Fade to Black: A Book of Movie Obituaries

by Paul Donnelley

  CAUSE: She retired because of poor health in 1948. She died aged 57 in the Motion Picture Country House and Hospital, 23450 Calabasas Road, Woodland Hills, San Fernando. She was buried five rows from the kerb near the main entrance of Rosedale Cemetery, 1831 West Washington Boulevard, Los Angeles, California 90007.

  Marie McDonald

  (CORA MARIE FRYE)

  Born July 6, 1923

  Died October 21, 1965

  ‘The Body’. As with many actresses, early biographical information on Marie McDonald is sketchy. One source has her born in Vienna and her real name as Cora Froenu, which was changed to Frye when she was eight months old. Another has her born in Burgin, Kentucky. She was raised in Westchester, New York, and then Yonkers, where she wrote for the school newspaper, by-lining her articles “By Ken-Tuck”. She won several beauty contests, becoming Miss Yonkers, The Queen Of Coney Island and Miss Loew’s Paradise. She left school aged 15 to start modelling and became Miss New York of 1939. On August 28, 1939, she opened in George White’s Scandals Of 1939 at the Alvin Theater. Her co-stars were The Three Stooges, Ann Miller and Ben Blue. Her mother was a typical stage mum until the show went on tour and she lost her hold over Marie. In Hollywood Marie became the model for Dale Arden and Princess Aura in the Flash Gordon cartoon strip. In Los Angeles she eloped with Richard Allord but the marriage was annulled a few weeks later. She joined Tommy Dorsey’s radio show and in December 1940 auditioned for 20th Century Fox, who turned her down. In 1941 she signed for Universal at $75 a week and dyed her hair blonde. She appeared in minor roles in various films, including It Started With Eve (1941), You’re Telling Me (1942) and Pardon My Sarong as Ferna, a girl who fancied Lou Costello. She had an affair with Bruce Cabot that garnered her acres of newsprint. Universal dropped her contract, but she then signed for Paramount at $100 a week and was put in Lucky Jordan (1942) as Pearl, a sexy secretary. On January 10, 1943, she married, as his third wife, agent Vic Orsatti (b. 1905, d. June 1984). She appeared in A Scream In The Dark as Joan Allen for Republic, but then went back to Paramount for Riding High (1943) and Tornado (1943) as socialite Diana Linden. She played Gracie, a welder in I Love A Soldier (1944), featured in Our Hearts Were Young And Gay (1944) and Standing Room Only (1944) as Opal, a secretary. Guest In The House (1944), in which she played Miriam, earned Marie her first positive reviews. To capitalise on the success, United Artists’ press office labelled her ‘The Body’, a nickname she loathed. For It’s A Pleasure (1945) as Gale Fletcher her blonde hair was dyed red because the star of the film, Sonja Henie, had a ‘no other blondes’ clause in her contract. She played the lead in Getting Gertie’s Garter (1945) for United Artists. In 1947 she signed with MGM and appeared in Living In A Big Way (1947) as Margaud Morgan. However, she didn’t get on with the star Gene Kelly and the film was not a success. She paid $14,000 to buy herself out of her contract with MGM. In 1947 her marriage broke up. While awaiting a divorce in May 1947 she had an affair with hoodlum Benjamin ‘Bugsy’ Siegel but he dumped her because of her regular tardiness. Husband number three was multi-millionaire footwear tycoon Harry Karl (b. 1914, d. August 1982 after heart surgery) who would marry Joan Cohn (who married Laurence Harvey) and Debbie Reynolds (on November 25, 1960). She appeared in Tell It To The Judge (1949) as Ginger Simmons for Columbia. In November 1950 she began working in the theatre and then made Once A Thief (1950) as Flo and Hit Parade Of 1951 (1950) as Michele. They would be her last films for almost a decade. After several miscarriages she adopted two children. In 1954 she was charged with driving under the influence. That same year she divorced Karl, claiming that she was allergic to him and that he made her ill. Then they went on holiday and remarried, only to separate again in 1955. On September 12, 1956, their daughter, Tina Marie, was born. In January 1957 she was kidnapped from her Encino home and discovered unharmed 40 miles away. The police found in her home a book about a movie star who is kidnapped. Coincidence or publicity stunt? The ransom note was made up of cuttings from newspapers found in her own fireplace. Marie accused Karl of hiring the kidnappers but he denied it. The case petered out and in March 1958 he sued her for divorce. That year she made her film comeback with Jerry Lewis in The Geisha Boy (1958) as Lola Livingston. Her life became a series of ups and downs: a successful play and a conviction for attempting to forge a prescription, a reconciliation with Karl and an accidental overdose of sleeping pills. In 1959 she married agent Louis Bass. In 1960 she divorced him. In 1962 she married lawyer Edward Callaghan. In 1963 she divorced him. An affair with Michael Wilding fizzled out. Her last film was Jayne Mansfield’s Promises! Promises! (1963), in which she played the wife of Jayne’s real-life husband, Mickey Hargitay. Her sixth husband was Donald F. Taylor (b. 1928), who produced Promises! Promises!

