Tony Curtis

Infobox actor
name = Tony Curtis


imagesize = 200px
birthname = Bernard Schwartz
birthdate = birth date and age|1925|6|3
birthplace = New York City, New York
yearsactive = 1948 - present
spouse = Janet Leigh
(1951-1962)
Christine Kaufmann
(1963-1967)
Leslie Allen
(1968-1982)
Andrea Savio
(1984-1992)
Lisa Deutsch
(1993-1994)
Jill Vandenberg
(1998-)
awards = Walk of Fame - Motion Picture
6801 Hollywood Blvd

Tony Curtis (born Bernard Schwartz June 3, 1925) is an American film actor. He is best known for light comic roles, especially his musician on the run from gangsters in "Some Like It Hot" (1959) with Jack Lemmon and Marilyn Monroe. He has also done serious dramatic roles, such as the escaped convict in "The Defiant Ones" (1958), which earned him an Academy Award nomination. Since 1949, he has appeared in more than 100 films and has made frequent television appearances.

Early life

Curtis was born as Bernard Schwartz in the Bronx, New York, the son of Hungarian Jewish immigrants Helen (née Klein) and Emanuel Schwartz. [http://www.thepeerage.com/p17110.htm] [http://www.iht.com/articles/1994/11/16/book3_0.php] His father was a tailor. The family lived in the back of the tailor shop, his parents in one corner and Curtis and his brothers Julius and Robert in another. Curtis has said, "When I was a child Mom beat me up and was very aggressive and antagonistic." His mother was later diagnosed with schizophrenia, a mental illness which also affected his brother Robert and led to his institutionalization. When Curtis was eight, he and his younger brother Julius were placed in an orphanage for a month because their parents could not afford to feed them. Four years later, his brother Julius was struck and killed by a truck. Curtis had to identify the body. Curtis retains his brother's cap and school books since "That's all that's left of him." cite quote

During World War II Curtis served in the United States Navy aboard USS Proteus (AS-19), a submarine tender. On September 2, 1945, he witnessed the Japanese surrender in Tokyo Bay from about a mile away. [ [http://tendertale.com/ttiii/ttiii1.html TenderTale ] ]

Following his military service, Curtis studied acting in New York along with Elaine Stritch, Walter Matthau, and Rod Steiger. He was discovered by a talent agent and casting director Joyce Selznick. Curtis claims it was because he "was the handsomest of the boys." Arriving in Hollywood in 1948 at age 23, he was placed under contract at Universal Pictures and changed his name to Tony Curtis. Although the studio taught him fencing and riding, Curtis admits he was at first only interested in girls and money.

Career

Curtis's screen debut came uncredited in the "Criss Cross" playing a rumba dancer. Later, he cemented his reputation with breakout performances such as in the role of the scheming press agent Sidney Falco in "Sweet Smell of Success" with Burt Lancaster (who also starred in "Criss Cross") and an Oscar-nominated performance as a bigoted escaped convict chained to Sidney Poitier in "The Defiant Ones".

He was so popular during the 1950s as a screen hunk that Elvis Presley copied his on-screen ducktail hairstyle. [ [http://www.elvispresleynews.com/Elvis-Hairstyle.html Elvis Presley News] ]

Curtis also appeared frequently on television; he co-starred with Roger Moore in the TV series "The Persuaders!". Later, he co-starred in "McCoy" and "Vega$". In the early 1960s, he was immortalized as "Stony Curtis," a voice-over guest star on "The Flintstones".

Throughout his life, Curtis has enjoyed painting, and since the early 1980s, has painted as a second career. His work commands more than $25,000 a canvas now and he now focuses on painting rather than movies. "I still make movies but I'm not that interested in them any more. But I paint all the time." In 2007, his painting "The Red Table" was on display in the Metropolitan Museum in Manhattan.

Curtis has spoken in the past of his disappointment at never being awarded an Oscar. "My profession has never recognized me sufficiently for my work."cite quote But in March 2006, Curtis did receive the Sony Ericsson Empire Lifetime Achievement Award. He also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and received the "Ordre des Arts et des Lettres" (Order of Arts and Letters) from France in 1995.

