But even though his marred looks never made it to the headlines, for Clift, the horror was far from over. 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. His leading lady, Olivia de Havilland, disappointed him in every wayand his criticisms were downright brutal. As he lay wounded in the arms of his dear friend, Clift began choking and pointing to his throat. Above all, Clift was perpetually curious. 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. Directors Robert Anderson Clift Hillary Demmon Writers Robert Anderson Clift Hillary Demmon Stars . From the start, Clift was framed as a rebel and an individual. He also won a nomination for Best Actor. She developed an intense decade-plus obsession over the young actor, even financing an experimental play, "Mexican Mural" for him. Montgomery Clift girlfriend, wife list. Taylor had married British actor Michael Wilding in 1952, but by 1956, their marriage was in decline. 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. 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. Clift and Hollywood icon Elizabeth Taylor first became acquainted when they played counterparts on George Stevens's "A Place in the Sun." The script wasnt necessarily that special, but it would give him a chance to re-unite with Elizabeth Taylor, and that, it seemed, was enough to pull him out of semi-retirement. Tellingly, theyre always pitched under working titles like Beautiful Loser and' Tragic Beauty. Something was seriously wrong. Some sources have the crash occurring when Clift was leaving the event, while others state he was on his way there. Of course, Clifts words had always been futile in the face of Hollywood. But just as Clift dove into this exciting new chapter, an unforeseen tragedy changedeverything. Free Postage. made. His mother was born out of wedlock and spent much of her life and the family fortune finding her illustrious southern lineage and raising her children as aristocrats.At age 13, Monty appeared on Broadway ("Fly Away Home"), and chose to remain in the New York theater for over ten years before finally succumbing to Hollywood. A car crash in the prime of his career left him in constant pain, and he drank himself to an early death, creating an aesthetic of suffering that has guided the way we think about him today. Thats why his work doesnt feel dated, Demmon said. . 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 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. His beat-up car was 10 years old, and his best friends were all outside of the movie business. ), William Brooks Clift, Jr. (19191986) (Aged 66 Or 67) (Who Had An Illegitimate Son With Actress Kim Stanley And Was Later Married To Political Reporter Eleanor Clift. 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. Of course, when it came to his appearance, this gorgeous star really didnt give a hoot. Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift, Hollywood, 1950. Luckily, his isolated lifestyle gave him an advantage. But for 12 years, he set Hollywood aflame. When he wasnt reading or preparing for his next role, he took pleasure in visiting the local night court. Another confidant said his personal life didnt bother him. Contact sheets from LIFE photographer Peter Stackpole's shoot on a Paramount lot with Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift in 1950. In fact, after the lovers have been separated for good and the young man is in the death house [Clifts character murders Winters after getting her pregnant], the face of the girl comes floating in via double exposure to give him a last unsubstantial peck before he goes out to be executed. Contact sheets from LIFE photographer Peter Stackpoles shoot on a Paramount lot with Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift in 1950. The unhinged character he played in the film hit too close to home and psychologically drained him. But this was only the beginning. Free shipping for many products! 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. The next morning, James returned to Clifts room to rouse him but found the door locked. As to why Bosworth drew on the gay-self-hate narrative, and why that view took hold, the directors blame the homophobia of the time the book was written, in the 1970s. Their claims were deemed reliable because one of the biographers was certified by one of Clift's confidants. Copyright 2023 by Factinate.com. 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. A portrait of Montgomery Clift acting as Matt Garth in the western film "Red River" on 01 January, 1948 | Photo: Getty Images. Luckily, over time, they clawed their way back to financial security. Contemporaries like James Dean and Marlon Brando also did. 5 talking about this. Ad Choices. He was only 15 years old, but this wasnt just a fun pastimeit was serious business. 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. The surgeries led to the use of strong painkillers. What happened next has since become the stuff of Hollywood legend. But even as Clift consistently took the road less traveled, he still had some biting things to say about the media, especially its desire to pin down his image. Not only would this film win him respect for his impeccable acting performance, but it would also fuel a brand new cycle of romance rumors. 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. Allegedly, Rock Hudson was there to pull Clift from the wreckage and it was Taylor who held the stricken actor in her arms. She noted that they needed to live a life of equality while being able to get married and adopt kids. Contact sheet from LIFE photographer Peter Stackpoles shoot on a Paramount lot with Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift in 1950. Its impossible for us to know what happenedor if the two even had a relationship that went beyond the platonicbut it was returning from a party at Taylors house, mid-filming for Raintree County, that he smashed his car into a telephone pole. Benign to most but, in hindsight, highly suggestive. She once lovingly described how she was in awe of the star actor's perfect facial features. 