Of course, by this time, Clifts drinking problems werent much of a secret, making him a liability to the studio. His first two films were smashing successesand for veryimpressive reasons. ", However, it became more eminent that his single status bordered on his sexuality as time went on. Clifts early foray into acting led him to a Broadway debut in 1935. said: Oh. Heres A Mystery: Why Did Arthur Conan Doyles Son Dress Up Like a Knight? To Clift, however, he considered his humble home terrific.. 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. Born in 1920 in Omaha, Nebraska, Clift was raised like an aristocrat, with a private tutor and frequent trips to Europe. The most beautiful young man Ive ever seen. Montgomery Clift's full name is Edward Montgomery Clift and his nickname is Montgomery Clift. The decline continued. I tried to get my ex-wife served with divorce papers. Observers also point out that Clift had sexual relationships with women. Yet, according to a new documentary, titled Making Montgomery Clift, the stars substance abuse had nothing at all to do with his sexuality. Christine Tran is a history buff(ette) and media scholar. or over 30 years, scripts have floated around Hollywood promising to tell the story of Montgomery Clift, one of the most innovative and handsome actors in history. ufff q hombre tan guapo y atractivo, y grn actor ademas, como me hubiese gustado conocerlo con unos ojos maravillosos. Unlike Rock Hudson, whose affairs were very nearly exposed to the entire nation by Confidential, Clift never made the pages of the scandal rags. Whether he liked it or not, they were out for a storyAnd the one they wanted above all? 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). But right as filming began, he realized that hed made a terrible mistake. All rights reserved. Montgomery Clift | 20 Gay Hollywood Legends | Purple Clover "I love men in bed, but I really love women," Montgomery Clift is quoted as saying in a 1978 biography. Following The Misfits, Clifts disintegration continued. But 1961 audiences were too close to the day-to-day deterioration of its stars to see the meditative genius of The Misfits. 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. It has a good rating on IMDb: 6.2 stars out of 10. Taylor had married British actor Michael Wilding in 1952, but by 1956, their marriage was in decline. 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. Okay, if were being totally honest, Montgomery Clifts reserved lifestyle didnt exactly excite the press; it actually kind of stumped them. But the press will always be the press, and no amount of Montgomery Clifts ire could change that. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for The Search _ 1948 DVD Montgomery Clift Aline MacMahon Wendell Corey V Rare at the best online prices at eBay! And even then, he didnt live a glamorous movie star existence. Contact sheets from LIFE photographer Peter Stackpoles shoot on a Paramount lot with Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift in 1950. Lancaster's first wife, June Ernst, was, like her mother before her, a renowned acrobat. A seeming exception was one in his final years with a man named Lorenzo who had been hired to help him. The view then about queer people was that they would be inherently conflicted or tormented about their sexuality, said Demmon. MONTY YOU WERE THE BEST!!! Clift's brother would later come out to say that the actor was bisexual. But the documentary notes Clift made as many movies after the accident as before, and that those projects included some of his most acclaimed performances. Whether platonic or not, these two actors shared an undeniable bond that was undeniably strengthened by this one unfortunate event. According to Clifts doctors, it was amazing that he was even alive. Then again, nothing about Clifts life was expected. He looked about ten years older than the Montgomery Clift audiences remembered and adored. Finally, Clift had a chance to climb out of his slumpbut before he made it over the top, tragedy struck. 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. He naturally gravitated to the theater. Monty brought a different masculinity to the screen, said Demmon. Montgomery Clift is American by birth. Some believe that Clifts romantic leanings were much less of a secret than originally thought. It was a flimsy speculation built on shaky evidence, but with no sign of any real lovemaking in Clifts life, it was all the fan magazines had. His leading lady, Olivia de Havilland, disappointed him in every wayand his criticisms were downright brutal. But Clift knew the film would be a smash, if only because audiences would want to compare his long unseen face from before and after the accident. Montgomery Clift and Marlon Brando were in a . Sal Mineo and Montgomery Clift were in a rela Montgomery Clift and Paul Newman were rumored Henry Willson and Montgomery Clift were in a Jack Larson and Montgomery Clift were in a re William LeMassena and Montgomery Clift were i Montgomery Clift and Libby Holman were in a r Maurice Leonard and Montgomery Clift are sepa Arnold Saint Subber and Montgomery Clift were Montgomery Clift and Marlon Brando were in a Heart attack (brought on by "occlusive coronary artery disease"), Friends Quaker Cemetery, Prospect Park, Brooklyn, Kings County (Brooklyn), New York City, New York, USA. 