William Holden

Trivia

• Chosen by Empire magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Stars in film history (#57).
• Was the best man at Ronald Reagan's and Nancy Davis' wedding in 1952.
• He suffered a laceration to his forehead and bled to death, after he slipped on a throw rug and hit his head on a table. Claims that he was intoxicated at the time are disputed.
• Not to be confused with the character actor William Holden.
• He was very instrumental in animal preservation in Africa. In the 1970s he purchased a large acreage of land with his own money and began an animal sanctuary. His love of the wild animal was shared with his then companion Stefanie Powers (from "Hart to Hart" (1979)). He would appear on talk shows to promote the saving of animals and to spread the word of anti-poaching and illegal animal trade.
• A hygiene fanatic, he reportedly showered up to four times daily.
• Won Best Actor for his role in Stalag 17 (1953). When accepting his statue at the Acadamy Awards, simply stated, "Thank you" and walked off.
• Holden said that, at some point, he lost his passion for acting and that it eventually just became a job so that he could support himself.
• He was voted the 63rd Greatest Movie Star of all time by Entertainment Weekly.
• Considered himself to be a moderate Republican, although he was never involved in any political campaigns and never endorsed a candidate. In 1947 he joined the Committee for the First Amendment to oppose blacklisting in Hollywood, and was later very upset by the blacklisting of his close friends Dalton Trumbo and Larry Parks.

Quotes

• "I found the jungle a beautiful and fascinating place to be, I like to come here because I want to stay away from the jungle as much as I can."
• "I'm a whore, all actors are whores. We sell our bodies to the highest bidder."
• "I don't really know why, but danger has always been an important thing in my life - to see how far I could lean without falling, how fast I could go without cracking up."
• "Movie acting may not have a certain kind of glory as true art, but it is damn hard work."
• "Take any picture you can. One out of four will be good, one out of ten will be very good, and one out of 15 will get you an Academy Award."
• "For me, acting is not an all-consuming thing, except for the moment when I am actually doing it."