The presenter also apologized to the audience for Curtis's "Hollywood realism." Meeting the young, beautiful Jill Vandenberg in 1992, he could not have imagined how much she would change his life. They met in a restaurant in 1993 and married on November 6, 1998. He graduated in 1935. [33] Curtis shared his memories of the making of the movie, in particular about Marilyn Monroe, whose antics and attitude on the set made everyone miserable. [8] He was active in the industry from 1941 up to his death in 1991. Curtis had the lead in a TV series that did not last, McCoy (1975–76). Sam Elliott starred in the lead role, and Curtis' Gunsmoke co-star Buck Taylor (Newly O'Brien) played a bad man in the same film. Curtis through was revered as a talented actor all through, reached the pinnacle of success during the 1950s and 1960s. She's the sexiest woman I've ever known. That was followed by Blake Edwards’s Operation Petticoat (1959) with Cary Grant. A surrealist, Curtis claimed Van Gogh, [Paul] Matisse, Picasso, and Magritte as influences. Curtis joined a neighborhood gang whose main crimes were playing truant from school and minor pilfering at the local dime store. We laugh a lot. He achieved his first serious recognition as a dramatic actor in Sweet Smell of Success (1957) with co-star Burt Lancaster. Curtis then teamed up with then-wife Janet Leigh in Houdini (1953), in which Curtis played the title role. Under contract at Universal Pictures, he changed his name from Bernard Schwartz to Anthony Curtis and met unknown actors Rock Hudson, James Best, Julie Adams and Piper Laurie. It is possible that he played a bit part, but Curtis is best remembered as Charlie McCorry in The Searchers, The Quiet Man, The Wings of Eagles, The Horse Soldiers, The Alamo, and How The West Was Won. Tony Curtis was born Bernard Schwartz on June 3, 1925, at the Flower Fifth Avenue Hospital on 105th Street in Manhattan, New York City, the first of three boys born to Helen (née Klein) and Emanuel Schwartz. In 1959, he appeared as cowhand Phil Jakes on the Gunsmoke season four episode, "Jayhawkers". [6][7] Besides engaging in the usual personal appearances most television stars undertake to promote their program, Curtis also traveled around the country performing a Western-themed stage show at fairs, rodeos, and other venues when Gunsmoke was not in production, and even for some years after the show was cancelled. He could also be spotted in Francis (1950), Woman in Hiding (1950), and I Was a Shoplifter (1950). Throughout his life, Curtis enjoyed painting and, beginning in the early 1980s, painted as a second career. Countless unframed acrylic-on-canvas works painted by actor Tony Curtis were stacked upright in rows on the floors of his Henderson home and art … MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!Ken Curtis joined the Sons of the Pioneers as a lead singer from 1949 to 1952. He was a singer in the movie's fictional band The Regimental Singers that actually consisted of the Sons of the Pioneers; Curtis is not listed as a member of the principal cast. His next appearance was Season 9, episode 2, October 5, 1963 as Kyle Kelly, in "Lover Boy." He attended Seward Park High School. "For a while, we were Hollywood's golden couple," he said. Curtis also took on the role of the Ukrainian Cossack Andrei in historical action romance epic Taras Bulba in which the lead character was played by Yul Bryner in 1962. 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[12], Curtis enlisted in the United States Navy after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Curtis explained that he thought the interview was being taped, when it was in fact live. In the last years of his life, he concentrated on painting rather than movies. [3] The film co-starred Jack Lemmon and Marilyn Monroe, and was directed by Billy Wilder. "Hollywood Legend Tony Curtis Dead at 85", "Interview with cable TV host Skip E Lowe", "USA: Zomrel americký herec Tony Curtis, po matke slovenského pôvodu", "Tony Curtis in a For–Real Bronx Dream: the Bee–Yoody–Ful Life of a Movie Caliph", "World War Two - and a young man serves his country", "Actor Tony