Tony Curtis

Tony Curtis (born Bernard Schwartz; June 3, 1925 – September 29, 2010) was an American actor with a career that spanned six decades, achieving the height of his popularity in the 1950s and early 1960s. He acted in more than 100 films, in roles covering a wide range of genres. In his later years, Curtis made numerous television appearances.

He achieved his first major recognition as a dramatic actor in Sweet Smell of Success (1957) with co-star Burt Lancaster. The following year he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for The Defiant Ones (1958) alongside Sidney Poitier (who was also nominated in the same category). This was followed by the comedies Some Like It Hot and Operation Petticoat in 1959. In 1960, Curtis played a supporting role in the epic historical drama Spartacus.

Curtis's stardom and film career declined considerably after 1960. Subsequently, his most significant dramatic part came in 1968 when he starred in the true-life drama The Boston Strangler. Curtis also took on the role of the Ukrainian Cossack Andrei in the historical action romance epic Taras Bulba in 1962 and starred in the ITC TV series The Persuaders!, playing Danny Wilde, an American millionaire. The series ran for twenty-four episodes.

Curtis married six times and fathered six children. He is the father of the actresses Kelly Curtis and Jamie Lee Curtis with his first wife, actress Janet Leigh, and two children including actress Allegra Curtis with his second wife, actress Christine Kaufmann. He had two sons with his third wife, Leslie Allen, one of whom predeceased him. From 1998 until his death, he was married to Jill Vandenberg, a horse trainer.

Early life Tony Curtis was born Bernard Schwartz at the Fifth Avenue Hospital corner of East 105th Street in East Harlem, Manhattan, the first of three boys born to Helen (née Klein) and Emanuel Schwartz.

His parents were Jewish immigrants from Hungary: his father was born in Ópályi, near Mátészalka, and his mother was a native of Nagymihály (now Michalovce, Slovakia); she later said she arrived in the U.S. from Vaľkovo, Slovakia. He spoke only Hungarian until the age of six, delaying his schooling. At 16, he had his first small acting part in a school stage play. Curtis served aboard a submarine tender, the USS Proteus, until the end of the Second World War. On September 2, 1945, Curtis witnessed the Japanese surrender in Tokyo Bay from his ship's signal bridge about a mile away.

Following his discharge from the Navy, Curtis attended City College of New York on the G.I. Bill. He then studied acting at The New School in Greenwich Village under the influential German stage director Erwin Piscator. His contemporaries included Elaine Stritch, Harry Belafonte, Walter Matthau, Beatrice Arthur, and Rod Steiger. While still at college, Curtis was discovered by Joyce Selznick, the notable talent agent, casting director, and niece of film producer David O. Selznick.

Career In 1948, Curtis arrived in Hollywood at age 23. In his autobiography, Curtis described how, by chance, he met Jack Warner on the plane to California.

Universal as "Anthony Curtis" 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. The first name was from the novel Anthony Adverse and "Curtis" was from Kurtz, a surname in his mother's family. Although Universal Pictures taught him fencing and riding, Curtis admitted he was initially only interested in girls and money—adding that he was pessimistic regarding his chances of becoming a major star. Curtis's biggest fear was having to return home to the Bronx as a failure:

Curtis's uncredited screen debut came in the crime drama Criss Cross (1949) playing a rumba dancer, dancing with Yvonne de Carlo. The male star was Burt Lancaster who would make a number of films with Curtis.

In his second film, City Across the River (also in 1949), he was credited as "Anthony Curtis" He had four lines in The Lady Gambles (1949) and a bigger part in Johnny Stool Pigeon (1949). He was also in Francis (1950), Woman in Hiding (1950), and I Was a Shoplifter (1950).

He was additionally in three Westerns, Sierra (1950), Winchester '73 (1950), and Kansas Raiders (1951), in which he was billed as "Tony Curtis".

Stardom Curtis was receiving numerous fan letters, so Universal gave him the starring role in The Prince Who Was a Thief (1951), a swashbuckler set in the Middle East with Piper Laurie. It was a hit at the box office and Curtis was now established.

