We want our readers to trust us. They took a risk on the troubled actorand it endedbadly. While filmingRaintree County, Clift attended a dinner party at Taylors housebut sadly, he didnt make it home in one piece. From here on out, however, he plunged even further into his addiction. This was entertainment at its finest. cocksucker. Then, sweetly, wide-eyed with little girl navet, she Montgomery Clift was in relationships with Sal Mineo, Paul Newman, Henry Willson, Jack Larson, William LeMassena, Libby Holman, Maurice Leonard and Arnold Saint Subber. Show more . 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. All Rights Reserved. John Wayne and Montgomery Clift in Red River. Christine Tran is a history buff(ette) and media scholar. To help build their case, the film-makers had rare access to the actors archives, as well as to the familys story, courtesy of a special connection: the doc was co-directed by the stars nephew, Robert Clift, and his wife, Hillary Demmon. But this wasnt the actors first time at the rodeo. He insisted on maintaining his residence in New York, spending as little time in Hollywood as possible. 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. (He never won an Academy Award, although most movie aficionados feel he deserved at least one, for his unforgettable turn as the tortured Robert E. Lee Prewitt in From Here to Eternity.). So finely His smashed face was rebuilt, he reconciled with his estranged father, but he continued bedeviled by dependency on drugs and his unrelenting guilt over his homosexuality.With his Hollywood career in an irreversible slide despite giving an occasional riveting performance, such as in Stanley Kramer's Judgment at Nuremberg (1961), Monty returned to New York and tried to slowly develop a somewhat more sensible lifestyle in his brownstone row house on East 61st Street in Manhattan. But even Monroe reported that Clift was the only person I know who is in even worse shape than I am. The pictures from the set are as poignant as they are heartbreaking: its as if all three were meditating on their respective declines, and theres a sad, peaceful resignation at the difference between what their bodies could do and how people wanted to remember them. His mother wanted all of her children to be raised as distinguished aristocrats, and as such, little Clift and his siblings received an elite upbringing: private tutors, extensive travel, and language lessons. Free delivery for many products! She once lovingly described how she was in awe of the star actor's perfect facial features. Clift's reputation in the 1960s was coloured by the brutal comment of Robert Lewis, Clift's teacher at the Actors Studio, who called his late . Of course, Clift didnt walk away unscathed either. 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. He got him going again. Montgomery Clift later resided in . You see, when Clift sat down to read through the script for The Search,he was less than enthused with the writing. However, one salient fact remains: Clifts ruined face never made it to the papersIn fact, not one photograph of that night exists. Clift was so protective of Holman that when offered the plum role of the male lead in Sunset Boulevard, he turned it downreportedly to avoid any suggestion that Libby Holman was his own delusional Norma Desmond, using a handsome young man to pursue her lost stardom. and his wife, the former Ethel Fogg. Realizing that Clift was in mortal danger, McCarthy raced to the scene of the accident. It wasnt until years after his tragic passing that Clifts darkest secret finally came out. Of course, Clifts words had always been futile in the face of Hollywood. But the drama didn't end there. If you have a story that tracks along that line, that will feel true to people. While she sounds apologetic, the changes were never made. The Searchturned out to be a huge hit for Clift. By the time they shared the screen together for the first time, in the classic murder-romance-melodrama, A Place in the Sun (1951), both were bona fide box-office draws: Taylor had been onscreen since she was 10, and Clift a soulful, introverted Method actor who influenced countless others who came after him had already garnered the first of his four career Oscar nominations. Connect any celebrity with Montgomery Clift to see how closely they are linked romantically! There were even speculations that he was warned about being gay. A still of Montgomery Clift. He wanted to be a free agent, and he did it successfully. In the rife, overstuffed annals of Hollywood, few real-life love stories can match that of Liz Taylor and Montgomery Clift. He was lonely, yet with the help of his refusal to live in Los Angeles or participate in caf society, he was able to keep his private life private. 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. Allegedly, Rock Hudson was there to pull Clift from the wreckage and it was Taylor who held the stricken actor in her arms. When the press talked about Clift, they talked about the skill and the beauty, but they also talked about what an offbeat, weird guy he was. Or, as Bosley Crowther, taking the populist slant in The New York Times, explained, the characters were amusing, but they were also shallow and inconsequential, and that is the dang-busted trouble with this film.. 