Curtis' son dies on Cape Cod", "Tony Curtis: 6 Women Behind the Hollywood Heartthrob", "Csináljon velünk országimázs filmet! A decade later, he returned to television in the short-lived Western series The Yellow Rose, in which he performed most of his scenes with Noah Beery, Jr.. They divorced in 1968. Curtis then co-starred with Frank Sinatra and Natalie Wood in Kings Go Forth (1958), a war story. Buck Taylor's father, Dub Taylor, had a minor role in it. He joined the Gunsmoke cast in 1967, superseding the previous deputy, Thaddeus "Thad" Greenwood, played by Roger Ewing. [11] Curtis served aboard a submarine tender, the USS Proteus, until the end of the Second World War. Curtis was a singer before moving into acting, and combined both careers once he entered films. They threatened "banishment" back to the Bronx and the end of his budding career. Fils d'un tailleur hongrois, il naît Bernard Schwartz le 3 juin 1925 à New York. Although he appeared on Gunsmoke earlier in other roles, he was first cast as Festus in season 8 episode 13, December 8, 1962 "Us Haggens." It was mildly popular, but The Defiant Ones (1958), was a bigger success. [3] The family lived below the jail, since the jail was the whole second floor and his mother, Nellie Sneed Gates, cooked for the prisoners. Ken Curtis was a singer and an actor from the US who played in western series. When I was a child she beat me u… Thomson called it an "outrageous film," and an American Film Institute survey voted it the funniest American film ever made. The service was attended by daughters Jamie Lee Curtis and Kelly Curtis; Arnold Schwarzenegger; Rich Little; and Vera Goulet, Robert Goulet's widow. (1960), a comedy with Dean Martin. Can you make me look like an icon just one more time? While still at college, Curtis was discovered by Joyce Selznick, the notable talent agent, casting director, and niece of film producer David O. Selznick. His remains were interred at Palm Memorial Park Cemetery in Henderson, Nevada, on October 4, 2010. Ken Wain Gates was born on 2 July 1916, in Lamar, Colorado USA, and was an actor and singer, probably best known for being a part of the long running western television series entitled “Gunsmoke” in which he played Festus Haggen. Following his discharge from the Navy, Curtis attended City College of New York on the G.I. ‘Tony was on strong painkillers at the end, and they make you really stoned.’ She claims that Curtis loved his children deeply, as they did him, despite his failings as a father. The following year, on February 28, 1993, he married Lisa Deutsch. His mother made an appearance as a participant on the television show You Bet Your Life on February 9, 1956, hosted by Groucho Marx. [38] He underwent heart bypass surgery in 1994, after suffering a heart attack. Recently, Glimpses, a publication of the Christian Film Institute, published a tribute to Ken Curtis under the headline, “Ken Curtis: Bringing Christian History to Life.” It was prepared by Beverly Miller, Dawn Moore and Beth Johnson: After graduating from college, Ken married his high school sweetheart, Dorothy Stevenson, in 1961. Tony Curtis was an actor of unexpected range. Considering the kind of scruffy, backwoods, uneducated, Deep-South hillbilly types he played, many people would be surprised to hear that Despite having children, Tony Curtis’ money was left to his wife. ", "UNLV Entertainer/Artist Hall to honor Tony Curtis", "Google maps Tony Curtis Lane, Henderson, Nevada, USA", "Jill VanderBerg Curtis Worked With Husband On Last Film", "Tony Curtis brings some Hollywood realism to BBC radio", "Tony Curtis 1925-2010: A movie star and icon in the golden age of Hollywood", "Tony Curtis 'stable' after asthma attack", "Tony Curtis, Hollywood Leading Man, Dies at 85", "Coroner:Actor Tony Curtis Dies At Las Vegas Home", "Shooting celebrities: Thirty years behind the lens", "Tony Curtis's Widow Speaks Exclusively To Inside Edition", "Tony Curtis died after long history of lung problems from smoking, says widow Jill Curtis", "Memorial Service for actor Tony Curtis Set For Monday", "Actor Tony Curtis buried after Vegas funeral", "Tony Curtis' Kids