Personal life

Tony Curtis has been married six times. His first (and most famous) wife was the actress Janet Leigh (1927–2004), to whom he was married for 11 years (June 4, 1951-1962), and with whom he fathered actresses Jamie Lee and Kelly Curtis. "For a while, we were Hollywood's golden couple," he says. "I was very dedicated and devoted to Janet and on top of my trade, but in her eyes that goldenness started to wear off. I realized that whatever I was, I wasn't enough for Janet. That hurt me a lot and broke my heart."cite quote It was Leigh's third marriage. Curtis, who admits to cheating on her throughout their marriage, left Leigh in 1962 for Christine Kaufmann, the 17-year-old German co-star of his latest film, "Taras Bulba". Leigh was granted a quick divorce and later that year married stockbroker Robert Brandt in Las Vegas.fact|date=April 2008

Curtis has also been married to:
* Jill Vandenberg Curtis (November 6, 1998—)
* Lisa Deutsch (February 28, 1993–1994); divorced
* Andrea Savio (1984–1992)
* Leslie Allen (April 20, 1968–1982); divorced, two children
*Christine Kaufmann (February 8, 1963–1967); divorced, two children

His son, Nicholas (with Leslie Allen), died of a heroin overdose on April 2, 1994, at the age of 23. Of this, Curtis has said, "As a father you don't recover from that. There isn't a moment at night that I don't remember him."cite quote

In 1970, Curtis was arrested for possession of marijuana, while he was on an anti-smoking board.

In 2002, Curtis purportedly told a British gay magazine "attitude", "I was 22 when I arrived in Hollywood in 1948. I had more action than Mount Vesuvius; men, women, animals! I loved it too. I participated where I wanted to and didn't where I didn't. I've always been open about it." [IMDb: [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053291/news News for "Some Like it Hot"] ]

Curtis states that he had a brief relationship with Marilyn Monroe in 1949, which had to end due to their different work commitments. ["Shrink Rap" More4 interview with Pamela Connolly broadcast 8/5/2008]

His current wife is 42 years his junior. They met in a restaurant in 1993 and married in 1998. "The age gap doesn't bother us. We laugh a lot. My body is functioning and everything is good. She's the sexiest woman I've ever known. We don't think about time. I don't use Viagra either. There are 50 ways to please your lover."cite quote

Curtis nearly died when he contracted pneumonia in December 2006 and was in a coma for several days. He now uses a wheelchair and can only walk short distances. [ [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/showbiz/showbiznews.html?in_article_id=560321&in_page_id=1773 Daily Mail] ]

In 2004, he was inducted into the UNLV Hall of Fame. [ [http://www.viewnews.com/2004/VIEW-Sep-10-Fri-2004/Summerlin/24694628.html View Newspapers: "TONY CURTIS: Now a local legend"] ] A street is named after him at The Revere at Anthem development in Henderson, Nevada.

In 1998, he founded the Emanuel Foundation for Hungarian Culture, and has served as honorary chairperson. This is for the restoration and preservation of synagogues and 1300 Jewish cemeteries in Hungary. He dedicated this to the 600,000 Hungarian victims of the Holocaust. [http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-3892380.html]

In October 2008 Curtis released his autobiography American Prince (published by Virgin Books, ISBN 978-190526-434-6). In it he elaborated on his widely publicized affair with Marylin Monroe, his encounters with other Hollywood legends of the time, including Frank Sinatra and James Dean, as well as his hard-knock childhood and path to success.

