Editing Raquel Welch (section)

=== 1967–1979: International stardom ===
Her first starring vehicle, the British [[Modesty Blaise]]-style spy film ''[[Fathom (1967 film)|Fathom]]'' (1967), was filmed in Spain for 20th Century Fox. Second unit director [[Peter Medak]] said Welch "was at that time quite inexperienced, exactly like one of those American drum majorettes. But she tried very hard and went to see the rushes each day, gradually improving. 'Who's this dumb broad?' people used to say. But I said: 'You wait. I'll bet she makes it.' I liked her very much because she was such a genuine person. And she had a beautiful body which always helps."<ref>"Class will tell: Derek Malcolm interviews Peter Medak, a director who is at last making his impact on the British cinema" Malcolm, Derek. ''The Guardian'' London, May 15, 1972: 10.</ref> Welch said her role was "a blown up [[Barbie]] doll".<ref name="ReferenceA">"Sex Goddess Is Human, After All" ''Los Angeles Times'' June 9, 1968: c12.</ref> Reviewing her performance, the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' film critic said that "each new Raquel Welch picture brings further proof that when [[Maria Montez]] died they didn't break the mold. Like Maria, Raquel can't act from here to there, but both ladies seem to have been born to be photographed&nbsp;... this sappiest of spy pictures."<ref>{{"'}}Fathom' Playing on Citywide Screens" Thomas, Kevin. ''Los Angeles Times'' August 10, 1967: d16.</ref>

At this stage, Welch owed Fox four films, at one a year. She and Curtis also established their own production company, Curtwel.<ref name="ok" /> Fox wanted Welch to play Jennifer in [[Valley of the Dolls (film)|their adaptation]] of ''[[Valley of the Dolls (novel)|Valley of the Dolls]]'' but she refused, wanting to play the role of Neely O'Hara. The studio was not interested, casting [[Patty Duke]]; [[Sharon Tate]] played Jennifer North.<ref>"Wonder Woman!!" Hallowell, John. ''Los Angeles Times'' July 14, 1968: o26.</ref>

[[File:Bandolero! 1968.jpg|thumb|upright=.9|Welch with [[Dean Martin]] in ''[[Bandolero!]]'' (1968)]]
In England, she appeared as [[Lust]] incarnate in the [[Peter Cook]]–[[Dudley Moore]] comedy, ''[[Bedazzled (1967 film)|Bedazzled]]'' (1967), a [[Swinging Sixties]] retelling of the [[Faust]] legend. It was popular, as was the Western, ''[[Bandolero!]]'' (1968), which was shot in [[Del Rio, Texas]], at the [[Alamo Village]]. She co-starred with [[James Stewart]] and [[Dean Martin]]. "I think she's going to stack up all right," Stewart said of Welch.<ref>"Movie Making—30 Years of Fun for Jimmy Stewart: Jimmy Stewart Stewart's 30 Years" Thomas, Kevin. ''Los Angeles Times'' October 15, 1967: d19.</ref> "No one is going to shout, 'Wow it's [[Anne Bancroft]] all over again'," said Welch of her performance, "but at least I'm not Miss Sexpot running around half naked all the time."<ref name="ReferenceA" />

In 1968, Welch appeared with [[Frank Sinatra]] in the detective film ''[[Lady in Cement]]'', a sequel to the film ''[[Tony Rome]]'' (1967). She played the socialite Kit Forrest, the romantic interest of Tony Rome. Welch later said wittily that she caught the film from time to time and realized only later that Kit Forrest was an alcoholic: "I'm watching this movie and I'm thinking, 'What the hell has she got on?' At one point, I had this epiphany: 'Oh, she's an alcoholic!' I didn't know that. How could I miss that?" She reportedly was so smitten with Sinatra that she forgot to act: "I think I was just so enamored with Frank Sinatra, you know. He's hypnotic."<ref>Wenn. (April 10, 2017). [http://www.tv3.ie/xpose/article/entertainment-news/236582/Raquel-Welch-I-was-awful-in-Sinatra-film/ "Raquel Welch: 'I was awful in Sinatra film'"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170612065225/http://www.tv3.ie/xpose/article/entertainment-news/236582/Raquel-Welch-I-was-awful-in-Sinatra-film |date=June 12, 2017 }} Retrieved April 15, 2017, from XPOSÉ.ie.</ref>

