Rita Moreno based her portrayal of Lydia on “One Day at a Time” off of her own mother. “She is my mom, that is my mom’s accent.”
Written Features
Rita Moreno biography and timeline
The divided states of “America” – why Rita Moreno objected to West Side Story’s original lyrics
Rita Moreno won her EGOT status with these 4 roles
5 Rita Moreno roles you may have forgotten
3 life lessons from Rita Moreno
Rita Moreno Q&A: Her career from Puerto Rico to Hollywood
Mariem Pérez Riera’s Director’s Statement
Declaración de la Directora Mariem Pérez Riera
Our Rita: How Rita Moreno’s Puerto Rican roots changed American culture
Video Features
Clip | How Rita Moreno became a social activist
Clip | Rita Moreno gives one of the shortest Oscars speeches ever
Clip | Rita Moreno on facing sexism in the industry
Clip | Rita Moreno’s mother inspired her “One Day at a Time” role
Clip | Behind the Scenes | Rita Moreno
Clip | Lin-Manuel Miranda on his first viewing of “West Side Story”
TRANSCRIPT
(knocking) - Come in.
- Hi, five minutes.
- Okay. I'm ready.
- Okay, perfect. Thank you.
- The role that I love the most that Rita's played?
Lydia.
- Oh.
(laughs) Oh my gosh.
- I love that character because you get every bit of her.
- Okay, here we go, guys.
(crowd cheering) - We were looking for a grandmother, the mother of a glorious actress, Justina Machado.
And there's only one Rita Moreno.
- Pobrecito, papito He was so sad because he asked Chloe out and she said no.
But what did I tell you?
I said, 'You keep trying.'
'Wear her down.'
(audience laughs) 'Don't take no for an answer.'
(audience laughs) - Lydia is my mom.
She is my mom.
That is my mom's accent.
But there's a big caveat here.
It's easy to fall into caricature with her because she's so big.
- It is never over.
- But I'm big.
I'm as big as you get.
I may be petite, but I am big.
That's me.
But you have to be so careful with a character like that.
- The stereotype comes from how others tell our story.
I'm interested in how we tell our story.
We're always-they're going to tell our story however they're going to tell it.
And that's what it is.
But when we tell our story, who are we choosing to put up on that screen?
I think that's another part of the conversation.
(salsa music)