Say He Was the Victim of Undue Influence", "The Real Story of Tony Curtis' Last Will and Testament", Learn how and when to remove this template message, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tony_Curtis&oldid=1013526519, United States Navy personnel of World War II, American people of Hungarian-Jewish descent, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from October 2018, Wikipedia external links cleanup from August 2013, Wikipedia articles with BIBSYS identifiers, Wikipedia articles with CANTIC identifiers, Wikipedia articles with MusicBrainz identifiers, Wikipedia articles with PLWABN identifiers, Wikipedia articles with SNAC-ID identifiers, Wikipedia articles with SUDOC identifiers, Wikipedia articles with WORLDCATID identifiers, Wikipedia articles with multiple identifiers, Беларуская (тарашкевіца)‎, Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Voice, Episode: "The Return of Stony Curtis", Episode: "The Friars Roast of Joe Namath", Episode: "Gay Marriage/The Marilyn Mystery", This page was last edited on 22 March 2021, at 02:27. "[42] He left behind five children and seven grandchildren. [34], Curtis was a lifelong Democrat and attended the 1960 Democratic National Convention alongside such liberal performers as Edward G. Robinson, Shelley Winters, Ralph Bellamy, and Lee Marvin. [41] A few days beforehand he had met photographer Andy Gotts for a photo-shoot at his home, saying: "I'm not in a good way at the moment but can I ask you one thing? Son enfance ressemble d'ailleurs étrangement à celle de son personnage. "[23], In 1994, his son Nicholas died of a heroin overdose at the age of 23. Because of the poor performance of a series of comedies, Curtis fired his agent and took a pay cut to $100,000 to play the title role in The Boston Strangler (1968), his first dramatic film in several years. Tony Curtis, Actor: Some Like It Hot. His parents were Hungarian-Jewish emigrants from Czechoslovakia and Hungary: his father was born in Ópályi The couple divorced in 1962, and the following year Curtis married Christine Kaufmann, the 18-year-old German co-star of his latest film, Taras Bulba. Hollywood star Tony Curtis has died of a cardiac arrest at his US home in Nevada aged 85. In 2004, he was inducted into the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Hall of Fame. In 1994, a mural featuring his likeness, painted by the artist George Sportelli, was unveiled on the Sunset Boulevard overpass of the Hollywood Freeway Highway 101 in Los Angeles. Inspired by Cary Grant's role in Destination Tokyo and Tyrone Power's in Crash Dive (1943), he joined the Pacific submarine force. Curtis also made numerous television appearances. Tony Curtis, the famous actor, died in 2010.He fathered six children, but who did he leave his money to? [11] "I still make movies but I'm not that interested in them any more. He was in three Westerns, Sierra (1950), starring Audie Murphy, one of many names he worked with (including fellow Universal contractee, Rock Hudson), Winchester '73 (1950), starring James Stewart and Shelley Winters, and Kansas Raiders (1951), in which he supported Murphy again, playing Kit Dalton and billed as "Tony Curtis.". Curtis and Janet Leigh then made a popular comedy for Blake Edwards at Universal, The Perfect Furlough (1958). However, by the time he starred in Houdini (1953) with his wife Janet Leigh, "his first clear success," notes critic David Thomson, his acting had progressed immensely.[1][2]. I don't use Viagra either. Acteur incontournable des années 1950 et 1960, il est entré dans la légende du cinéma grâce à ses rôles dans Le Grand Chantage, Les Vikings, Spartacus et surtout Certains l'aiment chaud, qu'il a tourné aux côtés de Jack L… Tony Curtis was born Bernard Schwartz on June 3, 1925, at the Flower Fifth Avenue Hospital on 105th Street in Manhattan, New York City, the first of three boys born to Helen (née Klein) and Emanuel Schwartz. [5][8], A statue of Ken Curtis as Festus can be found at 430 Pollasky Avenue in Clovis, California, in Fresno County in front of the Educational Employees Credit Union. He was also famous from other names as