It was irrefutably director Douglas Sirk who would help catapult the illustrious career of actor Rock Hudson. The cosmic couple would work together on a nonet of features for the mighty Universal, the first being 1952's Has Anybody Seen My Gal. But before they embarked on their partnership, it was no secret that Rock was not the most convincing or commanding actor of the Hollywood scene, he was self-admittedly, coasting by on his physical appeals, though he was also hellbent on honing his craft, Sirk took particular interest, knowing that he was just the man that could facilitate Hudson on finding his footing and evolve as a great actor. And in as little as three years, audiences would get to witness the unfolding of the pair's magic, which flourished when Rock would play the May part of the December romancer in 1955's All That Heaven Allows as Cary Scott's (Jane Wyman) lover Ron Kirby. Hudson surely quenched his desiderata thus proving he had what it took.
In the Bergman tinged, Written on the Wind (1956) a deceptive soaper that was a blatant biography of the life of troubled torch singer Libby Holman and her controversy-addled relationship with tobacco heir Zachary Smith Reynolds, as told by playwright Robert Wilder - a more-than-meets-the-eye melodrama, we find a thoroughly reinvented Rock Hudson. There was nary two doubts about it, Rock was far more than just a purdy face, when he executed with great elan, the portrayal of Mitch Wayne ,the company geologist secretly besotted with the beguiling Marylee, (Lauren Bacall) the newlywed wife of lunatic lothario Kyle Hadley (Robert Stack).
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| The answer my friend is Written On The Wind, the answer is Written On The Wind |
Perhaps the key ingredient to the success that never spoiled Rock Hudson, was that Douglas Sirk was far more than a mentor and a guide. Touchingly, he was like a second father to the actor and his encouragement was so edifying such that, Hudson actually would go on record to convey ' He was like ol’ Dad to me, and I was like a son to him, I think. When you’re scared and new and you’re trying to figure out this thing, and suddenly an older man will reach out and say, ‘There, there, it’s ok.'
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