Gary Cooper (curler)

Gary Cooper (born Frank James Cooper; May 7, 1901May 13, 1961) was an American actor known for his strong, quiet screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, as well as an Academy Honorary Award in 1961 for his career achievements. He was one of the top-10 film personalities for 23 consecutive years and one of the top money-making stars for 18 years. The American Film Institute (AFI) ranked Cooper at number11 on its list of the 25 greatest male stars of classic Hollywood cinema.

Cooper's career spanned 36 years, from 1925 to 1961, and included leading roles in 84 feature films. He was a major movie star from the end of the silent film era through to the end of the golden age of classical Hollywood. His screen persona appealed strongly to both men and women, and his range included roles in most major film genres. His ability to project his own personality onto the characters he played contributed to his natural and authentic appearance on screen. Throughout his career, he sustained a screen persona that represented the ideal American hero.

Cooper began his career as a film extra and stunt rider, but soon landed acting roles. After establishing himself as a Western hero in his early silent films, he appeared as the Virginian and became a movie star in 1929 with his first sound picture, '' The Virginian''. In the early 1930s, he expanded his heroic image to include more cautious characters in adventure films and dramas such as ''A Farewell to Arms'' (1932) and '' The Lives of a Bengal Lancer'' (1935). During the height of his career, Cooper portrayed a new type of hero, a champion of the common man in films such as '' Mr. Deeds Goes to Town'' (1936), '' Meet John Doe'' (1941), ''Sergeant York'' (1941), '' The Pride of the Yankees'' (1942), and '' For Whom the Bell Tolls'' (1943). He later portrayed more mature characters at odds with the world in films such as '' The Fountainhead'' (1949) and ''High Noon'' (1952). In his final films, he played nonviolent characters searching for redemption in films such as '' Friendly Persuasion'' (1956) and ''Man of the West'' (1958).

Early life

Frank James Cooper was born in Helena, Montana, on May 7, 1901, the younger of two sons of English parents Alice (née Brazier; 1873–1967) and Charles Henry Cooper (1865–1946). His brother, Arthur, was six years his senior. Cooper's father came from Houghton Regis, Bedfordshire, and became a prominent lawyer, rancher, and Montana Supreme Court justice. His mother hailed from Gillingham, Kent, and married Charles in Montana. In 1906, Charles purchased the Seven-Bar-Nine cattle ranch, about north of Helena near Craig, Montana. Cooper and Arthur spent their summers at the ranch and learned to ride horses, hunt, and fish. Cooper attended Central Grade School in Helena.Meyers 1998, p. 6.

Alice wanted her sons to have an English education, so she took them back to England in 1909 to enroll them in Dunstable Grammar School in Dunstable, Bedfordshire. While there, Cooper and his brother lived with their father's cousins, William and Emily Barton, at their home in Houghton Regis.Meyers 1998, pp. 10–12. Cooper studied Latin, French, and English history at Dunstable until 1912. While he adapted to English school discipline and learned the requisite social graces, he never adjusted to the formal Eton collars he was required to wear. He received his confirmation in the Church of England at the Church of All Saints in Houghton Regis on December 3, 1911.Meyers 1998, p. 13. His mother accompanied her sons back to the U.S. in August 1912, and Cooper resumed his education at Johnson Grammar School in Helena.

When Cooper was 15, he injured his hip in a car accident. On his doctor's recommendation, he returned to the Seven-Bar-Nine ranch to recuperate by horseback riding. The misguided therapy left him with his characteristic stiff, off-balanced walk and slightly angled horse-riding style.Meyers 1998, p. 17. He left Helena High School after two years in 1918 and returned to the family ranch to work full-time as a cowboy. In 1919, his father arranged for him to attend Gallatin County High School in Bozeman, Montana,Meyers 1998, p. 21. where English teacher Ida Davis encouraged him to focus on academics and participate in debating and dramatics.Arce 1979, p. 21. Cooper later called Davis "the woman partly responsible for isgiving up cowboy-ing and going to college".

Cooper was still attending high school in 1920, when he took three art courses at Montana Agricultural College in Bozeman. His interest in art was inspired years earlier by the Western paintings of Charles Marion Russell and Frederic Remington.Meyers 1998, pp. 15–16. Cooper especially admired and studied Russell's ''Lewis and Clark Meeting Indians at Ross' Hole'' (1910), which still hangs in the state capitol building in Helena.

In 1922, to continue his art education, Cooper enrolled in Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa. He did well academically in most of his courses,Swindell 1980, p. 41. but was not accepted into the school's drama club. His drawings and watercolor paintings were exhibited throughout the dormitory, and he was named art editor for the college yearbook. During the summers of 1922 and 1923, Cooper worked at Yellowstone National Park as a tour guide driving the yellow open-top buses. Despite a promising first 18 months at Grinnell, he left college suddenly in February 1924, spent a month in Chicago looking for work as an artist, and then returned to Helena, where he sold editorial cartoons to the local ''Independent'' newspaper.

In autumn 1924, Cooper's father left the Montana Supreme Court bench and moved with his wife to Los Angeles to administer the estates of two relatives,Meyers 1998, p. 26. and Cooper joined his parents there in November at his father's request. After briefly working a series of unpromising jobs, he met two friends from Montana,Arce 1979, p. 23. who were working as film extras and stunt riders in low-budget Western films for the small movie studios on Poverty Row.Meyers 1998, p. 27. They introduced him to another Montana cowboy, rodeo champion Jay "Slim" Talbot, who took him to see a casting director. Wanting money for a professional art course, Cooper worked as a film extra for $5 a day, and as a stunt rider for $10. Cooper and Talbot became close friends and hunting companions, and Talbot later worked as Cooper's stuntman and stand-in for over three decades.

