March 6, 2020
Colloquium Topic: A Salon Lecture on Hedy Lamarr, Hollywood Screen Siren & Inventor of Spread Spectrum Technology, with scenes from the Award-Winning, Internationally-Acclaimed "HEDY! The Life & Inventions of Hedy Lamarr"
This Salon Lecture explores the person and genius of actress/inventor Hedy Lamarr through images, and features scenes from Heather Massie's 14x Award-Winning, Internationally-Acclaimed show "HEDY! The Life & Inventions of Hedy Lamarr", deemed "Captivating" by the Huffington Post.
'Hedy Lamarr, glamorous siren of the silver screen, was more than the 'Most Beautiful Woman in the World'. She invented Frequency Hopping and Spread Spectrum Technology that make the world of wireless communication tick. From Austria to Hollywood, WWII, torpedoes, ecstasy, and intrigue to the very cell phone in your pocket, she was there!'
"HEDY! The Life & Inventions of Hedy Lamarr" celebrates the life, inventions and person of Hedy Lamarr, Viennese-born Hollywood film star of the 1930s-1950s. Known as The Most Beautiful Woman in the World, Hedy Lamarr stored away knowledge of munitions while married to Austrian arms dealer, Fritz Mandl. She employed this knowledge to support the US Navy’s war effort during WWII by inventing The Secret Communication System with composer George Antheil, to make torpedoes more accurate. Also referred to as Frequency Hopping or Spread Spectrum Technology, her invention is used today in cell phones, WiFi, CDMA, GPS, Bluetooth and myriad other wireless systems.
The full show will also be featured at JHU/APL on Friday March 6th at 7PM in the Kossiakoff Center for a Free Performance.
Colloquium Speaker: Heather Massie
Fulbright Specialist Heather Massie is a New York City actor and writer. Originally from Virginia, Ms. Massie has always been fascinated by the sciences, especially Astronomy. She studied Astrophysics at the University of Virginia, and Theatre Arts at The Virginia Tech School of the Arts graduating Summa Cum Laude. Ms. Massie has performed extensively in NYC and throughout the US. She currently tours the world, with her 14x Award-Winning, Internationally-Acclaimed solo show "HEDY! The Life & Inventions of Hedy Lamarr", to arts festivals, science festivals, theatres, science centers, universities, schools, technology conferences, museums, and more. In 2019 she served as a Fulbright Specialist with the show to South Africa through the US Department of State, World Learning, and the US Embassy South Africa. This is the first in her planned trilogy of solo shows celebrating women in science, the next will be "Flying with Sally Ride: America’s First Woman in Space".
Having studied Astrophysics with dreams of becoming an astronaut, Heather Massie marries her loves of art and science in the person of Hedy Lamarr. She brings Hedy to life while interacting with the audience and playing the 33 other characters in Hedy’s life including Jimmy Stewart, George Sanders, Bette Davis and Louis B. Mayer. The audience summons Hedy to unearth the truth behind how a glamorous actress could create an invention which is invaluable today. Massie says, "I use the unexpected genius of Hedy Lamarr to inspire audiences to find ways each day to make the world a better place, to encourage young women in endeavors of science and technology, and to establish Hedy Lamarr as a role model for intelligence, ingenuity & invention." http://www.HeatherMassie.com/Hedy