The entire scene was extremely unsettling as Clift still wore his eyeglasses, and had his hands rigidly clenched. He became so known for his tousled appearance that theLos Angeles Times dubbed him the Rumpled Movie Idol. With his ancient, ramshackle car, and a circle of friends outsidethe realm of Hollywood, he certainly didnt fit the mold. Born Edward Montgomery Clift on October 17, 1920, in Omaha, Nebraska, he found his love of theater early on (via the Los Angeles Times). Montgomery Clift - Wikipedia He hated the criticism and the labels, and eventually, he just couldnt take it anymore. Whisked away to the morgue, Clifts body underwent an autopsy that shed some light on his sudden demise. Of course, as unusual as his lifestyle seemed, healso had a number of interesting routines. Clift shared the stage with some of the leading performers of the day, including Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne in "There Shall be No Night" (via Playbill) and Tallulah Bankhead in "The Skin of Our Teeth" (also via Playbill), both in 1942. Montgomery Clift was a lone figure, aware and decent but vulnerable. The accident disfigured his face, leaving it half paralyzed. Grasping at straws, the media decided to do what little they could to sensationalize the actors non-existent, One of Clifts closest friends was a woman named Myra Letts, and for the ruthless gossip columns, it wasnt a huge leap from friend to girlfriend. Clift didnt entertain this for a second and shot the sordid speculations down immediately, saying that there was zero intimacy between them: those romantic rumors are embarrassing to both of us.. But when hedid get a hankering for a fun excursion, Clift knew exactly where he wanted to be. Clift made his Broadway debut in "Fly Away Home" in 1935, according to the Irish Times. He may have been lonely but the distance he put between his public life and his work life helped keep his mysterious bachelorhood in check. 108, 135, Jerome Robbins: Something to Dance About American Masters, Season 23, Episode 1, Somewhere the life of Jerome Robbins by Vaill, Amanda, p. 240, Jerome Robbins: his life, his theater, his dance by Jowitt, Deborah, pp. It wasn't long before he found his way to the big screen. While filmingRaintree County, Clift attended a dinner party at Taylors housebut sadly, he didnt make it home in one piece. The truth didnt come out until the 70s. But when he climbed into the room, he discovered something absolutely gut-wrenching. Clift: Red River, The Search, The Heiress. At the age of 25, Clift made the leap to Hollywoodbut he was a rebel right from the get-go. Meeting veteran stage and screen actor Kevin McCarthy in a Hollywood restaurant was a thrilling experience. Determined to keep his gayness under wraps, Clift made sure that his masculine facade shone onscreen. In 1965, he gave voice to William Faulkner's writings in the television documentary William Faulkner's Mississippi, which aired in April 1965. Montgomery Clift had the most earnest of faces: big, pleading eyes, a set jaw, and a side part that reminds you of old pictures of your granddad. Clift received and declined offers for roles in the following films: In 1960, Clift was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6104 Hollywood Boulevard. About a month afterThe Misfitswrapped, Gable suffered a heart attack and passed. Clockwise from lower left: Clift after his 1956 car accident, which partially paralyzed the left side of his face; Taylor in bikini for a promotional photo for "Suddenly, Last Summer" in 1959; Clift and Taylor in a steamy scene from 1951's "A Place in the Sun" and the book cover of Charles Casillo's Elizabeth and Monty. The crew of Raintree Country even had code words about his state of intoxication. Well, in 1955, he had a chance to reunite with his old friend and co-star, Elizabeth Taylor, in Raintree County. Part of Clift's mother's effort was her determination that her children should be brought up in the style of true aristocrats. How Montgomery Clift Self-Destructed - Best Movies by Farr Overall he ended up unhappy with his performance and left early during the film's premiere. Taylor also threatened to end any photographer's career who dared to take a picture of the seriously wounded Clift. Metacritic Reviews. In 1964, he recorded for Caedmon Records The Glass Menagerie, with Jessica Tandy, Julie Harris, and David Wayne. Why not have a musical about Romeo and Juliet but make it with gangs in New York?' He pointed out that she just let the director determine her every move. Clift was there, as were actors Kevin McCarthy and Rock Hudson, and Hudson's wife, Phyllis Gates, per Vanity Fair. Wayne portrayed a hard and brutal father and boss while Clift played a gentler and more vulnerable son. After completing John Huston's Freud: The Secret Passion (1962), Universal Studios sued him for his frequent absences that caused the film to go over budget. 90.2k. That, combined with his spiraling alcohol addiction, wrung the youth right out of the handsome actor. Every actor was in the midst of fighting their own demons. "Monty," as the performer was known to family and . Montgomery Clift: the untold story of Hollywood's misunderstood star He needed a lot of plastic surgery to repair his face, according to the Los Angeles Times. In: Egan, K., Thomas, S. (eds) Cult Film Stardom. 