There are many symbols on Locke Hudson, "Prince Charming, Dream Lover" on the screen, a model of an elegant gentleman, the best actor in a romantic film... These symbols marked his screen image at that time. of perfection. But other symbols are so different from the previous ones that you may even be surprised. While he's a romantic, affectionate man on the big screen, he's an unmistakably gay man in real life. Not only was he gay, he was the first celebrity to die from AIDS. Some people even say that "Rock Hudson's death really gave AIDS a face." What is fascinating but frightening. These very different symbols connected the changing life of this man who was all-powerful at the time.
Rock Hudson formerly known as Roy Harold Jr., until he became famous, he still liked to be nicknamed Roy by others. Roy was born on November 17, 1925 in the small town of Winnetka, Illinois, USA. His father was an auto mechanic and his mother was a telephone operator. When he was 8 years old, his father left little Roy and his mother ran away from home, and soon his mother took him to remarry. When he was in high school, he aspired to be an actor, but because he could not remember the lines, he never had the opportunity to perform on stage. After graduating from high school, Roy went to work in the Post Office. During World War II, he entered the U.S. Navy as an aircraft mechanic and went to serve in the Philippines. After the war, Roy moved to California, where he worked menial jobs, including working as a truck driver for a freight company. The dream of being an actor has never disappeared from his ideals, and he even sent his own photos to some Hollywood studios for development. When delivering to the studio again, with his handsome appearance, he was noticed by a discerning film company, and thus began his brilliant film career.
The film company began to carry out systematic training on Roy, including horse riding, fencing and singing, etc., and made every effort to create this screen idol, and changed his name to the lean and more manly "Rock Hudson". Beginning in 1948, Rock Hudson began his long, legendary film life. His films had a good box office at the time, and they were considered a box office elixir, and many of his films became classics. These include "Giant" co-starring Elizabeth Taylor and James Dean, "Nothing to Love" with Jane Wyman, "Bitter Rain and Spring Breeze" with Lauren Bacall, "Battlefield" with Jennifer Jones, "Never Beaten" with John Wayne, and more. Especially his three romantic comedies "Pillow Whisper", "Pillow Whisper", "Don't Give Me Flowers" co-starred with his best partners Doris Day and Tony Landau, made him even more Doris Day became the most popular on-screen couple of the time. In the 1970s, TV series began to hit the big screen, and Rock Hudson began to move to the small screen. From 1971 to 1977, "McMillan and His Wife" starring him became a popular TV series at the time, which was extremely popular. Widely welcome. In 1984, the year before Roy's death, he starred in his last film, "The Ambassador," and has since left the profession he had loved all his life.
After a long career of more than 30 years, Rock Hudson has given a beautiful transcript. In 1956, he was nominated for the Oscar for Best Actor for his "Giant", and won the title of "Most Popular Actor at the Golden Globe Award" for four consecutive years. In 1958, he was named "Rock Hudson" by the famous American magazine "LOOK". Year of Stars" and his name on Hollywood's Walk of Fame, even 10 years after his death, he was named one of the "100 Sexiest Stars in Movie History" by Empire magazine in 1995. The professional Rock Hudson is a success story, but not emotionally. In the conservative society at that time, as a public lover on the screen, no one would have imagined that he, who is affectionate with the heroine on the screen, has no interest in women at all. It sounds like a joke, even a bit sarcastic. In order to maintain his screen image, the studio had to cover up his true sexuality. At the company's suggestion, Roy and Phyllis Keyes faked their marriage to hide from the public. Three years later, the nominal marriage fell apart, and the company began to hype Roy with various scandals to cover up his gay identity. This is how Roy lives in dual identities and lives. On the one hand, it is the various infatuation and sincere heterosexuality that it performs on the screen, and on the other hand, it is the real homosexuality in private, and it is even said that his mansion in Hollywood Beverly Hills is a meeting place for local gays.
His ex-wife Phyllis Gass once published a book titled "My Husband Rock Hudson", which detailed the three-year emotional entanglements and struggles of the titular couple. Roy once said that he liked that Phyllis never treated him like a movie star, making him feel at ease and no pressure to be with Phyllis. In the book, Phyllis said that since her marriage, Roy, whose career took off, often went out to film under the pretext of focusing on career development, leaving her at home alone. For some trivial matters, Roy even beat her up. It even described the relationship between Roy and other actors. According to the book, Phyllis didn't know Roy's true secret life until after the divorce, and revealed his close relationship with several handsome young actors. I haven't read this book, but I can see from these trivial fragments that the marriage between Phyllis and Roy is really unbearable. The cover of the book is said to be metaphorical, with the "couple" hugging, neither looking at each other. Roy was wearing a bright red dress, the same tone as Phyllis's bright red lipstick, using red to set off Roy's pale lips. Perhaps as she said, Roy seemed to appreciate her more as a business partner than as a so-called wife. Constant gossip, constant dating, the "perfect lover" and "beautiful myth" on this screen, those elaborate lies that popped like soap bubbles when Roy was ill. In the open life of sexual liberation in the late 1970s and early 1980s, sexual behavior became full of uncertainty and blindness, allowing a century-old plague like AIDS to ravage this human land. Although he grows older, he is still active on the screen. Roy, who is also gay, is unfortunately recruited. Roy's body began to have various problems. Due to years of excessive smoking and drinking, he suffered heart problems in 1981 and underwent complicated heart surgery. But after the operation, his health has not improved much. Until July 25, 1985, Rock Hudson frankly disclosed to the outside world that he was a gay and suffered from AIDS. As soon as the news came out, it caused an uproar, and because of his popularity, people became more aware of the seriousness of AIDS.