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 Middle East with Laurie.

Curtis then starred with then-wife Janet Leigh in Houdini (1953), in which Curtis played the title role. His next movies were more "B" fare: All American (1953), as a football player; Forbidden (1953), as a criminal; Beachhead (1954), a war film; Johnny Dark (1954), as a racing car driver; and The Black Shield of Falworth (1954), a medieval swashbuckler with Leigh. They were moderately successful financially, and Curtis was growing in popularity.

Curtis then starred in the musical So This Is Paris in (1955), before appearing in Six Bridges to Cross (1955), as a bank robber; The Purple Mask (1955), as a swashbuckler; and the boxing film The Square Jungle (1955).

Major star Curtis graduated to larger projects when he was cast as a co-star of Burt Lancaster and Gina Lollobrigida in Hecht-Lancaster Productions' Trapeze (1956). It was one of the biggest hits of the year. Curtis and Leigh formed their own independent film production company, Curtleigh Productions, in early 1955.

Curtis made a Western, The Rawhide Years (1957), was a gambler in Mister Cory (1957) and a cop in The Midnight Story (1957). Lancaster asked for him again, to play scheming press agent Sidney Falco in Sweet Smell of Success (1957), starring and co-produced by Lancaster. The film was a box office disappointment, but Curtis, for the first time in his career, received sensational reviews.

Curtis starred alongside Kirk Douglas and Janet Leigh in The Vikings (1958, produced by Douglas' Bryna Productions), which was a major box office hit. Curtis then co-starred with Frank Sinatra and Natalie Wood in the war movie Kings Go Forth (1958), before starring in The Defiant Ones the following year as a bigoted white escaped convict chained to a black man (played by Sidney Poitier). At the 31st Academy Awards, Curtis was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his performance—losing to David Niven in Separate Tables.

Curtis and Janet Leigh then starred in Blake Edwards' The Perfect Furlough (1958). He subsequently co-starred with Jack Lemmon and Marilyn Monroe in Some Like It Hot as well as Cary Grant in Operation Petticoat (1959).

Curtis and Leigh made one more film together Who Was That Lady? (1960), a comedy with Dean Martin. He and Debbie Reynolds then starred in The Rat Race (1960). He then started in a supporting role in Spartacus (1960), before making 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. He returned to epics with Taras Bulba (1962), co starring Yul Brynner and Christine Kaufmann, who became Curtis's second wife.

Comedic roles On October 6, 1961, Curtis formed a new film production company, Curtis Enterprises, Incorporated. The company would make 40 Pounds of Trouble, which co-starred Curtis, Suzanne Pleshette and Phil Silvers; it was the first motion picture ever filmed at Disneyland. On August 3, 1962, Curtis formed another new film production company, Reynard Productions, Incorporated.

Curtis was one of many stars who had small roles in The List of Adrian Messenger (1963). He supported Gregory Peck in Captain Newman, M.D. (1963) and had an uncredited dual role in Paris When It Sizzles (1964). He and Kaufmann made their third movie together, the comedy Wild and Wonderful (1964). His focus remained on comedies: Goodbye Charlie (1964), with Debbie Reynolds; Sex and the Single Girl (1964), with Natalie Wood; The Great Race (1965), with Wood and Lemmon for Blake Edwards – the most expensive comedy film up till that time, but popular; Boeing Boeing (1965) a sex farce with Jerry Lewis; Not with My Wife, You Don't! (1966) with George C. Scott; Drop Dead Darling (1966), a British comedy with Rosanna Schiaffino; 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 the early 1960s, he was a voice-over guest star on The Flintstones as "Stoney Curtis".

The Boston Strangler Because of the poor performance of a series of comedies, Curtis fired his agent and took a pay cut to $100,000 (equal to $ today) to play the title role in The Boston Strangler (1968), his first dramatic film in several years. Response from the critics and public was excellent. He returned to comedy for Monte Carlo or Bust! (1969), an all-star car race film in the vein of The Great Race.

