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. The entire scene was extremely unsettling as Clift still wore his eyeglasses, and had his hands rigidly clenched. INDISCRETION OF AN AMERICAN WIFE 1953 DVD PUBLIC DOMAIN FILM MONTGOMERY CLIFT. By 1950, he was troubled with allergies and colitis (the U.S. Army had rejected him for military service in World War II for chronic diarrhea) and, along with pill problems, he was alcoholic. 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. By 15, Clift made his Broadway debut in Cole Porters Jubilee. Furtive Facts About Burt Lancaster, Hollywood's - Factinate Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement and Your California Privacy Rights. A bout five years ago, filmmaking duo Robert Clift and Hillary Demmon Clift decided to make a documentary about Robert's long-dead uncle. Indeed, it was his apparent lack of romantic attachments that confounded the gossip press the most. But even the troubled blonde bombshell recognized that her co-star was in dire straits. Taylor immediately stuck her delicate, little hand down his throat and removed the obstruction. He was the son of Ethel "Sunny" Anderson (Fogg; 1888-1988) and William Brooks Clift (1886-1964). to add information, pictures and relationships, join in discussions and get credit for your contributions. Another confidant said his personal life didnt bother him. 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. Elizabeth Taylor Tried to Seduce Montgomery Clift - Peoplemag Courtesy Everett Collection Elizabeth was more visible than the publicity-shy Monty. One infamous fact about Montgomery Clift is that he only owned one suit. TAYLOR ON CLIFT'S SEXUALITY AFTER HIS DEATH. Help us build our profile of Montgomery Clift! Our editors are instructed to fact check thoroughly, including finding at least three references for each fact. 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). Liz Taylor, Montgomery Clift: Rare Photos, 'A Place in the Sun,' 1950 Sometimes it's hard to keep up with the latest celebrity news, but don't worry we have you covered. A portrait of Montgomery Clift acting as Matt Garth in the western film "Red River" on 01 January, 1948 | Photo: Getty Images. He believed that the media often, and easily, twisted the truth until it disappeared entirely: I learned that most writers dont need interviews to write about me. Luckily, over time, they clawed their way back to financial security. / Is he alive? Lorenzo came into the picture when Monty was at his lowest. Instead, he bided his time, and thankfully, luck was on his side. Montgomery Clift - Turner Classic Movies Biographies of Clift posit that he drank because he couldnt be his true self, because homosexuality was the shame he had to shelter within. In a new documentary, myths and assumptions about the Oscar-nominated heartthrob who struggled with his sexuality are replaced with the little-known truth. Hitchcock's I CONFESS (DVD, 1953); M CLIFT, A BAXTER. Sealed, new Clift's brother would later come out to say that the actor was bisexual. 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. He was sick of being a symbol, a symptom, a testament to something. Hes never sucked my cock.. He was the son of Ethel "Sunny" Anderson (Fogg; 1888-1988) and William Brooks Clift (1886-1964). The film went on to win six Academy Awards, including Best Director and Best Screenplay, and is now hailed as a (flawed) classic. He was a great talent but the male counterpart to Monroe, lonely, sad, and pitiful. He naturally gravitated to the theater. 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. In fact, the attitudes he and his family held towards his relationships with men were strikingly modern. 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?. Montgomery Clift and Marlon Brando were in a . Nearly all his good looks are gone, Isherwood wrote. But this wasnt the actors first time at the rodeo. Join thousands of others and start your morning with our Fact Of The Day newsletter. Whisked away to the morgue, Clifts body underwent an autopsy that shed some light on his sudden demise. Their. But after an initial flurry of coverage, he retreated from public view entirely. Tom Sizemore's acting dreams and troubled journey began in Detroit She developed an intense decade-plus obsession over the young actor, even financing an experimental play, "Mexican Mural" for him. Not only did he rarely go out in public, but he also didnt date. Montgomery Clift and Elizabeth Taylor during the filming of A Place in the Sun. A four-time Academy Award nominee, The New York Times said he was known for his portrayal of "moody, sensitive young men". He could watch the real grit of humanity play out before himthe court a stage for some of the most sensational high-profile cases. Indiscrecin de una esposa: Dirigido por Vittorio De Sica. We bring you all the headlines and gossip in one place! 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. In Clifts eyes, de Havilland imparted nothing of herself into the role. Tellingly, theyre always pitched under working titles like Beautiful Loser and' Tragic Beauty. Hes so beautiful, murmured Miss Parker. During the peak period of his career, the actor and some Hollywood friends were returning from a party held at Taylor's home. Montgomery Clift Biography, Age, Height, Wife, Net Worth, Family Still, unlike other notable gay actors, any affairs Montgomery Clift had were secured behind a lock and key. Thats not what people would expect from a mother in that period.. But the drama didnt end there. The surgeries led to the use of strong painkillers. In Truman Capotes unpublished novel Answered Prayers, for example, the author imagines a dinner party between Clift, Dorothy Parker, and flamboyant stage actress Tallulah Bankhead: . 