Montgomery Clift
Montgomery Clift was an acclaimed American actor known for his intense performances and troubled personal life. He began his career on Broadway at the young age of fourteen, but it wasn't until he was persuaded to enter film that he gained widespread recognition. His breakout role came in the classic Western "Red River" (1948), followed by a string of successful films including "A Place in the Sun" (1951) and "From Here to Eternity" (1953), the latter earning him his third Academy Award nomination. Despite his rising fame, Clift's life was marred by personal struggles, including health issues and battles with addiction, compounded by his internal conflict regarding his sexuality.
In 1957, a severe car accident left him injured, yet he continued to deliver memorable performances in films such as "The Young Lions" (1958) and "Judgment at Nuremberg" (1961), the latter garnering him a fourth Oscar nomination. Clift's unique screen presence and emotional depth marked a significant shift in the portrayal of male leads in Hollywood, influencing a generation of actors including James Dean and Marlon Brando. He passed away in 1966 from heart failure at the age of 45, leaving behind a legacy that continues to resonate in the film industry.
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Montgomery Clift
- Born: October 17, 1920
- Birthplace: Omaha, Nebraska
- Died: July 23, 1966
- Place of death: New York, New York
Identification American film actor
Montgomery Clift introduced a new brand of leading man to Hollywood: sensitive, vulnerable, introspective, and sexually ambiguous.
Montgomery Clift began his acting career early, appearing on Broadway by the age of fourteen. Although initially uninterested in a movie career, he was finally persuaded to appear in Howard Hawks’sRed River (1948), a role he quickly followed with a starring role in The Search (1948), which earned him the first of four Academy Award nominations.
Clift was an overnight success in Hollywood, and his relatively short career yielded several unforgettable performances. His portrayal of a troubled young man blinded by love and money in A Place in the Sun (1951) brought his second Oscar nomination, and an equally memorable depiction of the sensitive soldier Maggio in From Here to Eternity (1953) yielded his third. In 1957, Clift was severely injured in an automobile accident, but he resumed working soon after.
Clift’s brilliant career stood in stark contrast to his troubled personal life. He was plagued with health problems and both alcohol and drug abuse and was allegedly consumed with guilt over his homosexuality. Although his personal life deteriorated after the accident, he gave moving performances in The Young Lions (1958) and Tennessee Williams’s Suddenly, Last Summer (1959) and received his fourth Oscar nomination for Judgment at Nuremberg (1961). Clift’s career tapered off during the early 1960’s, and he died in 1966 of heart failure before reaching his forty-sixth birthday.
Impact
Clift’s sensitive, moody screen presence marked a new era in Hollywood leading men, becoming a symbol of his talented yet rebellious generation of stars and influencing such actors as James Dean, Marlon Brando, and later, Robert De Niro.
Bibliography
Bosworth, Patricia. Montgomery Clift: A Biography. New York: Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich, 1978. Compelling, insightful biography.
Capua, Michelangelo. Montgomery Clift: A Biography. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland, 2002. A detailed biography of Clift.
Hoskyns, Barney. Montgomery Clift: Beautiful Loser. London: Bloomsbury, 1991. Biography with film stills, candid photos, and bibliography.