Career

Silent films, 1925–1928

In early 1925, Cooper began his film career in silent pictures such as '' The Thundering Herd'' and '' Wild Horse Mesa'' with Jack Holt,Swindell 1980, p. 62. ''Riders of the Purple Sage'' and '' The Lucky Horseshoe'' with Tom Mix,Swindell 1980, p. 63. and '' The Trail Rider'' with Buck Jones. He worked for several Poverty Row studios, but also the already emergent major studios, Famous Players–Lasky and Fox Film Corporation.Dickens 1970, pp. 23–24. While his skilled horsemanship led to steady work in Westerns, Cooper found the stunt work, which sometimes injured horses and riders, "tough and cruel". Hoping to move beyond the risky stunt work and obtain acting roles, Cooper paid for a screen test and hired casting director Nan Collins to work as his agent. Knowing that other actors were using the name "Frank Cooper", Collins suggested he change his first name to "Gary" after her hometown of Gary, Indiana. Cooper immediately liked the name.

Cooper also found work in a variety of non-Western films, appearing, for example, as a masked Cossack in '' The Eagle'' (1925), as a Roman guard in ''Ben-Hur'' (1925), and as a flood survivor in '' The Johnstown Flood'' (1926). Gradually, he began to land credited roles that offered him more screen time, in films such as ''Tricks'' (1925), in which he played the film's antagonist, and the short film ''Lightnin' Wins'' (1926). As a featured player, he began to attract the attention of major film studios. On June 1, 1926, Cooper signed a contract with Samuel Goldwyn Productions for $50 a week.Meyers 1998, p. 30.

Cooper's first important film role was a supporting part in '' The Winning of Barbara Worth'' (1926) starring Ronald Colman and Vilma Bánky, in which he plays a young engineer who helps a rival suitor save the woman he loves and her town from an impending dam disaster. Cooper's experience living among the Montana cowboys gave his performance an "instinctive authenticity", according to biographer Jeffrey Meyers.Meyers 1998, p. 31. The film was a major success. Critics singled out Cooper as a "dynamic new personality" and future star.Meyers 1998, p. 32. Goldwyn rushed to offer Cooper a long-term contract, but he held out for a better deal - a five-year contract with Jesse L. Lasky at Paramount Pictures for $175 a week. In 1927, with help from Clara Bow, Cooper landed high-profile roles in '' Children of Divorce'' and '' Wings'' (both 1927), the latter being the first film to win an Academy Award for Best Picture. That year, Cooper also appeared in his first starring roles in '' Arizona Bound'' and '' Nevada'', both films directed by John Waters.

Paramount paired Cooper with Fay Wray in '' The Legion of the Condemned'' and '' The First Kiss'' (both 1928), advertising them as the studio's "glorious young lovers".Arce 1979, p. 51. Their on-screen chemistry failed to generate much excitement with audiences.Dickens 1970, p. 7. With each new film, Cooper's acting skills improved and his popularity continued to grow, especially among female movie-goers. During this time, he was earning as much as $2,750 per film and receiving 1,000 fan letters a week. Looking to exploit Cooper's growing audience appeal, the studio placed him opposite popular leading ladies such as Evelyn Brent in '' Beau Sabreur'', Florence Vidor in ''Doomsday'', and Esther Ralston in ''Half a Bride'' (all 1928).Swindell 1980, pp. 98–99. Around the same time, Cooper made '' Lilac Time'' (1928) with Colleen Moore for First National Pictures, his first movie with synchronized music and sound effects. It became one of the most commercially successful films of 1928.

Hollywood stardom, 1929–1935

Cooper became a major movie star in 1929 with the release of his first talking picture, '' The Virginian'' (1929), which was directed by Victor Fleming and co-starred Mary Brian and Walter Huston. Based on the popular novel by Owen Wister, ''The Virginian'' was one of the first sound films to define the Western code of honor and helped establish many of the conventions of the Western movie genre that persist to the present day. According to biographer Jeffrey Meyers, the romantic image of the tall, handsome, and shy cowboy hero who embodied male freedom, courage, and honor was created in large part by Cooper in the film. Unlike some silent-film actors who had trouble adapting to the new sound medium, Cooper transitioned naturally, with his "deep and clear" and "pleasantly drawling" voice, which was perfectly suited for the characters he portrayed on screen, also according to Meyers. Looking to capitalize on Cooper's growing popularity, Paramount cast him in several Westerns and wartime dramas, including '' Only the Brave'', '' The Texan'', '' Seven Days' Leave'', '' A Man from Wyoming'', and '' The Spoilers'' (all released in 1930). Norman Rockwell depicted Cooper in his role as ''The Texan'' for the cover of '' The Saturday Evening Post'' on May 24, 1930.

One of the most important performances in Cooper's early career was his portrayal of a sullen legionnaire in Josef von Sternberg's film '' Morocco'' (also 1930) with Marlene Dietrich in her introduction to American audiences.Dickens 1970, p. 9. During production, von Sternberg focused his energies on Dietrich and treated Cooper dismissively. Tensions came to a head after von Sternberg yelled directions at Cooper in German. The actor approached the director, picked him up by the collar, and said, "If you expect to work in this country, you'd better get on to the language we use here." Despite the tensions on the set, Cooper produced "one of his best performances", according to Thornton Delehanty of the ''New York Evening Post''.

