Robert Redford

by Callan, Michael Feeney

  Among the libraries and records offices consulted or visited were the Mugar Memorial Library at Boston University; the Connecticut State Library in Hartford; the Rhode Island Historical Society in Providence; the Manchester Central Library in England; the Manchester Register Office in Spinningfields; the General Register Office for Scotland in Edinburgh; the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies in Provo, Utah; the Margaret Herrick Library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Los Angeles; the library of the Museum of Television and Radio (now the Paley Center for Media) in New York City; the archive at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn; the library of the British Film Institute in London; the archive of the University of Colorado at Boulder (thank you, Jeannine Malmsberry and library technician Marty Conner Covey); the Federal Archives Library in Fort Worth, Texas; and Trinity College Library Dublin.

  Also in Ireland, I must thank the ever-supportive Trina Stalley, Professor Roger Stalley, Professor Kevin Rockett of Trinity College’s drama, film and music department, Trinity College provost John Hegarty, Ian Condy (thank you for those overnight deliveries of New York newspapers), Dr. John Kelly, Shay Hennessy, Ray McGovern, Sean Simon, my inspirational sister, Jeannette and Jim Kearney, my great brothers Eamonn and Ron Callan and the wonderful Mae Ward, a special lady we loved who sadly passed away just before completion of this work. I must not forget Antony and Jay Worrall Thompson, who egged me on endlessly, or my business partner and friend, Olivier Capt (and Alma). Also, transcendently, Brian Wilson.

  The nature of this book was accumulative as much as evaluative. Two leading players kept control of the flying pieces. They are Lois Smith of PMK, who introduced me to Robert Redford and was the project’s manager from its earliest days, and Wendy Hopkins, Redford’s Utah assistant, who fielded every query, promise and complaint and supplied mountains of FedEx packages to nourish me. I came to regard Wendy as my field guide.

  Robert Redford was a gracious host. His generosity goes without saying, but his trust was the greater gift. Because of him, I had the opportunity to talk with Jamie Redford, Shauna Redford Schlosser, Amy Hart Redford and Sibylle Szaggars, and their candid insights proved invaluable.

  For safe navigation of this book to its home between Knopf covers, I thank Sonny Mehta. I’m also indebted to the great Jonathan Segal, who honed a quarter of a million words into a manageable text and never ceased challenging me to go one better. Jon’s support, vision and skill are deeply appreciated.

  Finally, a word of gratitude to my father, Michael Callan, a supreme storyteller and historian, whom we also lost just weeks before the publication of this work. His appetite for education and his example of tireless labor drive my life. My dear mother, Margaret Feeney (whose favorite movie heroine, like Robert Redford’s, was Greer Garson), followed every stage of the setup of this work with a passion, but sadly passed before we made it into print also. The heart of this work belongs to both of them. The rest is in the hands of my constant muse and collaborator, Ree Ward Callan, and the undefeatable Corey Wilson Callan and Paris Callan. We crossed some oceans.

  Notes and Sources

  Since this is Robert Redford’s life story, I have attempted to allow him to speak for himself. To that end, several interviews, formal and informal, were conducted over fourteen years, commencing in March 1995. Sessions took place in Sundance, Utah; Marin County, California; Los Angeles; New York; and Dublin, Ireland. Apart from formal taped sessions, we met often for lunches and dinners. Redford kindly commented on various aspects of this work in progress and introduced me to members of his family and to friends, business partners and co-workers. In all, more than three hundred participants in the Robert Redford story were interviewed.

  The primary research source, beyond interviews and visiting with Redford during the production for his movies, was his own jottings. An ardent scribbler, he keeps a bound notebook in his briefcase and constantly writes down observations, reflections and literary snippets that come his way. He started keeping a diary in Los Angeles in 1957 and, irregularly since, has filled several volumes of reminiscences. These take the form of short essays, which are occasionally little more than illustrated doodles. Throughout, though, there are fragments of detailed self-analysis and seminal notions of new projects. The early diaries, called “Varwood” and “The German Diary,” are housed in the Mugar Memorial Library at Boston University. Other journals, including “Redford Musings,” dating from the 1970s, are at the Sundance archive in Utah. Redford’s well-dispersed drawings and paintings dating from 1954 have now been gathered and cataloged at the Corporate Management Group offices in Los Angeles.

  Additionally, the Sundance archive turned over to me Redford’s correspondence files from the 1960s onward. Meticulously kept, they record his communications with individuals as diverse as Richard Leakey, Bill Bradley and Mort Sahl. Also supplied and referenced were the screenplays of the Wildwood-produced films, kept at the Sundance archive.

