Читать книгу 1001 Steve McQueen Facts - Tyler Greenblatt - Страница 11
ОглавлениеPERSONAL LIFE
71. When studying to be an actor in New York, McQueen used the Stanislavski system developed by Russian theater practitioner Konstantin Stanislavski. The principle stated that an actor’s training and preparation should go beyond simply line memorization and dramatics. An actor should actually experience the role that he or she is to play beforehand, so as to make actions and reactions more natural.
72. In his young acting days, McQueen read an article in a celebrity magazine about an actor who commented that he often had a difficult time deciding which of his cars to take to work on a particular day. As a car lover himself, Steve got mad reading the article. Later, once he could afford any car he wanted, in multitude, he commented that he doesn’t “get sore at the stories about all the automobiles the stars own and the choices they have to make.”
73. In his early days as an aspiring actor, while he still needed women to pay for his meals, Steve befriended a cook at a popular Greenwich Village spot called Louis’ Tavern. The cook’s name was Sal, and Steve made the deal with him that if Sal would feed him, Steve would pay him back once he landed paying acting jobs. True to his word, Sal fed Steve when he was hungry, and Steve payed him back in full whenever he got work.
74. McQueen had his first real experience with children when he occasionally babysat for one of The Neighborhood Playhouse faculty’s baby daughter. It must have been an incredible experience for him to witness first-hand what a traditional family was like. This may have been a major factor in being considered a great parent once he had children.
75. In late 1954, McQueen and fellow actor Richard Martin left New York in search of work in Los Angeles. The only offer they received while there was to sail on magician John Calvert’s yacht for a two-year tour. Although they’d be paid for the time, neither was willing to make the two-year sacrifice.
76. About the only thing that Steve and Richard did accomplish on their mission to Las Angeles was earning the notoriety of being kicked out of the famous hotel Chateau Marmont for skinny-dipping with a couple of actresses. This story spread throughout the acting community back in New York, and when they returned, the job offers began to roll in.
77. While on the set of Two Fingers of Pride, Steve had affairs with two female castmates: Peggy Feury and Olga Bellin. Each filled a different void that he needed in his life. His relationship with Feury was largely based on attraction while Bellin provided more on the emotional support side of things.
78. While living in The Village as a carefree, rebellious youth on a motorcycle, Steve’s nickname in the neighborhood was “Bandido.” In her memoir, wife Niele recalls being referred to as “Bandido’s Girl” when they first started dating.
79. Critical and audience reviews of his performances never seemed to bother Steve while he was doing stage work, who understood that he was still a student actor. The one reviewer who did intimidate and frighten him was his very own teacher, Lee Strasberg!
80. Steve disliked classes and performing skits because he felt he got more out of live performances for patrons. Of being reviewed by Strasberg in class, Steve once said, “I would rather take my chances with the paying public.” By his reasoning, at least he was getting paid!
MOVIE FACTS
81. When the Broadway production of Time Out For Ginger moved to Chicago in 1954, producers cast Steve as Eddie Davis. McQueen starred alongside several of the original cast members, including Melvyn Douglas, Nancy Malone, and Philip Loeb. The play focused on a girl, Ginger, who wanted to try out for her school’s football team and the blowback that affected her supportive father. Steve would have been fired outright from the production if not for his agent, Peter Witt, stepping in and convincing Douglas and director Shepard Traube to let him resign. Getting fired from his first paying job would have had damning effects on his career.
82. McQueen’s first known performance was in the play Molly Picon, which was put on by a Jewish company in New York in 1952. His one line in the play was: “Allez iz forloren,” which is Yiddish for “All is lost.” This role earned him $40 a week. McQueen said that he got the part thanks to his roommate’s sister who was an actress and talked the producers into hiring him. He was fired after four performances, which he jokingly blamed on his “lousy Yiddish.”
83. In the summer of 1952, McQueen dusted himself off and got back on the stage, this time at the Country Playhouse in East Rochester, New York, for the week-long production of Peg O’ My Heart. The play required him to use an English accent; however, he was so nervous that he forgot some of his lines on the show’s opening night.