  CAUSE: Donald Taylor found her dead of an overdose at her dressing table at home in Calabasas Hidden Hills, California. She was 42. Unable to bear the grief, he died by his own hand in January 1966.

  Roddy McDowall

  Born September 17, 1928

  Died October 3, 1998

  The Queen of the Lavender Mafia. Very few successful child stars grow up to be successful as adult ones. Even fewer become more successful as adults than they were as children. Usually, they lose their cuteness, their appeal and, consequently, their jobs. Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall was an exception to the rule. Born in Herne Hill, London, he began making films in England in the Thirties. He appeared in Yellow Sands (1938), Scruffy (1938), Sarah Siddons (1938), Murder In The Family (1938) as Peter Osborne, I See Ice (1938), Just William (1939) as Ginger, Convict 99 (1939) as Jimmy, Saloon Bar (1940) and This England as Hugo among others. In 1941 he travelled the Atlantic to America to appear in John Ford’s How Green Was My Valley (1941) as Huw and stayed. He starred in The Pied Piper (1942) as Ronnie Cavanaugh, On The Sunny Side as Hugh Aylesworth, Son Of Fury (1942) as Young Benjamin Blake, My Friend Flicka (1943) as Ken McLaughlin, Lassie Come Home (1943) as Joe Carraclough, Thunderhead – Son Of Flicka (1945) as Ken McLaughlin, Molly And Me (1945) as Jimmy Graham, Rocky (1948) as Roddy, Macbeth (1948) as Malcolm and Kidnapped (1948) as David Balfour. In 1948 he began producing as well as starring in films. He made very few films in the Fifties, concentrating instead on television and theatre. His cinematic comeback occurred in the Sixties. He featured in Midnight Lace (1960) as Malcolm, The Longest Day as Private Morris, Cleopatra as Caesar Augustus, The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965) as Matthew, That Darn Cat! (1965) as Gregory Benson, Planet Of The Apes (1968) as Dr Cornelius, Pretty Maids All In A Row (1971) as Mr Proffer, Escape From The Planet Of The Apes (1971) as Cornelius, Bedknobs And Broomsticks (1971) as Mr Jelk, The Life And Times Of Judge Roy Bean (1972) as Frank Gass, Conquest Of The Planet Of The Apes (1972) as Caesar, The Poseidon Adventure (1972) as Acres, Battle For The Planet Of The Apes (1973) as Caesar, Dirty Mary Crazy Larry (1974) as George Stanton, Funny Lady (1975) as Bobby Moore, The Cat From Outer Space (1978) as Mr Stallwood, Charlie Chan And The Curse Of The Dragon Queen (1981) as Gillespie, Fright Night (1985) as Peter Vincent, Fright Night Part II (1989) reprising his role as Peter Vincent, Angel 4: Undercover (1993) as Geoffrey Kagen and many, many more. He was the only actor to appear in the Planet Of The Apes films and also the television series, where he played Galen. He also had a recurring role as rebel scientist Jonathan Willoway on the television show The Fantastic Journey. Away from showbiz (but not too far) McDowall was a successful photographer who published four books of his pictures.

  CAUSE: On April 30, 1998, he underwent a left lung and skin biopsy. He died aged 70 at 7.30am of lung cancer at his home, 3110 Brookdale Road, Studio City, Los Angeles, California 91604. The cancer had also penetrated his brain and bones. He was cremated and his ashes scattered in the Pacific.

