William Holden

Infobox actor
name = William Holden


caption = promotional photo of William Holden
birthname = nowrap|William Franklin Beedle, Jr.
birthdate = birth date|1918|04|17
birthplace = O'Fallon, Illinois, U.S.
deathdate = nowrap|death date and age|1981|11|12|1918|04|17
deathplace = Santa Monica, California, U.S.
occupation = Actor
yearsactive = 1939-1981
spouse = Brenda Marshall (1941-1971)
academyawards = Best Actor 1953 "Stalag 17"
emmyawards = Outstanding Lead Actor - Miniseries/Movie 1974 "The Blue Knight"

William Holden (April 17, 1918 – November 12, 1981) was an Academy Award-winning American film actor. He was named one of the "Top 10 stars of the year" six times (1954-1958, 1961) and appeared on the American Film Institute's AFI's 100 Years... 100 Stars list as #25.

Biography

Early life and career

Holden, eldest of three sons, was born as William Franklin Beedle, Jr. in O'Fallon, Illinois, the son of Mary Blanche (née Ball), a schoolteacher, and William Franklin Beedle, Sr., an industrial chemist. [http://www.genealogy.com/famousfolks/williamh/index.html Genealogy.com: Ancestry of William Holden ] ] [ [http://www.adherents.com/people/ph/William_Holden.html The religion of William Holden, actor ] ] The family, which moved to South Pasadena, California when he was three, was of English descent; Holden's paternal great-grandmother, Rebecca Westfield, was born in England in 1817, while some of his mother's ancestors immigrated to the U.S. in the 17th century from Millenback, Lancaster, England.

After graduating from South Pasadena High School, while attending Pasadena Junior College, he became involved in local radio plays. Contrary to legend and theatre publicity, he did not study at the Pasadena Playhouse, nor was he discovered in a play there. Rather, he was spotted by a talent scout from Paramount Pictures in 1937 while appearing as an old man in a play at the Playbox, a private theatre owned by Pasadena Playhouse director Gilmor Brown. His first film role was in "Prison Farm" the following year.

Hollywood's "Golden Boy"

His first starring role was in "Golden Boy" (1939), in which he played a violinist turned boxer.

After Columbia Pictures picked up half of his contract, he alternated between starring in several minor pictures for Paramount and Columbia before serving as a 2nd lieutenant in the United States Army Air Forces during World War II, where he acted in training films. Beginning in 1950, his career rebounded when Billy Wilder tapped him to star as the down-at-the-heels screenwriter Joe Gillis who is taken in by faded silent-screen star Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson) in "Sunset Boulevard", for which Holden earned his first Best Actor Oscar nomination.

Following this breakthrough film, he played a series of roles that combined good looks with cynical detachment, including a prisoner-of-war entrepreneur in "Stalag 17" (1953), for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor, a pressured young engineer/family man in "Executive Suite" (1954), an acerbic stage director in "The Country Girl" (1954), a conflicted jet pilot in the Korean War film "The Bridges at Toko-Ri" (1954), a wandering braggart in "Picnic" (1955), a dashing war correspondent in "Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing" (1955), an ill-fated prisoner in "The Bridge on the River Kwai" (1957) and a WWII tug boat captain in "The Key" (1958).

He also played a number of sunnier roles in light comedy, such as a handsome architect pursuing virginal Maggie McNamara in "The Moon is Blue" (1953), Judy Holliday's tutor in "Born Yesterday" (1950), a playwright captivated by Ginger Rogers' character in "Forever Female" (1953) and Humphrey Bogart's younger playboy brother in "Sabrina" (1954). However, Holden starred in his share of forgettable movies — which he was forced to do by studio contracts — such as "Paris When It Sizzles" (1964), also co-starring Audrey Hepburn, which was a box-office flop. By the mid-1960s, his roles were having less critical and commercial impact.

Later career

In 1969, Holden starred in director Sam Peckinpah's graphically violent Western "The Wild Bunch", winning much acclaim. Also in 1969, Holden starred in director Terence Young's family film "L'Arbre de Noel," co-starring Italian actress Virna Lisi, based on the novel of the same name by Michel Bataille. This film was originally released in the United States as "The Christmas Tree" and on home video as "When Wolves Cry."

Five years later, he starred with Paul Newman and Steve McQueen in "The Towering Inferno". He was also praised for his Oscar-nominated leading performance in Sidney Lumet's "Network" (1976), playing an older version of the character type he had perfected in the 1950s, only now more jaded and aware of his own mortality. In 1980, Holden appeared in "The Earthling" with child actor Ricky Schroder, playing a loner dying of cancer who goes to the Australian outback to end his days, meets a young boy whose parents have been killed in an accident, and teaches him how to survive. Schroder later named one of his sons Holden.

Personal life

Holden was married to actress Brenda Marshall from 1941 until their divorce (after many long separations) in 1971. They had two sons, Peter Westfield (born in 1944) and Scott Porter (born in 1946). He also adopted Virginia, his wife's daughter from her first marriage.

Holden had a busy social life; he was best man at the marriage of his friend Ronald Reagan to Nancy Davis in 1952. He maintained a home in Switzerland and also spent much of his time working for wildlife conservation as a managing partner in an animal preserve in Africa. His Mount Kenya Safari Club in Nanyuki, Kenya, (founded 1959) became a mecca for the international jet set.

He began a long relationship with actress Stefanie Powers which sparked her interest in animal welfare. After his death, Powers set up the "William Holden Wildlife Foundation", of which she is president, at their Mount Kenya Game Ranch.

