Rita Hayworth, the Hollywood icon behind Gilda (1946) and The Lady from Shanghai (1947), raised two daughters whose lives diverged sharply from the glare of her fame, according to Yahoo News. Rebecca Welles, born in December 1944 to Hayworth and Orson Welles, lived largely outside the spotlight. Princess Yasmin Aga Khan, born in 1949 from her marriage to Prince Aly Salomone Khan, became her mother's caretaker and, later, one of the most visible figures in Alzheimer's advocacy.
The story carries a quiet relevance for Asia's ageing societies. Hayworth was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 1980 and died of its complications on May 14, 1987. The family's response, a daughter stepping away from her career to manage care, then channelling that experience into structured philanthropy, mirrors the caregiving decisions millions of households across Singapore, Japan and China now face as dementia caseloads climb.
Rebecca Welles: a life built away from the cameras
Rebecca Welles was born on December 17, 1944, while her parents' marriage, begun in 1943, was still intact. The couple reportedly separated in 1946 and finalised their divorce a year later, per People.
Rebecca's childhood was peripatetic, photographed in Switzerland, London, New York and Paris as she followed her mother's career. She tried acting at the Pasadena Playhouse and studied the craft at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington, alongside majors in French, geology and English literature. She never became a professional actress, apart from a 1970 Jim Beam bourbon commercial with her father, and settled in Tacoma.
The distance from her famous parents was not always comfortable.
Sometimes I am [really] bitter about ... what being a child of celebrities has done to me. Mother and Father have never been to my home in Tacoma. As far as they are concerned, I'm on my own.
She gave that interview to Roto in 1972, per The Telegraph. In 1966 she had a son, Marc McKerrow, whom she placed for adoption; his search for his origins became the subject of the 2008 documentary Prodigal Sons. The two never reconnected.
Rebecca was photographed laying flowers on her mother's casket at Hayworth's 1987 funeral, alongside her sister. She died of cancer in 2004 at 60, married to Guy Manning and a stepmother to his three children.
Princess Yasmin Aga Khan: from conservator to campaigner
Yasmin was born on December 18, 1949, during Hayworth's marriage to Aly Khan, which lasted from 1949 until their separation in 1953. The former couple stayed on friendly terms for their daughter's sake.
My earliest memories of my mother and father together were when I was 8 or 9, Yasmin wrote for People in June 1987. Theirs was a truly good relationship.
Her father died in a car accident when she was 10. It was around that time, the 1960s, that Yasmin first noticed her mother repeating herself and showing signs of paranoia during phone calls home from boarding school. Hayworth was formally diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 1980, and in 1981 a court declared her legally unable to care for herself, appointing Yasmin as her conservator, per The New York Times.
Yasmin had trained as a classical singer and was preparing to study in Europe when she chose care over career.
Okay, this is more important than my career in music. And that was the right decision. I don't have any regrets.
She told the Globe and Mail in 2019 that her mother's decline made her intervention necessary. The decision prefigures a trade-off that economists studying Asia's silver economy know well: informal family caregiving carries an opportunity cost, and someone absorbs it.
The Rita Hayworth Gala and the economics of advocacy
In 1984, Yasmin converted private grief into institutional machinery. She launched the Rita Hayworth Gala, which has since raised more than $86 million to advance the mission of the Alzheimer's Association. That figure places the gala among the most effective single-family philanthropic vehicles in American health advocacy.
I made the decision to share her story in the hopes of helping others. I knew this would become my life's work.
Yasmin told Classic Chicago that her fight began in 1981. She went on to serve as president of Alzheimer's Disease International and vice president of the Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders Association of America. Recognition followed: an Alzheimer's Association Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019 and, in 2022, appointment as a Knight of the Legion of Honour, France's highest order of merit.
Her personal life held its own losses. She married Basil Embiricos in 1985, the year their son Andrew Ali Aga Khan Embiricos was born; the marriage ended in 1987. Andrew was found dead in his New York home in December 2011, aged 25. A spokesperson for the Aga Khan Foundation asked that the family's privacy be respected, per People.
Why this matters for Asia's ageing economies
Hayworth's case was high profile, but the underlying dynamic is now mainstream policy territory. Dementia care costs are rising faster than GDP across the region, and Singapore's own model, combining statutory frameworks like the Mental Capacity Act with community-based support, treats precisely the conservatorship question Yasmin Khan confronted in 1981. Her $86 million fundraising record shows what sustained, family-led advocacy can achieve when it is run with the discipline of an institution rather than the impulse of a moment.
The full profile of both daughters was first reported by Yahoo News, drawing on InStyle's coverage and archival accounts of Hayworth's life and career.
Frequently asked questions
Who were Rita Hayworth's daughters?
Rebecca Welles, born December 17, 1944, with Orson Welles, and Princess Yasmin Aga Khan, born December 18, 1949, with Prince Aly Salomone Khan.
When did Rita Hayworth die?
She died on May 14, 1987, from complications of Alzheimer's disease, which was diagnosed in 1980.
What is the Rita Hayworth Gala?
A fundraising event launched by Yasmin Aga Khan in 1984 that has raised more than $86 million for the Alzheimer's Association.
What happened to Rebecca Welles?
She died of cancer in 2004 at age 60, having lived most of her adult life in Tacoma, Washington, away from public life.