Rock Hudson was an American film and television actor, recognised as a romantic leading man during the 1960s and 1970s. Hudson was voted Star of the Year, Favorite Leading Man, and similar titles by numerous movie magazines and was unquestionably one of the most popular and well-known movie stars of the time. He completed nearly 70 motion pictures and starred in several television productions during a career that spanned over four decades. Hudson was also one of the first major Hollywood celebrities to die from an AIDS related illness.
Chosen by Empire magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Stars in film history (#28).
The Prudential Life Insurance Co. stopped using its slogan "Own A Piece Of The Rock" after Hudson died of AIDS and many jokes were made about him and the slogan.
He was cremated and his ashes are scattered into the sea.
Went to the same school, New Trier Township High School East (Winnetka, Illinois), as Ann-Margret , Charlton Heston , Ralph Bellamy , Hugh OBrian , Bruce Dern , Penelope Milford , Virginia Madsen and Liz Phair.
Worked as a truck driver when he first moved to Los Angeles, but he spent his spare time idling outside of studio gates and sending photographs of himself to various producers.
Talent scout Henry Willson coined the stage name, "Rock Hudson", by combining the Rock of Gibraltar and the Hudson River.
Although he tried out for roles in school plays, Hudson failed to win any because he could not remember lines.
Enamored of movies as a teenager, he worked as an usher.
Before taking his first film role, he got his teeth capped and was coached intensively in acting, singing, dancing, fencing and riding. Still, it took no less than 38 takes before he could successfully complete one line in his first picture, Fighter Squadron .
Production on the television series "The Devlin Connection" was suspended for a year while he was recovering from quintuple heart bypass surgery.
By the time he had taken the guest role of Daniel Reece, a suave and stately horse breeder on "Dynasty" late in 1984, the AIDS virus was consuming him. Before long, he was suffering from memory loss and was forced to use cue cards to read his lines. He also had difficulty speaking.
The media first began to suspect he had serious health problems when he came to Carmel, California, in July 1985 to help his Pillow Talk co-star Doris Day launch her cable series, "Doris Days Best Friends" . His gaunt appearance and obvious disorientation suddenly became the focus of what was meant to be a joyous reunion of one of Hollywoods favorite on-screen couples. He died just three months later.
Involved with Marc Christian during the period he knew he had AIDS, but did not disclose it to Christian. Christian hired Marvin Mitchelson , and sued Hudsons estate for damages and emotional distress. He won a $21.7 million jury award in 1989, which was reduced to $5.5 million in 1991.
Underwent emergency quintuple heart bypass surgery to relieve severely clogged coronary arteries in November 1981 after suffering chest pains, and began smoking again soon after leaving the hospital. Consequently he was very frail during the filming of The Ambassador , while in Israel during the winter of 1983-1984, and he did not get along with his alcoholic co-star Robert Mitchum.
Is portrayed by Thomas Ian Griffith in Rock Hudson
Died the same day as George Savalas. He and Savalas older brother, Telly Savalas appeared in Pretty Maids All in a Row .
Hudson and his partner Marc Christian went out of their way while traveling near downtown Los Angeles, so that the couple could meet Michael Jackson during the filming of his award-winning music video, Michael Jackson: Thriller .
According to the book, "The Man Who Invented Rock Hudson", the original plan was to call him "Roc" but someone pointed out the possibility of confusion with the 1940s actress, Rochelle Hudson , so a "k" was added and "Roc" became "Rock".
Hudson was diagnosed with AIDS on 5 June 1984 but when the signs of illness became apparent, his publicity staff and doctors told the public that he had liver cancer.
Biography in: "The Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives". Volume One, 1981- 1985, pages 405-407. New York: Charles Scribners Sons, 1998.
His favorite performances were in Giant and Seconds .
When Hudson initially became ill with AIDS, his lover Marc Christian thought he had lung cancer because he was a heavy smoker.
Became very close to Roman Gabriel while filming The Undefeated .
Following a right-shoulder injury in 1973, often used his left hand to write and pick up objects on "McMillan & Wife" .
Less than a month after announcing he had AIDS, Hudson wrote a check for $250,000 to help get the then-fledgling National AIDS Research Foundation (NARF) off the ground.
Following his diagnosis of AIDS in June 1984, Hudson told his doctor that he hoped he would die from a heart attack (he had undergone an emergency quintuple heart bypass in 1981) before the public could find out the truth.
In 1977 he toured 13 cities as King Arthur in the musical "Camelot".
He stayed at the White House in May 1984 as a guest of then President Ronald Reagan. First Lady Nancy Reagan wrote to Hudson saying how glad she and her husband were to see him looking well following his operation.
A conservative Republican, Hudson joined Ronald Reagan , John Wayne , Irene Dunne and Raymond Massey in campaigning for Barry Goldwater in the 1964 presidential election.
Made "Top 10 stars of the year" a record eight times from 1957 to 1964.
His favorite of his films was the Cold War drama Ice Station Zebra .
Was very close friends with singer Dusty Springfield.
Grew a mustache and sideburns for his role in The Undefeated . Afterwards he decided to retain that look throughout the 1970s.
Early in his career he had surgery on his vocal chords to make his voice deeper, and had his teeth capped. The surgery had the unfortunate side effect of making it impossible for Hudson to learn to sing. Therefore when he played King Arthur in "Camelot" he had to talk his way through the songs, just as Rex Harrison did in My Fair Lady .