84. A cast mate approached him after the show and said, “I want you to know that your performance was just embarrassing.” McQueen recalled feeling like the wind was taken out of his sails. After that, he contemplated getting out of acting altogether.
85. Steve’s first on-screen performance was in a 1952 TV short called Family Affair. The 27-minute film was originally intended for AT&T employees and select public groups to show the necessity of having multiple phones in a modern household. McQueen, credited as Stephen McQueen, plays a goofy sailor named Freddy. While on leave, he plans to propose to his girlfriend, but in order to connect with her he must use the household’s additional phone. McQueen has four scenes, in all of which he wears a Navy uniform.
86. McQueen’s second on-screen performance came in the form of an uncredited extra in the 1953 film Girl On The Run. The film is a murder mystery in which police investigate a murder in a burlesque theater. Although he has no lines, he can be spotted in the background in two scenes. The one-hour and four-minute film was his first involvement in a feature production.
87. Steve’s credited TV debut came in the 1955 Goodyear Playhouse production of The Chivington Raid. The one-hour live to TV broadcast was based on the true story behind the 1864 Sand Creek Massacre. Colonel Chivington led his 675-man Colorado Volunteer Cavalry in an attack in Cheyenne and Arapaho territory to kill an estimated 70 to 163 men, women, and children as revenge for the suspected killing of two white men.
88. In the summer of 1955, the play Two Fingers of Pride was presented at the Ogunquit Playhouse in Maine with the intention of moving to Broadway. Steve was the only unproven actor among a well-known cast, and he played the second lead of Nino alongside Garry Merrill, who played the lead. The play was about corruption on the New York City docks, a dark theme that McQueen could play well. The writer, Jim Longhi, said of his performance, “This original, primitive, self-taught kid gets up onstage every night with these terrific pros and wins the race.”
89. Upon his discharge from the service in April 1950, Steve headed back to Myrtle Beach to rejoin his former flame Sue Ann. She had numerous well-connected, wealthy friends and the pair often attended fancy dinner and dance parties. It was a world he had never known, and by all accounts he enjoyed it, if only because he knew every next meal was coming and he’d have plenty of time to lounge around.
90. Sue Ann’s wealthy father approached Steve one day with a promising job offer and a life free from want if he would marry Sue Ann. Steve was so shocked that he left town immediately and never saw Sue Ann again. Bad for Sue Ann, good for Steve McQueen fans.
91. After leaving Myrtle Beach, McQueen worked his way back to New York City where his mother arranged for him to rent a room for $19 a month. His roommate was photographer and playwright Gene Lesser who went on to write several successful plays and films.
92. In typical cool, casual Steve McQueen style, he often credits his early interest in acting to a part-time actress he dated named Donna Barton, who was also a dancer at the Copacabana nightclub. She paid for the meal on their first date, and Steve moved in to her apartment the next day. She was taking classes at The Neighborhood Playhouse at the time and suggested that Steve should try it.
93. In all likelihood, Steve’s mother’s boyfriend Viktor Lukens played an even bigger role in his introduction to acting. Viktor was the one who introduced him to Sanford Meisner, who was on the faculty of The Neighborhood Playhouse.
94. Until he applied to The Neighborhood Playhouse on June 25, 1951, McQueen was still introducing himself as Steve Berri. Viktor Lukens was the one who told him to go by Steve McQueen, as he considered it to be a great name for an actor.
95. Further evidence that Viktor Lukens was the primary driving force behind McQueen’s acting career was that Steve listed Lukens’ 19 Barrow Street address on his application in addition to listing him as a professional reference. Lukens also paid for Steve’s application fee and the first year of classes.
96. McQueen officially started acting school at The Neighborhood Playhouse in August 1951. Among the required list of items was a leotard and a set of ballet slippers. That doesn’t exactly paint an image of the Steve McQueen we know, and according to his old instructor, Steve often complained about the attire. That is until she grabbed him by the groin and lifted him off the floor to teach him how to stand up straight.
