María Félix (1914 – 2002) was a Mexican actress, one of the icons of Mexico’s golden age of movies. Known as La Doña after her 1943 role in Doña Bárbara, Félix was ultra-flamboyant, elegant and universally loved in her home country. She loved serpents, collecting art and jewellery, and in her later years became a racehorse owner. Here’s 5 fancy facts about “the most beautiful face in the history of Mexican cinema”:

1. She made 18 films during the 1940s, and continued working in the Mexican film industry until 1970. By then she had completed 47 movies – including  She also worked in Spain, Italy and France – but not the States as she wasn’t interested in learning English.

2. A fantastic example of Félix’s flamboyancy and love of reptilian style:

One day in 1975 she walked it to Cartier unannounced with a live ‘gator on a leash (or two babies in a bowl, depending on the source you believe) – for the jewellers to copy from. The necklace that resulted was in the shape of two crocodiles. Each body made from 524.9 grams of gold, one covered with 1,023 fancy yellow diamonds, while the other was adorned with 1,060 circular cut emeralds.

3. Out of her 4 marriages, she was made a window twice. She had one son, Enrique, with her first husband. Upon their divorce, Enrique was kidnapped by his father – and then rescued by a feisty Félix and her second husband.

4. In 1949, María’s one time lover Diego Rivera painted a portrait of her, which she hated. She did kept it for years, until selling it to the Mexican singer Juan Gabriel. Note the serpent bracelet – just like the one in the picture above.

5. She hobnobbed in wealthy and influential circles her entire life, and enjoyed the finer points of fashion. In1984 she was nominated in France and Italy as one of the world’s best-dressed women; and was wooed by men all over the world, including King Farouk of Egypt. My kingdom for an evening?

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