  The late Sydney Pollack graciously allowed me access to his script library at Mirage, his production company, housed at Paramount Studios. There I had the chance to read his personal shooting versions of the seven movies he made with Redford, together with his preparatory notes and correspondence with David Rayfiel, Dalton Trumbo, Errol Trzebinski and others.

  George Roy Hill wrote my letter of introduction to the Margaret Herrick Library at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Los Angeles, where his papers are lodged. The Hill archive includes versions of his scripts and correspondence, which are revealing about his casting process and authorial views.

  Redford’s acting school, the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, gave me access to the archive files relating to his schooling there in 1957–59. These include his workshop assessments.

  Other documents were supplied by Emerson Junior High School and Van Nuys High School in Los Angeles, the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, and the Sundance Institute in Los Angeles.

  Wayne Van Wagenen of Provo, Utah, supplied me with a large file of clippings and family memorabilia relating to the Redford and Van Wagenen families, including genealogical papers.

  Civic, business and marriage records were gathered in five separate areas: Scotland, Manchester, Rhode Island, Texas and Los Angeles.

  I have refrained from citing reviews where I have used just a short quotation to convey the general critical reception to a particular film or play.

  All major written and published materials referred to are listed in the bibliography.

  Introduction America Is the Girl

  1 “people need the chance to see”: Robert Redford, “Search for Common Ground,” Harvard Business Review, May–June 1987, 108.

  2 “This rustic Xanadu and the ideals behind [it]”: Walter Kirn, “The Two Hollywoods,” The New York Times Magazine, November 16, 1997.

  3 “a subtle blend of Owen Wister’s Trampas”: Laurence Luckinbill, “Oh, You Sundance Kid!” Esquire, October 1970, 160.

  1. West

  1 “our Manifest Destiny”: Thomas R. Hietala, Manifest Design: American Exceptionalism and Empire (Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 2003), 255.

  2 California, especially, inspired heaven: James Kirby Martin et al., eds., America and Its People (New York: HarperCollins College, 1993), 432.

  3 “California college girls are larger”: Timothy White, The Nearest Faraway Place: Brian Wilson, the Beach Boys, and the Southern California Experience (New York: Henry Holt, 1994), 8.

  4 as the Dust Bowl casualties came west: Ibid., 55.

  5 It wasn’t unusual, if you were born: Interview with George Menard, March 26, 1995.

  6 the Redfords, Saxon in origin, had split: Civic record documents, Manchester Central Library, including marriage of Peter Redford and Ann Mellor, July 17, 1820 (Public Record no. 44); Peter, son of Peter and Alice Redford, baptized May 20, 1792 (Public Record no. 18); Peter Radford [adapted to Redford] married Alice Burrow September 16, 1787 (Public Record no. 38). Occupation: muslin weaver. Other chil
dren of Peter and Alice include Ann, their firstborn, who was baptized twice at Salford Christ Church (King Street Bible Christian) and Manchester Cathedral. Other Redfords (and Radfords) indicate Catholic baptism services. Pre-1850, all signed documents by Redfords and marital partners are marked with an X, representing their signature.

  7 Henry Redford, a merchant who became: James Alexander Manning, ed., The Lives of the Speakers of the House of Commons, from the Time of King Edward III to Queen Victoria (London: G. Willis, 1851), 211.

  8 In 1849, Presbyterian Elisha Redford married: Elisha Redford (1827–1904) Civic Record, Manchester, 1850. Elisha Redford born November 9, 1827, Manchester, England. Father Peter Redford, born, Manchester, England; mother Anne Bradshaw, born, Manchester, England. Elisha’s wife is listed as Ann McCreery [sic]. From Stonington, Rhode Island Register (Stonington Deaths, January–June, 1907 [sic], Vol. P).

  9 By century’s end, Elisha was not much better off: Last Will and Testament of Elisha Redford, dated May 4, 1874. District of Stonington Probate Court. Book 36, page 288.

  10 While the Harts drifted, the Greens built: Untitled documents in the Federal Archives Library, Forth Worth, Texas.

  11 Along with three partners, he founded: Ibid. State Representative Libby Linebarger wrote to Robert Redford on September 25, 1990: “One of the counties I represent is Hayes County, a beautiful area along the eastern base of the Texas Hill Country.… A resident of Hayes County and former state representative, Bob Barton, has been doing a great deal of research on Hayes County’s earliest settlers and discovered that you are the great-great-grandson of two of Hayes County’s earliest settlers and Democratic elected officials.” On December 17, Redford responded: “Believe it or not, my knowledge of family history is limited. No one really ever gave it to me. Only a man named Eddie Gresin (Green) of San Marcos has kept me at all informed.”

