William Holden (April 17, 1918 – November 12, 1981) was an Oscar-winning
American film actor.
E arly
Life and Career
Born William Franklin Beedle Jr in O'Fallon, Illinois, he was the eldest of
three sons of William Franklin Beedle, Sr, an industrial chemist, and Mary
Blanche Ball, a teacher. The family, who moved to Pasadena, California when he
was three, was of English descent; Holden's paternal great-grandmother, Rebecca
Westfield, was born in England in 1817, while some of his mother's ancestors
immigrated to the US in the 17th century from Millenback, Lancaster, England.
While attending Pasadena Junior College he became involved in local radio plays
and with the Pasadena Playhouse, leading to his discovery by a talent scout from
Paramount Pictures in 1937. His first role was in Prison Farm the following
year.
Hollywood's Golden Boy
His first starring role was in 1939's Golden Boy, in which he played a boxer who
wants to be a violinist.
After Columbia Pictures picked up half of his contract, he alternated between
starring in several minor pictures for Paramount and Columbia before serving in
the Army Air Corps during World War II, where he acted in training films.
Beginning in 1950 his career rebounded when Billy Wilder tapped him to star as
the down-at-the-heels screenwriter in Sunset Boulevard.
Following this breakthrough film, he played a series of roles that combined good
looks with cynical detachment, including the prisoner of war entrepreneur in
Stalag 17 (for which he won an Academy Award for Best Actor), the wandering
braggart in Picnic and the ill-fated prisoner in The Bridge on the River Kwai.
He played a conflicted jet pilot in the excellent Korean War film Bridges at
Toko-Ri (1955). He also played a number of sunnier roles in light comedy, such
as the dashing architect in The Moon is Blue, the tutor in Born Yesterday and
Humphrey Bogart's younger, playboy brother in Sabrina.
In 1960, he starred opposite Nancy Kwan in the film adaptation of the novel The
World of Suzie Wong. Holden played a struggling artist, Robert Lomax, who was
captivated by a free-spirited Hong Kong prostitute, Suzie Wong (played by Kwan).
Holden was best man at the marriage of Ronald Reagan to Nancy Davis. However,
Holden starred in his share of forgettable movies (which he was forced into by
studio contracts). He suffered from alcoholism and depression for many years. By
the early 1960s, his roles were having less critical and commercial impact. In
1966 Holden was involved in a car accident in Italy in which the other driver
was killed.
It was determined Holden had been driving under the influence of alcohol; he was
charged with vehicular manslaughter and received an eight-month suspended prison
sentence. Holden was overcome with guilt, and friends said this led to even
heavier bouts of drinking.
Later Career
In 1969 he starred in director Sam Peckinpah's graphically violent Western The
Wild Bunch, winning much acclaim. Five years later, he starred with Paul Newman
and Steve McQueen in the blockbuster, The Towering Inferno. He was also praised
for his leading performance in Network (1976), playing an older version of the
character type he had perfected in the 1950s, only now more jaded and aware of
his own mortality. In 1980 Holden appeared in The Earthling with child actor
Ricky Schroder, playing a loner dying of cancer who goes to the Australian
outback to end his days, meets a young boy whose parents have been killed in an
accident, and teaches him how to survive. Schroder later named one of his sons
Holden.
Death
William Holden died as the result of a fall in his high rise apartment on the
seaside cliffs of Santa Monica, California in November 1981. Holden was alone
and heavily intoxicated when he apparently slipped on a throw rug, severely
gashed his head on a night table, and bled to death. Evidence suggests he was
conscious for at least half an hour after the fall but may not have realized the
severity of the injury and didn't summon aid. His body was found on November 16,
but forensic and other evidence suggested he had been dead for several days and
most likely died on November 12. He was 63 years old.
His body was cremated and his ashes scattered in the Pacific Ocean.
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