In The Young Lions (1958), released just two years after the accident, the pain and resentment seem almost visible. Clift, of course, knew better. (1950), (originally written specifically for him; the story perhaps hitting a little too close to home) and High Noon (1952).His long apprenticeship on stage made him a thoroughly accomplished actor, notable for the intensity with which he researched and approached his roles. In this exclusive excerpt from her forthcoming book, Anne. The Life and Sad Ending of Montgomery Clift The Life and Sad Ending 182K subscribers Subscribe 2.2K Share 106K views 2 years ago Mini bio of the life of actor Montgomery Clift who is. Want to tell us to write facts on a topic? American Actor Montgomery Clift was born Edward Montgomery Clift on 17th October, 1920 in Omaha, Nebraska, USA and passed away on 23rd Jul 1966 Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA aged 45. Heres A Mystery: Why Did Arthur Conan Doyles Son Dress Up Like a Knight? Picture Information. I do not count myself as a member of the ripped-sweatshirt fraternity.. He is most remembered for A Place In The Sun (1951) & From Here To Eternity (1953).. His zodiac sign is Libra. But that didnt mean that the gossip press didnt hint at something different, something queer, in the broadest sense of the word, about him. Join thousands of others and start your morning with our Fact Of The Day newsletter. . Clift was off the Hollywood scene for four years, within which his career declined. It has a good rating on IMDb: 6.2 stars out of 10. So the fan magazines got creative: the August 1949 cover of Movieland, for example, featured a grinning, suited, respectable-looking Clift paired with the tantalizing headline Making Love the Clift Way. But when readers looked inside the magazine, all they found was a two-page spread of stills from The Heiress, featuring Clift in various stages of flirtation with Olivia de Havilland, extrapolating that Clifts kissing style was soft yet possessively brutal; pleading, but demanding all. Instead, Clift enjoyed reading, filling his spare moments with Chekov and Aristotlediving into history, or learning about economics. In fact, Hepburn was so offended by Mankiewicz that she did something outrageous. Firstly, he didnt even like Hollywood, preferring to stay in New York as much as he could. Between 1963 and 1966, he faded from public view, emerging only to film a final performance in the French spy thriller The Defector (1966). He believed that the media often, and easily, twisted the truth until it disappeared entirely: I learned that most writers dont need interviews to write about me. He told everyone that hed marry when he met the right girl, but that in the meantime, he was simply playing the field. Once, when questioned about his pastimes, he quipped, Yes, women. But where were they? This showed in his consciousness of being seen as feminine in any way. He was the son of Francis Preston Blair, elder brother of Francis Preston Blair Jr. and cousin of B. Gratz Brown . It left him with chronic health issues for the rest of his life. Sealed, new. An inside look at the actors secretive love life. He died. However, this was no quick fix. I knew that she was going to take it badly, but I had no idea about the insane lengths she would go to just to get revenge and mess with my life. But the drama didn't end there. He served in the Lincoln administration cabinet as Postmaster-General from 1861 to 1864, during the Civil War. Unlike Rock Hudson, whose affairs were very nearly exposed to the entire nation by Confidential, Clift never made the pages of the scandal rags. While filming a 15-minute supporting role as a mentally handicapped victim of the Holocaust in Judgment at Nuremberg (1961), he had to ad-lib all of his lines. Sensitive. It was, however, much olderby the time Raintree County made its way to theaters, hed been off the screen for four and a half years. Montgomery Clift Born: 1920-10-17, Omaha, Nebraska, USA Education: NA Ethnicity: Caucasian Death Date:-0001-11-30 Addition Websites. Montgomery Blair (May 10, 1813 - July 27, 1883) was an American politician and lawyer from Maryland. Allegedly, the director brought Clift on board, thinking hed be a soothing effect for Monroe. In 1961, Montgomery Clift went on to star alongside some of Hollywoods greatest legendsMarilyn Monroe and Clark Gable. And so he remains frozen in the popular imagination, circa From Here to Eternitythose high cheekbones, that set jaw, the firm stare: a magnificent, proud, tragically broken thing to behold. Montgomery Clift is a member of the following lists: American film actors, Actors Studio alumni and Bisexual actors. He started out in films in the late 1940's and immediately made a name for himself with his good looks and emotionally raw performances. Sadly, his greatest friend Elizabeth