A bulls horn scarred his nose and his attempt to tame a horse gave him intense rope burnnot to mention all the other scrapes he earned along the way. Their unique bond so evident in these pictures made on the Paramount lot during filming of A Place in the Sun, and never published in LIFE, was occasionally deepened even further by disasters visited upon them both through the years. There was a nonchalance to Clifts attitude in regards to women. From here on out, however, he plunged even further into his addiction. Courtesy Everett Collection Elizabeth was more visible than the publicity-shy Monty. Clift had a fraternal twin sister, Roberta, and a brother, William Brooks Clift Jr, who had an illegitimate son with actress Kim Stanley. Perkins, who once fended off the advances of Brigitte Bardot, later went to a shrink who maintained that homosexuality could be "cured," and in 1973 he married photographer Berry Berenson. . He was born in Omaha, Nebraska on 1920-10-17. Clift once said, The closer we come to the negative, to death, the more we blossom. He took himself to that precipice, but he fell straight in. Contact sheet from LIFE photographer Peter Stackpoles shoot on a Paramount lot with Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift in 1950. The accident changed his appearance, and many biographers assumed Clift felt ruined by it and, so, drank more. MONTY YOU WERE THE BEST!!! These are just among the many words which have been used to describe Montgomery Clift, the enigmatic heartthrob of the 1950s. He hated the criticism and the labels, and eventually, he just couldnt take it anymore. Suddenly, Last Summer (1959), Columbia Pictures, Entrancing Facts About Madame de Pompadour, France's Most Powerful Mistress, Tragic Facts About Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIIIs First Wife, Larger Than Life Facts About Milton Berle, The King Of TV, Vulgar Facts About Lenny Bruce, Stand-Up Comedys Virtuous Villain, Daring Facts About Gina Lollobrigida, Golden Hollywoods Last Survivor, Stunning Facts About Yvonne De Carlo, The Technicolor Queen. Taylor, caught up in filming with Richard Burton in Paris, sent flowers to the funeral. During her appearance at the GLAAD Media Awards, Taylor openly spoke about her late friends sexuality while she addressed the rights of gay people. Sensitive, mysterious, brooding, and suspiciously single. With alarm bells screaming in his head, James raced outside to fetch a ladder, climbing up toward Clifts bedroom window. said: Oh. Sealed, new. When The Heiresscame out, Clifts loyal fanatics came with their claws out and wrote vicious letters to Olivia de Havilland for rejecting Clifts character in the film. It was a huge wager: since everyone knew how much booze and pills Clift was on, he was virtually uninsurable on set. 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. His other side was mostly hidden and only became widely known after he passed on, thanks to his friend and colleague Elizabeth Taylor. The next year, Taylor used her status to wrangle an acting part for Clift; she demanded that he be a part ofSuddenly, Last Summer. Itd be his only film with Brando, even though the two barely shared the screen. Help us build our profile of Montgomery Clift! Clift's childhood was unconventional. Whisked away to the morgue, Clifts body underwent an autopsy that shed some light on his sudden demise. At the age of 25, Clift made the leap to Hollywoodbut he was a rebel right from the get-go. Yet Clift would come to hate the image that constrained him, just as he hated the suggestion that he was a slob, unfriendly, or loathed in Hollywood: after the story of his bare closet came out in the Saturday Evening Post, he worked arduously to set the record straight, underlining the ways in which publicity takes a kernel of the truth and expands it into legend. 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. To Clift, however, he considered his humble home terrific.. It was reported that Taylor even tried to help him find a partner. Firstly, he didnt even like Hollywood, preferring to stay in New York as much as he could. As he lay wounded in the arms of his dear friend, Clift began choking and pointing to his throat. Montgomery Clift had the most earnest of faces: big, pleading eyes, a set jaw, and the sort of immaculate side part we havent seen since. But the drama didnt end there. Taylor immediately stuck her delicate, little hand down his throat and removed the obstruction. Allegedly, Rock Hudson was there to pull Clift from the wreckage and it was Taylor who held the stricken actor in her arms. Unlike many other actors, he didnt jump straight into a contract. In 1951, Clift embarked upon one of his most famous roles as George Eastman inA Place in the Sun. Clift had a rather negative notion about Taylor even before meeting her. Free delivery for many products! Elizabeth Taylor stuck by her friends, and Montgomery Clift undoubtedly claimed a special spot in her heart. 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. Thanks for your help! But her heroism didnt end there. But, in general, his relationships with men had more to do with sex than with a deep emotional connection. By 1950, he was troubled with allergies and colitis (the U.S. Army had rejected him for military service in World War II for chronic diarrhea) and, along with pill problems, he was alcoholic. The director, Joseph Mankiewicz, was appalled by this wavering professionalismbut when he tried to fire Clift, two angels intervened. We want our readers to trust us. Something was seriously wrong. She noted that they needed to live a life of equality while being able to get married and adopt kids. Montgomery Clift, in full Edward Montgomery Clift, (born October 17, 1920, Omaha, Neb., U.S.died July 23, 1966, New York, N.Y.), American motion-picture actor noted for the emotional depth and sense of vulnerability he brought to his roles. Even if Clift himself was already spiraling out of control, playing a character that did the same only amplified the psychological toll. at the best online prices at eBay! Eyebrows were raised when the actor shared in an article he authored that he liked it "lonely. In fact, his doctors considered it amazing that the actor had even pulled through. The Searchturned out to be a huge hit for Clift. Carlo Fiore and Marlon Brando were in . Realizing that Clift was in mortal danger, McCarthy raced to the scene of the accident. Hes never sucked my cock.. The film went on to win six Academy Awards, including Best Director and Best Screenplay, and is now hailed as a (flawed) classic. In its May 28, 1951, issue, meanwhile, LIFE magazine wrote of A Place in the Sun: It is easy for an ambitious young man to get himself involved simultaneously with a simple-hearted girl who lives in a cheap boarding house and an extravagant rich girl who gives gay parties. But even though his marred looks never made it to the headlines, for Clift, the horror was far from over. 