Yet, according to a new documentary, titled Making Montgomery Clift, the stars substance abuse had nothing at all to do with his sexuality. But while his siblings enrolled in prestigious schools, Montgomery Clift went hurtling in a completely different direction. While filmingThe Search,he asked the director to reshoot a scene for one baffling reason: He called a boy dear. But that wasnt all. The most beautiful young man Ive ever seen. 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. Montgomery's ancestry was English, as well as more distant Scottish, Dutch, German and French. 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. 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. He still drank, but not as heavily. 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. Whether platonic or not, these two actors shared an undeniable bond that was undeniably strengthened by this one unfortunate event. She would wield considerable influence over the early part of his film career, advising him in decisions to decline lead roles in Sunset Blvd. / Is he alive? Allegedly, Rock Hudson was there to pull Clift from the wreckage and it was Taylor who held the stricken actor in her arms. Free delivery for many products! Montgomery Clift was certainly one of a kind, and when he landed in Hollywood, it became extremely clear that he was going to do things his own way. But even though his marred looks never made it to the headlines, for Clift, the horror was far from over. But the troubled star. However, his worry began to mount when the actor didnt respond to his insistent knocking. 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. cocksucker. Then, sweetly, wide-eyed with little girl navet, she Ex-lover Larson said in the film that Clift actually preferred his work after the accident to his performances before. But the drama didn't end there. 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. And when it came to riotous parties, well, he avoided nightlife like the plague. Biographies of Clift posit that he drank because he couldnt be his true self, because homosexuality was the shame he had to shelter within. Over the next 10 years, he earned prominent roles in plays by Tennessee Williams and Thornton Wilder, opposite stars like Fredrick March and Tallulah Bankhead. Courtesy Everett Collection Elizabeth was more visible than the publicity-shy Monty. Peter Stackpole The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock. Heres A Mystery: Why Did Arthur Conan Doyles Son Dress Up Like a Knight? When James offered to join him, the belligerent shot him down immediately, crying, Absolutely not.Sadly, this was Montgomery Clifts final interaction. But the drama didnt end there. She wouldnt die for another year and a half, but Misfits would be her last completed film. 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. The truth didnt come out until the 70s. They seem to have their stories all written out beforehand., Clifts private life was boringhe didnt date, he didnt flirt, he didnt hang out in public. Contact sheet from LIFE photographer Peter Stackpoles shoot on a Paramount lot with Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift in 1950. A seeming exception was one in his final years with a man named Lorenzo who had been hired to help him. Even the press seemed to unintentionally hit upon the one thing he wanted to keep hidden, with titles like Two Loves Has Monty and Monty Clift: Woman Hater or Free Soul?. ), 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. Nearly all his good looks are gone, Isherwood wrote. He hated the criticism and the labels, and eventually, he just couldnt take it anymore. Montgomery Clift may have been one of the most self-aware actors of his day, and he certainly knew the name of the game. The actress had read many articles about Clift's acting prowess and thought she would not be the perfect match. 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). ), Elizabeth Taylor, Roddy McDowell, Dean Martin, Kevin McCarthy, Marilyn Monroe, Jennifer Jones, Libby Holman, Thornton Wilder, Salka Viertel, Stewart Granger, Jack Larson, Oscar Levant, Pilar Levi, Giuseppe Perrone, Fred Zinnemann, Frank Sinatra, Burt Lancaster, Deborah Kerr, Abigail Tommye Adams. Prior to leaving by train for Paris, a married American woman tries to break off her affair with a young Italian in Rome's Stazione Termini. The decline continued. 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. 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. However, the filming of The Misfits had a shadow lurking over it. 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. They took a risk on the troubled actorand it endedbadly. (The Clash famously referenced that awful scene, which changed the course of Clifts career and set him on a winding path of booze-and-painkiller-fueled decay, in the song The Right Profile from London Calling: I see a car smashed at night. . 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. You`ve being alwasy an inspiration for me. 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. RIP GEORGOUS MONTY. She is completing her PhD in Toronto, Canada. By 15, Clift made his Broadway debut in Cole Porters Jubilee. She continued to stand by his memory by supporting gay rights and speaking out against homophobia. Contact sheets from LIFE photographer Peter Stackpole's shoot on a Paramount lot with Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift in 1950. And then there was the physical toll. 