He made some comic adventure tales: You Can't Win 'Em All (1970) with Charles Bronson and Suppose They Gave a War and Nobody Came (1970).

Curtis was signed by British producer Lew Grade for the TV series, The Persuaders!, which he co-starred with Roger Moore. (1971).

He was one of the villains in The Count of Monte Cristo (1975) and had the title role in the gangster film Lepke (1975). Curtis had the lead in a TV series that did not last, McCoy (1975–76). He was one of many names in The Last Tycoon (1976) and had the title role in an Italian comedy Casanova & Co. (1977). Later, Curtis co-starred as a casino owner in the Robert Urich 1978–1981 ABC series Vega$ and appeared in the 1978 movie The Users.

Later career

Curtis supported Mae West in Sextette (1978) and starred in The Manitou (1978), a horror film, and The Bad News Bears Go to Japan (1978), a comedy. 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). On ABC, he co-starred from 1978 to 1981 in prime time, as Las Vegas Desert Inn casino owner Philip (Slick) Roth, in 17 episodes of the Aaron Spelling produced series hit series, Vega$. After Vega$, on television, Curtis continued to make occasional guest appearances (sometimes playing fictional versions of himself) into the mid-2000s. His final TV series was as host of the documentary-retrospective series Hollywood Babylon (adapting Kenneth Anger's book series) in 1992–1993; each episode would include Curtis recalling some anecdotes from his own career. In 2002, Curtis was in the national tour of Some Like it Hot, a modified revival of the 1972 musical Sugar, itself based on the film in which he starred. Curtis played the supporting role of Osgood Fielding.

Curtis spoke of his disappointment at never being awarded an Oscar. In March 2006, Curtis received the Sony Ericsson Empire Lifetime Achievement Award. He also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame inducted in 1960, and received the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres from France in 1995.

Painter Throughout his life, Curtis enjoyed painting and, beginning in the early 1980s, painted as a second career. In the last years of his life, he concentrated on painting rather than movies. A surrealist, Curtis claimed Van Gogh, Matisse, Picasso and Magritte as influences.

The couple divorced in 1962. "For a while, we were Hollywood's golden couple," he said. "I was very dedicated and devoted to Janet, and on top of my trade, but in her eyes that goldenness started to wear off. I realized that whatever I was, I wasn't enough for Janet. That hurt me a lot and broke my heart."

The following year Curtis married Christine Kaufmann, the 18-year-old German co-star of his latest film, Taras Bulba. He stated that his marriage with Leigh had effectively ended "a year earlier". The couple divorced in 1982.

Curtis married Andrea Savio in 1984; they divorced in 1992.

The following year, on February 28, 1993, he married Lisa Deutsch. They divorced only a year later in 1994.

His sixth and last wife, Jill Vandenberg, was 45 years his junior. They met in a restaurant in 1993 and married on November 6, 1998.

On April 26, 1970, Curtis was arrested for marijuana possession at Heathrow Airport in London.

According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Curtis, who had a problem with alcoholism and drug abuse, went through the treatment center of the Betty Ford Clinic in the mid-1980s, which was successful for him.

Philanthropy and activism Beginning in 1990, Curtis and his daughter Kelly Lee Curtis took a renewed interest in their family's Hungarian Jewish heritage, and helped finance the rebuilding of the Great Synagogue in Budapest, Hungary. The largest synagogue in Europe today, it was originally built in 1859, and suffered damage during World War II.

In 1998, Curtis founded the Emanuel Foundation for Hungarian Culture, and served as honorary chairman. The organization works for the restoration and preservation of synagogues and the 1300 Jewish cemeteries in Hungary, and is dedicated to the 600,000 Jewish victims of the Holocaust in Hungary and lands occupied by the Royal Hungarian Army. Curtis also helped promote Hungary's national image in commercials.

