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Montgomery Clift

Montgomery Clift

It is rumored that the Hollywood Roosevelt hotel at 7000 Hollywood Boulevard, Hollywood, CA is haunted by two celebrity ghosts! The staff claims that Montgomery Clift's ghost haunts the ninth floor (suite #928), where he used to pace the halls back in 1953, memorizing his lines while making "From Here to Eternity." Apparently loud noises come from the empty suite, and phones are left mysteriously off the hook.The other apparition is said to be Marilyn Monroe's ghost. Monroe's image is said to occasionally appear in a full-length mirror which used to hang in her poolside suite (the mirror is now next to the elevator on the lower level).

On the advice of his close friend Libby Holman, he turned down William Holden's role in Sunset Blvd. (1950) and Gary Cooper's role in High Noon (1952).

On the set of The Young Lions (1958), Marlon Brando insisted on doing his own stunt fall after being "shot" by co-stars Clift and Dean Martin and wound up dislocating his shoulder. Clift, seeing that Brando was in pain, offered him a swig from the thermos jug he carried with him at all times. The combination of vodka and prescription drugs in the thermos helped Brando through the ordeal.

One of only six actors to receive an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for his first screen appearance. The other five actors are: Orson Welles, Lawrence Tibbett, Alan Arkin, Paul Muni and James Dean.

Related to actor Michael Anderson Brown.



Robert LaGuardia, in his 1988 biography "Monty," claimed that director John Huston, who had paternalistic feelings towards Clift after directing the alcoholic and emotionally troubled actor in The Misfits (1961) (1961), became sadistic towards him during the troubled Freud (1962) (1962) shoot. Basing his charges on interviews with co-star Susannah York, LaGuardia claimed that Huston kept asking Clift about the Freudian concept of "represssion," obviously alluding to Clift's repressed homosexuality. Apparently, Huston himself could not broach the idea that Monty was gay in his own mind, but subconsciously, he reacted to Monty's homosexuality quite negatively. (Marilyn Monroe had admonished Monty not to work with Huston again, finding him a sadist on the "Misfits" set. Her ex-husband Arthur Miller, on the other hand, did not fault Huston in his autobiography "Timebends," but instead, marveled about how he kept his cool during the "Misfits" shoot, which was also troubled due to Marilyn Monroe's mental illness and frequent absences from the set.) Monty's biographer thoug

Son of William Brooks Clift and wife Ethel Anderson Fogg, an illegitimate daughter of Woodbury Blair by Maria Latham Anderson, both of whom had Dutch American ancestry. Woodbury Blair was the son of Montgomery Blair, after whom his great-grandson received his middle name, and wife Mary Elizabeth Woodbury, daughter of Levi Woodbury (1789-1851), US Supreme Court, and wife Elizabeth Wendell Clapp.

Spoke fluent French, Italian and German.

Suffered from dysentery and colitis for most of his adult life.

The release of Red River (1948) made him an overnight sensation and instant star. He embodied a new type of man on screen, the beautiful, sensual and vulnerable man that seemed to appeal to women and men alike. After A Place in the Sun (1951) came out he was Hollywood's hottest male star and adored by millions. He looked incredible and was a fine actor, a rare combination. His only rival in this regard during the next few years was Marlon Brando, whose career turned out to be more stable and successful in the end. Clift's mental problems prevented him from staying at the top, as his drinking and drug problem began to affect his acting and bankability. The loss of his dashing looks in a well publicized road accident during the filming of Raintree County (1957) didn't help, either. What followed could be described as the longest suicide in show-business history.

The staff of The Roosevelt Hotel (7000 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, Los Angeles, CA) claims that the ghost of Montgomery Clift haunts the hotel. Montgomery Clift, who lived at the Roosevelt for three months while filming From Here to Eternity (1953), is said to haunt his old room, #928. People claim to hear him playing his bugle and see him walking the hallways of the 9th floor while and pacing the hallways while reciting his old lines.

Turned down Dean Martin's role in Rio Bravo (1959), which would have reunited him with his Red River (1948) co-star John Wayne.

Voted for Republican Thomas E. Dewey in the 1948 presidential election, but later actively campaigned for Democratic candidate Adlai Stevenson in the 1952 presidential election - much to the annoyance of his father.

Was Elizabeth Taylor's choice to play her husband, the closeted homosexual Major Weldon Penderton, in Reflections in a Golden Eye (1967). He died before the film began shooting and was replaced by Marlon Brando, who at one time was considered his only rival as an attractive leading man who was also a great actor.

Was a close friend of Elizabeth Taylor, Kevin McCarthy, Marilyn Monroe and Roddy McDowall.

Younger brother of Brooks Clift.

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