97. In an informal poll conducted by fellow actors, Steve McQueen placed dead last as to who would be most likely to succeed.
98. Although not technically a paid production, McQueen’s first real play was The Neighborhood Playhouse’s year-end showcase entitled Truckline Café, which was originally a Marlon Brando production. Naturally, Steve played the Brando role and did so to perfection.
99. His performance was noticed by agent Peter Witt, who approached Steve after the show about becoming his agent. Steve later accepted the offer, making Peter Witt his first agent of record.
100. One of Steve’s co-actors on stage in the Truckline Café production was Al Hedison. After the performance, Steve told him, “Al, you and I are going to be stars!” About seven years later, the two of them attained stardom when Steve took the lead in The Blob and Hedison took the lead in The Fly. Marquees displayed both titles along with the names of the actors. Steve was right again!
101. McQueen began his second attempt at drama school with a low-key operation run by Herbert Berghof and Uta Hagen. The $3 daily fee was simply collected by one of the students, although oftentimes students who couldn’t afford the fee were allowed in anyway. The school focused on stage acting and heavy drama rather than big-screen cinema acting. Steve struggled in this setting, and with his instructors, who didn’t find his antics or attitude very amusing.
102. Until his death in 1954, Steve considered James Dean his biggest competition when it came to scoring parts. They were similarly method actors with a one-year age difference and they were born 80 miles apart. They even dated the same woman at one point! Oftentimes, Steve stared at the mirror trying to emulate James Dean or Marlon Brando in an attempt to nail down their personas. Steve considered Dean’s death an opportunity to take some of his roles.
103. After his “resignation” from Time Out For Ginger, Steve had a tough time landing paying jobs. To stay in the entertainment industry, and make some rent money, he posed for popular pulp magazines such as Crime Detective and Homicide Detective. Even though he was just about on the bottom of the acting business, he still insisted on choosing his own photographer for the shoots: Roy Schatt, who had previously done well-known pop-culture shoots with James Dean and Marilyn Monroe.
104. When Steve earned his part in Two Fingers of Pride, he was unable to produce an Actor’s Equity Card, which is required for working actors. The producer and director were shocked upon hearing this news, and even more shocked when Steve asked for the money so that he could go get one. They each pitched in $17.50 to the worthy cause, after which Steve informed them that he also needed an agent, which is another requirement for getting an Actor’s Equity Card. He even asked them to find him one. Because an agent represents the actor’s interests against the executives, the request was a peculiar one, but necessary to continue production of the show.
105. MCA agent John Foreman agreed to represent Steve McQueen so he could get his card and continue his role in the play. Afterward, Foreman dropped him as a client. Whoops!
106. McQueen’s role in Two Fingers of Pride was that of an Italian longshoreman working on the docks of New York City. To get a proper feel for the part, an arrangement was made to put Steve to work on the Mafia-run docks in the rough Red Hook neighborhood of Brooklyn. He stacked wooden crates for a few weeks, and at one point was worried that the crew had forgotten he was only an actor because they had been working him so hard. He asked the play’s producer to call his contact who orchestrated the experience and confirm that the other workers knew that Steve was an actor studying for a role.
107. Two Fingers of Pride was shut down after only a week, but to Steve, it was a huge success. Although the play received harsh criticism, McQueen’s performance was regarded as “truly excellent” by The Village Voice. Producer Jack Garfein was also impressed with his work, and he continued as a mentor to Steve, helping him to harness his talent and navigate a difficult industry.
108. In 1955, McQueen tried out for and successfully gained entry into Lee Strasberg’s The Actor’s Studio. In his final audition, and with Jack Garfein there for support, Steve delivered an incredible performance and was accepted on his first attempt, a rare feat. Only he and actor Martin Landau were accepted into The Actor’s Studio that year out of the 2,000 actors who applied.
109. Although any direct evidence has yet to come to light, it’s believed that a young Steve McQueen first appeared on camera in some Viktor Lukens films as early as 1951. Steve’s application to acting school not only listed Lukens as his stepfather, but cites previous acting experience in his films.
