SHARK TANK APPROVED 
Happy birthday, Julianne More!
1. She proves redheads DO win Oscars
When it comes to redheads at the Academy Awards, many critics like to reference the phrase “always a bridesmaid; never a bride.” It seems that redheads are frequently nominated, but almost never take home the Oscar. In 2015, however, Julianne Moore proved that this notion is nothing but a myth by taking home the big prize for Best Actress in a Leading Role for her performance in Still Alice. This performance has been called one of the most acclaimed of her career.
In the drama, Moore plays a linguistics professor diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease. She spent months watching documentaries and interacting with patients at the Alzheimer’s Association to train for this role. Several critics commented that it was her finest performance to date, and Moore was awarded not only the Oscar, but also the Golden Globe, SAG, and BAFTA awards for Best Actress. Forget bridesmaid! Julianne wore white this year for a reason.
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2. She’s giving back in big ways
Julianne Moore is an active supporter of multiple charities, but I’ll just mention a couple of them. Growing up an “Army brat,” she moved around the United States and witnessed first-hand the needs of underprivileged children all over the country. Because of this, Moore has become an ambassador for the charity Save the Children, which reaches over 70,000 children in the United States every year. She has said, “It’s not that I don’t believe there are many, many needy causes all over the world, particularly in the Third World, but I do believe in terms of poverty in our country, often, people hide in plain sight…because we have so much in the United States. There’s sometimes a refusal to acknowledge what’s going on right here.”
Moore is also involved in the “Women of Worth” campaign started by L’Oreal. They honor women who are giving back to their communities by selecting ten women to receive $10,000 toward their cause and one to receive an additional $25,000. Julianne Moore was inspired to become involved in this program because of a “woman of worth” in her own life–her mother. She says her mother was married by 20, had three children by 25, and was still able to go on and earn two Master’s degrees. Moore says this program struck a personal chord in her, and she has been blown away by the nominees.
3. She’s inspiring a younger generation of redheads
Along with her acting and charity work, Moore has established herself as a children’s author. Her first book, Freckleface Strawberry, was published in October 2007 and became a New York Times Bestseller. A semi-autobiographical narrative, Freckleface Strawberry tells the story of a girl who is ashamed of her freckles but eventually grows to love them. Moore decided to write the book when her son began disliking certain aspects of his appearance. This reminded her of her own childhood when she was teased for having freckles and called “Freckleface Strawberry” by her classmates. Now she has a total of five books in the Freckleface series and another she wrote called My Mom is a Foreigner; But Not to Me.
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4. She embraces her natural beauty
While encouraging her own kids and children around the world to love the way they look, Julianne Moore practices what she preaches and embraces her natural beauty. Moore has always been very humble about her profession, saying she is “just a person with a job,” and similarly has remained very humble and casual in her appearance. She is known for maintaining a natural image and has spoken out against botox and plastic surgery. Recently on Ellen, Moore revealed to the world what her hair looks like before a stylist gets ahold of it.
When I saw it, I thought, “What a relief to have this sort of unabashed sincerity in Hollywood.” And simultaneously, “What a relief to know that if her hair can be tamed, there’s hope for us all.”
5. She can rock a red carpet
Seriously, just scroll through her red carpet looks and prepare yourself to be blown away. Moore definitely knows how to make that natural beauty of hers shine in the spotlight.
Happy birthday, Julianne Moore. And thank you for being such a wonderful inspiration to redheads around the world.
Rock it like a Redhead!
