Biographie

Inspired by an early Philco wireless radio remote and player piano rolls, she worked with composer George Antheil (who created a symphony played by eight synchronized player pianos) she invented a frequency-hopping system for remotely controlling torpedoes during World War II. (The frequency hopping concept appeared as early as 1903 in a U.S. Patent by Nikola Tesla). The invention was examined superficially and filed away. At the time, Allied torpedoes, as well as those of the Axis powers, were unguided. Input for depth, speed, and direction were made moments before launch but once leaving the submarine the torpedo received no further input. In 1959 it was developed for controlling drones that would later be used in Viet Nam. Frequency hopping radio became a Navy standard by 1960. Due to the expiration of the patent and Lamarr's unawareness of time limits for filing claims, she was never compensated. Her invention is used today for WiFi, Bluetooth, and even top secret military defense satellites. While the current estimate of the value of the invention is approximately $30 billion, during her final years she was getting by on SAG and social security checks totaling only $300 a month.

Was the inspiration for the DC Comics antiheroine and Batman's love interest, Catwoman.

The mansion used in La mélodie du bonheur (1965) belonged to her at the time.

Was co-inventor (with composer George Antheil) of the earliest known form of the telecommunications method known as "frequency hopping", which used a piano roll to change between 88 frequencies and was intended to make radio-guided torpedoes harder for enemies to detect or to jam. The method received U.S. patent number 2,292,387 on August 11, 1942, under the name "Secret Communications System". The earliest U.S. Patent that alluded to frequency hopping was by Nikola Tesla in 1903 (US patent 725,605). Frequency hopping is now widely used in cellular phones and other modern technology. However, neither she nor Antheil profited from this fact, because their patents were allowed to expire decades before the modern wireless boom. In fact, at the time the patent was filed, the intended purpose (guidance of torpedoes) was of little no value as neither Allied or Axis torpedoes had any form of active guidance. All torpedoes of the era were fire-and-forget. It would not be until after 1959 that the USN would have torpedoes capable of using freq-hopping (ie torpedoes with radio control).

She received an award from the Electronic Frontier Foundation in 1997 for her pioneering work in spread-spectrum technology.

Sued Mel Brooks for mocking her name in his film Le shérif est en prison (1974) by naming a character "Hedley Lamarr". They settled out of court.

I must quit marrying men who feel inferior to me. Somewhere, there must be a man who could be my husband and not feel inferior. I need a superior inferior man.

My problem is, I'm a hell of a nice dame, The most horrible whores are famous. I did what I did for love. The others did it for money.

If you use your imagination, you can look at any actress and see her nude, I hope to make you use your imagination

Any girl can be glamorous. All you have to do is stand still and look stupid.

[1960s] It would be wrong of me to say so, but in this country [USA] money is more important than love. Most people here betray you and that's why there is so much chaos. I want to get away from here. I am homesick for Vienna . . . because my home is Vienna and Austria, not America... never!