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In Remembrance: Glenn Ford
Born on May 1, 1916 in Sainte-Christine, Quebec, Canada, Ford moved with his family to Santa Monica, CA when he was seven. After graduating high school, Ford began to act in small local theatre groups.
In 1939, Ford was spotted by 20th Century Fox talent scout Tom Moore and was cast in a lead role in the b-movie drama Heaven With A Barbed Wire Fence (1939). A screen test taken around this time, landed Ford a contract with Columbia Studios, where he appeared in major supporting roles in a variety of b-movies from crime dramas like My Son Is Guilty (1939) and Men Without Souls (1940) to the war pictures So Ends Our Night (1941) and Destroyer (1943). Like many rising stars, Ford made an appearance in the studio’s long running Blondie comedy series playing one half of an eloping couple in the 1940 outing Blondie Plays Cupid. His appearance in 1940’s The Lady in Question marked the first of five films in which Ford would appear opposite bombshell Rita Hayworth.
Following his work on the western The Desperadoes (1943), Ford enlisted for a three-year stint in the Marines, serving in France during World War II.
Following his discharge from the Marines, Ford returned to Columbia to star in what would be his breakthrough role in the classic noir Gilda (1946) opposite Rita Hayworth. Ford stayed at the studio for a majority of the rest of the decade, taking the lead in film noirs like Framed (1947), westerns like The Man From Colorado (1948) and Lust For Gold (1949) and comedies such as The Mating Of Millie and The Return of October (both 1948).
Following leaving Columbia, Ford headlined films for many different studios- including the Ben Hogan bio-pic Follow The Sun (1951) at Twentieth Century Fox, the drama Plunder Of The Sun (1953) at Universal and the western The American (1955) at RKO.
In 1955 Ford appeared in the classic The Blackboard Jungle, an adaptation of Evan Hunter’s semi-autobiographical novel. Ford starred as an idealistic teacher trying to make a connection with his students in a high school located in a tough New York City neighborhood. The film is credited with helping to launch the rock and roll era for its use of the Bill Hailey and the Comets’ song “Rock Around The Clock” in its opening title credits. The song was discovered for the movie in the record collection of Ford’s son Peter.
In the wake of The Blackboard Jungle, Ford found himself
being offered roles in more prestigious projects including the
comedy Teahouse Of The August Moon (1956) opposite Marlon
Brando, the crime drama Ransom! (1956) and the westerns
3:10 To Yuma (1957) and Cimarron (1960). He also appeared
in such films as The Fastest Gun Alive (1956), The
Sheepman (1958), Pocketful Of Miracles (1961), The
Courtship Of Eddie’s Father (1963), Is Paris Burning?
(1966) and Heaven With A Gun (1969).
Heading into the 1970s, Ford’s career slowed down, with him taking television work in the series Cade’s County and The Family Holvak. He was introduced to a generation of younger film goers in 1978’s Superman: The Movie playing the superhero’s adoptive father Jonathan Kent. Although he was only on screen for a short time, his performance created such an impact that director Bryan Singer included a picture of Ford on the fireplace mantle of the Kent homestead in Superman Returns (2006).
Ford’s last film was the 1991 thriller Raw Nerve. |
Glenn Ford, the actor whose easy-going screen presence made him a
leading man in westerns and romantic films from the 1940s through to
the 70s, has passed away August 30, 2006 in Beverly Hills, CA. He
was 90.