110. At one point early in his acting career, McQueen began following James Dean around New York City. He took notes and copied his every move, trying to match and understand that special factor that made James Dean a Hollywood star. Steve’s friends even called him “the shadow,” because it was so obvious what he was doing. Dean knew what McQueen was up to, but never said anything, perhaps enjoying someone looking up to him like that.
111. Even though Steve played the second lead in the play Two Fingers of Pride, and excelled in the role according to critics, his name wasn’t listed on advertising posters or billboards outside the theater. All the other actors in the play had more experience, and were represented by their own agents fighting for them. Although Steve had an agent, he was of little importance and therefore had nobody looking out for his best interests.
112. Rather than wait in the cold as an extra on Somebody Up There Likes Me, Steve decided to rest in a parked limo where he ended up falling asleep. It turned out to be Pier Angeli’s limo, and her husband, Vic Damone, was irate to find the young man sleeping in it. Steve was briskly kicked back out into the cold.
113. Steve McQueen and his Actor’s Studio partner, Peggy Feury, chose a scene to perform in which a catholic nun falls in love with one of her students and leaves the convent. To prepare their characters, Feury, dressed as a nun, and McQueen strolled the streets of New York, often taking breaks to show their affection for one another. According to Peggy Feury, Steve was in a panic throughout the walk thanks to his strong catholic upbringing. He thought that somebody, or somebody up there, would forcibly put a stop to their portrayal.
114. When McQueen and Feury finally performed the scene in front of Lee Strasberg, a nervous Steve couldn’t take it anymore when Feury slipped out of her habit to reveal sexy lace lingerie underneath. He burst into tears at the sight and couldn’t continue the scene.
115. While struggling to find work as an actor in New York City in the early 1950s, Steve, and many other actors and actresses, posed for detective and crime magazines. Photographers proved to be a wonderful resource for unemployed actors, as the work guaranteed a couple of bucks and could be done only when needed.
116. Steve’s future wife, Neile, posed for the same kinds of magazines when she was a young up-and-comer. Chances are they crossed paths at some point or another before actually meeting.
117. Although most critics of A Hatful of Rain disliked Steve’s performance, Variety made the important distinction that it was a very difficult role for anyone to play and that McQueen did fine for his Broadway debut. In her memoir, Neile mentions that his youth, compared to on-stage wife Vivian Blaine, hurt the performance since it didn’t appear real for him to be with the more mature actress.
MOVIE AUTOMOBILE FACTS
118. Although Time Out For Ginger didn’t feature any cars or motorcycles, the playbill relayed McQueen’s love of riding and racing motorcycles. It reads, “Steve McQueen (Eddie Davis) was born in Los Angeles and when he is not acting he races motorcycles. He prefers the stage, which he considers only a little less hazardous. When questioned he said, ‘Well, motorcycles may break your bones, but the theatre can break your heart.’”
119. Steve McQueen worked as a motorcycle mechanic while he attended acting school and was beginning his career. James Dean was out riding his motorcycle one day when it started acting up, so he limped it to the nearest shop in the area, which just happened to be where Steve was working that day. At the time, he was still under the belief that James Dean was taking all the roles that were otherwise meant for him. Although Dean likely had no idea who the young man working on his motorcycle was, Steve definitely knew who James Dean was!
120. While Steve was on tour in Chicago with the Time Out For Ginger production, he helped co-star Nancy Malone buy her first car. Since he had recently purchased an MG, he suggested that she do the same. Malone paid $2,500 cash for a brand-new 1953 MG at the Arnolt dealership in Chicago. Steve told her he would give her driving lessons, which he unfortunately wasn’t able to do because he left the production shortly thereafter.
121. McQueen reported for duty at the Ogunquit Playhouse in Maine for Two Fingers of Pride on his motorcycle, naturally. He rode 300 miles through a rainstorm with his girlfriend on the back.