After returning to the Western genre in Zane Grey's ''Fighting Caravans'' (1931) with French actress Lili Damita, Cooper appeared in the Dashiell Hammett crime film '' City Streets'' (also 1931), co-starring Sylvia Sidney and Paul Lukas, playing a westerner who gets involved with big-city gangsters to save the woman he loves. Cooper concluded the year with appearances in two unsuccessful films: '' I Take This Woman'' (also 1931) with Carole Lombard, and '' His Woman'' with Claudette Colbert. The demands and pressures of making 10 films in two years left Cooper exhausted and in poor health, suffering from anemia and jaundice.Meyers 1998, p. 73. He had lost during that period, and felt lonely, isolated, and depressed by his sudden fame and wealth.Meyers 1998, p. 75. In May 1931, Cooper left Hollywood and sailed to Algiers and then Italy, where he lived for the next year.

During his time abroad, Cooper stayed with the Countess Dorothy di Frasso, the former Dorothy Cadwell Taylor, at the Villa Madama in Rome, where she taught him about good food and vintage wines, how to read Italian and French menus, and how to socialize among Europe's nobility and upper classes.Meyers 1998, p. 77. After guiding him through the great art museums and galleries of Italy, she accompanied him on a 10-week big-game hunting safari on the slopes of Mount Kenya in East Africa, where he was credited with more than 60 kills, including two lions, a rhinoceros, and various antelopes.Meyers 1998, p. 79. His safari experience in Africa had a profound influence on Cooper and intensified his love of the wilderness. After returning to Europe, the countess and he set off on a Mediterranean cruise of the Italian and French Rivieras. Rested and rejuvenated by his year-long exile, a healthy Cooper returned to Hollywood in April 1932 and negotiated a new contract with Paramount for two films per year, a salary of $4,000 a week, and director and script approval.

In 1932, after completing ''Devil and the Deep'' with Tallulah Bankhead to fulfill his old contract, Cooper appeared in ''A Farewell to Arms'',Dickens 1970, pp. 106–108. the first film adaptation of an Ernest Hemingway novel. Co-starring Helen Hayes, a leading New York theatre star and Academy Award winner,Meyers 1998, p. 89. and Adolphe Menjou, the film presented Cooper with one of his most ambitious and challenging dramatic roles, playing an American ambulance driver wounded in Italy, who falls in love with an English nurse during World War I. Critics praised his highly intense and emotional performance, and the film became one of the year's most commercially successful pictures. In 1933, after making ''Today We Live'' with Joan Crawford and ''One Sunday Afternoon'' with Fay Wray, Cooper appeared in the Ernst Lubitsch comedy film '' Design for Living'', based on the successful Noël Coward play. Co-starring Miriam Hopkins and Fredric March, the film was a box-office success, ranking as one of the top-10 highest-grossing films of 1933. All three of the lead actorsMarch, Cooper, and Hopkinsreceived attention from this film, as they were all at the peak of their careers. Cooper's performance, as an American artist in Europe competing with his playwright friend for the affections of a beautiful woman, was singled out for its versatility and revealed his genuine ability to do light comedy. Cooper changed his name legally to "Gary Cooper" in August 1933.

In 1934, Cooper was lent out to MGM for the Civil War drama film '' Operator 13'' with Marion Davies, about a beautiful Union spy who falls in love with a Confederate soldier. Despite Richard Boleslawski's imaginative direction and George J. Folsey's lavish cinematography, the film did poorly at the box office.Swindell 1980, p. 171.

Back at Paramount, Cooper appeared in his first of seven films by director Henry Hathaway,Meyers 1998, p. 107. '' Now and Forever'', with Carole Lombard and Shirley Temple. In the film, he plays a confidence man who tries to sell his daughter to the relatives who raised her, but is eventually won over by the adorable girl. Impressed by Temple's intelligence and charm, Cooper developed a close rapport with her, both on and off screen. The film was a box-office success.

The following year, Cooper was lent to Samuel Goldwyn Productions to appear in King Vidor's romance film '' The Wedding Night'' with Anna Sten,Dickens 1970, pp. 126–28. who was being groomed as "another Garbo". In the film, Cooper plays an alcoholic novelist who retreats to his family's New England farm, where he meets and falls in love with a beautiful Polish neighbor. Cooper delivered a performance of surprising range and depth, according to biographer Larry Swindell.Swindell 1980, p. 179. Despite receiving generally favorable reviews, the film was not popular with American audiences, who may have been offended by the film's depiction of an extramarital affair and its tragic ending.

That same year, Cooper appeared in two Henry Hathaway films: the melodrama '' Peter Ibbetson'' with Ann Harding, about a man caught up in a dream world created by his love for a childhood sweetheart, and the adventure film '' The Lives of a Bengal Lancer'', about a daring British officer and his men who defend their stronghold at Bengal against rebellious local tribes. While the former, championed by the surrealists became more successful in Europe than in the United States, the latter was nominated for seven Academy Awards and became one of Cooper's most popular and successful adventure films. Hathaway had the highest respect for Cooper's acting ability, calling him "the best actor of all of them".