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. To revist this article, visit My Profile, then View saved stories. "Monty," as his family called him, was the son of William Clift, a. I am not one of Americas Angry Young Men. 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. TAYLOR ON CLIFT'S SEXUALITY AFTER HIS DEATH. 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. The movie, which plays at the LGBTQ movie festival NewFest in New York, refutes scores of oft-repeated assumptions about Clifts life, from his motivations as an actor, to his relationship with his mother to the characterization of his later years. Not only are you not allowed to be smart, but you were not allowed to be funny in the 90s, the actor said of her career. In 1966, Clifts stalwart friend, Elizabeth Taylor, came to his aid once again and managed to get him a part in Reflections in a Golden Eye. When he first arrived in Hollywood, he didnt sign a contract, waiting until after the success of his first two films to negotiate a three-picture deal with Paramount that allowed him total discretion over projects. made. I tried to get my ex-wife served with divorce papers. cocksucker, isnt he, Tallulah? Miss Bankhead said: Well, The unhinged character he played in the film hit too close to home and psychologically drained him. Once on stage, Clift truly came into his own. Indiscretion of an American Wife 1953, 1h 3min - Romance , Drama Jennifer Jones is the American housewife on vacation in Italy who must choose between returning home to her husband and family in Philadelphia or her romance with an Italian academic played by Montgomery Clift. Please let us know if a fact weve published is inaccurate (or even if you just suspect its inaccurate) by reaching out to us at contribute@factinate.com. Months of surgeries, rebuilding, and physical therapy followed. Help us build our profile of Marlon Brando! American actor Montgomery Clift was spectacular on the big screen for his portrayal of sensitive male characters. However, this was no quick fix. A four-time Oscar nominee who died at 45, Montgomery Clift was a bright young talent, a tabloid fixture, and a posthumous gay icon. Clift detested Waynes antiquated male constraints. But right as filming began, he realized that hed made a terrible mistake. Show details Montgomery Blair. 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. / Montys face is broken on a wheel. The unspoken truth was that Clift was gay. He wasnt the only one who challenged such norms at the time. 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. While he never excelled at school, his extraordinary abilities as an actor. Sadly, his greatest friend Elizabeth Taylor could only send flowers from Rome. Taylor opened his mouth, put her hand down his throat, and pulled out the teeth. But when he climbed into the room, he discovered something absolutely gut-wrenching. But Clift knew the film would be a smash, if only because audiences would want to compare his long unseen face from before and after the accident. Here was someone who was vulnerable and sensitive - and who actually listened to women.. Clifts early foray into acting led him to a Broadway debut in 1935. On the morning of July 23, 1966, Montgomery Clift's housemate couldn't wake the actor. But before the film could be released, Clift passed away, wholly without fanfare, at the age of 45, succumbing to years of drug and alcohol abuse. Next came "The Nutty Professor" as Lewis' student, Stella Purdy, who he is infatuated with. 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. Liz Ronk edited this gallery for LIFE.com. The entire scene was extremely unsettling as Clift still wore his eyeglasses, and had his hands rigidly clenched. Prior to leaving by train for Paris, a married American woman tries to break off her affair with a young Italian in Rome's Stazione Termini. Moreover? Clift couldnt get through longer scenes, having to split them up into two or three chunks. His parents were Quakers and met as students at Cornell University, marrying in 1914. It wasnt until years after his tragic passing that Clifts darkest secret finally came out. For somewhat mysterious reasons, Robert Clifts father Brooks taped endless conversations with his famous brother, as well as with their mother and other figures relevant to the story. While his brother claimed that Clift was bisexual, writer Truman Capotes unpublished work alludes to Clifts gayness quite explicitly. Elizabeth Taylor Tried to Seduce Montgomery Clift Then Stood By Him After He Came Out to Her Despite his deep attraction to Taylor, at first Clift couldn't bring himself to tell her he was. And yet, the mystery persists. The documentary was released at the Los Angeles Film Festival and . 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. A successful man in the business world, Bill nevertheless deferred to this strong-willed, opinionated woman at home. Actor Montgomery Clift, 45, three times nominated for Academy Awards, died early Saturday of a heart attack in his plush East Side townhouse. But that wasnt all. Heres A Mystery: Why Did Arthur Conan Doyles Son Dress Up Like a Knight? Catherine of Aragon is now infamous as King Henry VIIIs rejected queenbut few people know her even darker history. The story of Clift's devastating car crash varies somewhat from one account to the next. . Clift was unperturbed by his apparent lack of a love life: he told the press that he would get married when he met a girl he wanted to marry; in the meantime, he was playing the field. When another columnist asked him if he had any hobbies, he replied, Yes, women. But as the years passed, it became more and more clear that Clift wasnt just picky. She wouldnt die for another year and a half, but Misfits would be her last completed film. ", A portrait of Montgomery Clift against a wooden backdrop on 01 January, 1948 | Photo: Getty mages. An inside look at the actors secretive love life. They seem to have their stories all written out beforehand.. and his wife, the former Ethel Fogg. Making distraction rewarding since 2017. I wanted to figure out why there was such a difference., A deep trove of never-before-revealed evidence makes that disparity bracingly clear. 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. According to this version of the story, when photographers arrived, Taylor announced that she knew each and every one of them personally-- and if they took pictures of Clift, who was still very much alive, shed make sure they never worked in Hollywood again. During the peak period of his career, the actor and some Hollywood friends were returning from a party held at Taylor's home.
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