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 even the troubled blonde bombshell recognized that her co-star was in dire straits. The 'Red River star was then tagged a gay icon. A wild exclusive excerpt from the new book, Oscars 2023: Yes, Some Awards Movies Flopped, but Art Matters, How in the F--k Does Anyone Live Here?: Bret Easton Ellis on Life, Art, and What the Hell Happened to Manhattan, Todd Field on 2 Decades of Oscar Campaigns, From, I didnt realize the deadly minefield of a campaign season, the Oscar nominee says in a career-spanning interview. A successful man in the business world, Bill nevertheless deferred to this strong-willed, opinionated woman at home. He hated the criticism and the labels, and eventually, he just couldnt take it anymore. (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.). Montgomery Clift and Elizabeth Taylor during the filming of A Place in the Sun. Clift's brother would later come out to say that the actor was bisexual. Historys most fascinating stories and darkest secrets, delivered to your inbox daily. But, in general, his relationships with men had more to do with sex than with a deep emotional connection. 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. 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. 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. said: Oh. Taylor and Clift: Photos From the Set of A Place in the Sun. However, he became more comfortable with her and eventually found it easy to open up about his sexuality. 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. 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. 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. He had a close friendship with a woman named Myra Letts, whom the gossip columnists tried arduously to frame as a love interest. 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. That secret, depending on your source, was that Clift was gay or bisexual. Want to tell us to write facts on a topic? 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. (38) and his wife, Meghan Markle (41), officially . When he read the story that criticized his bare-bones wardrobe, the scandalized actor lashed out with a biting response. Eyebrows were raised when the actor shared in an article he authored that he liked it "lonely. "Bobby was a very fine actor, but as you can imagine, he was no Montgomery Clift," she said. The view then about queer people was that they would be inherently conflicted or tormented about their sexuality, said Demmon. 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. 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. It left him with chronic health issues for the rest of his life. AmoMama creates engaging, meaningful content for women. James found his patient sitting up in bed and watching his film, The Misfits, but Clift clearly didnt want to be disturbed. The truth didnt come out until the 70s. Instead, Clift enjoyed reading, filling his spare moments with Chekov and Aristotlediving into history, or learning about economics. Their. A year and a half away from her own tragic end, Marilyn Monroe described Clift as the only person I know who is in even worse shape than I am. Together, this cast truly reflected a band of withering misfits. They went to London to see Laurence Olivier together, ate together, sat in front of the fire together, Clift said. Horrified, James immediately called for help, but of course, it was already too late. The entire experience had a cursed tinge to it, and before long, it left disaster in its wake. 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. She is completing her PhD in Toronto, Canada. Follow her on Twitter @lizabethronk. More, it analyzes the new view of masculine beauty he helped introduce to the screen. Will she ride the term to Oscar gold? Ex-lover Larson said in the film that Clift actually preferred his work after the accident to his performances before. One infamous fact about Montgomery Clift is that he only owned one suit. That, combined with his spiraling alcohol addiction, wrung the youth right out of the handsome actor. 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. Montgomery Clift was an undeniably attractive man, and before long, hed cultivated a rather passionate female fan base. Heres A Mystery: Why Did Arthur Conan Doyles Son Dress Up Like a Knight? What finally brought him back to the screen? Whether platonic or not, these two actors shared an undeniable bond that was undeniably strengthened by this one unfortunate event. However, Clift's life was shrouded by a dark secret that became public after his passing, by actress Elizabeth Taylor. 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. 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. Firstly, he didnt even like Hollywood, preferring to stay in New York as much as he could. A young naive woman falls for a handsome young man who her emotionally abusive father suspects is a fortune hunter. Montgomery Clift's full name is Edward Montgomery Clift and his nickname is Montgomery Clift. However, Clift's sexuality was not much of a secret within the movie industry. Oh dear. Clift appeared in The Misfits, a revisionist western best known as the final film of Marilyn Monroe and Clark Gable. . Montgomery Clift is a member of the following lists: American film actors, Actors Studio alumni and Bisexual actors. His apartment, which he rented for 10 dollars a month, was described by friends as beat up and by him as terrific. He survived on two meals a day, mostly combinations of steak, eggs, and orange juice, and he eschewed nightclubs, instead spending his spare time reading Chekov, classic works of history and economics, and Aristotle, whom he praised for his belief in happiness, or the gentle art of the soul. When he wasnt reading or exhausting himself in preparation for a part, he liked to go to the local night court and attend high-profile court cases just to watch the humanity on display. 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. But the tragedies didnt end there. Charles Castillo, author of "Elizabeth & Monty: The Untold Story," shared that the actress tried to seduce Clift. An interviewer once asked him what his hobbies were, Clift replied, "women. Until it sinks into a sentimental quagmire the end, the second movie excels first in being remarkably faithful to Dreisers tale of three pitiful youngsters and in telling the story with the same earnestness and breadth that have made the novel survive as a classic.

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