  Victor McLaglen

  Born December 11, 1883

  Died November 7, 1959

  Brawling giant. One of eight brothers, 6́ 5˝ McLaglen was born in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, but raised in South Africa where his clergyman father worked. When
he was 14, McLaglen lied about his age and enlisted in the Life Guards, his size fooling the recruiting officer. After three years he left and moved to Canada where, according to McLaglen, before becoming an actor, he worked in 20 jobs including boxer, wrestler, gold miner and policeman. “The only thing which ever thrilled me was boxing,” he later reflected. He once fought an exhibition match with heavyweight champion Jack Johnson. He travelled around Australasia, Asia and Africa and was in South Africa in 1914 when World War I started. He joined up and became a lieutenant with the Middlesex Regiment. He was twice wounded in the line of duty. In 1919 he married Enid Mary Lamont (d. Flintridge, California, April 2, 1942) and had one son, film director Andrew (b. London, July 28, 1920), and a daughter, Sheila (b. London, 1921). Considering his background it was probably not surprising that in his first film, The Call Of The Road (1920), McLaglen played a boxer, Alf Truscott. It was the first of over 100 films. He appeared in, among others, Corinthian Jack (1921) as Jack Halstead, Little Brother Of God (1922) as King Kennidy, The Glorious Adventure (1922) as Bulfinch, The Romany (1923) as the Chief, Women And Diamonds (1924) as Brian Owen, The Gay Corinthian (1924) as Squire Hardcastle, Percy (1925) as Reedy Jenkins, Men Of Steel (1926) as Pete Masarick, Beau Geste (1926) as Hank, What Price Glory (1926) as Captain Flagg, The Loves Of Carmen (1927) as Escamillo, Mother Machree (1928) as the Giant of Kilkenny, Hangman’s House (1928) as Citizen Hogan, Captain Lash (1929) as Captain Lash, Strong Boy (1929) as Strong Boy, Hot For Paris (1929) as John Patrick Duke, Women Of All Nations (1931) as Sergeant Flagg, Wicked (1931) as Scott Burrows, Dishonored (1931) as Colonel Kranau, Annabelle’s Affairs (1931) as John Rawson, While Paris Sleeps (1932) as Jacques Costaud, Guilty As Hell (1932) as Detective McKinley, Hot Pepper (1933) as Flagg, Dick Turpin (1933) as Dick Turpin, Laughing At Life (1933) as Captain Easter, Murder At The Vanities (1934) as Bill Murdock, Under Pressure (1935) as Jumbo, Professional Soldier (1936) as Michael Donovan, Klondike Annie (1936) as Bull Brackett, Nancy Steele Is Missing! (1937) as Dannie O’Neill, This Is My Affair (1937) as Jock Ramsay, Wee Willie Winkie (1937) as Sergeant MacDuff, Rio (1939) as Dirk, Pacific Liner (1939) as Crusher McKay, Full Confession (1939) as McGinnis, Ex-Champ (1939) as Gunner Grey, Captain Fury (1939) as Blackie, Gunga Din (1939) as Sergeant MacChesney, China Girl (1942) as Major Weed, Tampico (1944) as Fred Adamson, Rough, Tough And Ready (1945) as Owen McCarey, Whistle Stop (1946) as Gillo, Michigan Kid (1947) as Curley, Fort Apache (1948) as Sergeant Mulcahy, She Wore A Yellow Ribbon (1949) as Sergeant Quincannon, Rio Grande (1950) as Sergeant Major Timothy Quincannon, Prince Valiant (1954) as Boltar, Bengazi (1955) as Robert Emmett Donovan, Around The World In 80 Days (1956) as a helmsman and Sea Fury (1958) as Captain Bellew. McLaglen was one of John Ford’s favourite actors and they worked together on several pictures including The Informer (1935) which won McLaglen a Best Actor Oscar for playing the traitorous Gypo Nolan, a part McLaglen disliked, calling Nolan “a weak, unintelligent and unresourceful man” which, I suppose, was why he was a traitor. McLaglen became an American citizen in 1933. He had something of a love affair with the military but it was some cause for concern when he founded his own small army in 1936. “In time of war,” he said of the Light Horse Troop, “we can be counted upon as a government unit.” Many saw the group as proto-fascist. Following the death of his first wife, he married his secretary, Suzanne Bruggemann on November 20, 1943, but they divorced in 1947. On December 19, 1948, he married Margaret Pumphrey. Four years later he was nominated as Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Red Will Danaher in The Quiet Man (1952).

  CAUSE: He died aged 75 in Newport Beach, California, from a heart attack.

