<Archive Obituary> Alan Ladd (January 29th 1964)
Bill Schenley
Became Famous for Part of Killer in 'This Gun for Hire' --
Was Hero of 'Shane'
Photo: http://www.filmnight.org/images/ladd.gif
FROM: The New York Times (January 30th 1964) ~
By The Associated Press
PALM SPRINGS, Calif., Jan. 29
Alan Ladd, the film star, was found dead today in his
home here, apparently of a heart attack. He was 50
years old.
In view of the circumstances of Mr. Ladd's death,
Deputy Coroner Robert L. Drake said that an autopsy
would be performed tomorrow.
Surviving are his widow, the former Sue Carol; a son
by his first marriage, Alan Jr., a daughter, Alana, and
another son, David, and a stepdaughter, Mrs. Carol
Lee Veitch.
Wanted to Be Film Star
Alan Ladd was neither a brilliant Broadway actor
lured to the motion pictures nor a soda jerk snatched
from a Kansas drugstore. He was a child of
Hollywood, ambitious to get into pictures.
As an actor he was famous for being a cold, calm
killer or a cold, calm good guy who was nearly a bad
guy. The Ladd screen smile was never gay, always
cynical and cool, and one studio press agent wrote that
his eyes "go through you like two icicles."
He made the trenchcoat his symbol.
That the old fashioned motion picture gangster with his
ugly face, gaudy cars and flashy clothes was replaced
by a smoother, better looking and better dressed bad
man was largely the work of Mr. Ladd.
He became an instant success in 1941 when he
appeared as a psychopathic killer in a low budget
sleeper, "This Gun for Hire," which also starred
Veronica Lake, who was to be his screen romantic
interest in many other pictures.
In all, Mr. Ladd appeared in about 150 movies.
Alan Walbridge Ladd was born on Sept. 3, 1913, in
Hot Springs, Ark., but his family moved to North
Hollywood when he was 7.
Track Star at School
He was graduated from North Hollywood High School,
where he had been a swimming and track star, and
immediately was discovered by talent scouts from
Universal Studios.
Universal made him a member of a small group of
youngsters the studio hoped, by proper training, to
convert into movie stars. After two weeks, this
experiment was disbanded and Mr. Ladd was dropped
by the studio. Another young man named Tyrone Power
was a member of the group and he also was dropped.
Studio Laborer
Mr. Ladd then went back to work for the San Fernando
Valley Sun-Record, but still desirous of being an actor,
he took a job as a studio "grip" - laborer - which he
held for two years.
But no directors dangled a fat contract in front of the
handsome laborer and no feminine star demanded that he
become her leading man so Mr. Ladd retired from manual
labor and enrolled at the Bard Dramatic School.
Mr. Ladd's big break came in 1939 when he met Sue
Carol, a motion picture actress turned agent. She heard
him on a radio program and signed him as one of her first
clients.
His first motion picture part was in 1939 as a seasick
voyager in "Rulers of the Sea." But it was "This Gun for
Hire" that made him famous.
Mr. Ladd and Miss Carol were married on March 15,
1942.
A number of critics sought the explanation for Mr. Ladd's
quick popularity. Bosley Crowther of The Times said,
"apparently it is his tight-lipped violence that his fans love."
A New Yorker critic wrote that Mr. Ladd seemed "to be
an agreeable killer ... a different kind of mug, smooth and
with even a parlor manner."
In "The Glass Key" in 1942 Mr. Ladd played a killer who
redeemed himself at the end of the picture and for a
reward won Miss Lake. In "Lucky Jordan" in 1943 he
was a killer who, seeing his evil ways, joined the Army and
became a good soldier.
Among his better pictures were "The Great Gatsby" and
"Shane."
His portrayal of the gunfighter in "Shane" is generally
regarded as one of the best performances ever given in
Western movie.
'Carpetbaggers His Last'
He served in the Air Force in World War II and came out
of it as much in demand as ever. His last picture was
completed last summer, "The Carpetbaggers," filmed at
Paramount, where Mr. Ladd's career started.
Mr. Ladd was a slim 150-pounder who stood only 5 feet
7 inches tall and often had to stand on a box while playing
love scenes on the screen.
He had his own company, Jaguar Productions, and invested
heavily in real estate. At one time he had 5,000 chickens
producing eggs which he sold to markets. At his death he
owned a large hardware store in Palm Springs.
Mr. Ladd was considered an expert on firearms, and
certainly much of his film career was associated with guns
and violence, but one nearly killed him in 1962.
He was cleaning a gun at his Hidden Valley ranch when he
tripped. The gun went off, wounding him seriously.
---
Photos:
http://www.archives.gov/calendar/features/2004/october/images/ladd-
dewilde.jpg
http://hoover.archives.gov/exhibits/HollywoodCowboys/leading%20men/ALAN
%20LADD.jpg
http://mysite.verizon.net/res0qaye/sitebuildercontent/
sitebuilderpictures/veronica_lake-alan_ladd-06.jpg
(w/Veronica Lake)
Alan Ladd in poster art:
http://www.vintage-movie-poster.com/Scott_Ladd_Gun_For_Hire_1sht.jpg