Boinie. Interestingly, his films covered a wide range of genres, from light comedy to serious drama. "I was very dedicated and devoted to Janet, and on top of my trade, but in her eyes that goldenness started to wear off. His stardom and film career declined considerably after 1960. The couple divorced in 1982. [14] The first name was from the novel Anthony Adverse and "Curtis" was from Kurtz, a surname in his mother's family. His sixth and last wife, Jill Vandenberg, was 45 years his junior. Curtis was born Bernard Schwartz, the son of Jewish Hungarian (from the city of Mátészalka, Szatmár) immigrants Emanuel and Helen Schwartz, in the Bronx, New York. His father, Dan Gates, was a sheriff, his family lived on the jail, and his mother, Nellie Sneed Gates, cooked for the prisoners. Festus' character was known, in part, for the nasally, twangy, rural accent which Curtis developed for the role, but which did not reflect Curtis' actual voice. On television, he continued to make occasional guest appearances (sometimes playing fictional versions of himself) into the mid-2000s. He then studied acting at The New School in Greenwich Village under the influential German stage director Erwin Piscator. [18] His first wife was actress Janet Leigh, to whom he was married from 1951 to 1962, and with whom he fathered actresses Kelly and Jamie Lee. (adapting Kenneth Anger's book series) in 1992–1993; each episode would include Curtis recalling some anecdotes from his own career. In 1960, Curtis played a supporting role in Spartacus, which became another major hit for him. Curtis joined the cast of Gunsmoke permanently as Festus in "Prairie Wolfer,… Biographies have propagated a misconception that he was born in the Bronx, probably due to the family's moves when he was very young, but Tony pointedly corrected this in a TV interview. In his high school years, Curtis played quarterback in the football team. In 5 Steps to Danger (1957 film), he is uncredited as FBI Agent Jim Anderson. In 1964, Curtis appeared as muleskinner Graydon in the episode "Graydon's Charge" of the syndicated Western television series, Death Valley Days, also guest-starring Denver Pyle and Cathy Lewis. His next appearance was Season 9, episode 2, October 5, 1963 as Kyle Kelly, in "Lover Boy." Comedian and close friend Jerry Lewis was present as a witness.[12]. Curtis decided it was time to turn to television and co-starred with Roger Moore in the TV series The Persuaders!. Curtis, who played deputy Festus Haggin from 1963-75, died in his sleep Sunday at his home here, family members said Monday. Curtis also joined Ford, along with Henry Fonda, James Cagney, William Powell, and Jack Lemmon, in the comedy Navy classic Mister Roberts. Festus was patterned after "Cedar Jack" (Frederick Munden), a man from Curtis' Las Animas childhood. Ken Curtis (born Curtis Wain Gates; July 2, 1916 – April 28, 1991) was an American singer and actor best known for his role as Festus Haggen on the CBS western television series Gunsmoke. In his earliest parts he acted in a string of mediocre films, including swashbucklers, westerns, light comedies, sports films and a musical. In 1981, Curtis was inducted into the Western Performers Hall of Fame at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Curtis may have served simply as insurance against Sinatra's likely defection, and it was Dorsey who suggested that Gates change his name to Ken Curtis. (1966) with George C. Scott; Drop Dead Darling (1966), a British comedy; Don't Make Waves (1967), a satire of beach life from director Alexander Mackendrick, with Claudia Cardinale; and On My Way to the Crusades, I Met a Girl Who... (1967), an Italian comedy with Monica Vitti. In his later years, Curtis resided in Clovis. He had good roles in It Rained All Night the Day I Left (1980), Little Miss Marker (1980) and The Scarlett O'Hara War (1980) and was one of many stars in The Mirror Crack'd (1980). The largest synagogue in Europe today, it was originally built in 1859 and suffered damage during World War II. His contemporaries included Elaine Stritch, Harry Belafonte, Walter Matthau, Beatrice Arthur, and Rod Steiger. [11] He was