  12 His father, John Gabriel, was a traveling salesman: Genealogy from Missouri Records office, Travis County Records, Austin City Directory, Department of Commerce and Labor: twelfth national census June 1900; fourteenth national census, 1920, etc. Descendants of George Green and Pate-Green ancestor chart established by Peggy Blackmore Tombs, Marble Falls, Texas.

  13 It was the unlikeliest of marriages: Travis County Records Office. Vol. 17, page 503. Certificate of marriage, April 30, 1913, Hayes County. Miss Sallie Green to Mr. Archibald W. Hart.

  14 Tot was dwarfish beside: Interview with George Menard, March 26, 1995.

  15 Rooted in Texas after their 1913 marriage: Travis County Deeds Records Register. Several property acquisitions, starting with Vol. 270, page 451: between F. J. Compte and Archibald Hart and Sallie P. Hart, recorded August 31, 1915, for purchase of Lot No. (12) and the west one-half of Lot No. 13 in the Block No. 30 of Travis Heights, a subdivision … Later purchases to Vol. 594, dated September 1, 1938 (for tract No. 3 in Ridgetop).

  16 Tot’s relationship with Mary P. Robinson: Travis County Records. Criminal District Court No 45, 324, dated June term A.D. 1928. A.W. Hart vs. Sallie P. Hart.

  17 Elisha was dead by then: Death certificate. Elisha Redford of 25 Noyes Avenue, Stonington. Age, 76. Occupation: Jack-spinner. January 22, 1904.

  18 Charles had become a deadbeat: Advertisement in Westerly Directory, circa 1908. “Westerly Band. Concerts, Parades and Picnics Attended. Chas. Redford: Leader, 54 High Street, Westerly, R.I.” Death certificate. Charles Redford of 19 Daniels Street, Pawtucket, Rhode Island. Age, 67. Occupation: Insurance agent. April 9, 1918.

  19 the year the Marx Brothers: Jack Benny and Joan Benny, Sunday Nights at Seven (New York: Random House, 1992), 34.

  20 In 1911 Tiger married: International Genealogical Index for Ireland, 1992 edition: Taylor family tree research conducted by Judith Moore, B.A., A.L.A., Family Histories, Flixton, Manchester. Lena Taylor, daughter of Henry and Mary Taylor, née Tucker; Henry son of John Taylor and Elizabeth Girvin, Kircubbin, Co. Down, Ireland.

  21 She joined the glee club: Martha Hart Redford’s scrapbooks. Sundance archive, Utah.

  22 After high school graduation, Martha enrolled: Spin-Drift, the annual of Santa Monica Junior College, 1934. (“Charlie Redford led the Corsairs batters …” p. 85; Martha Hart and Charles Redford, pictured, among the seven-person Student Body Commission.) Copies, The Samojac, weekly newsletter, Santa Monica Junior College, 1933–34.

  23 “Charlie was living at the corner house”: Interview with Marcella Scott Krisel, November 20, 1995.

  24 At Christmas he sent her a card: Martha Hart Redford’s scrapbooks, Sundance archive.

  25 Charlie and Menard decided to join the CCC: Interview with George Menard, March 26, 1995.

  26 Martha fell ill: Interview with Margaret Mitchell, October 16, 1995.

  27 Beyond Charlie and the doctors: Interview with Marcella Scott Krisel, November 20, 1995.

  28 On the evening of August 18: Birth Certificate No. 9191. Local Register No. 501. August 18, 1936. Charles Robert Redford Jr., born to Charles Robert Redford, 1471 So. Bedford Street, Los Angeles, aged 21, and Martha Woodruff Hart, aged 22. Born at 8.02 p.m. At Santa Monica Hospital.

  29 she sent out frilled blue cards: Martha Hart Redford’s scrapbooks, Sundance archive.

  2. Two Americas

  1 the work programs of the New Deal: James Kirby Martin et al., eds., America and Its People (New York: HarperCollins College, 1993), 832–58.

  2 The pleasure piers, stretching from Venice: Fred E. Bastem, Santa Monica Bay (Los Angeles: General Publishing Group, 1997), 122.