American folk hero, 1936–1943

From ''Mr. Deeds'' to ''The Real Glory'', 1936–1939

Cooper's career took an important turn in 1936.Meyers 1998, p. 116. After making Frank Borzage's romantic comedy film ''Desire'' with Marlene Dietrich at Paramount, in which he delivered a performance considered by some contemporary critics as one of his finest, Cooper returned to Poverty Row for the first time since his early silent-film days to make Frank Capra's '' Mr. Deeds Goes to Town'' with Jean Arthur for Columbia Pictures. In the film, Cooper plays Longfellow Deeds, a quiet, innocent writer of greeting cards who inherits a fortune, leaves behind his idyllic life in Vermont, and travels to New York City, where he faces a world of corruption and deceit. Capra and screenwriter Robert Riskin were able to use Cooper's well-established screen persona as the "quintessential American hero"a symbol of honesty, courage, and goodnessMeyers 1998, p. 119.Swindell 1980, p. 192.to create a new type of " folk hero" for the common man. Commenting on Cooper's impact on the character and the film, Capra observed:

Both ''Desire'' and ''Mr. Deeds'' opened in April 1936 to critical praise and were major box-office successes.Meyers 1998, p. 121. In his review in ''The New York Times'', Frank Nugent wrote that Cooper was "proving himself one of the best light comedians in Hollywood". For his performance in ''Mr. Deeds'', Cooper received his first Academy Award nomination for Best Actor.

Cooper appeared in two other Paramount films in 1936. In Lewis Milestone's adventure film '' The General Died at Dawn'' with Madeleine Carroll, he plays an American soldier of fortune in China who helps the peasants defend themselves against the oppression of a cruel warlord.Dickens 1970, pp. 144–46. Written by playwright Clifford Odets, the film was a critical and commercial success.

In Cecil B. DeMille's sprawling frontier epic '' The Plainsman'', his first of four films with the director, Cooper portrays Wild Bill Hickok in a highly fictionalized version of the opening of the American western frontier. The film was an even greater box-office hit than its predecessor, due in large part to Jean Arthur's definitive depiction of Calamity Jane and Cooper's inspired portrayal of Hickok as an enigmatic figure of "deepening mythic substance". That year, Cooper appeared for the first time on the '' Motion Picture Herald'' exhibitor's poll of top-10 film personalities, where he remained for the next 23 years.

In late 1936, Paramount was preparing a new contract for Cooper that would raise his salary to $8,000 a week, when Cooper signed a contract with Samuel Goldwyn for six films over six years with a minimum guarantee of $150,000 per picture.Meyers 1998, p. 126. Paramount brought suit against Goldwyn and Cooper, and the court ruled that Cooper's new Goldwyn contract afforded the actor sufficient time to also honor his Paramount agreement. Cooper continued to make films with both studios, and by 1939, the United States Treasury reported that Cooper was the country's highest wage earner, at $482,819 (equivalent to $million in ).

In contrast to his output the previous year, Cooper appeared in only one picture in 1937, Henry Hathaway's adventure film '' Souls at Sea''. A critical and box-office failure,Swindell 1980, p. 205. Cooper referred to it as his "almost picture", saying, "It was almost exciting, and almost interesting. And I was almost good." In 1938, he appeared in Archie Mayo's biographical film '' The Adventures of Marco Polo''. Plagued by production problems and a weak screenplay, the film became Goldwyn's biggest failure to date, losing $700,000.Meyers 1998, p. 132. During this period, Cooper turned down several important roles, including the role of Rhett Butler in '' Gone with the Wind''.Selznick 2000, pp. 172–73. Cooper was producer David O. Selznick's first choice for the part. He made several overtures to the actor,Swindell 1980, pp. 209–10. but Cooper had doubts about the project, and did not feel suited to the role.Arce 1979, p. 147. Cooper later admitted, "It was one of the best roles ever offered in Hollywood... But I said no. I didn't see myself as quite that dashing, and later, when I saw Clark Gable play the role to perfection, I knew I was right."

Back at Paramount, Cooper returned to a more comfortable genre in Ernst Lubitsch's romantic comedy '' Bluebeard's Eighth Wife'' (1938) with Claudette Colbert.Dickens 1970, pp. 156–58. In the film, Cooper plays a wealthy American businessman in France who falls in love with an impoverished aristocrat's daughter and persuades her to become his eighth wife. Despite the clever screenplay by Charles Brackett and Billy Wilder,Arce 1979, p. 154. and solid performances by Cooper and Colbert, American audiences had trouble accepting Cooper in the role of a shallow philanderer. It succeeded only at the European box-office market.

In the fall of 1938, Cooper appeared in H. C. Potter's romantic comedy '' The Cowboy and the Lady'' with Merle Oberon, about a sweet-natured rodeo cowboy who falls in love with the wealthy daughter of a presidential hopeful, believing her to be a poor, hard-working lady's maid. The efforts of three directors and several eminent screenwriters could not salvage what could have been a fine vehicle for Cooper. While more successful than its predecessor, the film was Cooper's fourth consecutive box-office failure in the American market.Meyers 1998, p. 135.

In the next two years, Cooper was more discerning about the roles he accepted and made four successful large-scale adventure and cowboy films. In William A. Wellman's adventure film '' Beau Geste'' (1939), he plays one of three daring English brothers who join the French Foreign Legion in the Sahara to fight local tribes. Filmed in the same Mojave Desert locations as the original 1926 version with Ronald Colman,Swindell 1980, p. 220. ''Beau Geste'' provided Cooper with magnificent sets, exotic settings, high-spirited action, and a role tailored to his personality and screen persona.Dickens 1970, p. 164. This was the last film in Cooper's contract with Paramount.

In Henry Hathaway's ''The Real Glory'' (1939), he plays a military doctor who accompanies a small group of American Army officers to the Philippines to help the Christian Filipinos defend themselves against Muslim radicals. Many film critics praised Cooper's performance, including author and film critic Graham Greene, who recognized that he "never acted better".Meyers 1998, p. 138.

