Rita Hayworth Family Tree: The Story Behind Hollywood's Love Goddess

Margarita Carmen Cansino, known as Rita Hayworth (1918–1987), born 17 October 1918 in Brooklyn, New York, USA, and died 14 May 1987 in New York City, was Hollywood's biggest 1940s sex symbol — 61 films including Only Angels Have Wings (1939), Blood and Sand (1941), You Were Never Lovelier (1942), Cover Girl (1944), Gilda (1946), The Lady from Shanghai (1947); first person publicly diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease (1980).

The Family's Roots: A Spanish-Anglo Dancing Family

Father was a Spanish dancer.

Her Parents

Father: Eduardo Cansino Sr. (1893–1968) — Spanish dancer; from Seville.

Mother: Volga Hayworth Cansino (1897–1945) — American Ziegfeld girl (English-Irish descent).

Her Brothers

Eduardo Cansino Jr. (1919–1974) — dancer; Vernon Cansino (1922–1974) — actor.

Her 5 Husbands

Edward Charles Judson (m. 29 May 1937, div. 22 September 1942) — oil man.

Orson Welles (m. 7 September 1943, div. 10 November 1948) — filmmaker.

Prince Aly Khan (m. 27 May 1949, div. 26 January 1953) — Muslim prince.

Dick Haymes (m. 24 September 1953, div. 12 December 1955) — singer.

James Hill (m. 2 February 1958, div. 7 September 1961) — producer.

Her Daughters

Rebecca Welles (1944–2004) — daughter with Orson Welles.

Princess Yasmin Aga Khan, born 28 December 1949 — daughter with Prince Aly Khan; Alzheimer's advocate.

The Hayworth Family Tree at a Glance

Father: Eduardo Cansino Sr. (1893–1968) — Spanish dancer.

Mother: Volga Hayworth Cansino (1897–1945) — Ziegfeld girl.

Brothers: Eduardo Jr. (1919–1974); Vernon (1922–1974).

Husbands: Ed Judson (1937-42); Orson Welles (1943-48); Prince Aly Khan (1949-53); Dick Haymes (1953-55); James Hill (1958-61).

Daughters: Rebecca Welles (1944–2004); Yasmin Aga Khan (b. 28 December 1949).

Rita Hayworth:

  • Born 17 October 1918, Brooklyn
  • Dancing partner with father in Mexican night clubs from age 12
  • Columbia Pictures contract 1937
  • Renamed and hair-lightened
  • Gilda (1946) — iconic role
  • Alzheimer's diagnosed 1980 — first public case (previously misdiagnosed)
  • Died: 14 May 1987, NYC — Alzheimer's at 68 (in daughter Yasmin's care)

What the Hayworth Family Story Teaches Us

A Spanish-dancer father. A Ziegfeld-girl mother. Two brothers. Five marriages — one to Orson Welles, one to a Muslim prince. Two daughters. A career that ended with a devastating early-onset Alzheimer's — for which her daughter Yasmin has campaigned ever since.

For every family — large or small, famous or otherwise — the Rita story carries the same lesson. Some careers change public understanding of a disease through the star's diagnosis.

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