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Montgomery Clift

In I Confess (1953)
Born Edward Montgomery Clift
October 17, 1920 (1920-10-17)
Omaha, Nebraska, U.S.
Died July 23, 1966 (aged 45)
New York City, New York, U.S.
Years active 1935–1966

Edward Montgomery Clift (October 17, 1920–July 23, 1966) was a four-time Oscar-nominated American film actor. I Confess is a 1953 Crime film directed by Alfred Hitchcock. It stars Montgomery Clift as Fr Events 539 BC - King Cyrus The Great of Persia marches into the city of Babylon, releasing the Jews from almost Year 1920 ( MCMXX) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display 1920 of the Gregorian calendar The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Events 1632 - Three hundred colonists bound for New France depart from Dieppe France. Year 1966 ( MCMLXVI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. The City of New York New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Events 539 BC - King Cyrus The Great of Persia marches into the city of Babylon, releasing the Jews from almost Year 1920 ( MCMXX) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display 1920 of the Gregorian calendar Events 1632 - Three hundred colonists bound for New France depart from Dieppe France. Year 1966 ( MCMLXVI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. He was known for brooding, sensitive, working-class character roles.

Contents

Biography

Early life

Clift was born in Omaha, Nebraska, USA, the son of Ethel Anderson (née Fogg) and William Brooks Clift,[1] a banker who had overcome early poverty. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Clift had a twin sister, Roberta, and a brother Brooks, born eighteen months earlier. Clift was always treated as the baby of the family, although he was only minutes younger than his twin. Their mother, nicknamed "Sunny", was an illegitimate child and spent much of her life and her husband's money seeking to claim her illustrious southern lineage: Clift was the great-grandson of Montgomery Blair, Postmaster General under President Abraham Lincoln, and the great-great grandson of Francis Preston Blair, a journalist and adviser to President Andrew Jackson, and Levi Woodbury, an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. Montgomery Blair ( May 10, 1813 &ndash July 27, 1883) the son of Francis Preston Blair, elder brother of Francis Preston The United States Postmaster General is the executive head of the United States Postal Service. The President of the United States is the Head of state and Head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in United States by Abraham Lincoln (February 12 1809 &ndash April 15 1865 the sixteenth President of the United States, successfully led his country through its greatest internal Francis Preston Blair Sr ( April 12, 1791 – October 18, 1876) was an American journalist and politician The President of the United States is the Head of state and Head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in United States by Andrew Jackson (March 15 1767 June 8 1845 was the seventh President of the United States (1829&ndash1837 Levi Woodbury ( December 22, 1789 September 4, 1851) was the first justice of the Supreme Court of the United States to have attended Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States are the members of the Supreme Court of the United States other than the Chief Justice of the United States As part of Sunny's lifelong preparation for acceptance by her biological family, a goal never fully achieved, she raised Clift and his siblings as if they were aristocrats. As a result her children lived a very sheltered life during their early years, including when they traveled to Europe with their mother. Not until they returned to the states did the three siblings begin attending school. The adjustment was difficult, particularly for Montgomery. His performance as a student lagged behind that of his sister and brother. Their father was a rather bigoted man, often violent and abusive, which was hard on the young Clift. Clift is believed to have drawn upon this relationship whenever he portrayed a character snapping as a result of a battle against ignorance or brutality.

Sunny outlived both her sons, dying in 1988 at the age of 102.

Clift was trained in French, German, and Italian.

Film career

In I Confess (1953).
In I Confess (1953). I Confess is a 1953 Crime film directed by Alfred Hitchcock. It stars Montgomery Clift as Fr

