William Holden

Dashing William Holden in publicity for the 1940 western film ARIZONA. Holden was born William Franklin Beedle, Jr., on April 17, 1918, in O'Fallon, Illinois. His first starring role was in "Golden Boy" (1939), in which he played a violinist-turned-boxer. Next he starred with George Raft and Humphrey Bogart in the Warner Bros. gangster film "Invisible Stripes" (1939). The following year he appeared in the western film "Arizona" (1940) and at Columbia another western with Glenn Ford - "Texas" (1941). For the next few years, Holden continued playing wholesome, guy-next-door types and rookie servicemen in pictures like "Our Town" (1940), "I Wanted Wings" (1941) and "The Fleet's In" (1942). Other films during the 40s included "The Remarkable Andrew" (1942), "Meet the Stewarts" (1943) and "Young and Willing" (1943). Holden would become one of the biggest box-office draws of the 1950s, starring in some of Hollywood's most popular and critically acclaimed films, including "Sunset Boulevard" (1950), "Forever Female" (1953), "Sabrina" (1954), "Picnic" (1955), and "The Bridge on the River Kwai" (1957). He would win the Oscar for Best Actor for "Stalag 17" (1953), and later on won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie for the television film "The Blue Knight" (1973). In 1972, Holden began a nine-year relationship with actress Stefanie Powers, and sparked her interest in animal welfare. After his death in 1981, Powers set up the William Holden Wildlife Foundation at Holden's Mount Kenya Game Ranch. William Holden was named one of the "Top 10 Stars of the Year" six times (1954–1958, 1961), and appeared as 25th on the American Film Institute's list of 25 greatest male stars of Classic Hollywood Cinema.

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