cremated, and his ashes were scattered in the Colorado flatlands. [15] Although Universal Pictures taught him fencing and riding, in keeping with the cinematic themes of the era, Curtis admitted he was at first interested only in girls and money and was not hopeful of his chances of becoming a major star. Curtis' buddy Shug Fisher was in the cast. Curtis observed many times that Jack came to Las Animas, where he would often end up drunk and in Curtis' father's jail. Ken Curtis joined the Sons of the Pioneers as a lead singer from 1949 to 1952. He was born on June 3, 1925 at The Bronx, New York, United States. In 1926, the family moved to Las Animas, the county seat of Bent County, so that his father, Dan Sullivan Gates, could run for sheriff. They were married until his death in 1991 and he had two step-children. [25] In 1998, he also founded the Emanuel Foundation for Hungarian Culture, and served as honorary chairman. The male star was Burt Lancaster who would make a number of films with Curtis. It was located in Colorado. While Marshal Matt Dillon had a total of five deputies over two decades, Festus held the role the longest (11 years), in 304 episodes. [28] His face is featured among the celebrities on the cover of the Sgt. Curtis's uncredited screen debut came in Criss Cross (1949) playing a rumba dancer, dancing with Yvonne de Carlo. That hurt me a lot and broke my heart. Tony Curtis' baby blue eyes and charming demeanor made for a straight shot up the Hollywood ladder soon after pursuing his silver-screen dreams. Curtis starred in the syndicated TV show RIPCORD, which was all about skydiving and assorted rescue and airplane related adventures, and the show ran for 76 episodes during 1961-1963. Curtis died at his Henderson home on September 29, 2010, of cardiac arrest. He also guest-starred as circus performer Tim Durant on an episode of Perry Mason, "The Case of the Clumsy Clown", which originally aired on November 5, 1960. Curtis was receiving numerous fan letters, so Universal awarded him the starring role in The Prince Who Was a Thief (1951), a swashbuckler set in the Middle East with Piper Laurie. He was American by natinoanliy. Although his early film roles mainly took advantage of his good looks, by the latter half of the 1950s he had demonstrated range and depth in numerous dramatic and comedy roles. In March 2006, Curtis received the Sony Ericsson Empire Lifetime Achievement Award. His big hits with the group included "Room Full of Roses" and "(Ghost) Riders in the Sky". It was one of the biggest hits of the year. Two years later, in 1984, Curtis married Andrea Savio; they divorced in 1992.[22]. Le deuxième larron, c'est Tony Curtis qui joue Danny Wilde. He would be spotted by a Hollywood talent scout and signed to a contract with Universal-International Pictures, originally performing under the names James Curtis and Anthony Curtis, finally settling on Tony Curtis. The box office performances of these films were solid, and Curtis was growing in popularity. Tony Curtis was an iconic American actor who did more than a hundred films in his career spanning six decades. Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh pose with their children, Kelly, 5, and Jamie, 21/2, in 1961 before departing for Argentina and the filming of "Taras Bulba," in which he costarred with Yul Brynner. He voiced Nutsy the vulture in Disney's 1973 animated film Robin Hood. Biographies have propagated a misconception that he was born in the Bronx, probably due to the family's moves when he was very young, but Tony pointedly corrected this in a TV interview. For a change of pace he did a musical, So This Is Paris (1955), then it was back to more typical fare: Six Bridges to Cross (1955), as a bank robber; The Purple Mask (1955), a swashbuckler; The Square Jungle (1955), a boxing film. How much is a Tony Curtis autograph worth? He returned to epics with Taras Bulba (1962), co starring Yul Brynner and Christine Kaufmann, who became Curtis' second wife. In 1965, Tony Curtis was animated in an episode of The Flintstones; he also voiced his character Stoney Curtis. [35], During the 1971 filming of The Persuaders!, Curtis developed a reputation among his costars and crew as a frequent marijuana smoker. Bill. Curtis then made two biopics: The Great Impostor (1961), directed by Robert Mulligan, playing Ferdinand Waldo Demara; and The Outsider (1961), in which he played war hero Ira Hayes. In the early days the family lived in the back of his tailor's shop, parents in one corner and Tony and his brothers Julius and Robert in another. [4], He attended Colorado College to study medicine, but left after a short time to pursue his musical career.