Taylor could only send flowers from Rome. and his wife, the former Ethel Fogg. Clift was able to appear in more Hollywood movies after he recuperated from the accident, but he was deeply affected by the decline in his career. . While driving, he fell asleep at the wheel and the consequences were utterly gruesome. Copyright 2023 by Factinate.com. When it came to the lengthier scenes, the actor just couldnt deliver; they had to be divided into smaller cuts just so he could see them through. Whether he liked it or not, they were out for a storyAnd the one they wanted above all? I mean, he is a He hated the criticism and the labels, and eventually, he just couldnt take it anymore. We collect and tell stories of people from all around the world. And then there was the physical toll. After Eternity he dropped out of Hollywood for several years, and signed a three-year contract with MGM in 1955 to make Raintree County, which re-united him with his Place in the Sun co-star Elizabeth Taylor. Absolutely stunning. Luckily, his isolated lifestyle gave him an advantage. Lorenzo came into the picture when Monty was at his lowest. Finally, Clift had a chance to climb out of his slumpbut before he made it over the top, tragedy struck. or over 30 years, scripts have floated around Hollywood promising to tell the story of Montgomery Clift, one of the most innovative and handsome actors in history. His interests lay elsewhere. He was the son of Ethel "Sunny" Anderson (Fogg; 1888-1988) and William Brooks Clift (1886-1964). What happened next is somewhat fuzzy: one version has Hudson pulling Clift from the car and Taylor cradling him in her arms, at which point Clift started choking and motioning to his throat, where, it soon became clear, two of his teeth had lodged themselves after coming loose during the accident. He also sunk into alcoholism, of which Taylor and some other friends tried to help him. Montgomery Clift as the confused, likable, rather stupid social climber; Shelley Winters as the dowdy working girl; Elizabeth Taylor as the dazzling rich girl. The entire scene was extremely unsettling as Clift still wore his eyeglasses, and had his hands rigidly clenched. For over 30 years, scripts have floated around Hollywood promising to tell the story of Montgomery Clift, one of the most innovative and handsome actors in history. Clift's childhood was unconventional. Clift gained actual scars from some filming mishaps. While on his way back, he had an accident. When James offered to join him, the belligerent shot him down immediately, crying, Absolutely not.Sadly, this was Montgomery Clifts final interaction. Guided by the key biographies of Clift, they reliably parrot a narrative which paints the actor as a startlingly attractive and prodigiously gifted man who, according to one notably overheated tabloid TV show became a drug-addicted alcoholic living in a self-imposed hell because he had a secret he couldnt live with. In fact, the attitudes he and his family held towards his relationships with men were strikingly modern. And even then, he didnt live a glamorous movie star existence. d-d-darling, I r-r-really wouldnt know. I am not one of Americas Angry Young Men. Travel back in time with treasured photos and stories, sent right to your inbox. But while Clift certainly seemed like a budding Hollywood heartthrob on the outside, in reality, he wasfar from it. cocksucker. Then, sweetly, wide-eyed with little girl navet, she Have I said something wrong? Clift was there, as were actors Kevin McCarthy and Rock Hudson, and Hudson's wife, Phyllis Gates, per Vanity Fair. He could barely remember his lines and often didnt show up to set. Monty brought a different masculinity to the screen, said Demmon. Montgomery Clift and Elizabeth Taylor in A Place in the Sun. A four-time Oscar nominee who died at 45, Montgomery Clift was a bright young talent, a tabloid fixture, and a posthumous gay icon. To help build their case, the film-makers had rare access to the actors archives. While filming his next picture, Lonelyhearts (1958), Clift lashed out, proclaiming, I am notrepeat nota member of the Beat Generation. . Who is Montgomery Clift dating? When he wasnt reading or preparing for his next role, he took pleasure in visiting the local night court. When Clift became a household name in the movie industry, his romantic life became a widely-discussed subject by the press. Jack Larson, famous for playing Jimmy Olsen in the hit 1950s TV series Adventures of Superman, recalled how Clift gave him a full mouth kiss the first time they casually met. During the peak period of his career, the actor and some Hollywood friends were returning from a party held at Taylor's home. The next year, Taylor used her status to wrangle an acting part for Clift; she demanded that he be a part ofSuddenly, Last Summer. Close friends, such as actor