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. .. Clifts recuperation took months, and when he finally returned to set, there was more trouble afoot. He wanted to be a free agent, and he did it successfully. The surgeries led to the use of strong painkillers. An inside look at the actors secretive love life. But when hedid get a hankering for a fun excursion, Clift knew exactly where he wanted to be. The 'Red River star was then tagged a gay icon. While driving, he fell asleep at the wheel and the consequences were utterly gruesome. ", A portrait of Montgomery Clift against a wooden backdrop on 01 January, 1948 | Photo: Getty mages. Nothing could have prepared him for what he discovered. [6] His mother was Ethel Fogg "Sunny" Clift ( ne Anderson; 1888-1988). Help us build our profile of Marlon Brando! He was set to play in Taylor's Reflections in a Golden Eye (1967), when he died in the early morning hours of July 23, 1966, at his home at age 45. He was sick of being a symbol, a symptom, a testament to something. His interests lay elsewhere. All rights reserved. The next year, Taylor used her status to wrangle an acting part for Clift; she demanded that he be a part ofSuddenly, Last Summer. Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift in A Place in the Sun. Thats why his work doesnt feel dated, Demmon said. Montgomery Blair (May 10, 1813 - July 27, 1883) was an American politician and lawyer from Maryland. Between 1963 and 1966, he faded from public view, emerging only to film a final performance in the French spy thriller The Defector (1966). Close friends, such as actor Kevin McCarthy and his wife, tried to get Clift to slow down and dry out, but their pleas . The long suicide was complete. Have I said something wrong? Instead, he bided his time, and thankfully, luck was on his side. Charles Castillo, author of "Elizabeth & Monty: The Untold Story," shared that the actress tried to seduce Clift. Their claims were deemed reliable because one of the biographers was certified by one of Clift's confidants. Indiscretion Of An American Wife -- (Movie Clip) Open, Rome High-wattage credits in unusual combination, from David O. Selznick's short feature Indiscretion Of An American Wife, 1954, starring Jennifer Jones and Montgomery Clift, directed by Vittorio De Sica, dialogue by Truman Capote. However, he became more comfortable with her and eventually found it easy to open up about his sexuality. 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. His own mother, in a voice recording played in Making Montgomery Clift, said, "Monty was a . These are just among the many words which have been used to describe Montgomery Clift, the enigmatic heartthrob of the 1950s. 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. . While filming his next picture, Lonelyhearts (1958), Clift lashed out, proclaiming, I am notrepeat nota member of the Beat Generation. There were even speculations that he was warned about being gay. Whether this captivating story is real or not remains to be seen. Want to tell us to write facts on a topic? When Clift became a household name in the movie industry, his romantic life became a widely-discussed subject by the press. 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. Months of surgeries, rebuilding, and physical therapy followed. However, one salient fact remains: Clifts ruined face never made it to the papersIn fact, not one photograph of that night exists. Sealed, new. His leading lady, Olivia de Havilland, disappointed him in every wayand his criticisms were downright brutal. He also helped bring a more natural acting style to film. Tellingly, theyre always pitched under working titles like Beautiful Loser and' Tragic Beauty. 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. Taylor talked about the need for staunch support for gay people and their rights. Montgomery Clift 39 30. A four-time Oscar nominee who died at 45, Montgomery Clift was a bright young talent, a tabloid fixture, and a posthumous gay icon. He wasnt solely an actor, she said. He could barely remember his lines and often didnt show up to set. 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. TAYLOR ON CLIFT'S SEXUALITY AFTER HIS DEATH. Clift cared nothing for appearances: the Los Angeles Times called him the Rumpled Movie Idol; he infamously owned only one suit. Montgomery Clift had an encounter with Marlon Brando. I do not count myself as a member of the ripped-sweatshirt fraternity. He wasnt a young rebel, an old rebel, a tired rebel, or a rebellious rebelall he cared about was re-creating a slice of life on the screen. He was a great talent but the male counterpart to Monroe, lonely, sad, and pitiful. Montgomery Clift and Elizabeth Taylor during the filming of A Place in the Sun. But the press will always be the press, and no amount of Montgomery Clifts ire could change that. Montgomery Clift Hid His Sexuality for Years but Elizabeth Taylor Knew His Secret & Revealed It after His Death By Olowokandi Fiyin Aug 14, 2021 04:00 P.M. Montgomery Clift made a name for himself in Hollywood with several awards and nominations. This year the young man . 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. 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. 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.
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