Biography Sterling Hayden

1 biography

1.1 youth , education
1.2 hollywood years
1.3 war service
1.4 return hollywood , red scare
1.5 asphalt jungle
1.6 travelling
1.7 return hollywood
1.8 later career
1.9 death

biography
youth , education

hayden born in upper montclair, new jersey, george , frances walter, named him sterling relyea walter. after father died, adopted @ age 9 james hayden , renamed sterling walter hayden. child lived in coastal towns of new england, , in new hampshire, massachusetts, pennsylvania, washington, d.c., , maine. attended wassookeag school in dexter, maine.

hayden dropped out of high school @ age of 16 , took job mate on schooner. first voyage newport beach, california, new london, connecticut. later, fisherman on grand banks of newfoundland, ran charter yacht, , served fireman on 11 trips cuba aboard steamer. skippered trading schooner in caribbean after earning master s license, , in 1937 served mate on world cruise of schooner yankee. after serving sailor , fireman on larger vessels , sailing around world several times, awarded first command @ age 22, skippering square rigger florence c. robinson 7,700 miles gloucester, massachusetts, tahiti in 1938. hayden spoke of nautical experiences before monthly meeting of adventurers club of new york on march 21, 1940.

early hollywood years

hayden became print model , later signed contract paramount pictures, dubbed 6′5″ (1.96 m) actor beautiful man in movies , beautiful blond viking god. first film, virginia (1941), directed edward h. griffith, starred madeleine carroll whom married. he, griffith , carroll reunited in bahama passage (1941).

war service

after 2 film roles, left hollywood , joined united states marine corps private, under name john hamilton, nom de guerre never used otherwise. while @ parris island, recommended officer candidate school.

after graduation, commissioned second lieutenant , transferred service undercover agent william j. wild bill donovan s office of coordinator of information. remained there after became office of strategic services (oss).

as oss agent john hamilton, world war ii service included sailing supplies italy yugoslav partisans , parachuting fascist croatia. hayden, participated in naples–foggia campaign , established air crew rescue teams in enemy-occupied territory, became first lieutenant on september 13, 1944, , captain on february 14, 1945. received silver star (for gallantry in action in balkans , mediterranean; lt. hamilton displayed great courage in making hazardous sea voyages in enemy-infested waters , reconnaissance through enemy-held areas ), bronze arrowhead device parachuting behind enemy lines, , commendation yugoslavia s marshal tito. left active duty on december 24, 1945.

return hollywood , red scare

hayden returned paramount, play 1 of several brothers in aviation film, blaze of noon (1947).

his great admiration bravery of communist partisans led brief membership in communist party. apparently active in supporting effort communist-controlled motion picture painters union absorb other film industry unions. red scare deepened in u.s., cooperated house un-american activities committee, confessing brief communist ties , naming names. wife @ time, betty de noon, insisted names ex-husband provided in hands of committee, had copy of communist party s membership list. in event, hayden subsequently repudiated cooperation committee, stating in autobiography, don t think have foggiest notion of contempt have had myself since day did thing.

hayden made 2 films pine thomas productions distributed through paramount: western, el paso (1949), supporting john payne; , manhandled (1949), thriller dorothy lamour.

the asphalt jungle

hayden s career received boost when cast john huston in starring role of mgm s heist thriller, asphalt jungle (1950). minor hit highly regarded critically , established hayden leading man.

he played minister doubts faith in journey light (1952), supported bette davis star (1952). not large success flaming feather (1952), western, did well.

he followed series of action films: denver , rio grande (1952), western, paramount; hellgate (1952), western; golden hawk (1952), pirate swashbuckler producer sam katzman; flat top (1952), korean war drama; fighter attack (1953), world war 2 film.

so big (1953) bit different - melodrama edna ferber novel starring jane wyman. medium budget action films: take me town (1953), western ann sheridan; kansas pacific (1953), western; crime wave (1954), film noir.