From ''The Westerner'' to ''For Whom the Bell Tolls'', 1940–1943

Cooper returned to the Western genre in William Wyler's '' The Westerner'' (1940) with Walter Brennan and Doris Davenport, about a drifting cowboy who defends homesteaders against Roy Bean, a corrupt judge known as the "law west of the Pecos". Screenwriter Niven Busch relied on Cooper's extensive knowledge of Western history while working on the script. The film received positive reviews and did well at the box office,Swindell 1980, p. 226. with reviewers praising the performances of the two lead actors. That same year, Cooper appeared in his first all- Technicolor feature, Cecil B. DeMille's adventure film '' North West Mounted Police'' (1940). In the film, Cooper plays a Texas Ranger who pursues an outlaw into western Canada, where he joins forces with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police who are after the same man, a leader of the North-West Rebellion. While not as popular with critics as its predecessor, the film was another box-office success, the sixth-highest grossing film of 1940.

The early 1940s were Cooper's prime years as an actor.Dickens 1970, p. 14. In a relatively short period, he appeared in five critically successful and popular films that produced some of his finest performances. When Frank Capra offered him the lead role in '' Meet John Doe'' before Robert Riskin even developed the script, Cooper accepted his friend's offer, saying, "It's okay, Frank, I don't need a script."Meyers 1998, p. 144. In the film, Cooper plays Long John Willoughby, a down-and-out bush-league pitcher hired by a newspaper to pretend to be a man who promises to commit suicide on Christmas Eve to protest all the hypocrisy and corruption in the country. Considered by some critics to be Capra's best film at the time,Swindell 1980, p. 230. ''Meet John Doe'' was received as a "national event" with Cooper appearing on the front cover of '' Time'' on March 3, 1941.Meyers 1998, pp. 146–147. In his review in the ''New York Herald Tribune'', Howard Barnes called Cooper's performance a "splendid and utterly persuasive portrayal" and praised his "utterly realistic acting which comes through with such authority". Bosley Crowther, in ''The New York Times'', wrote, "Gary Cooper, of course, is 'John Doe' to the life and in the wholeshy, bewildered, nonaggressive, but a veritable tiger when aroused."

That same year, Cooper made two films with director and good friend Howard Hawks.Meyers 1998, p. 153. In the biographical film ''Sergeant York'', Cooper portrays war hero Alvin C. York,Swindell 1980, p. 231. one of the most decorated American soldiers in World WarI. The film chronicles York's early backwoods days in Tennessee, his religious conversion and subsequent piety, his stand as a conscientious objector, and finally his heroic actions at the Battle of the Argonne Forest, which earned him the Medal of Honor. Initially, Cooper was nervous and uncertain about playing a living hero, so he traveled to Tennessee to visit York at his home, and the two quiet men established an immediate rapport and discovered they had much in common. Inspired by York's encouragement, Cooper delivered a performance that Howard Barnes of the ''New York Herald Tribune'' called "one of extraordinary conviction and versatility", and that Archer Winston of the ''New York Post'' called "one of his best".Dickens 1970, p. 183. After the film's release, Cooper was awarded the Distinguished Citizenship Medal by the Veterans of Foreign Wars for his "powerful contribution to the promotion of patriotism and loyalty".Arce 1979, p. 177. York admired Cooper's performance and helped promote the film for Warner Bros. ''Sergeant York'' became the top-grossing film of the year and was nominated for 11 Academy Awards.Meyers 1998, p. 157. Accepting his first Academy Award for Best Actor from his friend James Stewart, Cooper said, "It was Sergeant Alvin York who won this award. Shucks, I've been in the business 16 years and sometimes dreamed I might get one of these. That's all I can say... Funny when I was dreaming I always made a better speech."

Cooper concluded the year back at Goldwyn with Howard Hawks to make the romantic comedy '' Ball of Fire'' with Barbara Stanwyck. In the film, Cooper plays a shy linguistics professor who leads a team of seven scholars who are writing an encyclopedia. While researching slang, he meets Stanwyck's flirtatious burlesque stripper Sugarpuss O'Shea who blows the dust off their staid life of books.Meyers 1998, p. 161. The screenplay by Charles Brackett and Billy Wilder provided Cooper the opportunity to exercise the full range of his light comedy skills. In his review for the ''New York Herald Tribune'', Howard Barnes wrote that Cooper handled the role with "great skill and comic emphasis" and that his performance was "utterly delightful". Though small in scale, ''Ball of Fire'' was one of the top-grossing films of the yearArce 1979, p. 179. and Cooper's fourth consecutive picture to make the top 20.

Cooper's only film appearance in 1942 was also his last under his Goldwyn contract. In Sam Wood's biographical film '' The Pride of the Yankees'', Cooper portrays baseball star Lou Gehrig, who established a record with the New York Yankees for playing in 2,130 consecutive games. Cooper was reluctant to play the seven-time All-Star, who had died only the previous year from ALS (now commonly called "Lou Gehrig's disease").Meyers 1998, p. 163. Beyond the challenges of effectively portraying such a popular and nationally recognized figure, Cooper knew very little about baseballSwindell 1980, p. 238. and was not left-handed like Gehrig.