In 2008, Curtis was featured in the documentary The Jill & Tony Curtis Story, which told the story of their efforts to rescue horses from slaughterhouses.

Books and appearances

In 1965, Tony Curtis was animated in an episode of The Flintstones; he also voiced his character Stoney Curtis. 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. The mural was relocated to Hollywood Boulevard and Bronson Avenue in September 2011. His face is featured among the celebrities on the cover of the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album by The Beatles.

Also in 1994, the U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation awarded its Lone Sailor Award for his naval service and his subsequent acting career.

In 2004, he was inducted into the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Hall of Fame. A street is named after him in the Sun City Anthem development of his adopted hometown, Henderson, Nevada.

In 2005, Curtis was criticized after he stated that he would refuse to watch Brokeback Mountain. He additionally stated that John Wayne would not have approved of a film about gay cowboys.

In October 2008, Curtis's autobiography, American Prince: A Memoir, was published. 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. It was followed by the publication of his next book, The Making of Some Like it Hot: My Memories of Marilyn Monroe and the Classic American Movie (2009). 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.

On May 22, 2009, Curtis apologized to the BBC radio audience after he used three profanities in a six-minute interview with BBC presenter William Crawley. The presenter also apologized to the audience for Curtis's "Hollywood realism." Curtis explained that he thought the interview was being taped, when it was in fact live.

Health and death

In 1974, Curtis developed a heavy cocaine addiction while filming Lepke, at a time when his stardom had declined considerably and he was being offered few film roles. In 1984, Curtis was rushed to the hospital suffering from advanced cirrhosis as a result of his alcoholism and cocaine addiction. He then entered the Betty Ford Clinic and vowed to overcome his various illnesses. He underwent heart bypass surgery in 1994, after suffering a heart attack.

On July 8, 2010, Curtis, who suffered from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), was hospitalized in Las Vegas after suffering an asthma attack during a book-signing engagement in Henderson, Nevada, where he lived.

Curtis died at his Henderson home on September 29, 2010, of cardiac arrest. 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? Can you make me look like an icon just one more time?" He left behind five surviving children and seven grandchildren. His widow Jill told the press that Curtis had suffered from various lung problems for years as a result of cigarette smoking, although he had quit smoking about 30 years earlier. During the 1960s Curtis served as the president of the American 'I Quit Smoking' Club. In a release to the Associated Press, his daughter, actress Jamie Lee Curtis, said:

His remains were interred at Palm Memorial Park Cemetery in Henderson, Nevada, on October 4, 2010. The service was attended by daughters Kelly Curtis and Jamie Lee Curtis; as well as Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rich Little and Vera Goulet. Investor Kirk Kerkorian, actor Kirk Douglas, and singer Phyllis McGuire were among the honorary pallbearers. He was buried with a number of his favorite items, including a Stetson hat, an Armani scarf, driving gloves, a copy of his favorite novel, and his iPhone.

Five months before his death he rewrote his will leaving his entire estate to his wife, disinheriting all his children by name without explanation.

In popular culture In the 2022 Netflix film Blonde, Curtis is portrayed by Michael Masini.