Appearing on Broadway at the age of thirteen, Clift achieved success on the stage and starred there for 10 years before moving to Hollywood, debuting in 1948's Red River opposite John Wayne. Broadway theater, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 39 large professional theaters with 500 seats or more located Year 1948 ( MCMXLVIII) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the 1948 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. For other uses of this name see Red River. Red River is a 1948 Western film giving a fictional account of the John Wayne ( May 26, 1907 &ndash June 11, 1979) was an Academy Award and Golden Globe Award -winning American In 1958 he turned down Dean Martin's role in Rio Bravo, which would have reunited him with Wayne. Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7 1917 &ndash December 25 1995 was an American Singer, Film Actor, television personality This may have been because of the tension between the two men; between takes during the filming of Red River, Wayne would refuse to socialize with Clift because the very conservative Wayne disapproved of Clift's homosexuality. Clift was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor that same year for The Search. Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS to recognize The Search is a 1948 film directed by Fred Zinnemann which tells the story of a young Auschwitz survivor and his mother who search for each Clift was billed as a new kind of leading man: sensitive, intense and broodingly handsome, the kind of man women would want to take care of. He had a highly successful film career, performing in many Oscar-nominated roles and becoming a matinée idol because of his good looks and sex appeal. His love scenes with Elizabeth Taylor in A Place in the Sun (1951) set a new standard for romance in cinema. Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor, DBE (born 27 February 1932) is a two-time Academy Award -winning English-American actress A Place in the Sun is a 1951 film which tells the story of a working class young man who is entangled with two women one who works in his wealthy uncle's factory Year 1951 ( MCMLI) was a Common year starting on Monday. Events of 1951 January His roles in A Place in the Sun, the 1953 classic From Here to Eternity and The Young Lions (1958) are considered major milestones in his career. Year 1953 ( MCMLIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. From Here to Eternity is a 1953 Drama film based on the novel of the same name by James Jones. This article is about the novel by Irwin Shaw For the Australian television series see Young Lions (TV series The Young Lions is a Year 1958 ( MCMLVIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

Clift and his screen rival, Marlon Brando—who was coincidentally born in the same city of Omaha, Nebraska—were popularly known in Hollywood as the "Golddust Twins" because of their rapid rise to stardom. Marlon Brando Jr (April 3 1924 – July 1 2004 was an Academy Award -winning American Actor, whose body of work spanned over half a century The young James Dean emulated Clift as he began his career; he called him frequently to talk about acting until Clift, growing uncomfortable, brushed him off. James Byron Dean ( February 8 1931 &ndash September 30 1955) was a two-time Oscar -nominated American Film

Clift reportedly turned down the starring roles in Sunset Boulevard and East of Eden. Sunset Boulevard is a 1950 American Film noir classic Directed and co-written by Billy Wilder, it was named East of Eden is a 1955 film, directed by Elia Kazan, and loosely based on part of the 1952 novel of the same name by US author John At one point he was receiving so many scripts with offers of roles that they literally filled up his home; friends had to squeeze past stacks of them in order to walk up the stairs.

Car accident

On May 12, 1956, while filming Raintree County, he smashed his car into a telephone pole after leaving a party at the home of his Raintree County co-star Elizabeth Taylor and her then-husband Michael Wilding. Events 1191 - Richard I of England marries Berengaria of Navarre. Year 1956 ( MCMLVI) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Raintree County is a novel by Ross Lockridge Jr. It tells the story of a small-town Midwestern teacher and poet named John Shawnessy who in his younger Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor, DBE (born 27 February 1932) is a two-time Academy Award -winning English-American actress Michael Wilding (23 July 1912 &ndash 8 July 1979 was an English Actor. Alerted by friend Kevin McCarthy, who witnessed the accident, Taylor raced to Clift's side and kept him from choking to death by removing two of his teeth, which had become lodged in his throat. For other people named Kevin McCarthy see Kevin McCarthy. Kevin McCarthy (born February 15, 1914) is an American Clift suffered spinal damage. Most of the injuries on his face were apparently below the skin; doctors elected not to do plastic surgery. In a filmed interview, he later described how his nose could be snapped back into place. After a long recovery, he returned to the set to finish the film. Against the movie studio's worries over profits, Clift rightly predicted the film would do well, if only because moviegoers would flock to see the difference in his facial appearance before and after the accident. The pain of the accident led him to rely on alcohol and pills for relief, as he had done after an earlier bout with dysentery (thanks to a film shot in Mexico) left him with chronic intestinal problems. As a result, Clift's health and looks deteriorated considerably. Taylor and Clift remained close friends until his death.

Sexuality

Patricia Bosworth, who had total access to Clift's family and many persons who knew the actor and worked with him, writes in her book on Montgomery Clift, "Before the accident Monty had drifted into countless affairs with men and women. Patricia Bosworth (b April 24, 1933) is an American Journalist and Biographer. It suited his personality to have sex with a variety of partners. After the accident and his drug addiction became more serious, Monty was often impotent, and sex became less important to him. His deepest commitments were emotional rather than sexual anyway, and reserved for old friends; he was unflinchingly loyal to men like Bill Le Massena and women like Elizabeth Taylor, Libby Holman, Nancy Walker and Ann Lincoln. Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor, DBE (born 27 February 1932) is a two-time Academy Award -winning English-American actress Libby Holman ( May 23, 1906, Cincinnati Ohio – June 18, 1971, Stamford Connecticut) was an American Nancy Walker ( May 10, 1922 – March 25, 1992) was an American Actress in stage screen and television " Rather oddly, when he bought his Manhattan townhouse in 1960 (217 East 61st Street)[2]and became involved in renovations, he reported to a close friend that he envisioned living there someday with a wife and kids. [3]