he had support role in big studio picture, prince valiant (1954), playing sir gawain, returned more conventional material arrow in dust. johnny guitar (1954) western, time joan crawford , nick ray - hit, , became cult favourite. financed republic pictures used hayden on several occasions.

there film noirs: naked alibi (1954) gloria grahame , (1954) frank sinatra. action: battle taxi (1954), korean war movie; timberjack (1955), western republic; shotgun (1955), western yvonne de carlo; eternal sea (1955), world war 2 naval story; top gun (1955), western producer edward small.

the last command (1955) story of alamo republic, hayden jim bowie. come on (1956) film noir anne baxter.

hayden cast in heist film turned out classic: killing (1956), work director stanley kubrick. remained b picture star though: crime of passion (1957), noir; 5 steps danger (1957), mystery film; valerie (1957), western noir ; 0 hour! (1957), disaster film; gun battle @ monterey (1957), western; iron sheriff (1957), western edward small; ten days tulara (1958), adventure film; terror in texas town (1958), western.

travelling

hayden professed distaste film acting, saying did pay ships , voyages. in 1958, after bitter divorce betty ann de noon, hayden awarded custody of children. defied court order , sailed tahiti 4 children, christian, dana, gretchen , matthew. crew sailed san francisco bay tahiti, hayden had planned film movie. hayden invited well-known photographer dody weston thompson along document trip , shoot location choices. south seas folio contains photographs of hayden s ship, wanderer; on-deck photos of life aboard ship; colorful prints of children, tahitian women , children; , unique artifacts on shore. film never materialized; however, according dody s notes, u.s. camera , travel printed photographs of paradise in 1961. marin county superior court judge harold haley later ordered hayden repay republic pictures $50,000 recover cost of financing trip.

in 1960, married catherine devine mcconnell. had 2 sons, andrew , david, , married until death in 1986. mcconnell had son (scott mcconnell) first marriage neil mcconnell, heir avon s founding family.

in 1960s, hayden rented 1 of pilot houses of retired ferryboat berkeley, docked in sausalito, california, resided while writing autobiography wanderer, first published in 1963. in it, reminisces turning points in life:

the sun beats down , pace, pace , pace. mind flies free , see actor, condemned treadmill wherein men , women conspire breathe life screenplay allegedly depicts life in old wild west. see coming awake 1 of thousand mornings between spring of 1954, , of 1958—alone in double bed in big white house deep in suburban sherman oaks, not far hollywood.

the windows open wide, , beyond these backyard swimming pool inert , green, within picket fence. turn , gaze @ pair of desks not far double bed. private office, place shelters fondest hopes: these desks neat, patiently waiting day never comes, day ll sit down @ last , begin write.

why did never write? why, instead, did grovel along, through endless months , years, motion‑picture actor? held it, vehemently professed despise? secretly liked it—that big dough , big house , high life meant more aura spun around see?

hayden s wild, said. s kind of nuts—but ve got hand him. doesn t give damn loot or stardom or things that—something seafaring, or maybe went through in war . . .

return hollywood

back in hollywood, hayden appeared in carol christmas (1964) on tv. had support role in dr. strangelove (1964) stanley kubrick.

he in hard contract (1969), supporting james coburn.

later career

hayden had small important roles in godfather (1972) , long goodbye (1973). made films in europe: final programme (1973), deadly strangers (1975), , 1900 (1975).

in 1970s, after appearance in godfather, appeared several times on nbc s tomorrow show tom snyder, talked career resurgence , how had funded travels , adventures around world. hayden bought canal barge in netherlands in 1969, moving heart of paris , living on part of time. shared home in wilton, connecticut, family , had apartment in sausalito.

he returned hollywood king of gypsies (1978), winter kills (1979), , 9 5 (1980).

hayden wrote 2 acclaimed books: autobiography, wanderer (1962), , novel, voyage (1976).

death

sterling hayden died of prostate cancer in sausalito in 1986, age 70.