After Gehrig's widow visited the actor and expressed her desire that he portray her husband, Cooper accepted the role that covered a 20-year span of Gehrig's life: his early love of baseball, his rise to greatness, his loving marriage, and his struggle with illness, culminating in his farewell speech at Yankee Stadium on July 4, 1939, before 62,000 fans. Cooper quickly learned the physical movements of a baseball player and developed a fluid, believable swing. The handedness issue was solved by reversing the print for certain batting scenes. The film was one of the year's top-10 pictures and received 11 Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture and Best Actor (Cooper's third).

Soon after the publication of Ernest Hemingway's novel '' For Whom the Bell Tolls'', Paramount paid $150,000 for the film rights with the express intent of casting Cooper in the lead role of Robert Jordan,Arce 1979, p. 183. an American explosives expert who fights alongside the Republican loyalists during the Spanish Civil War. The original director, Cecil B. DeMille, was replaced by Sam Wood, who brought in Dudley Nichols for the screenplay. After the start of principal photography in the Sierra Nevada in late 1942, Ingrid Bergman was brought in to replace ballerina Vera Zorina as the female lead, a change supported by Cooper and Hemingway. The love scenes between Bergman and Cooper were "rapturous" and passionate.Meyers 1998, p. 179.Swindell 1980, p. 247. Howard Barnes in the ''New York Herald Tribune'' wrote that both actors performed with "the true stature and authority of stars". While the film distorted the novel's original political themes and meaning, '' For Whom the Bell Tolls'' was a critical and commercial success and received 10 Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture and Best Actor (Cooper's fourth).

World War II related activities

Due to his age and health, Cooper did not serve in the military during World War II, but like many of his colleagues, he got involved in the war effort by entertaining the troops.Meyers 1998, p. 167. In June 1943, he visited military hospitals in San Diego, and often appeared at the Hollywood Canteen serving food to the servicemen.Arce 1979, p. 189. In late 1943, Cooper undertook a tour of the South West Pacific with actresses Una Merkel and Phyllis Brooks, and accordionist Andy Arcari.Swindell 1980, p. 250.

Traveling on a B-24A Liberator bomber, the group toured the Cook Islands, Fiji, New Caledonia, Queensland, Brisbanewhere General Douglas MacArthur told Cooper he was watching ''Sergeant York'' in a Manila theater when Japanese bombs began falling New Guinea, Jayapura, and throughout the Solomon Islands.

The group often shared the same sparse living conditions and K-rations as the troops.Meyers 1998, p. 169. Cooper met with the servicemen and women, visited military hospitals, introduced his attractive colleagues, and participated in occasional skits. The shows concluded with Cooper's moving recitation of Lou Gehrig's farewell speech. When he returned to the United States, he visited military hospitals throughout the country. Cooper later called his time with the troops the "greatest emotional experience" of his life.

Mature roles, 1944–1952

In 1944, Cooper appeared in Cecil B. DeMille's wartime adventure film ''The Story of Dr. Wassell'' with Laraine Dayhis third movie with the director. In the film, Cooper plays American doctor and missionary Corydon M. Wassell, who leads a group of wounded sailors through the jungles of Java to safety. Despite receiving poor reviews, ''Dr. Wassell'' was one of the top-grossing films of the year. With his Goldwyn and Paramount contracts now concluded, Cooper decided to remain independent and formed his own production company, International Pictures, with Leo Spitz, William Goetz, and Nunnally Johnson. The fledgling studio's first offering was Sam Wood's romantic comedy '' Casanova Brown'' with Teresa Wright, about a man who learns his soon-to-be ex-wife is pregnant with his child, just as he is about to marry another woman. The film received poor reviews, with the ''New York Daily News'' calling it "delightful nonsense", and Bosley Crowther, in ''The New York Times'', criticizing Cooper's "somewhat obvious and ridiculous clowning". The film was barely profitable.

In 1945, Cooper starred in and produced Stuart Heisler's Western comedy '' Along Came Jones'' with Loretta Young for International. In this lighthearted parody of his past heroic image,Meyers 1998, p. 194. Cooper plays comically inept cowboy Melody Jones, who is mistaken for a ruthless killer. Audiences embraced Cooper's character, and the film was one of the top box-office pictures of the yeara testament to Cooper's still vital audience appeal. It was also International's biggest financial success during its brief history before being sold off to Universal Studios in 1946.

Cooper's career during the postwar years drifted in new directions as American society was changing. While he still played conventional heroic roles, his films now relied less on his heroic screen persona and more on novel stories and exotic settings. In November 1945, Cooper appeared in Sam Wood's 19th-century period drama '' Saratoga Trunk'' with Ingrid Bergman, about a Texas cowboy and his relationship with a beautiful fortune hunter.Dickens 1970, pp. 201–03. Filmed in early 1943, the movie's release was delayed for two years due to the increased demand for war movies. Despite poor reviews, ''Saratoga Trunk'' did well at the box office and became one of the top moneymakers of the year for Warner Bros. Cooper's only film in 1946 was Fritz Lang's romantic thriller '' Cloak and Dagger'', about a mild-mannered physics professor recruited by the Office of Strategic Services during the last years of World War II to investigate the German atomic-bomb program.Dickens 1970, pp. 204–205. Playing a part loosely based on physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, Cooper was uneasy with the role and unable to convey the "inner sense" of the character. The film received poor reviews and was a box-office failure. In 1947, Cooper appeared in Cecil B. DeMille's epic adventure film '' Unconquered'' with Paulette Goddard, about a Virginia militiaman who defends settlers against an unscrupulous gun trader and hostile Indians on the Western frontier during the 18th century. The film received mixed reviews, but even long-time DeMille critic James Agee acknowledged the picture had "some authentic flavor of the period".Arce 1979, p. 220. This last of four films made with DeMille was Cooper's most lucrative, earning the actor over $300,000 (equal to $ today) in salary and percentage of profits. ''Unconquered'' was his last unqualified box-office success for the next five years.