Filmography Film YearTitleRoleNotes 1949 Criss Cross Gigolo Uncredited City Across the River Mitch Credited as Anthony Curtis Johnny Stool Pigeon Joey Hyatt The Lady Gambles Bellboy Take One False Step Hot Rod Driver Uncredited How to Smuggle a Hernia Across the Border Unknown Short 1950 Francis Captain Jones Credited as Anthony Curtis Woman in Hiding Dave Shaw Voice, Uncredited I Was a Shoplifter Pepe Credited as Anthony Curtis Sierra Brent Coulter Winchester '73 Doan Kansas Raiders Kit Dalton 1951 The Prince Who Was a Thief Julna 1952 Flesh and Fury Paul Callan No Room for the Groom Alvah Morrell Son of Ali Baba Kashma Baba Meet Danny Wilson Himself, Nightclub Patron Uncredited 1953 Houdini Harry Houdini All American Nick Bonnelli Forbidden Eddie 1954 Beachhead Burke Johnny Dark Johnny Dark The Black Shield of Falworth Myles So This Is Paris Joe Maxwell 1955 Six Bridges to Cross Jerry Florea The Purple Mask Rene de Traviere / Purple Mask The Square Jungle Eddie Quaid / Packy Glennon 1956 Trapeze Tino Orsini The Rawhide Years Ben Matthews 1957 Mister Cory Coryalso Executive Producer via Curtleigh Productions The Midnight Story Joe Martini Sweet Smell of Success Sidney Falco also Executive Producer via Curtleigh Productions 1958 The Vikings Eric Kings Go Forth Corporal Britt Harris The Defiant Ones John "Joker" Jacksonalso Executive Producer via Curtleigh Productions The Perfect Furlough Corporal Paul Hodges 1959 Some Like It Hot Joe / Josephine / Shell Oil Junior Operation Petticoat Lieutenant Nicholas Holden 1960 Who Was That Lady? David Wilson The Rat Race Pete Hammond Jr. Spartacus Antoninus Pepe Himself Uncredited The Great Impostor Ferdinand Waldo Demara Jr. / Martin Donner / Dr. Gilbert 1961 The Outsider Ira Hamilton Hayes 1962 Taras Bulba Andriy Bulbaalso Executive Producer via Curtleigh Productions 40 Pounds of Trouble Steve McCluskeyalso Executive Producer via Curtis Enterprises 1963 The List of Adrian Messenger Organ Grinder Cameo Captain Newman, M.D. Corporal Jackson "Jake" Leibowitzalso Executive Producer via Reynard Productions 1964 Paris When It Sizzles Maurice / Philippe – 2nd Policeman Uncredited Wild and Wonderful Terry Willamsalso Executive Producer via Reynard Productions Goodbye Charlie George Tracy Sex and the Single Girl Bob Westonalso Executive Producer via Reynard Productions 1965 The Great Race Leslie Gallant III (The Great Leslie)also Executive Producer via Reynard Productions Boeing, Boeing Bernard Lawrence 1966 Chamber of Horrors Mr. Julian Uncredited Not with My Wife, You Don't! Tom Ferrisalso Executive Producer via Reynard Productions Arrivederci, Baby! Nick Johnson also known as Drop Dead Darling 1967 Don't Make Waves Carlo Cofieldalso Executive Producer via Reynard Productions On My Way to the Crusades, I Met a Girl Who... Guerrando da Montone 1968 Rosemary's Baby Donald Baumgart Voice, Uncredited The Boston Strangler Albert DeSalvo 1969 Monte-Carlo or Bust! Chester Schofield also known as Those Daring Young Men in Their Jaunty Jalopies 1970 You Can't Win 'Em All Adam Dyer Suppose They Gave a War and Nobody Came Shannon Gambroni 1974 Lepke Louis "Lepke" Buchalter 1976 The Last Tycoon Rodriguez 1977 Casanova & Co. Giacomino / Casanova 1978 The Manitou Harry Erskine Sextette Alexei Karansky The Bad News Bears Go to Japan Marvin Lazar 1979 Title Shot Frank Renzetti 1980 Little Miss Marker "Blackie" It Rained All Night the Day I Left Robert Talbot The Mirror Crack'd Martin N. Fenn 1982 Black Commando Colonel Iago BrainWaves Dr. Clavius Sparky's Magic Piano TV Interviewer Voice, Direct-to-Video 1983 Dexter the Dragon & Bumble the Bear Unknown Voice, English version Balboa Ernie Stoddard 1984 Where Is Parsifal? Parsifal Katzenellenbogen 1985 Insignificance Senator 1986 Club Life Hector The Last of Philip Banter Charles Foster 1988 Welcome to Germany Mr. Cornfield 1989 Lobster Man from Mars J.P. Shelldrake Midnight Mr. B. Walter & Carlo i Amerika Willy La Rouge 1991 Prime Target Marietta Copella Direct-To-Video 1992 Center of the Web Stephen Moore 1993 Naked in New York Carl Fisher The Mummy Lives Aziru / Dr. Mohassid 1995 The Immortals Dominic 1997 Bounty Hunters 2: Hardball Wald Direct-to-video 1998 Louis & Frank Lenny Star Springer Stargames King Fendel 1999 Play It to the Bone Ringside Fan 2002 Reflections of Evil Host 2006 Where's Marty? Himself Direct-to-DVD 2007 The Blacksmith and the Carpenter God Voice, Short 2008 David & Fatima Mr. Schwartz Final film role

