The role of Eliza Doolittle was originally played on Broadway by Julie Andrews, who was not cast in the film because producers didn’t think she was famous enough.ShirleyJones, ShirleyMacLaine, ConnieStevens and ElizabethTaylor were also considered for the role of Eliza.My Fair Lady swept the Oscars ceremony, winning eight in April 1965—except for the Best Actress award, which went to Julie Andrews for Mary Poppins.“Ghost singer” MarniNixon dubbed the vocals for 90 percent of Hepburn’s songs.The “marbles” Higgins puts in Eliza Doolittle’s mouth are actually grapes.Harrison, who had given up smoking, greatly disliked that his female co-star smoked three packs a day.Other actors considered for the role of Henry Higgins were NoëlCoward, CaryGrant, RockHudson, PeterO’Toole, MichaelRedgrave and GeorgeSanders.When asked why he turned down the role of Professor Henry Higgins, Cary Grant said that his original manner of speaking was much closer to Eliza Doolittle.My Fair Lady was based on Pygmalion, a 1913 play by George Bernard Shaw.At $17 million, My Fair Lady was the most expensive Warner Bros. movie produced at the time, but it went on to become one of the biggest grossing movies of 1964.In 2018, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.The musical was to have been called Lady Liza until Rex Harrison objected to a title based on the name of the female lead.Although playing a 21-year-old flower girl, Hepburn was actually 34 in real life.The opera that was playing the night Professor Higgins and Eliza meet in Covent Gardens was Faust.The inspiration for the library in Professor Henry Higgins’ home was a room at the Château de Groussay, Montfort-l’Amaury, in France.The original choice to direct this movie was VincenteMinnelli, but when he wanted too much money, the job went to GeorgeCukor.Early on for Eliza’s appearance, Hepburn wore weights around her lower legs to make her flower girl appear gawky.