Throughout his lifetime, Holden had reported affairs with a number of Hollywood actresses, including Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly, Capucine, and a "yearly rendezvous" with Shelley Winters.

Holden also suffered from alcoholism and depression. In 1966, he was involved in a car accident in Italy in which the other driver was killed. It was determined that Holden had been driving under the influence of alcohol; he was charged with vehicular manslaughter and received an eight-month suspended prison sentence. Holden was overcome with guilt, and friends said this led to even heavier bouts of drinking.

Holden was a supporter of the United States Republican Party, though unlike his friend Ronald Reagan he was never involved in politics.

His younger brother, Robert W. "Bobbie" Beedle, was a Navy fighter pilot who was killed in action in World War II, on January 5, 1945. After "The Bridges at Toko-Ri" (1955) was released, Beedle was remembered by his squadron-mates as having been very much like Holden's character Lt. Harry Brubaker.

Death

Holden died as the result of a fall in his high-rise apartment on the seaside cliffs of Santa Monica, California, in November 1981. Holden was alone and heavily intoxicated when he apparently slipped on a throw rug, severely lacerated his head on a night table, and bled to death. Evidence suggests he was conscious for at least half-an-hour after the fall but may not have realized the severity of the injury and did not summon aid or was unable to call for help. His body was found on November 16, but forensic and other evidence suggested he had been dead for several days and most likely died on November 12. He was 63 years old.

His body was cremated and his ashes scattered in the Pacific Ocean.

Holden's death is referenced in the Suzanne Vega song, "Tom's Diner."

Bibliography

*"Golden Boy: The Untold Story of William Holden" by Bob Thomas, St. Martin's Press 1983
*"The Films of William Holden" by Lawrence J. Quirk, Citadel Press 1973

Academy Awards and nominations

*Best Actor Nomination for "Sunset Boulevard" (1951)
*Best Actor Award for "Stalag 17" (1954)
*Best Actor Nomination for "Network" (1977)

Filmography

Features

*"Prison Farm" (1938) (uncredited)
*"Million Dollar Legs" (1939) (uncredited)
*"Golden Boy" (1939)
*"Invisible Stripes" (1939)
*"Our Town" (1940)
*"Those Were the Days!" (1940)
*"Arizona" (1940)
*"I Wanted Wings" (1941)
*"Texas" (1941)
*"The Fleet's In" (1942)
*"The Remarkable Andrew" (1942)
*"Meet the Stewarts" (1942)
*"Young and Willing" (1943)
*"Blaze of Noon" (1947)
*"Dear Ruth" (1947)
*"Variety Girl" (1947)
*"The Man from Colorado" (1948)
*"Rachel and the Stranger" (1948)
*"Apartment for Peggy" (1948)
*"The Dark Past" (1948)
*"Streets of Laredo" (1949)
*"Miss Grant Takes Richmond" (1949)
*"Dear Wife" (1949)
*"Father Is a Bachelor" (1950)
*"Sunset Boulevard" (1950)
*"Union Station" (1950)
*"Born Yesterday" (1950)
*"Force of Arms" (1951)
*"Submarine Command" (1951)
*"Boots Malone" (1952)
*"The Turning Point" (1952)
*"Stalag 17" (1953)
*"The Moon Is Blue" (1953)
*"Forever Female" (1953)
*"Escape from Fort Bravo" (1953)
*"Executive Suite" (1954)
*"Sabrina" (1954)
*"The Country Girl" (1954)
*"The Bridges at Toko-Ri" (1954)
*"Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing" (1955)
*"Picnic" (1955)
*"The Proud and Profane" (1956)
*"Toward the Unknown" (1956)
*"The Bridge on the River Kwai" (1957)
*" The Key" (1958)
*"The Horse Soldiers" (1959)
*"The World of Suzie Wong" (1960)
*"Satan Never Sleeps" (1962)
*"The Counterfeit Traitor" (1962)
*"The Lion" (1962)
*"Paris, When It Sizzles" (1964)
*"The 7th Dawn" (1964)
*"Alvarez Kelly" (1966)
*"Casino Royale" (1967)
*"The Devil's Brigade" (1968)
*"The Wild Bunch" (1969)
*"The Christmas Tree" (1969)
*"The Revengers" (1972)
*"Open Season" (1972)
*"Breezy" (1973)
*"The Towering Inferno" (1974)
*"Network" (1976)
*"Fedora" (1978)
*"" (1978)
*"Ashanti" (1979)
*"The Earthling" (1980)
*"When Time Ran Out" (1980)
*"S.O.B." (1981)

hort subjects

*"Reconnaissance Pilot" (1943)
*"Wings Up" (1943)
*"You Can Change the World" (1951)

References

External links

*imdb name|id=0000034|name=William Holden
*tcmdb name|id=87865|name=William Holden
* [http://www.tcm.com/thismonth/article/?cid=31584&mainArticleId=161065 Profile] @ Turner Classic Movies
* [http://www.whwf.org/ William Holden Wildlife Foundation]

Persondata
NAME= Holden, William
ALTERNATIVE NAMES= Beedle, William Franklin Jr.
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Academy Award-winning American film actor
DATE OF BIRTH= April 17, 1918
PLACE OF BIRTH= O'Fallon, Illinois, USA
DATE OF DEATH= circa November 12, 1981 at age Age at date|1918|04|17|1981|11|12
PLACE OF DEATH= Santa Monica, California, U.S.