The brilliant mind of Hedy Lamarr

Who was Hedy Lamarr and what was she other than a famous Hollywood actress? She was born Hedwig Eva Kiesler in Austria on November 9th, 1914. Her father, as a bank manager and a very curious mind, inspired Hedy to look at the world with open eyes. He would often take her for long walks where he would discuss the inner workings of different machines, like the printing press or streetcars. These conversations guided Hedy’s thinking and at only 5 years of age, she could be found taking apart and reassembling her music box to understand how the machine operated. On the other hand, her mother, a concert pianist, passed on her love of art.

Hedy's story is one of a brilliant woman who was consistently underestimated. Although she achieved international fame as a Hollywood movie star, Lamarr was not satisfied by acting. In her trailer between takes, and staying up all night at home, she practiced her favorite hobby: inventing. In 1942., at the peak of her acting career, Hedy developed a “Secret Communications System” to help defeat the Nazis in World War II. By manipulating radio frequencies at irregular intervals between transmission and reception, the invention formed an unbreakable code to prevent classified messages from being intercepted by the enemy. Her patented idea later became the foundation for mobile phone technology. Its influence is visible in crucial 21st-century systems like Bluetooth and Wifi. She also helped improve aircraft aerodynamics for Howard Hughes while they dated during the war.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation jointly awarded Lamarr and Antheil with their Pioneer Award in 1997. She also became the first woman to receive the Invention Convention’s Bulbie Gnass Spirit of Achievement Award. Although she died in 2000., Lamarr was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame for the development of her frequency hopping technology in 2014. 

Without the brilliant mind of Hedy Lamarr, it is possible that today the world would look much different. What the world, unfortunately, remains the same throughout history but even today is the fact that it is easier to accept someone's appearance than their mind. The late acknowledgments of Hedy Lamarr’s work are proof of this.