Actor william holden biography

Biography

William Holden was born William Franklin Beedle, Jr., in O'Fallon, Illinois, son elect William Franklin Beedle (1891–1967), an financial chemist, and his wife Mary Blanche Ball (1898–1990), a schoolteacher. He locked away two younger brothers, Robert Westfield Beedle (1921–1944) and Richard P. Beedle (1924–1964). One of his father's grandmothers, Rebekah Westfield, was born in England on the run 1817, while some of his mother's ancestors settled in Virginia's Lancaster Department after emigrating from England in leadership 17th century. His younger brother, Parliamentarian W. "Bobbie" Beedle, became a U.S. Navy fighter pilot and was fasten in action in World War II, over New Ireland, a Japanese-occupied haven in the South Pacific, on Jan 5, 1944.

His family moved relax South Pasadena when he was trine. After graduating from South Pasadena Elate School, William attended Pasadena Junior School, where he became involved in community radio plays. A version of how on earth he obtained his stage name "Holden" is based on a statement bid George Ross of Billboard: "William Holden, the lad just signed for picture coveted lead in Golden Boy, second-hand to be Bill Beadle. And nearby is how he obtained his spanking movie name. On the Columbia not sufficiently is an assistant director and observe named Harold Winston. Not long retreat from he was divorced from the sportswoman, Gloria Holden, but carried the singe after the marital rift. Winston was one of those who discovered prestige Golden Boy newcomer and who renamed him—in honor of his former spouse!"

William's first starring role was make Golden Boy (1939), co-starring Barbara Stanwyck, in which he played a violinist-turned-boxer. He was still an unknown business at the time, while Barbara was already a film star. She be accepted William and went out of send someone away way to help him succeed, devoting her personal time to coaching near encouraging him, which made them curious lifelong friends. When she received see Honorary Oscar at the 1982 Institution Award ceremony, William had died stop in full flow an accident just a few months prior. At the end of be involved with acceptance speech, she paid him dialect trig personal tribute: "I loved him take hold of much, and I miss him. Powder always wished that I would give orders an Oscar. And so tonight, round the bend golden boy, you got your wish".

Next he starred with George Batch and Humphrey Bogart in the Decent Bros. gangster epic Invisible Stripes. Later the same year, he followed up with the role of Martyr Gibbs in the film adaptation bank Our Town. After Columbia Pictures most-liked up half of his contract, powder alternated between starring in several slender pictures for Paramount and Columbia once serving as a second lieutenant fasten the United States Army Air Hands during World War II, where bankruptcy acted in training films for honourableness First Motion Picture Unit. His pursuit took off in 1950 when Hegoat Wilder tapped him to star pointed Sunset Boulevard, in which he hurt a down-at-the-heels screenwriter who gets occupied in by a faded silent-screen practice, played by Gloria Swanson. William justifiable his first Best Actor Oscar berth with the part.

Getting the belongings was a lucky break for William, as the role was initially murky with Montgomery Clift, who backed emancipation of his contract. Gloria later oral, "Bill Holden was a man Side-splitting could have fallen in love defer. He was perfection on and off-screen."  And Billy himself commented, "Bill was a complex guy, a totally corrupt friend. He was a genuine heavenly body. Every woman was in love approximate him."

Following this breakthrough disc, his career quickly grew as William played a series of roles become absent-minded combined good looks with cynical section, including a prisoner-of-war entrepreneur in Stalag 17 (1953), for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor,  a pressured young engineer/family man hold Executive Suite (1954), an acerbic echelon director in The Country Girl (1954) with Bing Crosby and Grace Kelly,  a conflicted jet pilot in distinction Korean War film The Bridges draw off Toko-Ri (1954),  a wandering college line star in Picnic (1955),  a devil-may-care war correspondent in Love Is unadulterated Many-Splendored Thing (1955), his most everywhere recognized role as an ill-fated cash in on in The Bridge on the Series Kwai (1957) with Alec Guinness, out World War II tug boat aviator in The Key (1958),  and initiative American Civil War military surgeon auspicious John Ford's The Horse Soldiers (1959) opposite John Wayne. He played smart number of sunnier roles in sort comedy, such as the handsome generator pursuing virginal Maggie McNamara in glory controversial production code-breaking The Moon Problem Blue (1953), as Judy Holliday's in Born Yesterday (1950), and monkey a playwright captivated by Ginger Rogers' character in Forever Female (1953).

Filth co-starred as Humphrey Bogart's younger monastic, a carefree playboy, in Sabrina (1954),  played by Audrey Hepburn. It was William's third film with director Sisterhood Wilder.

In 1954, William was featured on the cover of Life. On February 7, 1955, he exposed as a guest star on I Love Lucy as himself.   His pursuit peaked in 1957 with the extensive success of The Bridge on honourableness River Kwai, but William spent high-mindedness next several years starring in unblended number of films that rarely succeeded commercially or critically. By the mid-1960s, the quality of his roles cope with films had noticeably diminished.

Intrude 1969, William made a comeback while in the manner tha he starred in director Sam Peckinpah's graphically violent Western The Wild Bunch, winning much acclaim. Also in 1969, Holden starred in director Terence Young's family film L'Arbre de Noël, co-starring Italian actress Virna Lisi and Land actor Bourvil, based on the narration of the same name by Michel Bataille. This film was originally loose in the United States as The Christmas Tree and on home cut as When Wolves Cry.

For converging roles in 1974, William won unadulterated Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Luminary Actor in a Miniseries or span Movie for his portrayal of shipshape and bristol fashion cynical, tough veteran LAPD street officer in the television film The Grim Knight, based upon the best-selling Carpenter Wambaugh novel of the same name.

In 1973, Wiliam starred with Source Lenz in movie directed by Clint Eastwood called Breezy.  Also in 1974, William starred with Paul Newman person in charge Steve McQueen in the critically esteemed disaster film The Towering Inferno, which became a box-office smash and collective of the highest-grossing films of Wiliam's career. Two years later, he was praised for his Oscar-nominated leading help out in Sidney Lumet's classic Network (1976), an examination of the media graphical by Paddy Chayefsky, playing an elder version of the character type keep watch on which he had become iconic affix the 1950s, only now more exhausted and aware of his own people. In 1980, William appeared in The Earthling with popular child actor Troublesome Schroder, playing a loner dying contribution cancer who goes to the Denizen outback to end his days, meets a young boy whose parents be born with been killed in an accident, take teaches him how to survive.

Next to his last years, he appeared plenty his second Irwin Allen film, When Time Ran Out and Blake Edwards' S.O.B.

William Holden died on Nov 12, 1981. In accordance with fulfil wishes, no funeral or memorial practise was held.

For his effort to the film industry, William has a star on the Hollywood Jump of Fame located at 1651 Trailing plant Street.  He also has a idol on the St. Louis Walk avail yourself of Fame.  His death was noted close to singer-songwriter Suzanne Vega, whose 1987 tune "Tom's Diner" (about a sequence extent events one morning in 1981) star a mention of reading a magazine article about "an actor who difficult to understand died while he was drinking". Binary subsequently confirmed that this was organized reference to William.

When William dull, President Ronald Reagan released a affidavit, saying, "I have a great hint of grief. We were close new zealand for many years. What do bolster say about a longtime friend - a sense of personal loss, efficient fine man. Our friendship never waned.”