Rock Hudson Biography

His plans were put on hold for a while however, when he served as a Navy airplane mechanic during World War II, and as a truck driver after the war.

This, however, only further motivated him to get into the movies. Starting drama lessons, he was advised to change his name to something shorter and so he chose Rock and “Hudson”, in honour of the synonymous car.

His first film, 'Fighter Squadron' in 1948, did not lead to immediate stardom, but a good part in 'Winchester ‘73' led to better assignments, and the studio chose to concentrate its publicity on Hudson's physical attributes, rather than his acting ability, which may explain why he spent a lot of his screen time without his shirt on.

Becoming a favourite among teenage fans, Hudson rose to fame, his films slowly reaching the A-list, with key releases such as 'Magnificent Obsession', 'Battle Hymn' and 'The Giant', which convinced the critics that Hudson worked well with dramatic leads such as Elizabeth Taylor and James Dean.

Hudson's career took an enormous leap forward when, in 1959, he was cast in 'Pillow Talk', the first of many successful ventures with Doris Day.

In the mid 1960s, he gave another brilliant performance in the caustic fantasy film, 'Seconds' and, in 1971, he made a move into television in the popular detective series, 'McMillan and Wife',and later he also appeared on super-soap, 'Dynasty'.

His private life however, was not as straightforward as the studio’s liked to publicise. Despite long time rumours in Hollywood, Hudson only openly confirmed his homosexuality in the early 1980s, when he announced that he had contracted the AIDS virus.

Staunchly defended by friends like Doris Day, and a multitude of fans, he lived the remainder of his life with dignity, withstanding the devastation of his illness, press intrusions and the bias of the misinformed during the early days of the epidemic.

He died in October 1985, a month before his sixtieth birthday.