In 1948, after making Leo McCarey's romantic comedy ''Good Sam'', Cooper sold his company to Universal Studios and signed a long-term contract with Warner Bros. that gave him script and director approval and a guaranteed $295,000 (equal to $ today) per picture. His first film under the new contract was King Vidor's drama '' The Fountainhead'' (1949) with Patricia Neal and Raymond Massey. In the film, Cooper plays an idealistic and uncompromising architect who struggles to maintain his integrity and individualism in the face of societal pressures to conform to popular standards. Based on the novel by Ayn Rand, who also wrote the screenplay, the film reflects her philosophy and attacks the concepts of collectivism while promoting the virtues of individualism. For most critics, Cooper was hopelessly miscast in the role of Howard Roark. In his review for ''The New York Times'', Bosley Crowther concluded he was "Mr. Deeds out of his element". Cooper returned to his element in Delmer Daves' war drama '' Task Force'' (1949), about a retiring rear admiral, who reminisces about his long career as a naval aviator and his role in the development of aircraft carriers. Cooper's performance and the Technicolor newsreel footage supplied by the United States Navy made the film one of Cooper's most popular during this period. In the next two years, Cooper made four poorly received films: Michael Curtiz' period drama '' Bright Leaf'' (1950), Stuart Heisler's Western melodrama '' Dallas'' (1950), Henry Hathaway's wartime comedy '' You're in the Navy Now'' (1951), and Raoul Walsh's Western action film '' Distant Drums'' (1951).

Cooper's most important film during the postwar years was Fred Zinnemann's Western drama ''High Noon'' (1952) with Grace Kelly and Katy Jurado for United Artists. In the film, Cooper plays retiring sheriff Will Kane, who is preparing to leave town on his honeymoon when he learns that an outlaw he helped put away and his three henchmen are returning to seek their revenge. Unable to gain the support of the frightened townspeople, and abandoned by his young bride, Kane nevertheless stays to face the outlaws alone. During the filming, Cooper was in poor health and in considerable pain from stomach ulcers.Swindell 1980, p. 293. His ravaged face and discomfort in some scenes "photographed as self-doubt", according to biographer Hector Arce,Arce 1979, p. 242. and contributed to the effectiveness of his performance. Considered one of the first "adult" Westerns for its theme of moral courage, ''High Noon'' received enthusiastic reviews for its artistry, with ''Time'' placing it in the ranks of ''Stagecoach'' and '' The Gunfighter''.Meyers 1998, p. 249. Bosley Crowther, in ''The New York Times'', wrote that Cooper was "at the top of his form", and John McCarten, in ''The New Yorker'', wrote that Cooper was never more effective.Dickens 1970, p. 237. The film earned $3.75million in the United States and $18million worldwide.Meyers 1998, p. 250. Following the example of his friend James Stewart, Cooper accepted a lower salary in exchange for a percentage of the profits, and ended up making $600,000. Cooper's understated performance was widely praised, and earned him his second Academy Award for Best Actor.

Later films, 1953–1959

After appearing in André de Toth's Civil War drama ''Springfield Rifle'' (1952)a standard Warner Bros. film that was overshadowed by the success of its predecessorCooper made four films outside the United States.Meyers 1998, p. 253. In Mark Robson's drama '' Return to Paradise'' (1953), Cooper plays an American wanderer who liberates the inhabitants of a Polynesian island from the puritanical rule of a misguided pastor. Cooper endured spartan living conditions, long hours, and ill health during the three-month location shoot on the island of Upolu in Western Samoa. Despite its beautiful cinematography, the film received poor reviews. Cooper's next three films were shot in Mexico. In Hugo Fregonese's action adventure film '' Blowing Wild'' (1953) with Barbara Stanwyck, he plays a wildcatter in Mexico, who gets involved with an oil-company executive and his unscrupulous wife with whom he once had an affair.

In 1954, Cooper appeared in Henry Hathaway's Western drama ''Garden of Evil'', with Susan Hayward, about three soldiers of fortune in Mexico hired to rescue a woman's husband. That same year, he appeared in Robert Aldrich's Western adventure ''Vera Cruz'' with Burt Lancaster. In the film, Cooper plays an American adventurer hired by Emperor MaximilianI to escort a countess to Vera Cruz during the Mexican Rebellion of 1866. All these films received poor reviews, but did well at the box office. For his work in ''Vera Cruz'', Cooper earned $1.4million in salary and a percentage of the gross.Meyers 1998, p. 269.

During this period, Cooper struggled with health problems. He suffered a severe shoulder injury during the filming of ''Blowing Wild'' when he was hit by metal fragments from a dynamited oil well, as well as his ongoing treatment for ulcers. During the filming of ''Vera Cruz'', he reinjured his hip by falling from a horse, and was burned when Lancaster fired his rifle too close and the wadding from the blank shell pierced his clothing.

