William Holden is a talented American actor with good looks and simple masculine demeanor. His roles have become classic. Often in movies, Holden has portrayed typical Americans. His most memorable films are: "The Wild Gang", "Sunset Boulevard", "POW Camp No. 17", "Sabrina", "Omen 2", the series "I Love Lucy".
Childhood and early years of the future actor
William Holden, née William Franklin Beadle Jr., was born on April 17, 1918 in O'Fellon, Illinois, USA. His father worked as an industrial chemist who moved his family to Pasadena when William was still a child. The boy was poisoned to go to school in Monrovia, near Los Angeles, and then to Pasadena Junior College of California. William's mother, Mary Blanche, worked as a school teacher. The future actor had English roots: his paternal great-grandmother Rebecca Westfield is from England. His mother's ancestors also arrived in America in the 17th century from England.
In the family, William was the eldest son. He had two younger brothers: Robert and Richard. By religion, the family adhered to the Methodist creeds.
During World War II, William enlisted as a lieutenant in the United States Air Force, but he never had to go to war.
William Holden's career
At a young age, William took part in several college radio shows. In 1939, a talented teenager was given the chance to play a short role in the movie Million Dollar Legs. It was at this time that the actor took his creative pseudonym "Holden" - the name of the editor-in-chief of the Los Angeles Times. William did this in the hope that newspaper critics would not strongly condemn his first appearance on the big screen.
However, all the excitement of William Holden was not confirmed, and critics reacted mildly to the film debut of the young actor. The directors liked the way William looked on the screen, and in the same year Holden was invited to the main role in the melodrama "Golden Boy". The plot is based on the play by Clifforad Odets and is dedicated to the character Joe Bonaparte - a violinist who wanted to become a boxer. After the release of this film, William woke up famous. Film critic Sheila Benson said, "He was handsome, too much for this movie."
Over time, not only the actor's face became his calling card, but also his voice.
Holden has starred in over 60 motion pictures, including the Wild Gang western, the war drama The Bridge on the River Kwai, and the Kim Novak melodrama Picnic. In the drama "The Bridge on the River Kwai," Holden brought to life the image of the American man and soldier of World War II on the screen.
Grover Lewis, a former journalist who wrote his own work on the early years of Hollywood's Golden Age, said: “Holden hasn’t received such widespread acclaim among movie stars as, say, Gary Cooper, but when you watch films with Holden, such as Sunset Boulevard "or" The Wild Gang ", then you understand that these are special and best films ever made."
In 1953, the popular actor was awarded the prestigious Oscar for his role as an American pilot who was held in a German camp. The drama Prisoner of War Camp 17 was based on a Broadway play.
The name of William Holden was on the list of Oscar nominees for his participation in the dramas Sunset Boulevard (1950) and Television (1976).
William Holden has starred in films such as:
- Comedy melodrama "Sabrina" with Humphrey Bogart and Audrey Hepburn;
- comedy melodrama "Paris when it's hot there" with Audrey Hepburn;
- action movie "Rising Hell" with actors Steve McQueen and Paul Newman;
- horror "Omen 2: Damien";
- comedy series "I love Lucy".
In the 1960s, little was heard about the actor. He lived in Switzerland and starred in several passing films. William Holden returned to the big screen in 1969.
The last film in the career of William Holden was the comedy Son of a Bitch (1981), which tells about the underside of the film industry.
A close friend of President Reagan
William Holden was Ronald Reagan's best friend and attended the wedding of the President of the United States to Nancy Davis. Reagan and Holden have remained friends over the years. After the news of the actor's death, Ronald Reagan stated, "This is a great sense of personal loss for me."
Personal life of the actor
Holden married actress Brenda Marshall (1915-1992) in 1941. The couple had two sons, Peter and Scott. The couple also raised their daughter Virginia from Brenda's first marriage to actor Richard Gaines.
William Holden lived with his wife for 30 years, until their divorce in 1971 due to disagreements in life. Both Brenda Marshall and William Holden had affairs on the side throughout their married years.
The actor did not marry a second time, but from 1972 until the last days of his life he was the common-law husband of the young American actress Stephanie Powers (born in 1942).
Death of actor William Holden
The actor died on November 12, 1981 in his apartment in an accident. The actor's body was found a few days after his death on the floor in his bedroom.
According to friends, William Holden was preparing for the upcoming filming of the film version of the Broadway production of Championship Season. This is the story of four members of a former basketball team who meet 25 years later, who, along with old memories, have old grievances. Due to the death of William Holden, the cast of the film project changed, and the main roles went to Bruce Dern, Stacy Keach, Robert Mitchum and Martin Sheen.