He was the original choice to play Jason Colby in the "Dynasty" spin off "The Colbys" , but had to turn it down due to his declining health. The part went to Charlton Heston instead.
Pat Boone was allowed inside Hudsons Hollywood mansion to pray for his soul as the actor lay dying. Ironically, according to his close friends, Hudson was a lifelong atheist.
Was seriously considered for the male lead in Alfred Hitchcock s Marnie , and actually met with Hitchcock, but was turned down in favor of Sean Connery.
In order to make A Farewell to Arms , he turned down Marlon Brando s role in Sayonara , William Holden s role in The Bridge on the River Kwai , and Charlton Heston s role in Ben-Hur . The three films he had turned down went on to become hugely successful and were critically acclaimed, while A Farewell to Arms proved to be one of the biggest flops in history.
At the time of his death, his estate was valued at $22 million.
After announcing he had AIDS in July 1985, Hudson received telegrams of support from Frank Sinatra , Gregory Peck , Marlene Dietrich , James Garner , Carol Burnett , Ali MacGraw , Jack Lemmon , Richard Dreyfuss , Ava Gardner , Mickey Rooney , Milton Berle and Madonna. President Ronald Reagan , who had recently undergone surgery for colon cancer, personally telephoned him at the hospital.
He was very near-sighted and wore glasses all the time off screen. He would rarely allow himself to be photographed wearing glasses though.
Although Hudson never publicly came out as gay during his lifetime, he did authorize a biography by Sara Davidson, "Rock Hudson: His Story" , which discussed his private life in great detail.
In the last 18 months of his life, his weight dropped from 215 lbs to 140 lbs. He weighed 126 lbs at the time of his death.
Had a priceless record collection, which was taken by Marc Christian after his death.
He stood six foot by the time he was fourteen.
An accomplished bridge player.
He had always been critical of plastic surgery, although in 1981 he had surgery on his eyelids after a cameraman convinced him it would make him look better on screen.
He actively sought the leading role in Ice Station Zebra , and after Laurence Harvey backed out of the project, Hudson was cast.
He was very disappointed by the box office failure of Seconds , which he considered to be his best performance and had hoped would show the public that he could be a versatile film actor.
In 1979 he was involved in a DUI incident when he crashed his car into a palm tree in Los Angeles late one night.
Once said he knew had made it in Hollywood after he received more applause and cheers at the premiere of Bend of the River (1952) than the films star, James Stewart.
He was Universal Studios first choice to play Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird , but was rejected as being too young at 36.
Along with Cary Grant , he was regarded as one of the best-dressed male stars in Hollywood.
In the summer of 1966 he was released from his studio contract after filming Tobruk and proceeded to work independently for the rest of his career.
It is not known how he contracted AIDS. In Sara Davidsons biography of him, she (quoting a friend indirectly) speculates that he might have picked up the virus through blood transfusions related to his 1981 heart surgery.
He signed a contract with Universal Studios to do "McMillan & Wife" in 1971 for one of the largest salaries ever seen in television at the time.
Although commonly listed as 64", he is believed to have downplayed his height. His character is repeatedly referred to as being 66" in the film Pillow Talk and, upon co-starring with John Wayne and James Stewart , he was clearly taller than those very tall stars. Many sources list him 65", which would put him as equal to Vince Vaughn , Tim Robbins and, the tallest leading man per the Guinness Book of World Records, Christopher Lee as the tallest leading men.
His agent subtracted two years from his date of birth--from 1925 to 1923--in order to get Hudson more mature roles.
Was in talks, with Doris Day and Tony Randall , for a Pillow Talk sequel at the time he was diagnosed was AIDS. The story reportedly would have him and Doris Days character being married and dealing with their daughters upcoming marriage to Tony Randalls son.
Universal agreed to loan Hudson to his original studio Warner Bros. in exchange for the services of Warner contractee Virginia Mayo for the potboiler Congo Crossing .
MGM offered Universal $750,000 for Hudson to play the starring role in Ben-Hur but the studio refused.
After Husdon had chosen his new name Rock, when it was suggested by agent Henry Willson , the actor objected when Universal tried to shorten the spelling to Roc.
After Raoul Walsh sold Rock Hudsons contract to Universal, he retained the right to his services in one film. This was ultimately settled a decade later, when Walsh was assigned a percentage of the profits from Come September .
Hudson was assigned to The Golden Blade only after Tony Curtis and Farley Granger turned it down.
Hollywood writer Sidney Skolsky coined the clich "Beefcake" to describe Hudson.
Despite playing their father in Giant , Hudson was just 6 years older than Carroll Baker , 9 years older than Fran Bennett and 11 years older than Dennis Hopper.
In June 2014, he was honored as Turner Classic Movies Star of the Month.
His father left the family and his mother married Wallace Fitzgerald. Hudsons legal name was then changed from Scherer to Fitzgerald.
His father was of German and Swiss-German descent. His maternal grandfather was an English immigrant, and his maternal grandmother was born in Illinois, to Irish parents.
I have no philosophy about acting or anything else. You just do it. And,I mean that. You just do it. However, I can say that with ease after,thirty-five years.
"I am not happy that I am sick. I am not happy that I have AIDS. But if,that is helping others, I can at least know that my own misfortune has,had some positive worth. " (1985),(In the early 1980s, before his sickness was publicly known) " I always,consider my job just as someone working in an office. Past 5 P. M.
