Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Lee Marvin, Private First Class


Image by Michael Patterson.

Lee Marvin was born February 19, 1924. During World War II he enlisted with the United States Marine Corps and fought in the Pacific theatre. Marvin was awarded a Purple Heart and the Navy Cross for his service, which included participation in the Battle of Iwo Jima.

Before his sudden death by heart attack in 1987, he appeared in over fifty feature films and many, many television programs. Though his biggest commercial success was his role in The Dirty Dozen, Marvin was vocal about the movie being little more than a paycheck and denounced it for not being a true reflection of war, preferring his work in Sam Fuller's Big Red One instead. He also turned down the title role in Patton because he felt the story was a glorification of war. Marvin is buried in Section 7-A of the Arlington National Cemetery, but he will live on forever as the coolest white haired motherfucker to ever grace the screen.

Check out Roger Ebert's 1970 interview with Lee Marvin for Esquire magazine, "Who's Gonna Get Me A Beer?"








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