April Star of the Month- Melvyn Douglas

 

MELVYN DOUGLAS

BIRTH: April 5, 1901

DEATH: August 4, 1981

AGED: 80 years

DIED FROM: pneumonia and cardiac issues

REAL NAME: Melvyn Edouard Hesselberg

MARRIED: Twice-1st to Rosalind Hightower. 2nd to Helen Gahagan, an actress and the physical inspiration for the Evil Queen in Disney’s Snow White.  She became a 3 time Congresswoman(D)

CHILDREN: 3 kids. 1 from the first and 2 with his 2nd wife

GRANDKID: Illiana Douglas- check her out, you know her

FRIENDS: FDR and Eleanor Roosevelt 

OSCAR NOMINATIONS: “I Never Sang  For My Father”

OSCAR WINS: “ Hud” and “ Being There”

KNOWN FOR: winning trifecta in awards- Oscar, Emmys and Tony Awards

This man is a solid actor who had no illusions about age, stood up against tyranny, faithful to his wife and loved being an actor. His mom, came from high Southern family and  had her direct roots to the Mayflower while his dad was an immigrant from Latvia who was a Concert Pianist and composer and taught piano. Melvyn had no idea his dad was Jewish until he turned 14 years old and learned about his heritage from his aunts who were proud to tell him. He loved his Jewish ancestry and never hid from it where most people did in Hollywood, like all the studio heads. Melvyn never finished high school but signed up for WW1 and, after that, ended up on the theatre stage….his first love. He married twice, the first to  an artist and had one son with her who, in turn, had a daughter, Iliana Douglas, who made a name in her own right as an actress on film and TV. His 2nd wife was his big love and, together, they were a force, often fighting for injustice. When they visited Europe after they got married, in 1931, and saw first hand, the anti-Semitism in Germany and France, were appalled and fought fascism for the rest of their lives. After the 2nd World War, which he signed up and was head of  an Entertainment unit in Burma rising to Major, he and his 2nd wife started being called leftist sympathizers which caused a delay in his film career. I love that his wife became a 3 time congresswoman who went up against Nixon in 1950. Nixon fought dirty ( and won) calling her a Pinko and said he wouldn’t be surprised if her undies were even pink. She was the one that coined the term, “Tricky Dick”..I think I love her! When he returned to the big screen, he looked much older, probably due to his heart issues. Sadly, his wife died of cancer in 1980 and Melvyn was left bereft. He did make one more film, “Ghost Story” but sadly died before his scenes were done. The director worked around those scenes and it became his last film. A rare gentleman in Hollywood.

FILMS

1. Theodora Goes Wild-1936  ( my favourite)

2. Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream Home-1948

3. I Never Sang For My Father-1970

4. Hud-1963

5. Ninotchka-1939

6. Ghost Story-1981

7. Being There-1980

8. As You Desire Me-1932

9. That Gorgeous Hussey-1936

10. That Uncertain Feeling-1941

The Last 3 and others not mentioned, I have yet to see. I tried to placed the first 7 in order of my favourites…Ninotchka should be higher..just so darn hard.