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. We want our readers to trust us. Montgomery Clift was in relationships with Sal Mineo, Paul Newman, Henry Willson, Jack Larson, William LeMassena, Libby Holman, Maurice Leonard and Arnold Saint Subber. But after an initial flurry of coverage, he retreated from public view entirely. . They seem to have their stories all written out beforehand.. Montgomery Clift had an encounter with Marlon Brando. Contact sheet from LIFE photographer Peter Stackpoles shoot on a Paramount lot with Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift in 1950. Who is Montgomery Clift dating? Contact sheets from LIFE photographer Peter Stackpole's shoot on a Paramount lot with Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift in 1950. 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 at Paramount Studios, 1950. 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. (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. In fact, Hepburn was so offended by Mankiewicz that she did something outrageous. Because of the accident, the studio worried about the success of Raintree County. Tellingly, theyre always pitched under working titles like Beautiful Loser and' Tragic Beauty. Making distraction rewarding since 2017. A still of Montgomery Clift. Hollywood began to see him as hostile and messy and frugal, and Clift wasnt having it. I am not one of Americas Angry Young Men. With his screenwriting suggestions, the film took home an Academy Award. Their. cocksucker. Then, sweetly, wide-eyed with little girl navet, she Montgomery Clift's nephew, co-directing 'Making Montgomery Clift,' an eye-opening documentary about the great movie actor, excavates a treasure trove of family archives. Montgomery Clift may have been one of the most self-aware actors of his day, and he certainly knew the name of the game. Clift couldnt get through longer scenes, having to split them up into two or three chunks. He was the son of Ethel "Sunny" Anderson (Fogg; 1888-1988) and William Brooks Clift (1886-1964). The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Cond Nast. After all, his leading lady was none other than the beguiling Elizabeth Taylor, and together, these two stars were pure fire. He was one of Hollywoods most desirable leading men, but mystery shrouded his entire private life. Once on stage, Clift truly came into his own. Montgomery Clift was an undeniably attractive man, and before long, he'd cultivated a rather passionate female fan base. Some of the greatest celebrities of the day came out to mourn Clift at his funeral, including Lauren Bacall and Frank Sinatra. He still drank, but not as heavily. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement and Your California Privacy Rights. With alarm bells screaming in his head, James raced outside to fetch a ladder, climbing up toward Clifts bedroom window. 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. Please reach out to us to let us know what youre interested in reading. More, it analyzes the new view of masculine beauty he helped introduce to the screen. All his life, it was misery," said McCarthy. However, Clift soon realized that you cant always have your cake and eat it too. Historys most fascinating stories and darkest secrets, delivered to your inbox daily. However, his worry began to mount when the actor didnt respond to his insistent knocking. "Monty," as his family called him, was the son of William Clift, a. 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. Montgomery Clift was in relationships with Sal Mineo, Paul Newman, Henry Willson, Jack Larson, William LeMassena, Libby Holman, Maurice Leonard and Arnold Saint Subber. Contact sheet from LIFE photographer Peter Stackpoles shoot with Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift in 1950. Clift appeared in The Misfits, a revisionist western best known as the final film of Marilyn Monroe and Clark Gable. As such, Taylors intervention only enhances the very real love story that existed between her and Clift. Montgomery Clift (1920-1966) is one of the most tragic figures in Hollywood history. . A young naive woman falls for a handsome young man who her emotionally abusive father suspects is a fortune hunter. 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. Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift goofed around during a break in filming A Place in the Sun. It is a feature-length film with a runtime of 1h 3min. But just as Clift dove into this exciting new chapter, an unforeseen tragedy changedeverything. He used them to numb his physical pain. Unlike many of his handsome contemporaries, he never had a blonde bombshell hanging off his arm. While filming his next picture, Lonelyhearts (1958), Clift lashed out, proclaiming, I am notrepeat nota member of the Beat Generation. Well, in 1955, he had a chance to reunite with his old friend and co-star, Elizabeth Taylor, in Raintree County. (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. 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. Hes never sucked my cock.. Grasping at straws, the media decided to do what little they could to sensationalize the actors non-existent, One of Clifts closest friends was a woman named Myra Letts, and for the ruthless gossip columns, it wasnt a huge leap from friend to girlfriend. Clift didnt entertain this for a second and shot the sordid speculations down immediately, saying that there was zero intimacy between them: those romantic rumors are embarrassing to both of us.. ': What Happened to the Stars of the Iconic Series through the Years, Debbie Reynolds Called Elizabeth Taylor's Phone Yet Her Own Husband Eddie Fisher Picked Up, Rock Hudson & Jim Nabors Never Spoke Again after They Were Reportedly Seen Getting Married, Elizabeth Taylor Proposed to an Actor 20 Years Her Senior & Replaced Him with 25-Year Older Man. 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. Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift, Hollywood, 1950. Biographies of Clift posit that he drank because he couldnt be his true self, because homosexuality was the shame he had to shelter within. Realizing that Clift was in mortal danger, McCarthy raced to the scene of the accident. 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. Looking back, the film had a legacy of darkness surrounding it: Gable died of a heart attack less than a month after filming; Monroe was only able to attend the films premiere with a pass from her stay at a psychiatric ward. Liz Ronk edited this gallery for LIFE.com. But, in general, his relationships with men had more to do with sex than with a deep emotional connection. A portrait of Elizabeth Taylor And Montgomery Clift from the film "A Place In The Sun", 1951 | Photo: Getty Images. Show more . I think he was 12 or 13., Its obviously a non-issue for her, co-director Demmon said. Allegedly, the director brought Clift on board, thinking hed be a soothing effect for Monroe. The pieces of the puzzle dont quite fit. What does he inspire anyone to do drink, die young? is the hero of a long, oppressively powerful movie called A Place in the Sun. Directed by George Stevens for Paramount, it gives three young actors [Shelley Winters brilliantly played the poor girl] the chance to give the most natural performances of their careers. It was unheard of, especially for a young star, but it was a sellers market. In 1966, Clifts stalwart friend, Elizabeth Taylor, came to his aid once again and managed to get him a part in Reflections in a Golden Eye. Whisked away to the morgue, Clifts body underwent an autopsy that shed some light on his sudden demise. Oddly enough, when he died, the homocons on Gay Patriot praised him on . His mother wanted all of her children to be raised as distinguished aristocrats, and as such, little Clift and his siblings received an elite upbringing: private tutors, extensive travel, and language lessons. Elizabeth Taylor stuck by her friends, and Montgomery Clift undoubtedly claimed a special spot in her heart. They took a risk on the troubled actorand it endedbadly. On the morning of July 23, 1966, Montgomery Clift's housemate couldn't wake the actor. In this exclusive excerpt from her forthcoming book, Anne. From the start, Clift was framed as a rebel and an individual. I am not one of Americas Angry Young Men. That said, he kept his sexuality a secret: The prejudices of the time left him no choice. He also sunk into alcoholism, of which Taylor and some other friends tried to help him. and his wife, the former Ethel Fogg. But that didnt mean that the gossip press didnt hint at something different, something queer, in the broadest sense of the word, about him. What a pity hes a Montgomery Clift is a member of the following lists: American film actors, Actors Studio alumni and Bisexual actors. 