This date in 1924 saw the birth of actor Lee Marvin. 10 facts about him:
His real name was Lamont Waltman Marvin Jr.
He was a direct descendant of Thomas Jefferson and a distant cousin of George Washington.
He left school at 18 and enlisted in the United States Marine Corps Reserve. He served in the second world war, during which he took part in the invasions of 21 islands. He was a sniper and would be sent in during the night in a small rubber boat, prior to the rest of his platoon. He was wounded and nearly died during the Battle of Saipan, an engagement in which most of his unit was killed. He received a medical discharge and was awarded a number of medals, including the Purple Heart.
He claimed that he learned to act during the war, by pretending not to be afraid during combat.
Back in the US, he found work as a plumber’s apprentice. He was repairing the Toilet at a community theatre when he was asked to stand in for an actor who was ill. This is when he caught the acting bug and moved to Greenwich Village to study at the American Theater Wing.
His film debut was in You're in the Navy Now (1951), but his breakthrough roles were The Big Heat and The Wild One (1953).
When filming started for The Wild One, Marvin couldn’t ride a motorcycle. Not wanting to be upstaged by co-star Marlon Brando, he learned, and took to it quickly. He later became a keen competitor on his Triumph 200cc Tiger Cub in desert races.
Despite his military record, he was anti-war and was known to refuse roles in films which glorified war. He turned down the lead role of Gen. George S. Patton in Patton for this reason and hated his most famous film, The Dirty Dozen, saying it was nothing like actual war, and that he’d only made it because he needed the money.
He only kept four souvenirs of his career. These were: his Best Actor Oscar for Cat Ballou; the citation he received from the National Cowboy Hall of Fame for his performance in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance; his Gold Record for Wandering Star; and the high-heeled shoe that Vivien Leigh beat him with in Ship of Fools.
He struggled with alcoholism which led to difficult relationships with some of his co-stars and often being pulled over by the cops for drunken driving. According to his first wife Betty Ebeling he’d get away with only a warning and signing an autograph for the officers. This, and his heavy smoking, no doubt contributed to his death at just 63 from a heart attack. He was buried with full military honours at Arlington National Cemetery.
Beta
(Combat Team Series #2)
Steff was abducted by an evil alien race, the Orbs, at fourteen. Used as a weapon for years, he eventually escapes, but his problems are just beginning. How does a man support himself when his only work experience is a paper round and using an Orb bio-integrated gun?
Warlord is an alien soldier who knows little but war. When the centuries-old conflict which ravaged his planet ends, he seeks out another world where his skills are still relevant. There are always wars on Earth, it seems. However, none of Earth's powerful armies want him.
Natalie has always wanted to visit England and sees a chance to do so while using her martial arts skills, but there are sacrifices she must make in order to fulfil her dream.
Maggie resorted to crime to fund her sister's medical care. She uses her genetic variant abilities to gain access to the rooms of wealthy hotel guests. The Ballards look like rich pickings, but they are not what they seem. When Maggie targets them, little does she know that she is walking into a trap.
Hotel owner Hamilton Lonsdale puts together a combat team to pit against those of other multi-millionaires. He recruits Warlord, Natalie, Maggie and Steff along with a trained gorilla, a probability-altering alien, a stockbroker whose work of art proved to be much more than he'd bargained for, a marketing officer who can create psionic forcefields, a teleporting member of the landed gentry, and a socially awkward fixer. This is Combat Team Beta.
Steff never talks about his time with the Orbs, until he finds a woman who lived through it, too. Steff believes he has finally found happiness, but it is destined to be short-lived. He is left with an unusual legacy which he and Team Beta struggle to comprehend; including why something out there seems determined to destroy it.
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