Kevin McCarthy and his wife, tried to get Clift to slow down and dry out, but their pleas . That was really frightening to see., Penn Badgley Loves His Wife Too Much to Do Sex Scenes in, I askedSera Gamble, the creator, Can I just do no more intimacy scenes? the former, Oscar-winning producer Dede Gardner looks back at her many groundbreaking awards darlings, from the triumph of. Another confidant said his personal life didnt bother him. While they may not make old-timers forget the Greta Garbo-John Gilbert embraces of the 20s, Miss Taylor and Mr. Clift lose no chance to show why they are considered two of the hottest juveniles in Hollywood. (38) and his wife, Meghan Markle (41), officially . Woodbury Blair was the son of Montgomery Blair, after whom his great-grandson received his middle name, and wife Mary Elizabeth Woodbury, daughter of Levi Woodbury (1789-1851), United States Supreme Court, and wife Elizabeth Wendell Clapp. But just as Clift dove into this exciting new chapter, an unforeseen tragedy changedeverything. Thanks for your time! With alarm bells screaming in his head, James raced outside to fetch a ladder, climbing up toward Clifts bedroom window. His own mother, in a voice recording played in Making Montgomery Clift, said, "Monty was a . Making Montgomery Clift, which was co-directed by Clift's nephew Robert Clift (and Robert's wife Hillary. Elizabeth Taylor (all of 17 years old) and Montgomery Clift posed together at Paramount Studios during a break in filming A Place in the Sun. Indeed, it was his apparent lack of romantic attachments that confounded the gossip press the most. By the early 1950s he was exclusively homosexual, though he continued to hide his homosexuality and maintained a number of close friendships with theater women (heavily promoted by studio publicists).His film debut was Red River (1948) with John Wayne quickly followed by his early personal success The Search (1948) (Oscar nominations for this, A Place in the Sun (1951), From Here to Eternity (1953) and Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)). To Clift, however, he considered his humble home terrific.. Taylor had married British actor Michael Wilding in 1952, but by 1956, their marriage was in decline. Whether platonic or not, these two actors shared an undeniable bond that was undeniably strengthened by this one unfortunate event. His perpetual question to himself, as he once scribbled in his journal, was, How to remain thin-skinned, vulnerable, and still alive? For Clift, the task proved impossible. Lancaster's first wife, June Ernst, was, like her mother before her, a renowned acrobat. But Clifts rebuttal was firm, emphasizing that they were neither in love nor engagedtheyd known each other for 10 years, she helped him with his work, and those romantic rumors are embarrassing to both of us. He was also close with stage actress Libby Holman, 16 years his senior, who had become a notorious feature in the gossip columns following the suspicious death of her wealthy husband, rumors of lesbianism, and her general practice of dating younger men. The entire experience had a cursed tinge to it, and before long, it left disaster in its wake. (1936), Ghostwriting Gloria Swanson: The Strange, Sexually Charged Genesis of a Legendary Autobiography, A New Power Generation: Radhika Jones Introduces the 2023 Hollywood Issue, Salma Hayek Pinault Explains How She Got Hollywood to Stop Typecasting Her as Sexy. July 24, 1966 12 AM PT. INDISCRETION OF AN AMERICAN WIFE 1953 DVD PUBLIC DOMAIN FILM MONTGOMERY CLIFT. Free shipping for many products! Marlon Brando: Portraits of a Charismatic Young Star, 1952, Marilyn, Arthur Miller and More: A Star Producers Spectacular Orbit. I tried to get my ex-wife served with divorce papers. Montgomery Edward "Monty" Clift (October 17, 1920 - July 23, 1966) was an American movie, television, radio, and stage actor who is known for his roles in From Here to Eternity, A Place in the Sun, The Misfits, Red River, and in Judgement at Nuremberg.He was nominated four times for an Academy Award.His great-great-grandfather was politician Francis Preston Blair. Of course, Clift didnt walk away unscathed either. to add information, pictures and relationships, join in discussions and get credit for your contributions. But for 12 years, he set Hollywood aflame. Factinate is a fact website that is dedicated to finding and sharing fun facts about science, history, animals, films, people, and much more. The 'Red River star was then tagged a gay icon. In order to get him the part, she had to offer up some kind of insurance, and this time, she put her own salary on the line. Login In one tape made by his father in the 1960s, we hear the stars mother tell him, with untroubled candor, that Monty was a homosexual early. Unlike many of his handsome contemporaries, he never had a blonde bombshell