Welch starred as a freedom fighter leader in ''[[100 Rifles]]'', a 1969 western directed by Tom Gries and filmed in [[Almería]], Spain. It also starred [[Jim Brown]], [[Burt Reynolds]], and [[Fernando Lamas]]. The film provoked publicity and controversy at the time because it included a love scene between Welch and Brown that breached Hollywood's taboo against onscreen interracial intimacy.<ref>Gleich, J. (2011). "Jim Brown: from integration to resegregation in The Dirty Dozen and 100 Rifles" ''Cinema Journal'', Vol. 51, No. 1 (Fall 2011), pages 1–25.</ref> The film is remembered for the spectacular "Shower Scene" in which Welch distracts the soldiers on the train by taking a shower at a [[water tower]] along the tracks. The director, Gries, tried hard to convince Welch to do the scene naked, but she refused. It was one of the many instances Welch resisted going nude on-screen and pushed back for years against producers who wanted her to act or pose nude.<ref>Associated Press. (May 5, 2017). [http://www.salamancapress.com/raquel-welch-resisted-going-nude-on-screen-for-years/youtube_babdefad-8707-5237-991d-90f6f79f1552.html/ Raquel Welch Resisted Going Nude On-Screen for Years.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806143315/http://www.salamancapress.com/raquel-welch-resisted-going-nude-on-screen-for-years/youtube_babdefad-8707-5237-991d-90f6f79f1552.html/ |date=August 6, 2020 }} ''The Salamanca Press''. Retrieved March 6, 2017.</ref><ref name="pastdaily.com">Skene, Gordon. (June 18, 2017). [https://pastdaily.com/2017/06/18/conversation-raquel-welch-1975/ In Conversation With Raquel Welch 1975{{snd}}Past Daily Pop Chronicles.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181101095504/https://pastdaily.com/2017/06/18/conversation-raquel-welch-1975/ |date=November 1, 2018 }} ''Past Daily''. Retrieved October 19, 2018.</ref> In 1969, Welch also starred in the thriller ''[[Flareup (film)|Flareup]]'' and had a supporting role in the dark comedy ''[[The Magic Christian (film)|The Magic Christian]]''.

Welch's most controversial role came in ''[[Myra Breckinridge (film)|Myra Breckinridge]]'' (1970). She took the role of the film's [[transsexual]] heroine in an attempt to be taken seriously as an actress.<ref>Peikert, Mark. (February 16, 2015). [https://www.out.com/movies/2015/2/16/raquel-welch-vs-mae-west/ Raquel Welch vs. Mae West.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181101095637/https://www.out.com/movies/2015/2/16/raquel-welch-vs-mae-west/ |date=November 1, 2018 }} ''Out''. Retrieved March 13, 2018.</ref><ref name="pastdaily.com" /> The production was characterized by animosity between Welch and [[Mae West]], who walked out of the film for three days. The film was based on [[Gore Vidal]]'s controversial bestseller about a man who becomes a woman through surgery. The film's producer [[Robert Fryer]] stated: "If a man were going to become a woman, he would want to become the most beautiful woman in the world. He would become Raquel Welch".<ref>Berumen, Frank Javier Garcia. (2014). ''Latino Image Makers in Hollywood: Performers, Filmmakers and Films since the 1960s''. NC: McFarland & Company.</ref>