Post-accident career

His post-accident career has been referred to as the "longest suicide in Hollywood" because of his alleged substance abuse. Clift continued to work over the next ten years. His next three films would be Lonelyhearts (1958), The Young Lions (1958) and Suddenly Last Summer (1958). Lonelyhearts (also known as Miss Lonelyheart) is a 1958 Film noir drama film directed by Vincent J This article is about the novel by Irwin Shaw For the Australian television series see Young Lions (TV series The Young Lions is a Suddenly Last Summer is a one-act play by Tennessee Williams. Clift starred with Lee Remick in Elia Kazan's Wild River in 1960, a film listed in the United States National Film Registry. Lee Ann Remick ( December 14, 1935 – July 2, 1991) was an Academy Award - and Tony Award -nominated American film and Elia Mother, ( Greek: Ηλίας Καζάν September 7 1909 &ndash September 28 2003) was a Greek - American A wild river is a free flowing River system that has all or almost all of its natural features intact The National Film Registry is the registry of Films selected by the United States National Film Preservation Board for preservation in the Library of He then costarred in John Huston's The Misfits (1961), which turned out to be the last film for both Marilyn Monroe and Clark Gable. John Marcellus Huston ( August 5 1906 &ndash August 28 1987) was an American Film director and Actor. The Misfits is a 1961 American Drama film, written by Arthur Miller, directed by John Huston, and starring Clark Marilyn Monroe (born Norma Jeane Mortenson, June 1 1926 &ndash August 5 1962 baptized Norma Clark Gable (February 1 &ndashNovember 16) was an iconic American Actor nicknamed "The King of Hollywood" in his heyday Monroe, who was also having emotional problems at the time, famously described Clift as: "The only person I know who is in worse shape than I am. " By the time Clift was making John Huston's Freud the Secret Passion (1962) his destructive lifestyle was affecting his health. John Marcellus Huston ( August 5 1906 &ndash August 28 1987) was an American Film director and Actor. Freud the Secret Passion also known as Freud ( 1962) is a American Biographical film Drama based on the life Universal sued him for his frequent absences which caused the film to go over budget. Universal Studios (sometimes called Universal Pictures or Universal City Studios) a subsidiary of NBC Universal, is a major Global American The case was later settled out-of-court; the film's success at the box office brought numerous awards for screenwriting and directing, but none for Clift himself. See also Pre-production Screenplay Screenwriting is the art and craft of writing scripts for Film, Television or Video games

Clift's last Oscar nomination was for best supporting actor for his riveting role in Judgment at Nuremberg (1961), a seven-minute part. Judgment at Nuremberg (released in the UK as Judgement at Nuremberg) ( 1961) is a fictionalized film account of the post- World The film also starred Spencer Tracy, Marlene Dietrich, Maximilian Schell, Burt Lancaster, and Judy Garland. Spencer Tracy ( April 5, 1900 – June 10, 1967) was a two-time Academy Award -winning Actor of stage and Marlene Dietrich maɐˈleːnə ˈdiːtrɪç (December 27 &ndashMay 6) was a German -born American Actress, Singer and Entertainer Maximilian Schell (born December 8, 1930) is an Academy Award -winning Austrian Actor. Burton Stephen "Burt" Lancaster ( 2 November &ndash 20 October) was an American film Actor and star noted for his athletic physique Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10 1922 – June 22 1969 was an American actress and singer The film's director, Stanley Kramer, later wrote in his memoirs about how Clift—by this stage a wreck of a man—struggled to remember his lines even for this one scene:

Finally I said to him, "Just forget the damn lines Monty. Stanley Kramer ( September 29, 1913 &ndash February 19, 2001) was an Academy Award -nominated American Film director Let's say you're on the witness stand. The prosecutor says something to you, then the defence attorney bitterly attacks you, and you have to reach for a word in the script. That's all right. Go ahead and reach for it. Whatever the word may be, it doesn't really matter. Just turn to (Spencer) Tracy on the bench whenever you feel the need, and ad lib something. It will be all right because it will convey the confusion in your character's mind. " He seemed to calm down after this. He wasn't always close to the script, but whatever he said fitted in perfectly, and he came through with as good a performance as I had hoped.