There is a mural of him on US Highway 101 Southbound at the Sunset Blvd. exit

Filmography

* "Criss Cross" (1949)
* "City Across the River" (1949)
* "The Lady Gambles" (1949)
* "Take One False Step" (1949) (scenes deleted)
* "Johnny Stool Pigeon" (1949)
* "How to Smuggle a Hernia Across the Border" (1949) (short subject)
* "Woman in Hiding" (1950)
* "Francis" (1950)
* "I Was a Shoplifter" (1950)
* "Sierra" (1950)
* "Winchester '73" (1950)
* "Kansas Raiders" (1950)
* "The Prince Who Was a Thief" (1951)
* "Meet Danny Wilson" (1952) (cameo)
* "Flesh and Fury" (1952)
* "No Room for the Groom" (1952)
* "Son of Ali Baba" (1952)
* "Houdini" (1953)
* "The All-American" (1953)
* "Forbidden" (1953)
* "Beachhead" (1954)
* "Johnny Dark" (1954)
* "The Black Shield of Falworth" (1954)
* "Six Bridges to Cross" (1955)
* "So This Is Paris" (1955)
* "The Purple Mask" (1955)
* "The Rawhide Years" (1955)
* "The Square Jungle" (1955)
* "Trapeze" (1956)
* "Mister Cory" (1957)
* "Sweet Smell of Success" (1957)
* "The Midnight Story" (1957)
* "The Vikings" (1958)
* "Kings Go Forth" (1958)
* "The Defiant Ones" (1958)
* "The Perfect Furlough" (1958)
* "Some Like It Hot" (1959)
* "Operation Petticoat" (1959)
* "Who Was That Lady?" (1960)
* "The Rat Race" (1960)
* "Spartacus" (1960)
* "Pepe" (1960) (cameo)
* "The Great Impostor" (1961)
* "The Outsider" (1961)
* "Taras Bulba" (1962)
* "40 Pounds of Trouble" (1962)
* "The List of Adrian Messenger" (1963) (cameo)
* "Captain Newman, M.D." (1963)
* "Paris, When It Sizzles" (1964) (cameo)
* "Wild and Wonderful" (1964)
* "Goodbye Charlie" (1964)
* "Sex and the Single Girl" (1964)
* "The Great Race" (1965)
* "Boeing Boeing" (1965)
* "Chamber of Horrors" (1966) (cameo)
* "Not with My Wife, You Don't!" (1966)
* "Arrivederci, Baby!" (1966)
* "Don't Make Waves" (1967)
* "On My Way to the Crusades, I Met a Girl Who..." (1968)
* "Rosemary's Baby" (1968) (voice)
* "The Boston Strangler" (1968)
* "Monte Carlo or Bust" (1969)
* "You Can't Win 'Em All" (1970)
* "Suppose They Gave a War and Nobody Came?" (1970)
* "The Persuaders" (1971-1972)
* "" (1974)
* "Lepke" (1975)
* "London Conspiracy" (1976)
* "The Last Tycoon" (1976)
* "Casanova & Co." (1977)
* "Sextette" (1978)
* "The Manitou" (1978)
* "The Bad News Bears Go to Japan" (1978)
* "Double Take" (1979)
* "Title Shot" (1979)
* "Little Miss Marker" (1980)
* "It Rained All Night the Day I Left" (1980)
* "The Mirror Crack'd" (1980)
* "The Scarlett O'Hara War" (1980)
* "Othello, the Black Commando" (1982)
* "Where Is Parsifal?" (1983)
* "BrainWaves" (1983)
* "The Fantasy Film Worlds of George Pal" (1985) (documentary)
* "Club Life" (1985)
* "Insignificance" (1985)
* "The Last of Philip Banter" (1986)
* "Balboa" (1986)
* "The Passenger - Welcome to Germany" (1988)
* "Lobster Man From Mars" (1989)
* "Midnight" (1989)
* "Walter & Carlo In America" (1989)
* "Prime Target" (1991)
* "Center of the Web" (1992)
* "" (1992) (documentary)
* "Naked in New York" (1993)
* "The Mummy Lives" (1993)
* "A Century of Cinema" (1994) (documentary)
* "The Immortals" (1995)
* "The Celluloid Closet" (1995) (documentary)
* "Hardball" (1997)
* "Brittle Glory" (1997)
* "Alien X Factor" (1997)
* "Stargames" (1998)
* "Louis & Frank" (1998)
* "Play It to the Bone" (1999) (cameo)
* "Reflections of Evil" (2002) (narrator)
* "Where's Marty?" (2006)
* "Funny Money" (2007)
* "The Blacksmith and the Carpenter" (2007) (voice)
* "David & Fatima" (2008)
* "The Jill & Tony Curtis Story" (2008) (documentary feature)

Further reading

*cite book |last= Curtis |first= Tony |authorlink= |coauthors= Barry Paris |title= Tony Curtis: The Autobiography |year= 1993 |publisher= William Morrow & Co |location= New York |isbn= 978-0-688-09759-2
*cite book |last= Ayres |first= Ian |title= Van Gogh's Ear: The Celebrity Edition (includes Tony Curtis's prose/poetry/artwork) |year= 2006 |publisher= French Connection |location= Paris |isbn= 978-2-914-85307-1

References

External links

*imdb name|0000348|Tony Curtis
*tcmdb name|848347|Tony Curtis
* [http://www.oralhistoryproject.com/TonyCurtis1.html Biography] and [http://www.oralhistoryproject.com/tcurtis_navy.html naval service] from the California Center for Military History website
* 2007 [http://sciences.aum.edu/~nthomas9/newstony.html Interview] in Nevada Magazine
* [http://film.guardian.co.uk/interview/interviewpages/0,,2274258,00.html John Patterson, "Some like it very hot (Interview)," The Guardian, 18 April 2008]
* [http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/visual_arts/article3779814.ece Alison Jackson, "Some tormented Hollywood souls still like their gossip hot, Profile: Tony Curtis," Sunday Times, 20 April 2008]

Persondata
NAME= Curtis, Tony
ALTERNATIVE NAMES= Schwartz, Bernard
SHORT DESCRIPTION= Actor
DATE OF BIRTH= June 3, 1925
PLACE OF BIRTH= New York City, New York
DATE OF DEATH=
PLACE OF DEATH=