Steve McQueen

Terence Steven McQueen
1930 - 1980 (lung cancer)
American born Slater, Missouri

Nickname Bandito, King Of Cool . Height 5' 9" (1.75 m) . He was the ultra-cool male film star of the 1960s, and rose from a troubled youth spent in reform schools, to being the world's most popular actor. Over 25 years after his untimely death from mesothelioma in 1980, McQueen is still considered so hip and cool, and he endures as an icon of popular culture.His first lead role was in the low budget sci-fi film The Blob (1958), quickly followed by roles in The Great St. Louis Bank Robbery (1959) and Never So Few (1959).The young McQueen appeared as "Vin", alongside Yul Brynner, in the star-laden The Magnificent Seven (1960) and effectively hijacked the lead from the bigger star by ensuring he was nearly always doing something in every shot he was included with Bryner, such as adjusting his hat or gun belt. He next scored with audiences with two interesting performances, firstly the WW2 drama Hell Is for Heroes (1962) and secondly in The War Lover (1962). Riding a wave of popularity, McQueen delivered another crowd pleaser as "Hilts, the Cooler King" in the knock out WW2 POW film The Great Escape (1963), featuring his famous leap over the barbed wire on a motorbike whilst being pursued by Nazi troops. The stunt was actually performed by stunt rider Bud Ekins.McQueen next appeared in several films of mixed quality including: Soldier in the Rain (1963); Love with the Proper Stranger (1963) and Baby the Rain Must Fall (1965). However, they failed to really grab audience attention, but his role as "Eric Stoner" in The Cincinnati Kid (1965), alongside screen legend Edward G. Robinson and Karl Malden, had movie fans filling theaters again to see the ice-cool McQueen they loved. He was back in another western, Nevada Smith (1966), again with Karl Malden, and then Steve gave what many consider to be his finest dramatic performance as US sailor "Jake Holman" in the superb The Sand Pebbles (1966). McQueen was genuine hot property and next appeared with Faye Dunaway in the provocative crime drama The Thomas Crown Affair (1968) and then as a maverick, taciturn detective in the mega hit Bullitt (1968), renowned for its famous chase sequence through San Francisco between McQueen's Ford Mustang and the killer's black Dodge Charger.Interestingly, McQueen's next role was a total departure from the action genre, as he played Southerner "Boon Hogganbeck" in the family oriented The Reivers (1969), based on the popular William Faulkner novel. Not surprisingly, the film had a tepid response from film fans, even though it was an entertaining and well made production, and McQueen showed an interesting comedic side of his acting talents. McQueen returned to more familiar territory in 1971, with the race film Le Mans (1971), which was a rather self-indulgent exercise, and its slow plot saw it perform rather poorly in theaters. It wasn't until many years later that Le Mans (1971) became something of a cult film, primarily because of the footage of Porsche 917s roaring around race tracks in France. McQueen then teamed up with Hollywood "bad boy" director Sam Peckinpah to star in the modern western Junior Bonner (1972), about a family of rodeo riders, and then as bank robber "Doc McCoy" in the violent The Getaway (1972). Both did good business at the box office. His next screen role was a refreshing surprise and Papillon (1973), based on the 'Henri Charriere' novel of the same name, was well received by fans and critics alike! McQueen plays a convict on a French penal colony in South America, who persists in trying to escape from his captors and feels their wrath when his attempts fail.The 1970s is remembered for a slew of "disaster movies" and McQueen starred in arguably the biggest of the time, The Towering Inferno (1974). McQueen shared equal top billing with fellow male star Paul Newman and an impressive line-up of co-stars including Fred Astaire, Robert Vaughn and Faye Dunaway. McQueen does not appear until roughly half way into the films running time as San Francisco fire chief "Mike O'Hallaran", battling to extinguish a fierce blaze in a 138-storey skyscraper. The film was a monster hit and set the benchmark for other disaster movies that followed. It was, however, McQueen's last film role for several years, as he began a long fight against cancer, often resorting to off-beat therapies in an attempt to beat the illness. After a 4-year hiatus, McQueen surprised fans, and in his next role, he was almost unrecognizable under long hair and a beard as a rabble-rousing early environmentalist in An Enemy of the People (1978), based on the Henrik Ibsen play.With the advancing cancer taking its toll on his body, McQueen's last two film performances were in the unusual western Tom Horn (1980), and then portraying real-life bounty hunter Ralph "Papa' Thorson (Ralph Thorson) in The Hunter (1980). Steve McQueen passed away on November 7th, 1980, only 50 years of age, and his ashes were scattered at sea. He married three times and had a life-long love of motor racing, once remarking, "Racing is life. Anything before or after is just waiting." Spouse Barbara Minty (16 January 1980 - 7 November 1980) (his death), Ali MacGraw (31 August 1973 - 1978) (divorced), Neile Adams (2 November 1956 - 26 April 1972) (divorced) 2 children.

The Hunter (1980) , Tom Horn (1980) , An Enemy of the People (1978) , Dixie Dynamite (1976) , The Towering Inferno (1974) , Papillon (1973) , The Getaway (1972) , Junior Bonner (1972) , Le Mans (1971) , The Reivers (1969) , Bullitt (1968) , The Thomas Crown Affair (1968) , The Sand Pebbles (1966) , Nevada Smith (1966) , The Cincinnati Kid (1965) , Baby the Rain Must Fall (1965) , Love with the Proper Stranger (1963) , Soldier in the Rain (1963) , The Great Escape (1963) , "The Dick Powell Show" (1963) , The War Lover (1962) , Hell Is for Heroes (1962) , The Honeymoon Machine (1961) , "Wanted: Dead or Alive" (1961) , The Magnificent Seven (1960) , "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" (1959) , Never So Few (1959) , The Great St. Louis Bank Robbery (1959) , The Blob (1958) , Never Love a Stranger (1958) , "Trackdown" (1958) ,
"Tales of Wells Fargo" (1958), "Climax!" (1958) , "Passport to Danger" (1958) , "The 20th Century-Fox Hour" (1957) , "West Point" (1957) , "Studio One" (1957) , Somebody Up There Likes Me (1956) , "The United States Steel Hour" (1956) , "Goodyear Television Playhouse" (1955) , Girl on the Run (1953)