122. The yellow 1951 Chevrolet Styline Deluxe convertible driven by Ralph “Papa” Thorsen in The Hunter was purchased by McQueen after filming. Although it never took on quite the persona and following as the Bullitt Mustang, the Chevy was driven by McQueen at length throughout the film, and the fact that it was in his collection at his death makes it an important car. The vehicle remained in the limelight through the years and was even featured on two episodes of the popular TV series Pawn Stars. It was purchased at Barrett-Jackson’s 2018 Scottsdale auction for $126,500.
AUTOMOBILE COLLECTION
123. McQueen bought his first sports car, a red 1948 TC-MG, in 1954 while on tour in Columbus, Ohio, with Time Out For Ginger. Although he wasn’t earning much from the play, the crew played poker every night and he was the usual winner. The MG cost $750, so McQueen put $450 down and sent the seller money every week until it was paid off.
124. He had the car delivered to Chicago, where the play was based, and then took it back to New York with him after he was fired. “I thought I was kind of Jack L. Warner’s son, you know,” he said of the MG. “I didn’t have any dough and lived in a cold-water flat, but I had that MG parked outside.” He eventually sold it to pay the rent.
125. While living in Greenwich Village, Steve became somewhat of a local character by riding his motorcycle around shirtless, much to the joy of the girls in the area. Perhaps it was this display that caught the affection of actress Susan Oliver, whom Steve dated in 1950. She recalled riding around the Village on his motorcycle, although eventually grew tired of loaning him money for gas and food.
126. One of Steve’s friends in his early acting days in Greenwich Village was fellow actor Richard Martin who owned an MG sports car. One day he let Steve drive it, which certainly made a young, broke Steve McQueen a happy man. He went on to buy his own MG a few years later, possibly because of this first experience in the British lightweight.
127. McQueen once rode his motorcycle into Louis’ Tavern, his favorite hangout spot. Because the bar was below the sidewalk, he rode down the stairs and right into the barroom. You can assume he wasn’t doing this slowly, since he crashed through a glass door once inside and landed on the floor. At the time, there just happened to be a couple of wiseguys inside, who removed Steve and his motorcycle from the bar.
128. Although McQueen rode a motorcycle as his only form of transportation, he didn’t have a license! This wasn’t a problem until his girlfriend, Janet Conway, hit her head into the back of his head after he hit a pothole. She had a serious cut over her left eye and they had to go to the emergency room. They couldn’t tell the doctor that the accident had occurred on a motorcycle, so she fibbed and said that she had fallen so that Steve wouldn’t get in trouble.
129. Steve purchased his first motorcycle in 1950, “a mean old” 1946 Indian Chief with sidecar.
130. Right after buying it he rode over to show it off to a girl he was dating at the time. Naturally, he was proud of his first major purchase. She told him, “You don’t expect me to ride around with you on that?” He got her to try it, but she hated the bumpy sidecar and told him, “Either the bike goes or I go!” In his own words: “The girl went, but the bike stayed.” His 1946 Chief sold at auction in 2013 for $143,750.
131. Steve once handed down an old, beat-up motorcycle helmet to fellow actor George Peppard who had just started riding. The helmet had deep gouges in it from when Steve had slid on a set of railroad tracks and crashed into someone’s front porch one night. The helmet had seen much use and abuse; it obviously was worn by a motorcyclist who had seen and done a thing or two. The novice Peppard could throw a leg over the old, leaky BSA, and even though he was still learning to ride, McQueen’s helmet made him look as hardened of a biker as anyone.
132. Broadway’s famed Lyceum Theater used to have a little, easily-accessible yard behind it where NYPD mounted police could leave their horses and go on break. This spot also provided a place where Steve and fellow actor Ed Julien could park their motorcycles while working on A Hatful of Rain. The Lyceum Theater still stands strong as one of Broadway’s oldest theaters; however, access to the back alley by motorcycle is now prohibited.
133. The 1952 Chevrolet 3800 pickup truck that eventually took Steve McQueen on his final ride was custom-built by Harold Van Hoosen in Yreka, California, in October 1952. The camper truck, known as “Dust Tite,” was made of galvanized metal and aluminum and was originally meant as a track rig for a motorsports enthusiast. The heavy-duty platform on the top was strong enough for people to stand on to get a great vantage point of a motorcycle or car race.
