Directed by George Stevens. [91][92] He was also involved with Donald Windham and his partner Sandy Campbell. We collect and tell stories of people from all around the world. While his mother, Ethel Fogg 'Sunny' Clift was your typical American homemaker. All rights reserved. After the car accident, Clift only took on a few more movie roles. He pleaded with her to make changes to her book to correct the mischaracterizations. Here, a primer on a little-understood ingredient, plus 15 products that address everything from wrinkles to dark spots. He was not worried [about being gay], Larson asserts in the film. "Red River," which has become a classic western, featured Clift starring opposite John Wayne. is for general information purposes only. Wayne portrayed a hard and brutal father and boss while Clift played a gentler and more vulnerable son. Elizabeth Taylor put her salary on the line as insurance in order to have Clift cast as her co-star in Reflections in a Golden Eye, to be directed by John Huston. 108, 135, Jerome Robbins: Something to Dance About American Masters, Season 23, Episode 1, Somewhere the life of Jerome Robbins by Vaill, Amanda, p. 240, Jerome Robbins: his life, his theater, his dance by Jowitt, Deborah, pp. A seeming exception was one in his final years with a man named Lorenzo who had been hired to help him. 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. [81] She attended the New York premiere of A Place in the Sun in August 1951 as his date. His next four films were The Young Lions (1958), which is the only film featuring both Clift and Marlon Brando, Lonelyhearts (1958), Suddenly, Last Summer (1959) and Elia Kazan's Wild River, released in 1960. In this film, Clift plays an ambitious fortune hunter who lands a job in his uncle's factory, dates (and impregnates) a fellow worker (played by a youthful Shelley Winters), but soon falls for Taylor's character - a rich, beautiful young woman well above his social station in life and ostensibly out of his reach. Clift's second film role, though it premiered first that same year, was The Search which earned him his first nomination for an Academy Award for Best Actor. Ah, Monty in just about anything (even after his face-scarring accident). Though Prince William and Princess Kate returned to the awards show for the first time since 2020, several other stars looked regal as they graced the red carpet too. It is commonly believed that drug addiction was responsible for Clift's many health problems and his death. The two starred in the 1961 film The Misfits; it would be Monroes last picture before her 1962 death. When he took his final curtain call, Clift was just 45 years old. The crew of Raintree Country even had code words about his state of intoxication. Sadly the star got involved in a car crash that ruined his face and impacted his life and career. The younger Clift serves the added role of narrator, voicing his journey to discover who the late actor really was, in contrast to what so many others have made him out to be. Clift's next major films were "The Heiress" (1949) and "A Place in the Sun" (1951), cementing his romantic lead status. A portrait of Montgomery Clift after his accident on 01 January, 1958 | Photo: Getty Images, After Clift's terrible car accident, the star faced some challenging moments in the movie industry. . He was born Edward Montgomery Clift on October 17, 1920. We raise awareness about these issues to help potential victims seek professional counseling and prevent anyone from getting hurt. Clift's next role as the drifter George Eastman in A Place in the Sun (1951) is regarded as one of his signature method acting performances. 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. Vanity Fair may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. 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(Photo by Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images) Happy birthday to Montgomery Clift, who would have turned 97 today. A short while later, Taylor and some of the others rushed to the scene of the accident. Montgomery Clift would've celebrated his 98th birthday on October 17, 2018. Clift, Robert Anderson and Hillary Demmon (2018). It was reported that Hutson was homophobic towards Clift after news of him being with a male reporter broke. He earned his first Academy Award nomination for best actor for "The Search," and yet "Red River" seems to be better remembered these days. His father, William Brooks Clift was the vice president of Omaha National Trust Company. Posted on October 17, 2012 by sheila. He is best remembered for his role as Private Robert E. Lee Prewitt in the 1953 film From Here to Eternity. Clift, along with actor Kevin McCarthy, had been attending a party at Elizabeth Taylor's house in Beverly Hills. [93][94] In his memoir, Arthur Laurents suggests that Clift had a fling with Farley Granger. Paramount Pictures ended up offering him the best of any incoming studio offer (which he accepted): a three-film deal (down from the typical seven-year