5 talking about this. When James offered to join him, the belligerent shot him down immediately, crying, Absolutely not.Sadly, this was Montgomery Clifts final interaction. When he read the story that criticized his bare-bones wardrobe, the scandalized actor lashed out with a biting response. Hailed as one of Hollywood's first true Method actors, Edward Montgomery Clift was born October 17, 1920, in Omaha, Nebraska. In remembering Clift, McCarthy said, his face was torn awaya bloody pulp. From Scandals of Classic Hollywood: Sex, Deviance, and Drama from the Golden Age of Hollywood Cinema by Anne Helen Petersen, to be published by arrangement with Plume, a member of Penguin Group (USA) LLC on September 30, 2014 2014 by Anne Helen Petersen. Documentary Biography Classic film star and queer icon Montgomery Clift's legacy has long been a story of tragedy and self-destruction. As to why Bosworth drew on the gay-self-hate narrative, and why that view took hold, the directors blame the homophobia of the time the book was written, in the 1970s. While filmingRaintree County, Clift attended a dinner party at Taylors housebut sadly, he didnt make it home in one piece. Whether morally repulsive or philosophically compelling, The Misfits bombed, only to be recuperated, years later, as a masterpiece of the revisionist genre. In the face of such criticism, Clift went ahead and confused the gossip columns even more. He also detested the man. At the age of 25, Clift made the leap to Hollywoodbut he was a rebel right from the get-go. Taylor and Clift: Photos From the Set of A Place in the Sun. 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. . Con Jennifer Jones, Montgomery Clift, Gino Cervi, Richard Beymer. Of course, when it came to his appearance, this gorgeous star really didnt give a hoot. The surgeries led to the use of strong painkillers. During her appearance at the GLAAD Media Awards, Taylor openly spoke about her late friends sexuality while she addressed the rights of gay people. . 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!. Peace. She would wield considerable influence over the early part of his film career, advising him in decisions to decline lead roles in Sunset Blvd. Taylor, caught up in filming with Richard Burton in Paris, sent flowers to the funeral. He had a holistic view.. 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. 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. He served in the Lincoln administration cabinet as Postmaster-General from 1861 to 1864, during the Civil War. Where were these so-called women? Well, at the very heart of it all, Montgomery Clift hid a dangerous secretone that wouldnt emerge untilyears later. Apparently, Burt Lancaster's From Here to Eternity co-star Montgomery Clift intimidated himso much so that in their first scene together you can see Lancaster shaking. . A fellow actor asserts that Clift was equally confident in his sexuality. He got him going again. 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. Sadly, his greatest friend Elizabeth Taylor could only send flowers from Rome. He was not worried [about being gay], Larson asserts in the film. He called it as he saw it, describing himself as an ordinary, second-class wolf.. He was, in his words, nothing more than an ordinary, second-class wolf., These anecdotes, and dozens like them, would establish Clift, along with Brando, as the embodiment of 50s youth culture, rebelling against conformity and all that postwar Americans were supposed to embrace. However, the filming of The Misfits had a shadow lurking over it. He could watch the real grit of humanity play out before himthe court a stage for some of the most sensational high-profile cases. / Montys face is broken on a wheel. She had always been there for him, and once said, Monty couldve been the biggest star in the world if he did more movies. But Taylors dedication to her friend went above and beyond. Determined to keep his gayness under wraps, Clift made sure that his masculine facade shone onscreen. American actor Montgomery Clift was spectacular on the big screen for his portrayal of sensitive male characters. Regardless of the veracity of this story, one thing remains true: theres not a single picture of Clifts broken face. 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. Thanks for your help! While driving, he fell asleep at the wheel and the consequences were utterly gruesome. The Clift picture didn't pan out either, at least with her promised co-star. After his accident, Clift had an arduous road to recovery. One time when he was delivering his line on the set of "The Search," he mistakenly called a boy 'dear' and insisted that the director did a reshoot. One infamous fact about Montgomery Clift is that he only owned one suit. An interviewer once asked him what his hobbies were, Clift replied, "women. Montgomery Clift and Elizabeth Taylor in A Place in the Sun. Indeed, it was his apparent lack of romantic attachments that confounded the gossip press the most. Fearful for her friends image, she threatened the press: If they even dared to take one photo of her friend, she would personally ensure the end of their careers. Join thousands of others and start your morning with our Fact Of The Day newsletter. He summoned a doctor, but it was already too late. Taped interviews with his brother reveal that the actor felt those roles werent quite right for him and he didnt want to make the wrong first impression. Still, unlike other notable gay actors, any affairs Montgomery Clift had were secured behind a lock and key. American Actor