  3 pushing beachfront prices past: Ibid., 182.

  4 for Charlie, Martha and the baby, economic security: Interview with Vivian Knudson Christensen, October 29, 1995.

  5 Though single-minded, Martha embraced: Interview with Margaret Mitchell, October 16, 1995.

  6 Many friends found it remarkable: Interviews with Marcella Scott Krisel, January 15, 1996, and Margaret Mitchell, October 16, 1995.

  7 a $3,000 mortgage: Interview with George Menard, February 9, 1996.

  8 as director Alan Pakula believed: Interview with Alan J. Pakula, May 8, 1997.

  9 Studying accountancy part-time: Interview with Marcella Scott Krisel, January 15, 1996.

  10 Redford’s bond with David: Interview with George Menard, February 9, 1996.

  11 Betty Webb saw Bobby Redford as a loner: Interview with Betty Webb, November 19, 1996.

  12 Throughout 1942 and 1943 Japanese bombing scares: Bastem, Santa Monica Bay, 182.

  13 David was a sergeant in the Third Army: After Action Report, Third Army, August 1, 1944–May 9, 1945. Staff Section, Volume 11. Unclassified, dated 10/29/1984. Includes Top Secret letter from Headquarters, Third United States Army, APO 403, dated January 1, 1945, signed by Brigadier General Hobart R. Gray, Chief of Staff, detailing special ops, including “(d.) Continue to hold present line, including Saarlautern bridge-head, withdrawing only on Army order … by command of Lieutenant General Patton.” U.S. Army Military History Institute, PA. Also letter from the American Battle Monuments Commission, Washington, D.C., regarding final resting place of 1SGT David G. Redford 39157314, April 10, 1997.

  3. Krazy in Brentwood

  1 Charlie particularly was wary of national paranoia: Interview with George Menard, February 9, 1996.

  2 Douglas aircraft manufacturing had boomed: Fred E. Bastem, Santa Monica Bay (Los Angeles: General Publishing Group, 1997), 181.

  3 The previous year, HUAC had forced Rossen: Interview with Carol Rossen, December 2, 1997.

  4 Coomber remembers their first meeting: Interview with Bill Coomber, July 7, 1995.

  5 Her fortune came from her father: Interview with Elizabeth “Lala” Brady, September 30, 1996.

  6 In the Emerson school newspaper: The Emersonian, dated September 1949.

  4. East of Eden

  1 Back home the adventuring with Coomber: Interview with Bill Coomber, July 7, 1995.

  2 In November the Redfords moved to the Valley: Interview with Kathleen “Kitty” Andrews
, March 4, 1996.

  3 Kitty knew Redford was slipping away: Ibid.

  4 Charlie continued to believe his son’s: Interview with George Menard, March 26, 1995.

  5 Redford started out brooding and isolated: Interview with Jack Brendlinger, April 14, 1998.

  6 Redford’s insularity swung to extroversion: Interview with Pat Ader, January 22, 1997.

  7 In May 1955, Martha died: Certificate of Death No. 6253. Martha W. Redford, May 2, 1955, 1:30 p.m. At St. Joseph’s Hospital, 501 South Buena Vista Street, Burbank, Los Angeles. Cause of death: Unnoted. Signed by physician, John M. Thomson, who lists he has been treating her for seven days. Burial: Forest Lawn Memorial Park.

  5. Behind the Mirror

  1 In November, Lena died: Certificate of death No. 18734. Lena Taylor Redford, died November 1, 1955, aged seventy years.

  2 In Manhattan, they bought round-trip tourist-class tickets: Interview with Jack Brendlinger, May 28, 1997.

  3 There, for $40, they rented a Moorish villa: Diary journal, Robert Redford Papers, Mugar Memorial Library, Boston University.

  4 In October the friends returned to Paris: Interview with Jack Brendlinger, May 28, 1997.

  5 They arrived back in the United States: Diary journal, Robert Redford Papers, Mugar Memorial Library, Boston University.

  6 On his first sight of New York … Miller wrote: Henry Miller, The Air-Conditioned Nightmare (New York: New Directions Publishing, 1970), 12.

  7 Here, instantly, Redford’s mood changed: In “Varwood,” a journal of his stay at the apartment complex in the summer of 1957, twenty-seven pages, dated 1958, Robert Redford Papers, Mugar Memorial Library, Boston University.

  8 “Our relationship got off to a better start”: Lola Redford interview, Provo Herald, April 13, 1971.