Cooper appeared in Otto Preminger's 1955 biographical war drama '' The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell'', about the World WarI general who tried to convince government officials of the importance of air power, and was court-martialed after blaming the War Department for a series of air disasters. Some critics felt Cooper was miscast, and that his dull, tight-lipped performance did not reflect Mitchell's dynamic and caustic personality. In 1956, Cooper was more effective playing a gentle Indiana Quaker in William Wyler's Civil War drama '' Friendly Persuasion'' with Dorothy McGuire. Like ''Sergeant York'' and ''High Noon'', the film addresses the conflict between religious pacifism and civic duty.Meyers 1998, p. 281. For his performance, Cooper received his second Golden Globe nomination for Best Motion Picture Actor. The film was nominated for six Academy Awards, was awarded the Palme d'Or at the 1957 Cannes Film Festival, and went on to earn $8million worldwide.

Cooper traveled to France in 1956 to make Billy Wilder's romantic comedy '' Love in the Afternoon'' with Audrey Hepburn and Maurice Chevalier.Meyers 1998, p. 317. In the film, Cooper plays a middle-aged American playboy in Paris who is pursued by—and eventually falls in love with—a much younger woman. Despite receiving some positive reviews, including from Bosley Crowther, who praised the film's "charming performances",Dickens 1970, p. 261. most reviewers concluded that Cooper was simply too old for the part.Arce 1979, p. 260. While audiences may not have welcomed seeing Cooper's heroic screen image tarnished by his playing an aging ''roué'' having an affair with a young girl, the film was still a box-office success. The following year, Cooper appeared in Philip Dunne's romantic drama '' Ten North Frederick''.Dickens 1970, pp. 262–64. In the film, which was based on the novel by John O'Hara,Meyers 1998, p. 289. Cooper plays an attorney whose life is ruined by a double-crossing politician and his own secret affair with his daughter's young roommate. While Cooper brought "conviction and controlled anguish" to his performance, according to biographer Jeffrey Meyers, it was not enough to save what Bosley Crowther called a "hapless film".Arce 1979, p. 264.

Despite his ongoing health problems and several operations for ulcers and hernias, Cooper continued to work in action films.Meyers 1998, p. 291. In 1958, he appeared in Anthony Mann's Western drama ''Man of the West'' (1958) with Julie London and Lee J. Cobb, about a reformed outlaw and killer who is forced to confront his violent past when the train in which he is riding is held up by his former gang members. The film has been called Cooper's "most pathological Western", with its themes of impotent rage, sexual humiliation, and sadism. According to biographer Jeffrey Meyers, Cooper, who struggled with moral conflicts in his personal life, "understood the anguish of a character striving to retain his integrity... ndbrought authentic feeling to the role of a tempted and tormented, yet essentially decent man". Mostly ignored by critics at the time, the film is now well-regarded by film scholars and is considered Cooper's last great film.

After his Warner Bros. contract ended, Cooper formed his own production company, Baroda Productions, and made three unusual films in 1959 about redemption. In Delmer Daves' Western drama '' The Hanging Tree'', Cooper plays a frontier doctor who saves a criminal from a lynch mob, and later tries to exploit his sordid past. Cooper delivered a "powerful and persuasive" performance of an emotionally scarred man whose need to dominate others is transformed by the love and sacrifice of a woman. In Robert Rossen's historical adventure '' They Came to Cordura'' with Rita Hayworth, he plays an army officer who is found guilty of cowardice and assigned the degrading task of recommending soldiers for the Medal of Honor during the Pancho Villa Expedition of 1916.

While Cooper received positive reviews, ''Variety'' and ''Films in Review'' felt he was too old for the part. In Michael Anderson's action drama ''The Wreck of the Mary Deare'' with Charlton Heston, Cooper plays a disgraced merchant-marine officer who decides to stay aboard his sinking cargo ship to prove the vessel was deliberately scuttled and to redeem his good name. Like its two predecessors, the film was physically demanding.Meyers 1998, p. 299. Cooper, who was a trained scuba diver, did most of his own underwater scenes. Biographer Jeffrey Meyers observed that in all three roles Cooper effectively conveyed the sense of lost honor and desire for redemptionMeyers 1998, p. 301.what Joseph Conrad in '' Lord Jim'' called the "struggles of an individual trying to save from the fire his idea of what his moral identity should be".

Personal life

Marriage and family

Cooper was formally introduced to his future wife, 20-year-old New York debutante Veronica Balfe, on Easter Sunday 1933 at a party given by her uncle, art director Cedric Gibbons. Called "Rocky" by her family and friends, she grew up on Park Avenue and attended finishing schools.Meyers 1998, p. 99. Her stepfather was Wall Street tycoon Paul Shields. Cooper and Rocky were quietly married at her parents' Park Avenue residence on December 15, 1933. According to his friends, the marriage had a positive impact on Cooper, who turned away from past indiscretions and took control of his life. Athletic and a lover of the outdoors, Rocky shared many of Cooper's interests, including riding, skiing, and skeet-shooting. While she organized their social life, her wealth and social connections provided Cooper access to New York high society.Meyers 1998, p. 106. Cooper and his wife owned homes in the Los Angeles area in Encino (1933–36),Meyers 1998, p. 103. Brentwood (1936–53), and Holmby Hills (1954–61),Meyers 1998, p. 271. and owned a vacation home in Aspen, Colorado (1949–53).Meyers 1998, pp. 214–15.

Gary and Veronica Cooper's daughter, Maria Veronica Cooper, was born on September 15, 1937.Meyers 1998, p. 128. By all accounts, he was a patient and affectionate father, teaching Maria to ride a bicycle, play tennis, ski, and ride horses. Sharing many of her parents' interests, she accompanied them on their travels and was often photographed with them. Like her father, she developed a love for art and drawing.Meyers 1998, p. 270. As a family, they vacationed together in Sun Valley, Idaho

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