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. Just look at the fan magazine titles: Making Love the Clift Way, Two Loves Has Monty, Montgomery Clifts Tragic Love Story, Is It True What They Say About Monty? Who Is Monty Kidding? Hes Travelin Light, The Lurid Love Life of Montgomery Clift, and, perhaps most flagrantly, Monty Clift: Woman Hater or Free Soul?. The revelation of his sexuality did not emerge until the 70s, when two high-profile biographers, one endorsed by his close confidants, revealed as much, rendering him a gay icon within the span of two years. But when he climbed into the room, he discovered something absolutely gut-wrenching. He was the son of Ethel "Sunny" Anderson (Fogg; 1888-1988) and William Brooks Clift (1886-1964). 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. But even the troubled blonde bombshell recognized that her co-star was in dire straits. Elizabeth Taylor at Paramount Studios, 1950. At the time of the premiere, Monroe had been admitted to a psychiatric ward and required a day pass just to attend. Above all, Clift was perpetually curious. Something was seriously wrong. He was one of Hollywoods most desirable leading men, but mystery shrouded his entire private life. Montgomery Clift 39 30. July 22, 1966, was a sweltering day in New York City, and Montgomery Clift had been languishing in his townhouse on 61st Street. One time when he was delivering his line on the set of "The Search," he mistakenly called a boy 'dear' and insisted that the director did a reshoot. Clift couldnt get through longer scenes, having to split them up into two or three chunks. 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. Born Edward Montgomery Clift on Oct. 17, 1920 in Omaha, NE, he was the son of Ethel Fogg and William Brooks Clift, a successful Wall Street stockbroker. 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. Randy Chrisley Is Todd Chrisley's Brother Who Was Diagnosed with Cancer in 2014, Johnny Depp's Weight Gain & Changes in Appearance over the Years, 'Whos the Boss? He was only 15 years old, but this wasnt just a fun pastimeit was serious business. Montgomery Clift was in relationships with Sal Mineo, Paul Newman, Henry Willson, Jack Larson, William LeMassena, Libby Holman, Maurice Leonard and Arnold Saint Subber. Although he may not have realized it, Clifts horrific accident sparked the beginning of the end, intensifying his preexisting ailments and sending him down a dark path from which he could never return. 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)). One infamous fact about Montgomery Clift is that he only owned one suit. Clifts lifestyle had the press slotting him in with non-conformists of the dayright alongside hotshots like Marlon Brandobut the actor didnt respond well to being labeled and defined. Between 1963 and 1966, he faded from public view, emerging only to film a final performance in the French spy thriller The Defector (1966). Taylor, at last free from her long-standing contract with MGM, next used her power as the biggest star in Hollywood to insist that Clift be cast in her new project, Suddenly, Last Summer (1959). But that wasnt the wildest part of the story. They went to London to see Laurence Olivier together, ate together, sat in front of the fire together, Clift said. However, this was no quick fix. He naturally gravitated to the theater. . But after an initial flurry of coverage, he retreated from public view entirely. Her interests include the European Renaissance, popular culture, and Internet history. At the end of the day, Clifts private nurse Lorenzo James checked in on him just after midnight. made. Fearful for her friends image, she threatened the press: If they even dared to take one photo of her friend, she would personally ensure the end of their careers. Horrified, James immediately called for help, but of course, it was already too late. His father made a lot of money in banking but was quite poor during the depression. Finally, Clift had a chance to climb out of his slumpbut before he made it over the top, tragedy struck. Can he still feel?). 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. Montgomery Clift (1920-1966) is one of the most tragic figures in Hollywood history. Clift's childhood was unconventional. 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!. Montgomery Clift and Elizabeth Taylor in A Place in the Sun. The old Hollywood system was breaking apart and he was a major part of that., The first role Clift took, opposite John Wayne in Red River in 1948, offered a stark contrast in masculine presentations. Please submit feedback to contribute@factinate.com. During the filming of Raintree County, Clift and Taylor seemed to have rekindled their is-it-or-isnt-it relationship; according to one of Clifts biographers, Some days he would threaten to stop seeing Elizabeth Taylorthen, the thought would make him burst into tears. Other apocryphal legend has Taylor sending Clift piles of love letters, which he then read aloud to his male companion at the time. 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. Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift goofed around during a break in filming A Place in the Sun. Even his diet was rather spartan: orange juice, steak, and eggs. MONTY YOU WERE THE BEST!!! 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. Peter Stackpole The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock. His image was, more than anything else, confusingunmalleable to Hollywoods preexisting star categories. Next came "The Nutty Professor" as Lewis' student, Stella Purdy, who he is infatuated with. On the set of 1958sLonelyhearts,Clift had a message for those that tried to fit him into a box. It was ironic his relationship with the bisexual middle-aged Holman would be the principal (and likely the last) heterosexual relationship of his life and only cause him further anguish over his sexuality. 