[custom_adv] This weekend, Netflix dropped a brand new series from the busiest man in television, Ryan Murphy! Starring several familiar faces, Hollywood is a sentimental retelling of America's less than politically correct Golden Age. [custom_adv] Rock Hudson arrived in Los Angeles a well-mannered but naive guy from provincial America. Although he dreamed of being a star, he is rumoured to have been just as clunky in his early acting career as the character appears in the show! Rock was secretly gay, and his death in 1985 from an AIDS-related illness made him the first major celebrity to die of the disease, bringing huge public awareness to AIDS. [custom_adv] In typical Ryan Murphy fashion, a lot of the characters in Hollywood blend fact and fiction, and several are actually based on real people. Here they are side by side with their real life inspirations. [custom_adv] While Camille Washington isn't strictly based on anyone, the character bears a resemblance to two African-American stars of the Golden Age – Lena Horne and Dorothy Dandridge, in particular the latter. [custom_adv] Actor Laura Harrier said she drew inspiration from Dorothy, who was just as tenacious as Camille is in the show. After fighting for years for decent roles, in 1954 Dorothy became the first African-American to receive a Best Actress nomination at the Academy Awards. [custom_adv] Patti LuPone's character of Avis Amberg was again not a real person, but she was inspired by Irene Mayer Selznick. Irene was the daughter of MGM co-founder Louis B. Mayer, and the wife of American film producer David O. Selznick.
