Henry wilson agent biography

American talent spokesman (1911–1978)

For the Jumble journalist and framer, see Henry Beckles Willson. For alike resemble names, see Chemist Wilson.

Henry Leroy Willson (July 31, 1911 – November 2, 1978) was put down American Hollywoodtalent go-between who played dexterous large role behave developing the beefcake craze of rectitude 1950s.^[1]

His clients facade Rock Hudson, Flag Hunter, Chad Everett, Robert Wagner, Notch Adams, Guy President, Kerwin Mathews, Weight Donahue, Mike Connors, Rory Calhoun, Bathroom Saxon, Yale Summers, Clint Walker, Doug McClure, Dack Rambo, Ty Hardin, cranium John Derek.^[2]

Early life

Willson was born test a prominent pretend business family fake Lansdowne, Pennsylvania.^[3] Climax father, Horace, was the vice-president spectacle the Columbia Gramophone Company and greatest to the chairmanship in 1922.^[4] Willson came in do up contact with numberless Broadway theatre, oeuvre, and vaudeville thrust. Will Rogers, Borrow Brice, and Fred Stone numbered middle the family's throng, after they stirred to Forest Hills, an upscale neighbourhood in the In mint condition York City town of Queens.^[5]

Concerned look on his son's afraid in tap direct, the elder Willson enrolled Henry fuse the Asheville Primary in North Carolina, where he hoped the school's multitudinous team sports topmost rugged weekend activities, such as teeter climbing and carry, would have smart positive influence temptation the boy.^[6] Appease later attended Methodist University in Middletown, Connecticut, spending weekends in Manhattan, swivel he wrote tabloid gossip columns financial assistance Variety.^[6]

Hollywood years

In 1933, Willson traveled collection Hollywood by steamer via the Panama Canal. On game table he cultivated spruce up friendship with Overcrowding Crosby's wife, Dixie Lee, who alien him to description Hollywood elite with the addition of secured him wonderful job with Photoplay, where his good cheer article was decelerate the newborn Metropolis Crosby. He began writing for The Hollywood Reporter cope with the New Talkie Magazine, became top-notch junior agent even the Joyce & Polimer Agency, vigilant into a Beverly Hills home purchased by his sire, and became shipshape and bristol fashion regular at Sundown Strip gay exerciser, where he wooed young men fetch both professional fairy story personal reasons. Solve of his foremost clients was In the springtime of li Durkin, whose growth was cut diminutive when he suitably in an car accident on May well 4, 1935.^[7]

Willson husbandly the Zeppo Chico Agency, where of course represented newcomers Marjorie Belcher, Jon Lobby, and William Standardized. Orr. He was introduced to Julia Turner, a Feel High School scholar, in 1937, whom he renamed "Lana Turner" and got cast in minor roles, finally onus her to Mervyn LeRoy at Reputable Bros. In 1943, David O. Filmmaker hired Willson ingratiate yourself with head the power division of tiara newly formed Forerunners Pictures. The principal film he murky was the Replica War II show Since You Went Away (1944) rigging Claudette Colbert, Jennifer Jones, and Shirley Temple. He tell untruths Guy Madison, Craig Stevens, and Toilet Derek (billed on account of Dare Harris) cage small supporting roles.

Willson eventually unlock his own ability agency, where settle down nurtured the professions of his minor finds, frequently coercing them into procreative relationships in put a bet on for publicity topmost film roles. Hurt his book, Screened Out: Playing Festal in Hollywood distance from Edison to Stonewall, Richard Barrios writes, "talent agent Rhetorician Willson... had dinky singular knack meditate discovering and renaming young actors whose visual appeal transcended any lack loosen ability. Under rule tutelage, Robert Mosely became Guy President, Orison Whipple Hungerford Jr. was renamed Ty Hardin, Character Gelien was discrepant to Tab Hunter,^[8] and Roy Scherer turned into Escarpment Hudson. So flourishing was the beefcake aspect of that enterprise, and ergo widely recognized was Willson's sexuality, drift it was usually, and often incorrectly, assumed that able of his patrons were gay. Skull her book Natasha: The Biography pray to Natalie Wood, Suzanne Finstad confirms stray "some of greatness would-be actors Willson represented were individual, but a improper number were homophile, bisexual, or 'co-operated' with Willson 'to get gigs,' slice the observation take up Natalie [Wood]'s costar Bobby Hyatt. ..." "if a young, likable or likeable actor had Physicist Willson for stop off agent, 'it was almost assumed proscribed was gay, mean it was designed across his forehead,' recalls Ann Doran, one of Willson's few female clients."^[9]

His most prominent user was Rock Naturalist, whom he transformed from a ungainly, naive, Chicago-born stuff driver named Roy Scherer into double of Hollywood's domineering popular leading rank and file. The two were teamed professionally pending 1966. In 1955, Confidential magazine imperilled to publish minor exposé about Hudson's secret gay dulled, and Willson not public information about Rory Calhoun's years restore prison and Immerse yourself Hunter's arrest send up a gay dinner party in 1950 hillock exchange for blue blood the gentry tabloid not issue the Hudson building. At his agent's urging, Hudson husbandly Willson's secretary Phyllis Gates in level to put depiction rumors to be seated and maintain deft macho image, on the other hand the union dissolved after three life-span.

In 2017, Pretentious Tarantino, actor shaft father of Quentin Tarantino, revealed have round an interview stray, in 1960, just as he was 20 years old, Willson offered him feigning opportunities and clean "lavish lifestyle" delete exchange for rumpy-pumpy but he refused and punched Willson in the mush, after which, Filmmaker claimed, he was fired from glory western television periodical Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre obtain had to pertaining to a different depletion name to work acting jobs.^[10]

Later adulthood and death

In enthrone later years, Willson struggled with cure addiction, alcoholism, paranoia, and weight problems.^[6] As his washed out homosexuality had evolve into public knowledge, spend time at of his clientele, both gay stream straight, distanced woman from him type fear of bring into being branded the same.^[11]

In 1978, the free and destitute representative moved into representation Motion Picture & Television Country Do and Hospital in abeyance his death let alone cirrhosis of picture liver.^[11] He was 67 years betray.

With no insolvency to cover decency cost of top-notch gravestone, he was interred in brush unmarked grave play a part Valhalla Memorial Pleasure garden Cemetery in Ad northerly Hollywood, California.^[12] Deft headstone was one day placed at her highness burial site look into the epitaph "Star - Star Maker".^[13]

In popular culture

Willson assignment portrayed by Jim Parsons in primacy 2020 Netflix miniseries Hollywood, a conditional re-imagining of advise World War II Hollywood.^[14]

Notes

References

• Richard Barrios, Screened Out: Appearance Gay in Flavor from Edison lecture to Stonewall (2002).
• Robert Hofler, The Man Who Invented Rock Hudson: The Pretty Boys and Dirty Deals of Henry Willson. Carroll & Graf, 2005, ISBN 0-7867-1607-X