[[File:Raquel_Welch_in_The_Biggest_Bundle_of_Them_All.jpg|thumb|left|upright=.9|Welch in ''[[The Biggest Bundle of Them All]]'' (1968)]]
Her looks and fame led ''[[Playboy]]'' to dub her the "Most Desired Woman" of the 1970s. Welch presented at the [[Academy Awards]] ceremony several times during the 1970s due to her popularity.<ref>{{cite news |title = Brando spurns Oscar; Liza, 'Godfather' win |work = [[Chicago Tribune]] |date = March 28, 1973 |page = 1 |url = https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/598511742.html?dids=598511742:598511742&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&type=historic&date=Mar+28%2C+1973&author=&pub=Chicago+Tribune&desc=Marlon+Brando+refuses+Academy+Award%3B+Liza+Minnelli+and+'The+Godfather'+win&pqatl=google |access-date = March 9, 2022 |archive-date = November 7, 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121107135820/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/598511742.html?dids=598511742%3A598511742&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS%3AAI&type=historic&date=Mar+28%2C+1973&author=&pub=Chicago+Tribune&desc=Marlon+Brando+refuses+Academy+Award%3B+Liza+Minnelli+and+%27The+Godfather%27+win&pqatl=google |url-status = dead }}{{Registration required}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title = People In The News |page = 10A |work = [[The Register-Guard|Eugene Register–Guard]] |date = March 26, 1978 |url = https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=PfJVAAAAIBAJ&pg=6874,7074604&dq=raquel+welch+academy+awards&hl=en |access-date = November 2, 2020 |archive-date = February 15, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230215211456/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=PfJVAAAAIBAJ&pg=6874,7074604&dq=raquel+welch+academy+awards&hl=en |url-status = live }}</ref> She accepted the Best Supporting Actress Oscar on behalf of fellow actress [[Goldie Hawn]] when Hawn could not be there to accept it.<ref>{{cite news |title = Favorite, longshot take home Oscars |page = 6 |agency = Associated Press |newspaper = [[The Palm Beach Post]] |date = April 8, 1970 |url = https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=JX8yAAAAIBAJ&pg=2053,2879245&dq=raquel+welch+academy+awards&hl=en }}{{Dead link|date=February 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} [https://www.newspapers.com/search?iid=2249&query=Favorite%20longshot%20take%20home%20Oscars Alternate Link] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230216023302/https://www.newspapers.com/search?iid=2249&query=Favorite%20longshot%20take%20home%20Oscars |date=February 16, 2023 }} (Accessed February 16, 2023)</ref>

On April 26, 1970, [[CBS]] released her television special ''[[Raquel!]]''<ref name="HBJ">{{cite book |title = Television: The Business Behind the Box. |url = https://archive.org/details/televisionbusine00brow |url-access = registration |last = Brown |first = Les |publisher = Harcourt Brace Jovanovich |year = 1971 |isbn = 978-0-15-688440-2 |page = [https://archive.org/details/televisionbusine00brow/page/187 187], 188 |chapter = "Raquel!" }}</ref> On the day of the premiere, the show received a 51 percent share on the National ARB Ratings and an overnight New York [[Nielsen rating]] of 58 percent share.<ref>{{Cite web |url = http://nightflight.com/happy-birthday-today-to-raquel-welch-her-1970-primetime-tv-special-will-melt-your-mind/ |title = Happy Birthday today to Raquel Welch: Her 1970 primetime TV special will melt your mind! |language = en-US |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190411013143/http://nightflight.com/happy-birthday-today-to-raquel-welch-her-1970-primetime-tv-special-will-melt-your-mind/ |archive-date = April 11, 2019 |access-date = April 10, 2019 }}</ref> Also that year Welch starred in ''[[Sin (1971 film)|The Beloved]]'' with co-star [[Richard Johnson (actor)|Richard Johnson]], which she co-produced and filmed in [[Cyprus]].<ref>{{Cite news |last = Goldstein |first = Norman |date = November 29, 1970 |title = Raquel Welch Charms Cyprus |work = The Tyler Courier-Times |agency = Associated Press |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118870336/raquel-welch-charms-cyprus/ |access-date = February 18, 2023 |via = [[Newspapers.com]] |archive-date = February 18, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230218050243/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118870336/raquel-welch-charms-cyprus/ |url-status = live }}</ref>