  Maggie McNamara

  Born June 18, 1928

  Died February 18, 1978

  Forgotten talent. Born in New York, one of four children of Irish-American parents, like many actresses she began her career as a teenage model. Discovered by Otto Preminger she worked on various theatrical productions before making her film début as Patty O’Neill in The Moon Is Blue (1953), a part she had played on the stage. Maggie used previously taboo words such as ‘mistress’, ‘seduction’ and ‘virgin’ in the film. The Catholic Legion of Decency condemned the feature as a result, although the Academy Of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences nominated Maggie for a Best Actress Oscar. She didn’t win but was signed by Darryl F. Zanuck. She made just two films – Three Coins In The Fountain (1954) as Maria Williams and Prince Of Players (1955) as Mary Devlin Booth – before leaving showbiz. She made a brief comeback as Florrie Fermoyle in The Cardinal (1963) before becoming a secretary for an insurance company.

  CAUSE: Beset with mental problems for much of her life, she was bereft following the break-up of her marriage to David Swift and killed herself with an overdose of drugs in New York, aged 49.

  Steve McQueen

  (TERRENCE STEVEN MCQUEEN)

  Born March 24, 1930

  Died November 7, 1980

  Dinky megastar. Born in Beech Grove Hospital, Indianapolis, Indiana, short (5́ 7˝), ultra-macho, dyslexic McQueen was abandoned by his father when still a baby and spent part of his youth in a borstal. He did various jobs before joining the Marines in 1947 and finding himself in jail for going AWOL. He turned to acting in 1952 and made his début in a Yiddish theatre. After various plays he landed a bit part in Somebody Up There Likes Me (1956) playing Fidel. He was the lead in the sci-fi film The Blob (1958) as Steve Andrews but there was no overnight stardom for McQueen. He competed with the equally egotistical Yul Brynner for screen time as Vin in The Magnificent Seven (1960). It wasn’t until The Great Escape (1963), in which he played Captain Virgil Hilts, that he really became a star. He took the lead in The Cincinnati Kid (1965) and was nominated for an Oscar as Jake Holman in The Sand Pebbles (1966). Two of his films have been recently remade: The Thomas Crown Affair (1968) (remade with Pierce Brosnan and Rene Russo) and The Getaway (with Ali MacGraw; it was remade in the Nineties with Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger and added nudity). McQueen’s other films included: Bullitt (1968) as Detective Lieutenant Frank Bullitt, Papillon as Henri ‘Papillon’ Charriere, The Towering Inferno (1974) as Michael O’Hallorhan and I, Tom Horn (1980) in the lead. He married three times. Firstly on November 2, 1956, to actress-singer Neile Adams, a match that produced two children, Terri (b. June 1959, d. 1998 of liver failure) and actor Chad (b. December 28, 1960). They divorced on March 15, 1972. She was to write a memoir that revealed McQueen to be insecure, a bully, self-destructive and possessed of an extremely violent temper. Next, on July 13, 1973, was actress Ali MacGraw (who said, “One thing about Steve, he didn’t like the women in his life to have balls”) and on January 16, 1980, model Barbara Minty became his third wife. Not everyone liked McQueen. Robert Mitchum said of him: “ A Steve McQueen performance just naturally lends itself to monotony. Steve doesn’t bring much to the party.”

  CAUSE: McQueen lead a secret bisexual life. Again, Robert Mitchum: “Steve McQueen was notorious for orgies. Honest to God Roman-type sex orgies. The guy always needed an audience. Even sex … he had to make it into a party.” McQueen died in Clinica de Santa Rosa, Juarez, Mexico, aged 50, from AIDS.

  FURTHER READING: Steve McQueen: The Legend Of A Rebel Superstar – Malachy McCoy (London: Coronet, 1981); McQueen: The Untold Story Of A Bad Boy In Hollywood – Penina Spiegel (New York: Berkley, 1987).

  Adolphe Menjou

  Born February 18, 1890

  Died October 29, 1963

  Hollywood’s best-dressed man. Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Adolphe Jean Menjou worked as an engineer and in a restaurant before deciding to try thespianism, more by accident than by design. His film début came in The Man Behind The Door (1915) as Ringmaster. He was to make almost 150 films and the number would have been considerably higher had he not spent from 1917 until serving as a Captain in the Ambulance Corps. He resumed acting in but it was Charlie Chaplin’s A Woman Of Paris (1923), in which he played Pierre Revel, that brought him fame. The movie sealed his reputation as a well-dressed rou�
� about town. He was nominated for an Oscar for his portrayal of the editor Walter Burns in The Front Page (1931). Away from the screen, he was as right wing as they come, belonging to the John Birch Society and gaily naming names during the McCarthy witch hunts. Married three times, his proudest boast was that he had over 2,000 garments in his wardrobe.