Television YearTitleRoleNotes 1955 Allen in Movieland Himself Television Movie 1955–1956 The Ed Sullivan Show Himself (Guest) 3 episodes 1959 The Joseph Cotten Show: On Trial Charlie Episode: "Man on a Rock" 1960 Startime The Juggler Episode: "The Young Juggler"also Executive Producer 1965 The Flintstones Stony Curtis Voice, Episode: "The Return of Stony Curtis" 1968 The Song Is You Himself Television Movie 1968–1971 Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In Himself (Guest Performer) Recurring role (8 episodes) 1970 American Cancer Society anti-smoking PSAs Himself multiple PSAs interview with Martin Agronsky on WTOP-TV News. 1971–1972 The Persuaders! Danny Wilde / Aunt Sophie Series regular (24 episodes) 1972 The ABC Comedy Hour Himself (Guest Performer) Episode: "The Friars Roast of Joe Namath" The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour 2 episodes 1973 The Third Girl from the Left Joey Jordan Television Movie Shaft Clifford Grayson Episode: "Hit-Run" 1975 The Count of Monte-Cristo Fernand Mondego Television Movie 1975–1976 McCoy McCoy Series regular (5 episodes) 1978 The Users Randy Brent Television Movie 1978–1981 Vega$ Philip (Slick) Roth Series regular (17 episodes, 1978–1981) 1980 The Scarlett O'Hara War David O. Selznick Television Movie 1981 Inmates: A Love Story Flanagan The Million Dollar Face Chester Masterson 1982 Portrait of a Showgirl Joey DeLeon 1983 The Fall Guy Joe O'Hara Episode: "Eight Ball" 1986 Mafia Princess Sam "Momo" Giancana Television Movie Murder in Three Acts Charles Cartwright 1989 Tarzan in Manhattan Archimedes Porter Charlie Scott Parish 1990 Thanksgiving Day Max Schloss 1992 Christmas in Connecticut Alexander Yardley 1992–1993 Hollywood Babylon Himself (Host) 5 episodes 1994 Bandit: Beauty and the Bandit "Lucky" Bergstrom Television Movie A Perry Mason Mystery: The Case of the Grimacing Governor Johnny Steele Cilla's World Himself 1995–2003 Biography Himself (Interviewee) 4 episodes– Episode: "Roger Moore" (1995)– Episode: "Ernest Borgnine" (2000)– Episode: "Tony Curtis" (2001)– Episode: "Janet Leigh" (2003) 1996 Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Dr. Issac Mamba Episode: "I Now Pronounce You..." Roseanne Hal Episode: "Ballroom Blitz" 1997 Elvis Meets Nixon Himself Uncredited, Television Movie 1998 Suddenly Susan Peter DiCaprio Episode: "Matchmaker, Matchmaker" 2004 Hope & Faith Morris Episode: "Jack's Back" 2005 CSI: Crime Scene Investigation Himself Episode: "Grave Danger (Part 1)" 2006 60 Minutes Episode: "Gay Marriage/The Marilyn Mystery" 2010 Who Wants to Be a Millionaire Himself (Celebrity Question Presenter) Episode: "Million Dollar Movie Week 1"

Radio appearances Year Program Episode/source 1951 Suspense The McKay College Basketball Scandal 1952 Stars in the Air Model Wife

Awards and nominations

Books