There’s no doubt the James Dean became and has remained a star even though he only made 3 major films in his brief lifetime. Can you name them?
And on the distaff side we feel Mae West made a lasting impact with the fewest number of film releases, 12 features from 1932’s Night After Night to 1978’s Sextette. Such a big name for so little output. Can you name some of the intervening pictures?
On the musical side there is the silver-toned Gordon MacRae, who appeared in just 19 features including, as we pointed out earlier this week, the film versions of two of the most successful musicals ever staged. Can you name them?
Give the above questions a try, and also let us know your selection as the biggest star with the fewest movie appearances?
In more modern times, John Cazale (5 films), River Phoenix (14) and Heath Ledger (18) unfortunately also fall in to this category.
Montgomery Clift only appeared in 17 films, and only 8 1/2 films prior to his disfiguring car crash.
Following a party at Liz Taylor’s house, he crashed into a telephone pole during a break while filming Raintree County, so there are scenes in the film both pre-crash and post-crash.
He had been nominated for Best Actor three times during his first eight films. He later garnered a Best Supporting Actor nomination for Judgment at Nuremberg in 1960.
And in THE MISFITS Arthur Miller deliberately wrote in the screenplay (where Clift’s character is introduced) dialogue with Clift telling his mother on a pay phone that she wouldn’t be able to tell his face was busted up by a bronc because the doctors did such a good job of stitching his face up. I always thought Tom Cruise looked just like a young Monty Clift.