134. Steve was out driving his MG convertible one day in New York City when he drove it right into an excavation hole on Sixth Avenue! He did so much damage to the fickle little British sports car that he got rid of it rather than fix it. He decided that two-wheeled transportation was the right way to go for the city and purchased a BSA motorcycle to replace the car.
135. When Steve moved in with then-girlfriend Neile, he kept his BSA motorcycle at the garage across the street from her apartment. In that same garage lived a new Bugatti. After making the daily trek past one of the most beautiful cars ever to grace the Earth, the temptation became too great and Steve decided that he needed to borrow the French sports car to see what it was all about. He grabbed the keys while the attendant wasn’t looking and quickly pulled it out of the garage. He called Neile from a payphone around the corner and told her to come down. As soon as she saw the expensive car she knew that he had stolen it, or as he corrected her “borrowed” it from an owner who would never find out. They took a ride around Central Park and then drove it right back to the garage where Steve handed the keys to the stupefied parking attendant.
136. As soon as Neile’s boss, George Abbot, found out that she was dating a guy with a motorcycle and that she was actually riding on the back of it, he requested that she stop. Or as she puts it, Abbot clarified specifically not to ride on the back of Steve McQueen’s motorcycle. She had just begun starring in the Broadway play Kismet, and if the leading lady were to get hurt and not be able to dance, it would wreak major havoc on the production. As you may be able to guess, she silently denied Mr. Abbot’s request and continued riding with Steve.
137. Steve McQueen is known for owning and driving some pretty whacky automobiles over the years, but can you imagine him driving a hearse? Before he purchased the red MG in 1952, he drove a hearse that he ended up crashing in New York City’s Columbus Circle. He flipped the car upside down and totaled it, but he was able to walk away unhurt.
RACING
138. Not only did Viktor Lukens play a huge role in getting Steve interested in acting, he is also responsible for getting him interested in racing. A serious racer himself, through his team Racemasters, Lukens competed in the 24 Heures du Mans in 1955 and the 12 Hours of Sebring in 1957.
139. Most of the racing Steve did in his early days in New York City was of the stoplight-to-stoplight variety. His 1946 Indian flathead sported 80 inches of American power and since it was equipped with a sidecar, likely also had lower gears to make the heavy outfit less noticeable. With the sidecar removed, however, the big Indian became quite the challenger on short straightaways.
140. What’s believed to be McQueen’s second motorcycle, a Harley-Davidson K model, which was produced from 1952 to 1956, was one of the best racing bikes of the day. The lightweight motorcycle was one of the first to utilize hand-clutching and foot-shifting and had a quick-revving unit powertrain that made it the star of racetracks around the country. It remained the star of Harley-Davidson’s race team until the dominating XR750 was introduced in 1970. Virtually nothing is known about the specific K that McQueen owned other than he was likely very difficult to beat on the track, strip, or street.
141. He must have owned it at least in early 1952 because people report him riding it at that time. He bought it with money from his truck driving wages and immediately began hopping up the engine.
142. Steve nearly stuffed his new K-model racebike into the back of a Lincoln while drag racing on the West Side Highway in New York City. He was leading his opponent when he pulled off onto the planned off-ramp at about 100 mph, and looked behind him to see that the other rider had missed the exit. When Steve turned his head around, traffic had come to a standstill at the bottom of the off-ramp. He slammed on his brakes and skidded right up to the back of a Lincoln, saying that he even tapped the bumper. This incident must have occurred higher up on the West Side Highway, near Harlem, where there are actual on- and off-ramps.
143. In addition to the street racing in Manhattan, McQueen also took his K-model Harley to Long Island City, in Queens, to compete in cycle runs held there every weekend. The prize money averaged about $50 a race and Steve won a couple of races each weekend. With that money, and whatever he could win that week playing Poker, he made enough to quit his truck driving job.