contract) that came with the freedom to turn down any script and any director, as well as the ability for either himself or the studio to terminate the agreement at any time. Clift, presumably an introvert, would have been super frustrated to know his physical look would be a topic for national speculation. Most critics, in fact . Hollywood's Montgomery Clift, who was highly wanted for his diverse acting skill in the industry, kept the public entertained during his time. The Misfits ran on television that night. Were not trying to give a definitive version of who Monty was, added Clift. A Place in the Sun was critically acclaimed; Charlie Chaplin called it "the greatest movie made about America". Clift's naturalistic performance led to director Fred Zinnemann's being asked, "Where did you find a soldier who can act so well?" Despite the studio's concerns over profits, Clift correctly predicted the film would do well, if only because moviegoers would flock to see the difference in his facial appearance before and after the crash.[42]. Judy Balaban, his daughter, has stated that she had an immediate connection with Clift and the two were "joined at the hip," dating for many months following. Clift's life was derailed, however, by a terrible car accident in 1956. Inside, he found Clift dead: he was undressed, lying in his bed still wearing his eyeglasses and with both fists clenched by his side. He is best remembered for his roles in Howard Hawks's Red River (1948), George Stevens's A Place in the Sun (1951), Fred Zinnemann's From Here to Eternity (1953), Stanley Kramer's Judgment at Nuremberg (1961), and John Huston's The Misfits (1961). Clift was willing to waive his fee entirely but accepted the supporting part with minimum compensation. Montgomery Clift (1920-1966) is one of the most tragic figures in Hollywood history. In 2000, at the GLAAD Media Awards, where Taylor was honored for her work for the LGBT community, she made the first public declaration by anyone of the fact that Clift was gay and called him her closest friend and confidant. This image is titled Cheval et Marnie, in Clifts handwriting. On 12 May 1956, he was leaving the home of his friend, Elizabeth Taylor, high in Coldwater Canyon, Los Angeles, when his car crashed into a telephone pole. Along with his friend and colleague Marlon Brando, Clift was the most visible and gifted of a new generation of movie star who'd been trained . For his character's scenes in jail, Clift spent a night in a real state prison. [72] Clift and Robbins camouflaged their relationship by dating women. His 15 minute funeral was at attended by 150 mourners, including Lauren Bacall and Sinatra. Taylor found him crushed under the steering wheel, his face a bloody pulp. Edward Montgomery Clift was born on October 17, 1920, in Omaha, Nebraska. Clift, however, was so unsteady and unstable while filming "Freud" (1962) that his movie studio brought a lawsuit against him (via Vanity Fair). To revisit this article, visit My Profile, thenView saved stories. Isabella Rossellini, Zendaya, and more on Lancmes La Vie Est Belle, plus five new fragrances worthy of big-screen adaptations. [16] Close to a year later, around the time the family moved again, settling in New York City, Clift debuted on Broadway at 14 years old as Harmer Masters in the comedy Fly Away Home which ran from January to July 1935 at the 48th Street Theatre. [85][86] McDowall devoted himself to Clift entirely, and he moved from Los Angeles to New York to be closer to his idol. In Making Montgomery Clift, the film-makers note that the actor made as many movies after the accident as before. Montgomery Clift and Elizabeth Taylor lounging on the grass during the filming of Raintree County in Indiana, 1956. It all took a toll on him physically and mentally, and movie studios became wary of hiring him. For him, the freedom to be selective about his roles was more important than money or fame. Part of honoring someone is being open to that person not being just one, reductive thing., Making Montgomery Clift is showing at NewFest with a release date yet to be announced, Tab Hunter: how Hollywood's boy next door became a gay icon, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. According to some reports, she reportedly held Clift and removed two teeth that had fallen out in the crash from his throat, as they were causing him to choke. Here are some examples: Scenes filmed before the accident involving Montgomery 'Monty' Clift's character of John Wickliff Shawnessy:-Scene with his parents where his dad tells him he is related to Thomas Carlyle-First time John meets Flash Perkins-Photography scene (first time he meets Susannah)-Drinking scene with Flash Perkins-The race-The . When Clift made his debut on Broadway at the age of 14 he began to realize how isolated and special his childhood had been, a fact he struggled with all his life. Lorenzo was one of the reasons.. Rock Hudson Visited Doris Day Before His Death While Hiding His Illness . Yet, according to a new