Rita Moreno: for redefining what it means to be 86

“I’m living in the moment,” actress Rita Moreno recently told reporters. And without a doubt, it’s a great one: at 86, Moreno has won an Oscar, two Emmys, a Grammy and a Tony.

The sensuality and talent exhibited by the 17-year-old Moreno, which captivated producer Louis B. Mayer and led her to become known as the “Latin Elizabeth Taylor,” is still on display after a career spanning almost seven decades.

Now, the Hollywood legend stars in the Netflix series “One day at a time,” an updated version of the 70s classic, which portrays a modern Cuban American family. Moreno plays the family’s grandmother, Lydia. Although she is Puerto Rican, she says “no Latino is left out of this series,” which is now in its third season and has come to represent Latino identity and the immigrant experience.

Rita Moreno continues to challenge stereotypes of what a Hispanic actress can and cannot do, while defying the idea that age is an obstacle to making history in acting. Besides her role in the series, the actress is working on her own cabaret, as if there was still something Rita Moreno needed to do ... as if she lacked sensuality.