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. Making Montgomery Clift - Wikipedia It left him with chronic health issues for the rest of his life. At Factinate, were dedicated to getting things right. He insisted on maintaining his residence in New York, spending as little time in Hollywood as possible. Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift goofed around during a break in filming A Place in the Sun. In 1925 Theodore Dreiser [told such a tale in his] long, oppressively powerful novel, An American Tragedy, which in turn made only a fair movie in 1931. But something of the old talent remainedor at least enough to earn Clift a nomination for best-supporting actor, playing, in the words of film critic David Thomson, a victim irretrievably damaged by suffering. Plans for Clift to play the lead in the film adaptation of Carson McCullerss The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter fell through, in large part due to his uninsurability on set, and promises of a fourth collaboration with Taylor, this time with producer Ray Stark, never came to pass. Unlike Rock Hudson, whose affairs were very nearly exposed to the entire nation by Confidential, Clift never made the pages of the scandal rags. Close friends, such as actor Kevin McCarthy and his wife, tried to get Clift to slow down and dry out, but their pleas . But for Clift, there was just no escape, and it was only going to get worse. 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. AmoMama creates engaging, meaningful content for women. Montgomery Clift | American actor | Britannica He also detested the man. . Watch 'Indiscretion of an American Wife' Online Streaming (Full Movie A fellow actor asserts that Clift was equally confident in his sexuality. Elizabeth Taylor at Paramount Studios, 1950. Soon, the washed-up actor was completely out of work. He also won a nomination for Best Actor. Guided by the key biographies of Clift, they reliably parrot a narrative which paints the actor as a startlingly attractive and prodigiously gifted man who, according to one notably overheated tabloid TV show became a drug-addicted alcoholic living in a self-imposed hell because he had a secret he couldnt live with. However, the filming of The Misfits had a shadow lurking over it. Charles Castillo, author of "Elizabeth & Monty: The Untold Story," shared that the actress tried to seduce Clift. Eyebrows were raised when the actor shared in an article he authored that he liked it "lonely. 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. He also helped bring a more natural acting style to film. and his wife, the former Ethel Fogg. 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. His parents were Quakers and met as students at Cornell University, marrying in 1914. At the end of the day, Clifts private nurse Lorenzo James checked in on him just after midnight. 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. At the time of the premiere, Monroe had been admitted to a psychiatric ward and required a day pass just to attend. He wasnt solely an actor, she said. 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?. She is completing her PhD in Toronto, Canada. (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. After his accident, Clift had an arduous road to recovery. They seem to have their stories all written out beforehand.. 5 talking about this. 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. The story of Clift's devastating car crash varies somewhat from one account to the next. An interviewer once asked him what his hobbies were, Clift replied, "women. . Montgomery Clift had an encounter with Marlon Brando. When James offered to join him, the belligerent shot him down immediately, crying, Absolutely not.Sadly, this was Montgomery Clifts final interaction. 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 39 30. Finally, Someone Gets Montgomery Clift's Biography Right The next morning, James returned to Clifts room to rouse him but found the door locked. Months of surgeries, rebuilding, and physical therapy followed. . He became so known for his tousled appearance that theLos Angeles Times dubbed him the Rumpled Movie Idol. With his ancient, ramshackle car, and a circle of friends outsidethe realm of Hollywood, he certainly didnt fit the mold. Montgomery Clift was an undeniably attractive man, and before long, he'd cultivated a rather passionate female fan base. However, this was no quick fix. 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. It turned into John Cassavetes' "Too Late Blues," with Bobby Darrin. With alarm bells screaming in his head, James raced outside to fetch a ladder, climbing up toward Clifts bedroom window. He also sunk into alcoholism, of which Taylor and some other friends tried to help him. Whether morally repulsive or philosophically compelling, The Misfits bombed, only to be recuperated, years later, as a masterpiece of the revisionist genre. Carlo Fiore and Marlon Brando were in . A four-time Oscar nominee who died at 45, Montgomery Clift was a bright young talent, a tabloid fixture, and a posthumous gay icon. Little did he know, he was always destined for something more. Universal Studios actuallysued him for the losses they incurred because of his troublesome behavior.