Montgomery Clift was born Edward Montgomery Clift on 17th October, 1920 in Omaha, Nebraska, USA and passed away on 23rd Jul 1966 Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA aged 45. The next morning, James returned to Clifts room to rouse him but found the door locked. Hepburn was reportedly so incensed by Mankiewiczs treatment of Clift that when the film officially wrapped, she found the director and spat in his face. . His interests lay elsewhere. Author Christopher Isherwood tracked Clifts decline in his journals, and by August 1955, he was drinking himself out of a career; on the set of Raintree, the crew had designated words to communicate how drunk Clift was: bad was Georgia, very bad was Florida, and worst of all was Zanzibar. But the drama didnt end there. Even if Clift himself was already spiraling out of control, playing a character that did the same only amplified the psychological toll. Our credibility is the turbo-charged engine of our success. I thought he was dead. McCarthy ran to fetch Taylor, Wilding, and Rock Hudson and Hudsons wife, Phyllis Gates, who all raced to the site of the accident. Montgomery Clift didnt need much to keep himself happy and entertained. A bout five years ago, filmmaking duo Robert Clift and Hillary Demmon Clift decided to make a documentary about Robert's long-dead uncle. But this was only the beginning. Clifts recuperation took months, and when he finally returned to set, there was more trouble afoot. She made it known that it all boiled down to love. Monroe and Taylor are shadowed by Montgomery. You`ve being alwasy an inspiration for me. Montgomery Clift, Nando Bruno. And when it came to riotous parties, well, he avoided nightlife like the plague. 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. "Monty," as the performer was known to family and . In his words, I learned that most writers dont need interviews to write about me. Lancaster's . (The director himself never met his famous uncle, having been born eight years after his death). It was a huge wager: since everyone knew how much booze and pills Clift was on, he was virtually uninsurable on set. Luckily, his isolated lifestyle gave him an advantage. Between 1963 and 1966, he faded from public view, emerging only to film a final performance in the French spy thriller The Defector (1966). For somewhat mysterious reasons, Robert Clifts father Brooks taped endless conversations with his famous brother, as well as with their mother and other figures relevant to the story. My mom never told me how her best friend died. . John Wayne and Montgomery Clift in Red River. Madame de Pompadour was the alluring chief mistress of King Louis XV, but few people know her dark historyor the chilling secret shared by her and Louis. He didnt want the studios to dictate the kinds of roles he would play, his nephew said. A wild exclusive excerpt from the new book, Oscars 2023: Yes, Some Awards Movies Flopped, but Art Matters, How in the F--k Does Anyone Live Here?: Bret Easton Ellis on Life, Art, and What the Hell Happened to Manhattan, Todd Field on 2 Decades of Oscar Campaigns, From, I didnt realize the deadly minefield of a campaign season, the Oscar nominee says in a career-spanning interview. And the cherry on top? His father, William Brooks "Bill" Clift (1886-1964), was the vice-president of Omaha National Trust Company. July 24, 1966 12 AM PT. 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. Marlon Brando girlfriend, wife list. She is completing her PhD in Toronto, Canada. When he came to visit storied fan-magazine author Elsa Maxwell at her home, she had her maid darn the elbow in his jacket. He wasnt the only one who challenged such norms at the time. Luckily, although the public was out for blood, there was one woman on his side. Upon closer inspection, Clifts career reveals notable clues as to who he genuinely was and the private struggles he faced. Many of the myths surrounding Clift sprang from two biographies: a salacious one by Robert Laguardia and another flawed work by Patricia Bosworth, titled A Life. Hollywood repeatedly came courting, but he put off offers for nearly a decade, even turning down roles in classic films like East of Eden and the co-lead in Sunset Boulevard. 2023 Cond Nast. Courtesy Everett Collection Elizabeth was more visible than the publicity-shy Monty. . Making Montgomery Clift, which was co-directed by Clift's nephew Robert Clift (and Robert's wife Hillary. The truth didnt come out until the 70s. Their claims were deemed reliable because one of the biographers was certified by one of Clift's confidants. Elizabeth Taylor and Katharine Hepburn came to Clifts defense when the director tried to get rid of him. Allegedly, Rock Hudson was there to pull Clift from the wreckage and it was Taylor who held the stricken actor in her arms. Merv was a sexual predator who once tried to sexually assault Danny Terrio, then threatened to ruin his career if he talked.