documentary, titled Making Montgomery Clift, the stars substance abuse had nothing at all to do with his sexuality. [71], Clift was deeply and intensely involved with Broadway choreographer Jerome Robbins; very few associates were aware of how intimate and emotionally charged the relationship between the pair was. He spoke so quietly that at times he was practically inaudible. In 1966, Clift finished filming his last project, "The Defector," and returned to his New York City apartment. He was linked to actresses Libby Holman[64][65] and Phyllis Thaxter. The stars first worked together in the 1951 drama 'A Place in the Sun,' leading to a close bond that lasted until the actor's death in 1966 at age 45. The song "Montgomery Clift" by British band Random Hold concerns the legend that Clift enjoyed hanging from the window ledges of tall buildings. Actress Marilyn Monroe even warned him never to work with Hutson, whom she described as a "sadist. He also detested the man. For us, it seemed there was this big difference between what people thought about Monty in the public sphere and what people that knew him would say, said Clift. The New York World-Telegram noticed Clifts "amazing poise and dexterity" while producer Theo Bamberger commended him for what he called a "natural histrionic instinct. Thats why his work doesnt feel dated, Demmon said. Immediately following the end of the war in September 1945 (in what would be Clift's penultimate Broadway performance) he starred in the stage adaptation of D.H. Lawrence's short story You Touched Me. Clift (per IMDb) made a big splash with his first two films with leading roles in "The Search" and "Red River," both released in 1948. He wasnt solely an actor, she said. Nevertheless, he showed no bitterness and remained one of Clift's loyal friends. She was so. Clift was also a Hollywood maverick of sorts, choosing to remain independent at a time when most actors were under contract to the movie studios, per Vanity Fair. Thus, as long as Clift's father was able to pay for it, he and his siblings were privately tutored, travelled extensively in America and Europe, became fluent in German and French, and led a protected life, sheltered from the destitution and communicable diseases which became legion following the First World War. Monty Clift looking every bit his age. It was taken in 1936. She left him when one of his beatings made. For the next nine years, Clift made nearly as many films after his traumatic car accident as he had previously. In a past interview, the star's friend, Kevin McCarthy, explained that Clift drove very high before the accident. Then again, nothing about Clifts life was expected. [6] His mother was Ethel Fogg "Sunny" Clift (ne Anderson; 18881988). Montgomery Clift's Disastrous Car Wreck Changed His Career Forever. National Board of Review of Motion Pictures, Inc. "Elizabeth Taylor at the 11th Annual GLAAD Media Awards", "TCM Fest: West Side Story's Queer Origins and Other LGBTQ+ Highlights", "Montgomery Clift's Pedigreed Upper East Side Townhouse Could Be Yours", "A Star Is Born Is the Ultimate Hollywood Horror Story, and Lady Gaga Might Be Perfect Casting", "Clift Takes Role in Columbia Film: Will Portray Paul Morel in Adaptation of Lawrence's Novel, 'Sons and Lovers', "The 21st Academy Awards (1949) Nominees and Winners", Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, "The 24th Academy Awards (1952) Nominees and Winners", "The 26th Academy Awards (1954) Nominees and Winners", "The 34th Academy Awards (1962) Nominees and Winners", New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Montgomery Clift papers, Additions, 19291969, Montgomery Clift: better than Brando, more tragic than Dean, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Montgomery_Clift&oldid=1140258718, Short description is different from Wikidata, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2023, Articles with unsourced statements from February 2022, Internet Off-Broadway Database person ID same as Wikidata, TCMDb name template using non-numeric ID from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0. He apparently fell asleep at the wheel of his car while driving and smashed his car into a telephone pole. Clift never fully physically or emotionally recovered from his car accident. Part of Clift's mother's effort was her determination that her children should be brought up in the style of true aristocrats. Born in Omaha, Nebraska, just after his twin sister Roberta,. In 1964, he recorded for Caedmon Records The Glass Menagerie, with Jessica Tandy, Julie Harris, and David Wayne. The crash caused severe damage to his face, and McCarthy noted in a 2018 interview that he thought Clift was dead when he saw the scene. Often, suicides are never fully understood. In his one 12-minute cameo scene in Judgment at Nuremberg (1961), Clift played a developmentally disabled German baker who had been a victim of the Nazi sterilisation programme testifying at the Nuremberg trials. 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