1467, Montgomery Clift: Beautiful Loser, Hoskyns, Barney, p. 96, Dropped Names: Famous Men and Women As I Knew Them, by Langella, Frank, p. 336, Capote: A Biography, Clarke Gerald, p. 235, Montgomery Clift: Beautiful Loser, Hoskyns, Barney, p. 34, Lost Friendships: A Memoir of Truman Capote,Tennessee Williams, and Others, Windham, Donald, p. 64, Original Story By: A Memoir of Broadway and Hollywood, Laurents, Arthur, pp. Judy Balaban, his daughter, has stated that she had an immediate connection with Clift and the two were "joined at the hip," dating for many months following. [45][46] His anguished performance (which earned him his fourth Academy Award nomination) was often thought to be due to his own nervous breakdown. Universal Studios actuallysued him for the losses they incurred because of his troublesome behavior. 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. McDowall starred with Clift in his final picture, The Defector. Inside, he found Clift dead: he was undressed, lying in his bed still wearing his eyeglasses and with both fists clenched by his side. When I saw him entering his favorite restaurant Musso & Frank Grill, on Hollywood Boulevard, where he'd meet every Wednesday evening Karl Malden, Robert Wise, and a . 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. Edward Montgomery Clift (nicknamed 'Monty' his entire life) was born on October 17, 1920 in Omaha, Nebraska, just after his twin sister Roberta (1920-2014) and eighteen months after his brother Brooks Clift. Still, the last half of his 20-year career has been referred to as the "longest suicide in Hollywood history" by acting teacher Robert Lewis because of Clift's subsequent abuse of painkillers and alcohol. [13][14] The Wall Street Crash of 1929 and the Great Depression of the 1930s ruined Clift's father financially; Bill was forced to downsize and move to Chicago to take a new job while Sunny continued traveling with the children. She is completing her PhD in Toronto, Canada. But that wasnt all. Naremore, James (1988) Acting in the Cinema. We believe that every person's story is important as it provides our community with an opportunity to feel a sense of belonging, share their hopes and dreams. He naturally gravitated to the theater. We raise awareness about these issues to help potential victims seek professional counseling and prevent anyone from getting hurt. Monty @ 100: Friendship, Tragedy and "Raintree County" Girelli, Elisabetta (2013) "Montgomery Clift Queer Star", Wayne University Press. All content, including text, and images contained on. [6] His mother was Ethel Fogg "Sunny" Clift (ne Anderson; 18881988). He finished Raintree County, although the segments of the film that were shot after his accident are painfully noticeable, with the left side of Clift's face almost entirely paralyzed and his injuries still only partially recovered, giving him a visible limp. Maxwell, Elsa (1949) Talk, Dark and Different, Photoplay, Vol. Anon. Nobody wanted to deal with him anymore, and for four years, he couldnt land a single role. 4 (April): 589 and 847. No evidence was found that suggested foul play or suicide. Catherine of Aragon is now infamous as King Henry VIIIs rejected queenbut few people know her even darker history. Clift, along with actor Kevin McCarthy, had been attending a party at Elizabeth Taylor's house in Beverly Hills. [63], Many of Clift's biographers note his relationships with men and some few women based on friends' accounts and interviews. At the time, Clift was encouraged to hide his sexuality because it would destroy his career as a leading man in Hollywood. According to the actor's lawyer, Jack Clareman, Clift was found by his secretary Lorenzo James, who claimed the actor went to bed "in good spirits.". I am not one of Americas Angry Young Men. news.AmoMama.com does not support or promote any kind of violence, self-harm, or abusive behavior. Once dubbed the Queen of the Movies, the golden-haired Myrna Loy was one of the few stars who successfully transitioned out of the silent-film era into talkies. She went on to become one of the film industrys most adored and highest-paid leading ladies. Montgomery Clift: a life in portaits | BFI Before undertaking any course of treatment please consult with your healthcare provider. Elegantly titled and captioned in white ink, the pages reveal that Clift had a filmmaker and photographers eye for framing, sense of place, and capturing action at its seminal moment. What happened next has since become the stuff of Hollywood legend. Muerte. As such, the story that unfolds in Making Montgomery Clift . Above all, Clift was perpetually curious. In the decades since Monty's death in 1966, his life has been . In 1961, Montgomery Clift went on to star alongside some of Hollywoods greatest legendsMarilyn Monroe and Clark Gable. After a break, Clift committed himself to three more films, all of which premiered during 1953: I Confess to be directed by Alfred Hitchcock; Vittorio De Sica's Terminal Station; and Fred Zinnemann's From Here to Eternity which earned Clift his third Academy Award nomination (his second of two nominations for films directed by Zinnemann). However, this changed after Clift's car accident that