It's hard to squeeze a 65-year career into four consecutive Tuesdays, but Turner Classic Movies is up to the challenge with its tribute to silver screen star Kirk Douglas in September.
Though physically known for his chiseled features and cleft-chin, Douglas is professionally known for a body of work full of intense characters and masculine energy, like his Oscar-nominated roles in Champion (1949), Lust for Life (1956), and The Bad in the Beautiful (1952).
By 1946, the New Yorker - born in 1916 as Issur Danielovich Demsky - was wary of relocating to the west coast after a string of small roles on Broadway gave him a taste for the theater.
A good friend named Lauren Bacall convinced him otherwise.
His fellow American Academy of Dramatic Art alum promised him a screen test with Hollywood producer Hal Wallis for an upcoming picture starring Barbara Stanwyck called The Strange Love of Martha Ivers. (Miller 69)
Directed by Lewis Milestone, this classic film-noir introduces TCM's month-long tribute to "Star of the Month" Kirk Douglas on Tuesday, September 6, at 8:00 pm, EST.
Keep watching Douglas' career unfold with the rest of the night's line-up: Out of the Past (1947), I Walk Alone (1947), A Letter to Three Wives (1949) and Mourning Becomes Electra (1947).
Douglas Stars with Stanwyck and Heflin in The Strange Love of Martha Ivers
An icy heiress is caught between the two men in her life; one is a husband she always hated, the other is a childhood friend she always loved. Years before, their fates intertwined at the foot of a staircase one stormy night after young Martha Ivers murdered her cruel aunt during a fit of rage. Sam, the boy she loved, ran off into the night, while Walter, the boy she hated, stayed to keep her secret...for a price.
Fast forward 17 years later, and Martha (Barbara Stanwyck) seems to have it all - beauty, fortune and power. She presides over Iverstown as the owner of a booming factory while her husband Walter (Kirk Douglas) runs for re-election as District Attorney. Things seem perfect when you don't look too close. When Sam (Van Heflin) comes back to town, he looks too close.
Martha is the very picture of the aunt she so hated, and Walter is an alcoholic who sips his courage from a bottle. He desperately loves Martha, but to her, he's just a window to her sordid past. Unfortunately, Sam needs their help when his new girl (Lizabeth Scott) is picked up for a parole violation, but he's unwittingly pulled into a twisted love triangle, instead.
Stellar Acting
Stanwyck became a fixture in Hollywood playing strong, independent women, and her role as Martha Ivers is a perfect example. Martha got her fortune by murdering her aunt, but she got her power by her own ruthless will. Stanwyck brilliantly portrays Martha with steel in her eyes and ice on her tongue.
Martha's husband, Walter, is a unique role for Douglas, whose powerful screen presence throughout his career would never suggest playing "a scared little boy," as Sam kept pointing out. But Douglas doesn't buckle under the greatness of his seasoned co-stars. If anything, this early part proves his versatility compared to his later work.
Martha's first love, Sam, is a nice guy with a not-so-nice past. Heflin portrays him with such ease, one forgets there's even an actor on screen and not just some regular guy caught up in the drama.
Then, there's Toni. No, you're not seeing an uncredited performance by Lauren Bacall. That's the under-appreciated Lizabeth Scott as Heflin's love interest. With her strong, expressive features and husky voice, Scott brings warmth and sensitivity to her part as a slightly-jaded ex-con.
Although she only appears at the beginning of the movie, don't forget Judith Anderson as auntie dearest Mrs. Ivers. Hitchcock fans will remember Anderson for her bone-chilling performance as Mrs. Danvers in Rebecca. Give Danvers more money and you have Mrs. Ivers.
Douglas Remembers His Film Debut
Douglas' original script for The Strange Love of Martha Ivers sits in a worn, leather case in the actor's den. Inside are the scribblings of an eager young man who's just caught his big break in Hollywood:
My first film! Lauren Bacall got the producer to see me in a play in New York. He gave me the part!
Van Heflin was very helpful. Barbara Stanwyck ignored me for two weeks. Then she seemed to look at me for the first time and said "You're a good actor." I said, "Too Late, Miss Stanwyck." (Douglas 21)
Douglas admits the two actually became good friends.
Hollywood, too, looked at Kirk Douglas for the first time and said "You're a good actor."
Sources:
- Douglas, Kirk. Let's Face It: 90 Years of Living, Loving, and Learning. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2007. Print.
- Miller, Frank. Leading Men: The 50 Most Unforgettable Actors of the Studio Era. San Francisco, CA: Chronicle Books, 2006. Print.
- The Strange Love of Martha Ivers. 1946. Dir. Lewis Milestone. Perf. Kirk Douglas, Van Heflin, Barbara Stanwyck. Hal Wallis Productions. Running Time: 116 min.
- Turner Classic Movies
Amanda Flinner - Amanda is a freelance writer who earned her Bachelor's degree in Writing from Geneva College in 2006. Although a variety of interests ...
Join the Conversation