hanging off his arm. Above all, Clift was perpetually curious. His first two films were smashing successesand for veryimpressive reasons. While his brother claimed that Clift was bisexual, writer Truman Capotes unpublished work alludes to Clifts gayness quite explicitly. Contact sheet from LIFE photographer Peter Stackpoles shoot on a Paramount lot with Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift in 1950. Please fill in your e-mail so we can share with you our top stories! His parents were Quakers and met as students at Cornell University, marrying in 1914. Montgomery Clift spent a miserly 10 dollars a month on what his friends referred to as a beat up apartment. He read books about Montgomery Clift and James Dean, and credited seeing "Taxi Driver" at age 13 with fueling his desire to be in movies. Clift had a fraternal twin sister, Roberta, and a brother, William Brooks Clift Jr, who had an illegitimate son with actress Kim Stanley. An interviewer once asked him what his hobbies were, Clift replied, "women. All rights reserved. While she sounds apologetic, the changes were never made. Catherine of Aragon is now infamous as King Henry VIIIs rejected queenbut few people know her even darker history. Because of the accident, the studio worried about the success of Raintree County. While filmingThe Search,he asked the director to reshoot a scene for one baffling reason: He called a boy dear. But that wasnt all. He pointed out that she just let the director determine her every move. Luckily, although the public was out for blood, there was one woman on his side. In his eyes, he wasnt a rebel, he was simply an actor who wanted to portray a slice of life. Tired of being boxed in, he stated, I am notrepeat nota member of the Beat Generation. However, Clift's sexuality was not much of a secret within the movie industry. Allegedly, hed been forewarned that the truth would destroy his career, and as a result, the actor became increasingly wary of appearing feminine in any way. Oh dear. It was also a dark, melancholy film: as a review in Variety pointed out, the complex mass of introspective conflicts, symbolic parallels, and motivational contradictions was so nuanced as to seriously confound general audiences, who were likely unable to cope with the philosophical undercurrents of the Arthur Miller script. I thought he was dead. McCarthy ran to fetch Taylor, Wilding, and Rock Hudson and Hudsons wife, Phyllis Gates, who all raced to the site of the accident. However, even with all the negative hubbub surrounding this shoot, it was nothing compared to the darkness of one of Clifts next projects. The true story of Montgomery Clift, as told by his youngest nephew Making Montgomery Clift explodes the myths surrounding the Hollywood star and queer icon. Will she ride the term to Oscar gold? Of course, when it came to his appearance, this gorgeous star really didnt give a hoot. But that wasnt all. But the drama didnt end there. A way into the 70s, there was more clarification to his sexuality. He could watch the real grit of humanity play out before himthe court a stage for some of the most sensational high-profile cases. In 1925 Theodore Dreiser [told such a tale in his] long, oppressively powerful novel, An American Tragedy, which in turn made only a fair movie in 1931. It was unheard of, especially for a young star, but it was a sellers market. A portrait of Montgomery Clift acting as Matt Garth in the western film "Red River" on 01 January, 1948 | Photo: Getty Images. A seeming exception was one in his final years with a man named Lorenzo who had been hired to help him. Okay, if were being totally honest, Montgomery Clifts reserved lifestyle didnt exactly excite the press; it actually kind of stumped them. . That Clift was gay made little difference in the intensity and duration of the two stars adoration of one another: here, after all, were two talented, passionate artists who met at a young age (she was in her teens; he was in his late twenties) and immediately discovered that they were, for lack of a better phrase, soul mates. In Montgomery Clift: A Biography, author Patricia Bosworth describes Monty's father Bill as passive, good-natured, and very dependent on his charismatic wife, Sunny. Still, his second venture was perhaps even more of an impressive feat. He summoned a doctor, but it was already too late. Hollywood repeatedly came courting, but he put off offers for nearly a decade, even turning down roles in classic films like East of Eden and the co-lead in Sunset Boulevard. You see, the entire healing process put Clift through the paces. He worked on a summer production where his talents blossomed and it opened an auspicious doorone that would seal his fate forever. Contemporaries like James Dean and Marlon Brando also did. You couldn't help but come. One infamous fact about Montgomery