left his face in a terrible condition. As the faded rodeo rider Perce Howland in The Misfits, his first, introductory scene performed inside of a phone booth only took two hours of the scheduled two shooting days which impressed cast and crew. [87] It is said that McDowall took the breakup with Clift hard. [62] In a taped telephone conversation with his brother, Clift's mother stated she had known Clift was homosexual early on. 5, 114, Montgomery Clift: A Biography, Patricia Bosworth, 2012, List of actors with Academy Award nominations, List of actors with two or more Academy Award nominations in acting categories, List of LGBT Academy Award winners and nominees, "Montgomery Clift Dead at 45; Nominated 3 Times for Oscar; Completed Last Movie, 'The Defector,' in June Actor Began Career at Age 13", "Scandals of Classic Hollywood: The Long Suicide of Montgomery Clift", "Making Montgomery Clift: truth behind gay self-loathing myth". The story of Clift's devastating car crash varies somewhat from one account to the next. (1951) Movies of the Week: A Place in the Sun, Life, 28 May: 478 and 50. The unhinged character he played in the film hit too close to home and psychologically drained him. New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press, 5368. Actor Montgomery Clift is best remembered for his striking good looks and his compelling dramatic performances in such films as "A Place in the Sun" (1951) and "From Here to Eternity" (1953), per IMDb. Bosworth, Patricia (1978) Montgomery Clift: A Biography. McCarthy and Clift had been hanging out at Elizabeth Taylor's home (which she shared with then husband Mike Wilding), and then, McCarthy and Clift got in their cars to drive down the long winding hill. New York and London: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. I tried to get my ex-wife served with divorce papers. news.AmoMama.com speaks out against the above mentioned and news.AmoMama.com advocates for a healthy discussion about the instances of violence, abuse, sexual misconduct, animal cruelty, abuse etc. To make it fair to James Dean, we would have to judge it on their first 3 roles each. Author Christopher Isherwood aptly illustrated Montgomery Clifts shocking transformation: Nearly all his good looks are goneHe has a ghastly, shattered expression. But remember, Clift was never one to dwell on his looks, and it must have been frustrating that everyone else cared so much. You see, the entire healing process put Clift through the paces. After filming wrapped, she tracked him down and spat directly in his face. But right as filming began, he realized that hed made a terrible mistake. Hollywood began to see him as hostile and messy and frugal, and Clift wasnt having it. Votes: 23,513. Vintage Hollywood. It wasnt until years after his tragic passing that Clifts darkest secret finally came out. Fellow actor Kevin McCarthy was driving ahead of Clift when the horror show went down. Instead, this postwar icon's career unglamorously petered out, the matinee idol and Method trailblazer losing his looks, suddenly, in a 1956 car accident and his reputation, more slowly, to the . . ), The Cult Film Experience: Beyond All Reason. Audiences turned out to see the movie and to catch a glimpse of the before and after versions of Clift on the big screen. In all honesty, his face wasnt horribly changed at all, but there was one shocking difference. [24] In January 1951, he participated in the episode "The Metal in the Moon" for the series Cavalcade of America, sponsored by the chemical company DuPont Company. [38] She pulled a hanging tooth that was cutting into his tongue, before accompanying him into the ambulance.[39]. War . You see, the reason behind Montgomery Clifts barren dating life was rather simple: He was gay. [4] A documentary titled Making Montgomery Clift was made by his nephew in 2018, to clarify many myths that were created about the actor.[5]. is also about him. He was one of Hollywoods most desirable leading men, but mystery shrouded his entire private life. Marilyn Monroe, . The N.Y.P.L.s Montgomery Clift papers also contain several undated images of his Suddenly, Last Summer co-star Katharine Hepburn looking characteristically redoubtable and Waspy. PubMedGoogle Scholar, McNally, K. (2013). But this wasnt the actors first time at the rodeo. Clift was unhappy with the quality of the script, and reworked it himself. The Searchturned out to be a huge hit for Clift. Allegedly, Rock Hudson was there to pull Clift from the wreckage and it was Taylor who held the stricken actor in her arms. [9] Clift had English and Scottish ancestry on his father's side, wealthy relatives who hailed from Chattanooga, Tennessee. The Death of Tormented Actor Montgomery Clift (July 23, 1966) However, his worry began to mount when the actor didnt respond to his insistent knocking. McCann, Graham (1991) Rebel Males: Clift, Brando and Dean. Not only did he rarely go out in public, but he also didnt date. Vanity Fair may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. [18][19] He instead continued to flourish onstage and appeared in works by Moss Hart and Cole Porter, Robert Sherwood, Lillian Hellman, Tennessee Williams, and Thornton Wilder, creating the part of Henry in the original production of The Skin of Our Teeth.