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. Their. Thats why his work doesnt feel dated, Demmon said. Of course, Clifts words had always been futile in the face of Hollywood. We collect and tell stories of people from all around the world. 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. (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.). Some sources have the crash occurring when Clift was leaving the event, while others state he was on his way there. Montgomery Clift was an undeniably attractive man, and before long, hed cultivated a rather passionate female fan base. From here on out, however, he plunged even further into his addiction. 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. According to Clifts doctors, it was amazing that he was even alive. Clift, however, lived a two-faceted life concerning his sexuality. But the troubled star. Peace. Picture 1 of 12 . He served in the Lincoln administration cabinet as Postmaster-General from 1861 to 1864, during the Civil War. He was such a mess on the set of Freud (1962) that Universal sued him. In his words, I learned that most writers dont need interviews to write about me. The Searchturned out to be a huge hit for Clift. Clift's last 10 years prior to his death from his 1956 car accident were called the "longest suicide in history" by famed acting teacher Robert Lewis. 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. 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. Fed up with the script, Clift desperately wanted to change her lines, saying, She isnt giving me enough to respond [to]. Of course, poor de Havilland soon had more than just her prickly love interest to contend with. (The director himself never met his famous uncle, having been born eight years after his death). Dazzling Facts About Elizabeth Taylor, The Queen Of Hollywood, Stabbed In The Back: These Real-Life Betrayals Are Straight Up Brutal, The Truth Always Comes Out: Dark Family Secrets Exposed, Plot Twist: These Surprise Endings Made Our Jaws Hit The Floor, These Ultra-Spoiled Brats Made Our Eyes Roll Into Our Heads. It was a huge wager: since everyone knew how much booze and pills Clift was on, he was virtually uninsurable on set. 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). 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. After filming wrapped, she tracked him down and spat directly in his face. 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. Then again, nothing about Clifts life was expected. With his screenwriting suggestions, the film took home an Academy Award. According to two A-list biographers, the late star was gay. However, Clift's life was shrouded by a dark secret that became public after his passing, by actress Elizabeth Taylor. The director, John Huston, supposedly brought in Clift because he thought hed have a soothing effect on Monroe, who was deeply embroiled in her own addictions, with her own personal demons. They seem to have their stories all written out beforehand.. The entire scene was extremely unsettling as Clift still wore his eyeglasses, and had his hands rigidly clenched. Marlon Brando girlfriend, wife list. When he wasnt reading or preparing for his next role, he took pleasure in visiting the local night court. John Wayne and Montgomery Clift in Red River. They were even called the most beautiful couple in Hollywood. As hard as the press tried, they couldnt seem to breathe life into this nonexistent romance. The accident changed his appearance, and many biographers assumed Clift felt ruined by it and, so, drank more. 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). Some believe that Clifts romantic leanings were much less of a secret than originally thought. He looked about ten years older than the Montgomery Clift audiences remembered and adored. When it came to the lengthier scenes, the actor just couldnt deliver; they had to be divided into smaller cuts just so he could see them through. Years later, I was using her phone when I made an utterly chilling discovery. Follow her on Twitter @lizabethronk. 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. 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. 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. But for Clift, there was just no escape, and it was only going to get worse. Jennifer Jones (Actor), Montgomery Clift (Actor), Vittorio De Sica (Director) Format: DVD 127 ratings IMDb 6.2/10.0 $797 Prime Video $0.99 $2.99 Blu-ray $14.99 DVD $7.97 VHS Tape $4.73 See More Frequently bought together + + Total price: $27.95 Add all three to Cart Some of these items ship sooner than the others. Suddenly, the Clift family was completely broke and had no choice to move to New York. Were always looking for your input! Eyebrows were raised when the actor shared in an article he authored that he liked it "lonely. Itd be his only film with Brando, even though the two barely shared the screen. 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. 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. However, Clift's sexuality was not much of a secret within the movie industry. Contemporaries like James Dean and Marlon Brando also did. Heres A Mystery: Why Did Arthur Conan Doyles Son Dress Up Like a Knight? But her heroism didnt end there. 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 parents were Quakers and met as students at Cornell University, marrying in 1914. 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!. "Monty," as his family called him, was the son of William Clift, a. He also detested the man. Following The Misfits, Clifts disintegration continued. 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. He wanted to be a free agent, and he did it successfully. Whatever relationships Clift may have had, he was circumspect. (1936), Ghostwriting Gloria Swanson: The Strange, Sexually Charged Genesis of a Legendary Autobiography, A New Power Generation: Radhika Jones Introduces the 2023 Hollywood Issue, Salma Hayek Pinault Explains How She Got Hollywood to Stop Typecasting Her as Sexy. Realizing that Clift was in mortal danger, McCarthy raced to the scene of the accident. As such, Taylors intervention only enhances the very real love story that existed between her and Clift. Do you question the accuracy of a fact you just read? The actress had read many articles about Clift's acting prowess and thought she would not be the perfect match. All Rights Reserved. A successful man in the business world, Bill nevertheless deferred to this strong-willed, opinionated woman at home. Instead, he bided his time, and thankfully, luck was on his side. That said, he kept his sexuality a secret: The prejudices of the time left him no choice. She continued to stand by his memory by supporting gay rights and speaking out against homophobia. Show details Liz Ronk edited this gallery for LIFE.com. A portrait of Montgomery Clift acting as Matt Garth in the western film "Red River" on 01 January, 1948 | Photo: Getty Images. But this was only the beginning. . But if you look at his own words, his testimonies about what acting did to him, youll see the culprit. For Clift, The Heiress was a mess from top to bottom, and he even walked out on the films premiere, disgusted with his own performance. However, he became more comfortable with her and eventually found it easy to open up about his sexuality. That secret, depending on your source, was that Clift was gay or bisexual. Clift and Taylor would star again in another 1950s film, the Civil War-era drama, Raintree Countythe movie they were making when Clift almost died in the car wreck outside Taylors homeand would remain deeply attached to one another until Clifts death, at the too-young age of 45, in New York City in 1966. July 22, 1966, was a sweltering day in New York City, and Montgomery Clift had been languishing in his townhouse on 61st Street. This was entertainment at its finest. 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. A documented conversation between two stars, Tallulah Bankhead and Dorothy Parker, during a dinner party also showed that there was knowledge among stars that Clift was gay. And yet, the mystery persists. He wasnt solely an actor, she said. That was really frightening to see., Penn Badgley Loves His Wife Too Much to Do Sex Scenes in, I askedSera Gamble, the creator, Can I just do no more intimacy scenes? the former, Oscar-winning producer Dede Gardner looks back at her many groundbreaking awards darlings, from the triumph of. When James offered to join him, the belligerent shot him down immediately, crying, Absolutely not.Sadly, this was Montgomery Clifts final interaction. Of course, when it came to his appearance, this gorgeous star really didnt give a hoot. 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. Taylor, on the other hand, felt intimidated when she was yet to meet him. Director Joseph Mankiewicz tried to replace Clift, but Taylor and co-star Katharine Hepburn defended and supported him. Montgomery's ancestry was English, as well as more distant Scottish, Dutch, German and French. In 1951, Clift embarked upon one of his most famous roles as George Eastman inA Place in the Sun. INDISCRETION OF AN AMERICAN WIFE 1953 DVD PUBLIC DOMAIN FILM MONTGOMERY CLIFT. He was not worried [about being gay], Larson asserts in the film.
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