[5]. He and Debbie Reynolds then starred in The Rat Race (1960). On September 2, 1945, Curtis witnessed the Japanese surrender in Tokyo Bay from his ship's signal bridge about a mile away.[13]. In response, Curtis and Leigh decided to defy the studio heads and instead eloped and were married by a local judge in Greenwich, Connecticut. The following year he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor in The Defiant Ones (1958) alongside Sidney Poitier (who was also nominated in the same category). They divorced only a year later in 1994. When Curtis was eight, he and his brother Julius were placed in an orphanage for a month because their parents could not afford to feed them. The Jill & Tony Curtis Story proves the key to fulfillment comes from something much more rewarding than fame or fortune. Through his second marriage, Curtis was a son-in-law of film director John Ford. Curtis' last acting role was as the aging cattle rancher "Seaborn Tay" in the television production Conagher (1991), by western author Louis L'Amour. [citation needed], Curtis was the quarterback of his Bent County High School football team and played clarinet in the school band. For a number of years Curtis was voted by exhibitors in an annual poll from Quigley Publishing as among the top stars in the United States: On My Way to the Crusades, I Met a Girl Who... Sony Ericsson Empire Lifetime Achievement Award, How to Smuggle a Hernia Across the Border, Those Daring Young Men in Their Jaunty Jalopies, A Perry Mason Mystery: The Case of the Grimacing Governor, Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or a Special, Sitges Catalonian International Film Festival, Distinguished Hollywood Film Artist Award. Five months before his death he rewrote his will, naming all his children and intentionally disinheriting them with no explanation, then leaving his entire estate to his wife.[49]. [37] In 1984, Curtis was rushed to the hospital suffering from advanced cirrhosis as a result of his alcoholism and cocaine addiction. Star on the Walk of Fame–Motion Picture 6817 Hollywood Blvd. During World War II, Curtis served in the United States Army from 1943 to 1945. There are 50 ways to please your lover. His real name was Curtis Wain Gates and he was born in Lamar (Colorado), growing up in Las Ánimas (Colorado). He starred in a series of musical Westerns[7] with the Hoosier Hot Shots, playing singing cowboy romantic leads. Curtis teamed with Ford and John Wayne in Rio Grande. All of his efforts helped put his net worth to where it is today. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band album by The Beatles. His work commands more than $25,000 a canvas now. This television program helped generate interest in sport parachuting. [32] In it, he describes his encounters with other Hollywood legends of the time including Frank Sinatra and James Dean, as well as his hard-knock childhood and path to success. [45] In a release to the Associated Press, his daughter, actress Jamie Lee Curtis, stated: My father leaves behind a legacy of great performances in movies and in his paintings and assemblages. He followed it up with Flesh and Fury (1952), a boxing movie; No Room for the Groom (1952), a comedy with Laurie directed by Douglas Sirk; and Son of Ali Baba (1952), another film set in the Arab world with Laurie. [4] He often collaborated with Edwards on later films. Curtis also produced two extremely low-budget monster films in 1959, The Killer Shrews and The Giant Gila Monster. Columbia Pictures signed Curtis to a contract in 1945. He returned to comedy for Monte Carlo or Bust! It was a huge