The Clash wrote a song about Clift's post-accident life and decline called "The Right Profile"

Death

On Monday, July 22, 1966, Clift spent most of the day in his bedroom in his New York City townhouse. Events 1099 - First Crusade: Godfrey of Bouillon is elected the first Defender of the Holy Sepulchre of The Kingdom of Year 1966 ( MCMLXVI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. He and his live-in personal secretary, Lorenzo James, had not spoken much all day. At one a. m. , Lorenzo went up to say goodnight. The Misfits was airing on TV that night, and Lorenzo asked Clift if he wanted to watch it. The Misfits is a 1961 American Drama film, written by Arthur Miller, directed by John Huston, and starring Clark "Absolutely NOT!" was the reply. This turned out to be the last time Montgomery Clift spoke to anyone. At six a. m. the next morning, Lorenzo went to wake him, but found the bedroom door locked. Unable to break it down, he ran down to the garden and climbed a ladder to the bedroom window. When he got inside, he found Clift dead. He was undressed, lying on his back in bed, with glasses on and fists clenched. He was 45 years old. [4]

Clift's body was taken to the City Morgue at 520 First Avenue and autopsied. The autopsy report cited the cause of death as a heart attack brought on by "occlusive coronary artery disease". No evidence was found that suggested foul play or suicide. It is commonly believed that addiction was responsible for Clift's many health problems and his death. In addition to lingering effects of dysentery and chronic colitis, an underactive thyroid was later revealed. The thyroid is one of the largest Endocrine glands in the body A condition that among other things lowers blood pressure, it may have caused Clift to appear drunk or drugged when he was sober. (A further health issue, though unrelated, was that Clift underwent cataract surgery in his later years; afterwards he had to wear glasses for the first time. )

Following a fifteen-minute ceremony at St. James Church attended by 150 guests including actresses Lauren Bacall and Nancy Walker, Clift was buried in the Quaker Cemetery, Prospect Park, Brooklyn, New York City. Nancy Walker ( May 10, 1922 – March 25, 1992) was an American Actress in stage screen and television Prospect Park is a 585 acre (24 km² public Park in the New York City borough of Brooklyn located between Park Slope, Brooklyn (named after the Dutch town Breukelen) is one of the five boroughs of New York City. Elizabeth Taylor, who was in Paris, sent flowers, as did Roddy McDowell, Myrna Loy, and Lew Wasserman. Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall ( September 17, 1928 – October 3, 1998) was an English -born Myrna Loy ( August 2, 1905 – December 14, 1993) was an American Motion picture Actress. Lew Wasserman (born Lewis Robert Wasserman, March 22, 1913, Cleveland Ohio - June 3, 2002, Beverly Hills California was a

R. E. M. wrote the song "Monty Got a Raw Deal" in reference to Clift.

Academy Award nominations

Clift has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6104 Hollywood Blvd. Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS to recognize The Search is a 1948 film directed by Fred Zinnemann which tells the story of a young Auschwitz survivor and his mother who search for each Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS to recognize A Place in the Sun is a 1951 film which tells the story of a working class young man who is entangled with two women one who works in his wealthy uncle's factory Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS to recognize From Here to Eternity is a 1953 Drama film based on the novel of the same name by James Jones. Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts Judgment at Nuremberg (released in the UK as Judgement at Nuremberg) ( 1961) is a fictionalized film account of the post- World The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a Sidewalk along Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street in Hollywood Los Angeles California, USA, that

Filmography

Stage appearances

References

  1. ^ http://www.wargs.com/family/ancestry.html
  2. ^ "A Place in the Sun, on East 61st Street: Montgomery Clift's house goes on the market" New York Magazine, June 12, 2006
  3. ^ Biography channel: Montgomery Clift
  4. ^ Patricia Bosworth, Montgomery Clift, a Biography. The Skin of Our Teeth is a play by Thornton Wilder which won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The Seagull ( Russian: "Чайка" ("Chayka" written in 1895 is the first of what are generally considered to be Anton Chekhov's James had been hired to help Clift restore his health while he waited out a lawsuit with a movie studio.

External links

Turner Classic Movies ( TCM) is a cable television channel featuring commercial -free classic movies mostly from the Turner Entertainment and Warner Find A Grave is a Website allowing its users to access maintain and expand an online Database of Burial records
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