing widespread critical acclaim and earning 28 Emmy Awards — including 10 for Outstanding Non-Fiction Series and five for Outstanding Non-Fiction Special — 14 Peabodys, an Oscar, three Grammys, two Producers Guild Awards and many other honors. To further explore the lives and works of masters past and present, the AMERICAN MASTERS website offers streaming video of select films, outtakes, filmmaker interviews, the American Masters Podcast, educational resources and more. The series is a production of THIRTEEN PRODUCTIONS LLC for WNET and also seen on the WORLD channel. AMERICAN MASTERS is available for streaming simultaneously on all station-branded PBS platforms, including PBS.org and the PBS Video app, which is available on iOS, Android, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV and Chromecast. PBS station members can view episodes via Passport (contact your local PBS station for details).
AMERICAN MASTERS “Rita Moreno: The Girl Who Decided to Go For It” (w.t.) is a production of American Masters Pictures and Act III in association with Maramara. Michael Kantor, Norman Lear, and Lin-Manuel Miranda are executive producers. Brent Miller is producer. Mariem Perez is producer and director. Ilia Velez is co-producer. Michael Kantor is executive producer of AMERICAN MASTERS.
Major support for AMERICAN MASTERS is provided by AARP. Additional support is provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Rosalind P. Walter, The Philip and Janice Levin Foundation, Judith and Burton Resnick, Ellen and James S. Marcus, Vital Projects Fund, Lillian Goldman Programming Endowment, Cheryl and Philip Milstein Family, The Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation, The André and Elizabeth Kertész Foundation, Seton Melvin, Michael & Helen Schaffer Foundation, and public television viewers.
About ACT III Productions
Founded in 1985, ACT III Productions is a media company dedicated to creating and producing content that both entertains and generates conversation. Under the leadership of CEO, Norman Lear, and his producing partner, Brent Miller, ACT III joined the Sony Pictures Entertainment family in 2018 with a first look deal. Known for programs like the critically acclaimed reimagining of One Day at A Time (Netflix / POP), docuseries America Divided (Epix), and the Jimmy Kimmel co-production Live In Front of a Studio Audience…(ABC), ACT III remains committed to illuminating our social and political realities while diversifying the media landscape.
About WNET
WNET is America’s flagship PBS station: parent company of New York’s THIRTEEN and WLIW21 and operator of NJTV, the statewide public media network in New Jersey. Through its new ALL ARTS multi-platform initiative, its broadcast channels, three cable services (THIRTEEN PBSKids, Create and World) and online streaming sites, WNET brings quality arts, education and public affairs programming to more than five million viewers each month. WNET produces and presents a wide range of acclaimed PBS series, including NATURE, GREAT PERFORMANCES, AMERICAN MASTERS, PBS NEWSHOUR WEEKEND, and the nightly interview program AMANPOUR AND COMPANY. In addition, WNET produces numerous documentaries, children’s programs, and local news and cultural offerings, as well as multi-platform initiatives addressing poverty and climate. Through THIRTEEN Passport and WLIW Passport, station members can stream new and archival THIRTEEN, WLIW and PBS programming anytime, anywhere.
About PBS
PBS, with nearly 350 member stations, offers all Americans the opportunity to explore new ideas and new worlds through television and digital content. Each month, PBS reaches over 120 million people through television and 26 million people online, inviting them to experience the worlds of science, history, nature and public affairs; to hear diverse viewpoints; and to take front row seats to world-class drama and performances. PBS’ broad array of programs has been consistently honored by the industry’s most coveted award competitions. Teachers of children from pre-K through 12th grade turn to PBS for digital content and services that help bring classroom lessons to life. Decades of research confirms that PBS’ premier children’s media service, PBS KIDS, helps children build critical literacy, math and social-emotional skills, enabling them to find success in school and life. Delivered through member stations, PBS KIDS offers high-quality educational content on TV – including a 24/7 channel, online at pbskids.org, via an array of mobile apps and in communities across America. More information about PBS is available at www.pbs.org, one of the leading dot-org websites on the internet, or by following PBS on Twitter, Facebook or through our apps for mobile and connected devices. Specific program information and updates for press are available at pbs.org/pressroom or by following PBS Pressroom on Twitter.
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Press Contact:
Ava Tews, WNET, 212.560.8153, tewsa@wnet.org
Press Materials: http://pbs.org/pressroom or http://thirteen.org/pressroom
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