I once saw the pictures of the TV station interviewing Roy at that time. The once handsome face was tortured by the disease to the point of withering, the sparse white hair was messy, and the eyes did not have the look of the past but were full of firmness. This once-popular popular idol, but the situation at this time makes people feel heartache and regret. Roy said, "How I wish I would die of a myocardial infarction before anyone knows my true condition. I am very saddened to have contracted AIDS. But if it helps others, at least let me know. , my personal misfortune is of value to them." What is this about his once chaotic life? reward? Or maybe God is too envious of what he has. Roy was under pressure from all sides until the last moment of his life. On October 2, 1985, the handsome man on the screen died in California. The beauty on the screen that has been alive for a lifetime, also ended in the final calm. After Roy's death, his long-term boyfriend Mark Christian filed a lawsuit against Roy for having unsafe sex with him even though he knew he had AIDS. Although he tested negative for HIV, he was too stressed. caused him a lot of damage. Ultimately, a California jury found Roy guilty and awarded Mark $14.2 million. Following Roy's will, most of his estate was donated to AIDS charities because he had no children. Also, according to his last wishes, his body was cremated and his ashes were scattered in the sea. It is said that in the year of his death, many women had trouble sleeping each night because they missed Rock Hudson. This fairy tale on the screen, if you don't care about his reality, is actually destined to live in people's misses. The prosperity of the world is like a play, and the footsteps of our pursuit of dreams are also like a play. Since it is like a play, why don't we play it well? A life without regrets is illusory, and joys and sorrows are all kinds of sketches in life. Learn to cherish, learn to let go, and learn to understand the true meaning of life on the road of life. In the movie, grow up overnight or reincarnate the year before...
[Representative work] "A Farewell To Arms" (A Farewell To Arms): This film adapted from Hemingway's classic masterpiece was filmed in 1957, and starred the Oscar-winning actress Jennifer Jones at the time. The film is magnificent, with beautiful and concise language like an oil painting, and a touching transnational romance is connected by a war. Rock Hudson deeply and sincerely expressed the delicate psychology of the actor, and complemented his partner Jennifer Jones. The film also achieved a huge sensation when it was released. This is also one of the few tragedies performed by Rock Hudson.
"Pillow Talk": Starting with this 1959 film, Rock Hudson has a very firm impression that he seems like a natural rom-com material. He is very suitable to play some handsome gentleman with a little cleverness and a little shrewdness. The film depicts the love story between two independent ladies and a philandering man who share a phone line, filled with skit-style captivating episodes. The actors performed very well, cooperated tacitly, and told this story, which now seems a bit tacky, interesting and fascinating. The film was very popular when it was released that year, and Rock Hudson and Doris Day became the best screen couple. Coupled with the careful coordination of Tony Landau, the film looks fresh and unforgettable.
Come September: A 1961 romantic comedy starring Rock Hudson and Notre Dame star Gina Lollobrigida. The film was shot in Italy, also known as "Spring Night in the Golden House", which is really unforgettable. This Italian-style film not only surprises us from the picture and the story itself, Gina's stunning performance and Locke's handsome humor complement each other. The film is smooth and full of climaxes, and the story is constantly conflicted. It is a love movie with a sweet taste of chocolate.
"All That Heaven Allows" (All That Heaven Allows): I personally think that this 1955 film should be regarded as one of the most iconic films of Rock Hudson's more than 30 years of filming. This film, which received the National Film Protection Service's National Film Registry in 1995, presents us with a true sibling love story. Jane Wyman's forbearance and Rock Hudson's sincere affection are perfectly expressed through their superb acting skills. The shocking love between a rich widow and a gardener is truly touching under their interpretation. The film has a long artistic conception and a smooth rhythm. Although the happy ending at the end lacks the beauty of incomplete regrets, it also calms the hearts of the viewers.
"Send Me No Flowers": This is Doris Day's third comedy with Rock Hudson in four years. The happy enemies in "Whispers on the Pillow" and "Jiaofeng Chiluan" before became a scolding couple here. The tacit understanding between the two makes this movie as relaxed and pleasant as the former. Rock Hudson played a sensitive and suspicious husband who thought he was about to leave the world every day. He loved his wife and began to use various methods to take care of his own affairs, including finding a good husband for his wife and so on. A typical Hollywood comedy, the constant conflicts and contradictions make this comedy seem interesting.
Lover Come Back: The second of three comedies, Doris Day and Rock Hudson's 1961 hit after "Pillow Whispers" comedy. Taking advantage of the popularity of the previous work, the two continued to rejoice and fight in the movie. The performances of the actors on the screen are vigorous, and the audience can enjoy watching it off the screen. The two played the manager of an advertising company and fought each other for advertisers. The director makes good use of the plot of yin and yang to lay out the amusing love process of two people. The contradictions are prominent enough, but the explanations are unreasonable. If you just watch the excitement, it is still a good movie.
"Magnificent Obsession": Jane Wyman and Rock Hudson's first film together in 1954, it seems that Rock has a set pattern among the actresses he has worked with. Doris Day and him are a comedy of vindictive enemies, and Jane Wyman is a love story with a forbearance, and this film and the subsequent film "Everything Heaven Allows" is a touch of sadness throughout. , the plot structure of the movie with a bright ending. But in this film, the cooperation between the two seems to be not as comfortable as the latter, and there are many inconsistencies in the story. Although the two tried their best to show their acting skills, they were not very impressed.
"Giant": The classic that made Rock Hudson an instant hit, for which he also earned an Oscar nomination for Best Actor. This film assembled a powerful cast at the time, Elizabeth Taylor, James Dean, three charismatic actors to perform such a classic film that reproduces the development history and pioneering spirit of Texas.
View more about Pillow Talk reviews