In 1971, Welch had the title role in ''[[Hannie Caulder]]'', a Western produced by [[Tigon British Film Productions|Tigon]] and Curtwel, which was shot in Spain. Welch was one of the few actresses, and one of the earliest, who had a lead role in a Western film. ''Hannie Caulder'' was a significant influence on later revenge films,<ref>Film Society Lincoln Center. (2015). [http://www.filmlinc.org/films/hannie-caulder/ Hannie Caulder.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924012827/http://www.filmlinc.org/films/hannie-caulder/|date=September 24, 2015}} Retrieved August 5, 2015.</ref> with director Quentin Tarantino citing it as an inspiration for his 2003 film, ''[[Kill Bill: Volume 1]].''<ref>Peary, Gerald. (October 17, 2013). ''Quentin Tarantino: Interviews, Revised and Updated''. University Press of Mississippi, p. 119.</ref><ref>[https://usfilm.wordpress.com/2013/10/ ''American Film''. Hannie Caulder 1971.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402114407/https://usfilm.wordpress.com/2013/10/|date=April 2, 2015}} (October 29, 2013) Retrieved March 6, 2015.</ref>

[[File:Raquel Welch 1976.jpg|thumb|upright=.9|Welch in 1976]]
The following year, in 1972, Welch starred in ''[[Kansas City Bomber]]'', in which she played a hardened derby star and single mother who tries to balance her desire for a happy personal life and her dreams of stardom. ''Life'' magazine dubbed Welch the "hottest thing on wheels" for her role. The production of the film shut down for six weeks after Welch broke her wrist doing some of her own stunts.<ref>"Hottest Thing on Wheels" (June 2, 1972). ''Life'', 72 (21), p. 48.</ref> In the interim, she flew to Budapest and filmed a cameo in ''[[Bluebeard (1972 film)|Bluebeard]]'' opposite [[Richard Burton]], and was photographed at a lavish party thrown by Burton for his then-wife [[Elizabeth Taylor]]'s fortieth birthday, even though Taylor had specifically uninvited her.<ref>{{Cite news |last = Eder |first = Shirley |date = June 17, 1975 |title = Oh, That Budapest Hotel Party |work = The Detroit Free-Press |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118939295/oh-that-budapest-hotel-party/ |access-date = February 18, 2023 |via = [[Newspapers.com]] |archive-date = February 18, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230218051618/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118939295/oh-that-budapest-hotel-party/ |url-status = live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1 = Bozzacchi |first1 = Gianni |title = My Life in Focus: A Photographer's Journey with Elizabeth Taylor and the Hollywood Jet Set |last2 = Tayler |first2 = Joey |publisher = The University Press of Kentucky |year = 2017 |isbn = 9780813168746 |pages = 199, 203, 205 }}</ref> Despite not being considered a critical success, ''Kansas City Bomber'' was noted for its depiction of gender relations in the early 1970s.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last = Berman |first = Eliza |date = February 2023 |title = Remembering Raquel Welch: Photos From the Set of 'Kansas City Bomber' |magazine = Life |url = https://www.life.com/people/raquel-welch-birthday-75/ |access-date = February 18, 2023 |archive-date = February 18, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230218052215/https://www.life.com/people/raquel-welch-birthday-75/ |url-status = live }}</ref> In a 2012 interview with ''[[GQ]]'', Welch reflected on the roller derby world depicted in the film: "You have all those women out there, but the men in the front office are really running it. Which I thought was a really nice metaphor for the way a lot of women felt about their lives at that time."<ref name="Bale"/> Also in 1972, Welch reunited with Burt Reynolds for the detective film ''[[Fuzz (film)|Fuzz]]''.