Clift is that he only owned one suit. Their claims were deemed reliable because one of the biographers was certified by one of Clift's confidants. From here on out, however, he plunged even further into his addiction. She would wield considerable influence over the early part of his film career, advising him in decisions to decline lead roles in Sunset Blvd. Free Postage. You see, Clift wasnt just a pretty face, he also had a bunch of quirks that made him incredibly singular in comparison to other leading men. The accident changed his appearance, and many biographers assumed Clift felt ruined by it and, so, drank more. Were always looking for your input! His leading lady, Olivia de Havilland, disappointed him in every wayand his criticisms were downright brutal. The next morning, James returned to Clifts room to rouse him but found the door locked. Curtis's relationship to the term nepo baby has evolved over the last few months. Madame de Pompadour was the alluring chief mistress of King Louis XV, but few people know her dark historyor the chilling secret shared by her and Louis. If Paramount wanted him, theyd have to give him what he wanteda power differential that would go on to structure the star-studio relationship for the next 40 years. But, in general, his relationships with men had more to do with sex than with a deep emotional connection. But this wasnt the actors first time at the rodeo. As such, Taylors intervention only enhances the very real love story that existed between her and Clift. Clifts recuperation took months, and when he finally returned to set, there was more trouble afoot. He was sick of being a symbol, a symptom, a testament to something. Taylor, caught up in filming with Richard Burton in Paris, sent flowers to the funeral. Other testimonies to Clifts gayness abound: early in his film career, he had purportedly been warned that being gay would ruin him; he was so conscious of being seen as feminine or fey in any way that when he ad-libbed a line in The Search, calling a boy dear, he insisted that director Fred Zinnemann reshoot the take. ), Elizabeth Taylor, Roddy McDowell, Dean Martin, Kevin McCarthy, Marilyn Monroe, Jennifer Jones, Libby Holman, Thornton Wilder, Salka Viertel, Stewart Granger, Jack Larson, Oscar Levant, Pilar Levi, Giuseppe Perrone, Fred Zinnemann, Frank Sinatra, Burt Lancaster, Deborah Kerr, Abigail Tommye Adams. His father made a lot of money in banking but was quite poor during the depression. Many Hollywood stars have committed versions of the long suicide. Montgomery Clift, Nando Bruno. They went to London to see Laurence Olivier together, ate together, sat in front of the fire together, Clift said. Your suggestions can be as general or specific as you like, from Life to Compact Cars and Trucks to A Subspecies of Capybara Called Hydrochoerus Isthmius. Well get our writers on it because we want to create articles on the topics youre interested in. When we do, we depend on our loyal, helpful readers to point out how we can do better. He looked about ten years older than the Montgomery Clift audiences remembered and adored. Actor Montgomery Clift, 45, three times nominated for Academy Awards, died early Saturday of a heart attack in his plush East Side townhouse. About But this was only the beginning. Moreover? However, despite our best efforts, we sometimes miss the mark. It is a feature-length film with a runtime of 1h 3min. He has a ghastly, shattered expression. And it wasnt just in private record: in October 1956, Louella Parsons reported on Clifts very bad health and Holmans attempts to clean him up. Historys most fascinating stories and darkest secrets, delivered to your inbox daily. He was, at least in the press, something approaching asexualthe title of a Motion Picture article, authored by Clift, declared simply, I Like It Lonely!. Thanks for your help! Free delivery for many products! In 1929, the Wall Street Crash hit Clifts father like a ton of bricks, and his mothers dreams disappeared in an instant. Like them, Clift was comfortable with the full contours, and consequences, of his beauty, playing the object in a way previously preserved for female stars. In his words, I learned that most writers dont need interviews to write about me. Merv was a sexual predator who once tried to sexually assault Danny Terrio, then threatened to ruin his career if he talked. 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Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift goofed around during a break in filming A Place in the Sun. Christine Tran is a history buff(ette) and media scholar. Montgomery Clift's full name is Edward Montgomery Clift and his nickname is Montgomery Clift. Elizabeth Taylor and Katharine Hepburn came to Clifts defense when the director tried to get rid of him.

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