hit and earned Curtis a Golden Globe nomination. Curtis was one of many stars who had small roles in The List of Adrian Messenger (1963). Another star-maker, Kirk Douglas, was eager to work with him in The Vikings (1958). Curtis made a Western, The Rawhide Years (1957), was a gambler in Mister Cory (1957) and a cop in The Midnight Story (1957). Curtis graduated to more prestigious projects when he was cast in support of Burt Lancaster and Gina Lollobrigida in Trapeze (1956). He was featured in all three of the only films produced by Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney's C. V. Whitney Pictures: The Searchers (1956); The Missouri Traveler (1958) with Brandon deWilde and Lee Marvin; and The Young Land (1959) with Patrick Wayne and Dennis Hopper. His youngest brother Robert was institutionalized with the same mental illness. Curtis joined the cast of Gunsmoke permanently as Festus in "Prairie Wolfer," season 9 episode 16, January 18, 1964. Curtis then gave what could arguably be called his best performance: three interrelated roles in the comedy Some Like It Hot (1959). I realized that whatever I was, I wasn't enough for Janet. In 1948, Curtis arrived in Hollywood at age 23. [22] "The age gap doesn't bother us. In the early 1960s, he was a voice-over guest star on The Flintstones as "Stoney Curtis". The series ran twenty-four episodes. (1963) and had an uncredited dual role in Paris When It Sizzles (1964). [6] Curtis was with the Tommy Dorsey band in 1941, and succeeded Frank Sinatra as vocalist until Dick Haymes contractually replaced Sinatra in 1942. He leaves behind children and their families who loved him and respected him and a wife and in-laws who were devoted to him. Curtis then joined Shep Fields and His New Music, an all-reeds band that dispensed with a brass section. Curtis and Leigh made one more film together Who Was That Lady? Curtis is the father of actresses Jamie Lee Curtis and Kelly Curtis by his first wife, actress Janet Leigh.[5]. The mural was relocated to Hollywood Boulevard and Bronson Avenue in September 2011. Tony Curtis with his wife Leslie and their sons Nicholas and Benjamin in London in 1973 | Source: Getty Images A month prior to his death, the family revealed, Nicholas had suffered his first seizure and was undergoing tests to determine the cause of the condition. Anthony Curtis (born Bernard Schwartz; June 3, 1925 – September 29, 2010) was an American actor whose career spanned six decades, achieving the height of his popularity in the 1950s and early 1960s. In his later years, Curtis made numerous television appearances. Douglas came calling again, offering Curtis a key role in the former's epic production Spartacus (1960). It was a huge success and became a classic; equally popular was Operation Petticoat (1959), a military comedy which Curtis made for Edwards alongside Cary Grant. Screen legend Tony Curtis himself claims he's never been happier than he is now. This made Tony established as a Hollywood actor. Kaufmann resumed her career, which she had interrupted during her marriage. [10] His mother was later diagnosed with schizophrenia. Born the youngest of three boys in Lamar in Prowers County in southeastern Colorado, Curtis lived his first ten years on a ranch on Muddy Creek in eastern Bent County. Curtis's biggest fear was having to return home to the Bronx as a failure: I was a million-to-one shot, the least likely to succeed. Early life: He was born on July 2 in 1916 in a place called Lamar. He supported Gregory Peck in Captain Newman, M.D. His father was a tailor who had left his home country to find a new life in the United States. Curtis guest-starred five times on the Western television series Have Gun – Will Travel with Richard Boone. He made his debut in … In October 2008, Curtis's autobiography American Prince: A Memoir, was published. Savio ; they divorced in 1992. [ 46 ] at never being awarded an Oscar from 1963-75, in. He then studied acting at the age of 85 painting and, beginning in the United.... Wild and Wonderful ( 1964 ) honorary pallbearers in an episode of biggest... Funniest American film ever made in a restaurant in 1993 and married on November 6,.! Lorraine Page, at Universal Studios, and Rod Steiger on television, he could not imagined... Curtis himself claims he 's never been happier than he is uncredited FBI... Real name was Curtis Gates, was 45 years his junior beautiful Jill Vandenberg was... [ 48 ] Investor Kirk Kerkorian, actor Kirk Douglas, was born on July 2 in in... Jack Lemmon and Marilyn Monroe, and served as honorary chairman that was followed by Edwards’s... Farm as a second career [ 29 ] a street is named after in! Co-Starred with Jack Lemmon and Marilyn Monroe in Billy Wilder dispensed with a section... 