In 1973, Welch acted in two films: ''[[The Last of Sheila]]'' and ''[[The Three Musketeers (1973 live-action film)|The Three Musketeers]]''. The latter – for which she won a Golden Globe as Best Actress in a Comedy – spawned a sequel, ''[[The Four Musketeers (1974 film)|The Four Musketeers]]'' (1974). Welch was offered the title role in ''[[Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore]]'' (1974), which earned an Oscar for its eventual star [[Ellen Burstyn]]; she also turned down the chance to play [[Honey Bruce]] in the biographical film ''[[Lenny (film)|Lenny]]'' (1974), a part that went to [[Valerie Perrine]].<ref>''[[Larry King Live]]'', April 28, 2004</ref> In 1975, Welch appeared in ''[[The Wild Party (1975 film)|The Wild Party]]<ref>{{Cite web |title = The Wild Party |url = https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/95880/the-wild-party/ |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210619082528/https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/95880/the-wild-party |archive-date = June 19, 2021 |access-date = August 1, 2021 |website = Turner Classic Movies |language = en }}</ref>'' and also performed a duet with [[Cher]], singing "[[I'm a Woman (song)|I'm a Woman]]" on an episode of ''[[The Cher Show]]''.<ref name="Windolf-2023">{{Cite news |last = Windolf |first = Jim |date = February 15, 2023 |title = Raquel Welch, A Lifetime of Looks |work = [[The New York Times]] |url = https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/15/style/raquel-welch-photos.html |access-date = February 17, 2023 |archive-date = February 17, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230217092535/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/15/style/raquel-welch-photos.html |url-status = live }}</ref> She then co-starred with [[Bill Cosby]] and [[Harvey Keitel]] in the action comedy ''[[Mother, Jugs & Speed]]'' (1976), directed by [[Peter Yates]]. Welch's character, promoted from [[Dispatcher]] to [[Emergency Medical Technician]] after threatening a [[sexual discrimination]] lawsuit, is an early example of feminism and equal pay for equal work as she breaks the "glass ceiling" doing a "man's work".

In 1977, Welch acted in the French film ''[[Animal (1977 film)|Animal]]'', co-starring with [[Jean-Paul Belmondo]]. She also starred in the British swashbuckling adventure ''[[The Prince and the Pauper (1977 film)|The Prince and the Pauper]]''. Welch made a guest appearance on ''[[The Muppet Show]]'' in 1978,<ref>{{Cite news |last = Joyner |first = Brook |date = February 16, 2023 |title = In pictures: Actress Raquel Welch |publisher = CNN |url = https://edition.cnn.com/2023/02/15/entertainment/gallery/raquel-welch/index.html |access-date = February 17, 2023 }}</ref> where she sang "I'm a Woman" with [[Miss Piggy]].<ref name="Windolf-2023" /> The following year, Welch guest-starred as Captain Nirvana, an alien bounty hunter, in an episode of ''[[Mork & Mindy]]'' titled "Mork vs. the Necrotons".<ref>{{Cite news |date = November 17, 1979 |title = Raquel Welch guests on 'Mork and Mindy' |work = The Desert Sun |agency = Associated Press |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118831154/raquel-welch-guests-on-mork-and-mindy/ |access-date = February 17, 2023 |via = [[Newspapers.com]] }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last = Mitoich |first = Matt Webb |date = February 15, 2023 |title = Raquel Welch Dead at 82 |work = TV Line |url = https://tvline.com/2023/02/15/raquel-welch-dead-cause-of-death-obituary-dies/ |access-date = February 17, 2023 |archive-date = February 17, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230217020307/https://tvline.com/2023/02/15/raquel-welch-dead-cause-of-death-obituary-dies/ |url-status = live }}</ref>