Fans everywhere wished they were the stunning Debra Winger after Naval Officer Zack Mayo took factory worker Paula into his arms and carried her from her place of employment in a classic romance.
For daydreaming fans, the iconic scene from the romance drama An Officer and a Gentleman, in which Richard Gere portrayed the dashing hero in navy whites, Officer Zack Mayo, became the standard for love stories.
Many were envious of Debra Winger, who acted with some of Hollywood’s most attractive guys.
Winger, 67, is still stunning today. Winger has shared pictures of herself on Instagram throughout the last few years, initially with brown hair and later sporting a natural wavy gray.
Winger played Drusilla, the younger sister of Lynda Carter’s Diana Prince/Wonder Woman, in the popular TV series Wonder Woman (1979), after landing her first major role in the 1976 movie Slumber Party ’57. Winger was requested to make more appearances, but she rejected out of fear that the role would stereotype her.
There were no regrets about the choice; the growing celebrity would have a profitable early 1980s.
She got multiple Academy and Golden Globe nominations for her roles in three classic 1980s films at the height of her youthful career.
She costarred with John Travolta in Urban Cowboy in 1980. At the time, Travolta was making fans go crazy with his slick dancing skills in Saturday Night Fever (1977) and Grease (1988). She also played Paula in an Officer and a Gentleman (1982) and Emma, a dying young woman with an overbearing mother, Aurora (played by Shirley MacLaine), in Terms of Endearment (1983).
Even after her enormous success, Winger took a brief break from acting, and almost forty years after her ascent to fame, rumors about why she did so continue to circulate.
The majority of these rumors center on Winger’s conflicts with her co-stars.
It has been generally claimed that Winger had enough of the attractive Gere on the set, despite the fact that fans couldn’t get enough of him.
Co-star Louis Gossett Jr., who played Sgt. Emil Foley, wrote the following passage from his book, “An Actor and a Gentleman,” which was featured on ABC News: “The onscreen chemistry between the two of them was terrific, but it was a different story once the camera was turned off.” They couldn’t have remained more far from one another.
Winger, according to Gossett, didn’t think much of Gere’s acting and once called her “a brick wall.” Additionally, she called the film’s director, Taylor Hackford, “animal,” even if she did not like him.
She was irritated by more than just the characters in that movie.
The prolific, glamorous, quirky, and seasoned veteran MacLaine clashed with Winger, who was a free spirit both in real life and in her performance as Emma.
Their connection began with their first encounter.
In an interview with People, MacLaine stated, “I was wearing all my leftover movie-star fur coats to see how my character would feel.” Debra was wearing a miniskirt and combat boots.”Oh my goodness,” I said.
“In fact, the set became the source of Hollywood’s most cherished rumors,” People says. Winger desired the highest billing. According to reports, one slugged the other.
When both ladies received nominations for best actress at the Oscars, they were then paired against one another.
In her victory speech, MacLaine remarked, “I deserve this!” as she carried the prize home.
Despite the rumors, Winger maintains that she “pressed the pause button” on Hollywood for private rather than work-related reasons.
“I wasn’t interested in the upcoming parts. I had either already felt that or had already done it. I required a challenge. Winger told People, “I threw myself into it wholeheartedly because my life challenged me more than the parts.”
Winger took a six-year hiatus after costarring with Billy Crystal in the 1995 romantic comedy Forget Paris.
She relocated to New York City around that period and began concentrating on actor Arliss Howard, whom she married in 1996. She is the stepmother to Howard’s son from a previous marriage, Sam, and the couple’s son, Gideon Babe, was born in 1997. Noah Hutton, her other biological child, was born while she was married to Timothy Hutton, her first husband (1986 to 1990).
Her husband, who costarred with Winger and Rosanna Arquette in the 2001 picture Big Bad Love, directed and produced the film. Her next job was the 2002 movie Searching for Debra Winger. As the documentary’s director, Arquette tries to explain why Winger abruptly stopped performing at the height of her career.
Roles in the 2017 romantic comedy The Lovers, the crime-comedy Kajillionaire (2020), and Rachel Getting Married (2008) opposite Anne Hathaway gave Winger some momentum.
She appeared in the Her Own portion of With/In, Volume two of the anthological drama film in 2021. Her husband, who also co-stars, wrote and directed the segment.
“I have no idea what Hollywood is. Now that I’m living under the freaking sign, I just chuckle while staring at it. Despite the fact that there may be some crowds that I am unaware of, Winger stated, “Los Angeles is a place, but the idea of Hollywood doesn’t really exist for me.”
We hope Debra Winger wins an Academy Award soon because we can’t fathom Hollywood without her! Which Winger films are your favorites?
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