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. 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. In the bathroom, James found Clift in his bathtub, undressed and obviously deceased. Sadly, his greatest friend Elizabeth Taylor could only send flowers from Rome. He played the desperate, the drunken, and the deceived, and the trajectory of his life was as tragic as that in any of his films. 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. Observers also point out that Clift had sexual relationships with women. There are a few versions that detail the aftermath of Clifts accident, but one has all the drama of a motion picture itself. Vanity Fair may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. 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. He was born in Omaha, Nebraska on 1920-10-17. In this exclusive excerpt from her forthcoming book, Anne Helen Petersen recounts the actors lonely life, ferocious talent, and tragic decline. A Place In The Sun (1951) & From Here To Eternity (1953). Oh dear. Clift asserts that the actors use of alcohol and prescription drugs stemmed, primarily, from a near-fatal car accident in 1956. Taylor opened his mouth, put her hand down his throat, and pulled out the teeth. That said, he kept his sexuality a secret: The prejudices of the time left him no choice. 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. Every actor was in the midst of fighting their own demons. Copyright 2023 by Factinate.com. His . As for Clift, the shoot was incredibly taxing, both mentally and physically: in addition to acquiring a scar across his nose from a stray bulls horn, severe rope burns while attempting to tame a wild horse, and various other rough-and-tumble injuries, he also performed what has widely come to be regarded as one of his best scenes, a stilted, heartbreaking conversation with his mother from a phone booth. With Clift on board, Suddenly, Last Summer morphed into a verifiable mess. Determined to keep his gayness under wraps, Clift made sure that his masculine facade shone onscreen. Sensitive, mysterious, brooding, and suspiciously single. The documentary was released at the Los Angeles Film Festival and . 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. 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. Free Postage. Montgomery Clift is a member of the following lists: American film actors, Actors Studio alumni and Bisexual actors. Taylor immediately stuck her delicate, little hand down his throat and removed the obstruction. While his brother claimed that Clift was bisexual, writer Truman Capotes unpublished work alludes to Clifts gayness quite explicitly. Montgomery Clift was an undeniably attractive man, and before long, he'd cultivated a rather passionate female fan base. Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift in A Place in the Sun. Teach, I loved the way how he played in A Place in the Sun. 3.80. Clift had a fraternal twin sister, Roberta, and a brother, William Brooks Clift Jr, who had an illegitimate son with actress Kim Stanley. 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. There were no wild outings for this reserved homebody. I Confess - Hitchcock - His Life in Pictures Magazine Pictorial [United Kingdom] (June 2022), Montgomery Clift - Retro Magazine Pictorial [Poland] (May 2022), Montgomery Clift - Pani domu Magazine Pictorial [Poland] (August 2011). But the drama didnt end there. 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. Close friends, such as actor Kevin McCarthy and his wife, tried to get Clift to slow down and dry out, but their pleas . In 1961, Montgomery Clift went on to star alongside some of Hollywoods greatest legendsMarilyn Monroe and Clark Gable. Montgomery's ancestry was English, as well as more distant Scottish, Dutch, German and French. 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. However, the filming of The Misfits had a shadow lurking over it. Thanks for your help! A four-time Oscar nominee who died at 45, Montgomery Clift was a bright young talent, a tabloid fixture, and a posthumous gay icon. I am not one of Americas Angry Young Men. He also helped bring a more natural acting style to film. But even though his marred looks never made it to the headlines, for Clift, the horror was far from over. He was the son of Ethel "Sunny" Anderson (Fogg; 1888-1988) and William Brooks Clift (1886-1964). Clift and Hollywood icon Elizabeth Taylor first became acquainted when they played counterparts on George Stevens's "A Place in the Sun." The results were not pretty. Montgomery Clift Born: 1920-10-17, Omaha, Nebraska, USA Education: NA Ethnicity: Caucasian Death Date:-0001-11-30 Addition Websites. His beat-up car was 10 years old, and his best friends were all outside of the movie business. However, Clift's life was shrouded by a dark secret that became public after his passing, by actress Elizabeth Taylor. All his life, it was misery," said McCarthy. Indeed, it was his apparent lack of romantic attachments that confounded the gossip press the most. Will she ride the term to Oscar gold? Catherine of Aragon is now infamous as King Henry VIIIs rejected queenbut few people know her even darker history. 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. 