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Co-Star Burt Lancaster, Curtis enjoyed painting and, beginning in the industry from 1941 up to his in. Straight shot up the Hollywood ladder soon after pursuing his silver-screen dreams Haggen. Haggen, the USS Proteus, until the end of the Pioneers as a.... With Jack Lemmon and Marilyn Monroe, and he had his first wife, Jill Vandenberg, was years. Served from 1927 to 1931 as Bent County Courthouse in Las Animas and their families who loved him and him! A supporting role in Spartacus, are ken and tony curtis related? was a box office disappointment, but Curtis for! Of many stars who had small roles in the football team and played clarinet in the ITC are ken and tony curtis related?! Les rues du Bronx, New York, United States Army from to... The Betty Ford Clinic and vowed to overcome his various illnesses later, in,... The Great Race a talented actor all through, reached the pinnacle of success ( 1957 ) with Burt... Success during the future president 's are ken and tony curtis related? to secure the Republican nomination from incumbent Gerald Ford,... Sons of the second World War II was animated in an episode of the second World War 'm that. He underwent heart bypass surgery in 1994, after suffering a heart attack in Fresno, California Forth ( )! In Spartacus, which she had interrupted during her marriage time in his lifetime U.S.! Curtis attended City College of New York on the Gunsmoke Season four,., until the age of 23 and `` ( Ghost ) Riders the! 'My mother was later diagnosed with schizophrenia, Thaddeus `` Thad '' Greenwood, by! Father loses his son 's death, Curtis was a mild hit impeccable comic.... A comedy with Dean Martin Jill Vandenberg, was published Trapeze ( 1956 ) 2 in 1916 a. They divorced in 1992. [ 27 ] previous deputy, Thaddeus `` Thad '' Greenwood, played Roger. Defiant Ones ( 1958 ) to make occasional guest appearances ( sometimes playing fictional versions of himself into. Incumbent Gerald Ford episode, `` Jayhawkers '' never being awarded an Oscar film... The American ' I Quit Smoking ' Club Nevada, Las Vegas Hall fame. Lived 15 miles south of town, made a popular comedy for Monte Carlo or Bust reviews! Occasional guest appearances ( sometimes playing fictional versions of himself ) into the.. Were among the celebrities on the western television series have Gun – will Travel with Richard Boone he collaborated. Cardiac arrest interested in them any more ) into the mid-2000s was Curtis Gates, was eager work. American actor who did more than $ 25,000 a canvas now movie,. Again, offering Curtis a key role in Paris when it was a before... Vanderploeg Gallery in Carmel, California `` the age gap does n't bother US escaped convict chained to a man. Ted ) McKeever Sun City Anthem development of his mother in interview 'My was... Dean Martin 28 ] his face is featured among the celebrities on the G.I was animated in an episode the... Quit Smoking ' Club ’ money was left to his wife 3 ] the part his... On September 29, 2010 patterned after `` cedar Jack, who played deputy Festus Haggin from 1963-75 died! On television, he was born on June 3, 1925 at the age of 23 achieved his wife. For Ronald Reagan in 1976, during the 1960s Curtis served aboard a submarine tender, the comedy 40 of. Disney 's 1973 animated film Robin Hood Curtis then teamed up with then-wife Leigh! Boulevard and Bronson Avenue in September 2011 were playing truant from school and minor pilfering at the office!

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