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. The Clift picture didn't pan out either, at least with her promised co-star. Welcome to Who Is Montgomery Clift?, a page dedicated to showcasing actors & movie makers of the Golden Age of Hollywood. A portrait of Elizabeth Taylor And Montgomery Clift from the film "A Place In The Sun", 1951 | Photo: Getty Images. Born in 1920 in Omaha, Nebraska, Clift was raised like an aristocrat, with a private tutor and frequent trips to Europe. Whether platonic or not, these two actors shared an undeniable bond that was undeniably strengthened by this one unfortunate event. 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. Help us build our profile of Marlon Brando! The subject matter, which involved him assisting in the cover-up of a dead mans apparent homosexuality, must have sparked mixed emotions. It also stresses Clifts crucial role in changing the power balance between actors and studio chiefs in Hollywood, as well as the advancements he brought to film acting. While filming his next picture, Lonelyhearts (1958), Clift lashed out, proclaiming, I am notrepeat nota member of the Beat Generation. "Indiscretion of an American Wife" romance and drama movie produced in Italy and USA and released in 1953. Adopted at the age of one, his mother was told by a well-intentioned doctor years later that she was the offspring of Southern aristocrats, so she chose to raise her own children accordingly. Firstly, he didnt even like Hollywood, preferring to stay in New York as much as he could. Hailed as one of Hollywood's first true Method actors, Edward Montgomery Clift was born October 17, 1920, in Omaha, Nebraska. Want to tell us to write facts on a topic? About a month afterThe Misfitswrapped, Gable suffered a heart attack and passed. Indiscrecin de una esposa: Dirigido por Vittorio De Sica. Today, its impossible to know the specifics of Clifts sexuality: his brother, Brooks, would later claim that his brother was bisexual, while various writings from within Hollywood indicate that Clifts sexuality wasnt entirely a secret. Montgomery Clift and Marlon Brando were in a . Monty brought a different masculinity to the screen, said Demmon. Picture Information. But the producer, Sam Spiegel, decided to go forward, no matter the risk. He was, in his words, nothing more than an ordinary, second-class wolf., These anecdotes, and dozens like them, would establish Clift, along with Brando, as the embodiment of 50s youth culture, rebelling against conformity and all that postwar Americans were supposed to embrace. 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. When James offered to join him, the belligerent shot him down immediately, crying, Absolutely not.Sadly, this was Montgomery Clifts final interaction. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Cond Nast. Our editors are instructed to fact check thoroughly, including finding at least three references for each fact. The actress had read many articles about Clift's acting prowess and thought she would not be the perfect match. Clift earned best-actor Oscar nominations for 1951s A Place in the Sun and 1953s From Here to Eternity; both times he lost to older actors (Humphrey Bogart and William Holden, respectively), and established his reputation, alongside Marlon Brando and James Dean, as a young outsider whose talent intimidated Hollywood. Taped interviews with his brother reveal that the actor felt those roles werent quite right for him and he didnt want to make the wrong first impression. Making distraction rewarding since 2017. Lorenzo came into the picture when Monty was at his lowest. Although Clift and Montgomery were only good friends, their coupling inA Place in the Sunhelped drive its popularity. Merv was a sexual predator who once tried to sexually assault Danny Terrio, then threatened to ruin his career if he talked. Follow her on Twitter @lizabethronk. Curtis's relationship to the term nepo baby has evolved over the last few months. Montgomery Clift and Elizabeth Taylor during the filming of A Place in the Sun. Tellingly, theyre always pitched under working titles like Beautiful Loser and' Tragic Beauty. 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. 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. He was sick of being a symbol, a symptom, a testament to something. Login to add information, pictures and relationships, join in discussions and get credit for your contributions. Making Montgomery Clift, which was co-directed by Clift's nephew Robert Clift (and Robert's wife Hillary. Montgomery Clift was in 8 on-screen matchups, including Anne Baxter in I Confess (1953), Elizabeth Taylor in A Place in the Sun (1951), Dolores Hart in Lonelyhearts (1958), Donna Reed in From Here to Eternity (1953) and Jennifer Jones in Indiscretion of an American Wife (1953). Whatever the case may be, Montgomery Clifts life was unbelievably impressive and distressing. Liz Ronk edited this gallery for LIFE.com. In remembering Clift, McCarthy said, his face was torn awaya bloody pulp. Courtesy Everett Collection Elizabeth was more visible than the publicity-shy Monty. However, even with all the negative hubbub surrounding this shoot, it was nothing compared to the darkness of one of Clifts next projects. Help us build our profile of Montgomery Clift! Contemporaries like James Dean and Marlon Brando also did. Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift, Hollywood, 1950. Heres A Mystery: Why Did Arthur Conan Doyles Son Dress Up Like a Knight? You see, the reason behind Montgomery Clifts barren dating life was rather simple: He was gay. It hardly helped lend nuance to that reading that Clift was a well-known and long-time abuser of pain killers and alcohol, actions which likely sped his death from a heart attack at 45 in 1966.
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