The Henry Fonda Handbook - Everything you need to know about Henry Fonda

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Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 - August 12, 1982) was an American film and stage actor.
Fonda made his mark early as a Broadway actor.

He also appeared in 1938 in plays performed in White Plains, New York, with Joan Tompkins. He made his Hollywood debut in 1935, and his career gained momentum after his Academy Award-nominated performance as Tom Joad in The Grapes of Wrath, a 1940 adaptation of John Steinbeck's novel about an Oklahoma family who moved west during the Dust Bowl.

Throughout six decades in Hollywood, Fonda cultivated a strong, appealing screen image in such classics as The Ox-Bow Incident, Mister Roberts and 12 Angry Men.

Later, Fonda moved toward both more challenging, darker epics as Sergio Leone's Once Upon a Time in the West (portraying a villain who kills, among others, a child) and lighter roles in family comedies like Yours, Mine and Ours with Lucille Ball.
Fonda was the patriarch of a family of famous actors, including daughter Jane Fonda, son Peter Fonda, granddaughter Bridget Fonda, and grandson Troy Garity; his family and close friends called him ""Hank"".

In 1999, he was named the sixth Greatest Male Star of All Time by the American Film Institute.

This book is your ultimate resource for Henry Fonda. Here you will find the most up-to-date information, photos, and much more.

In easy to read chapters, with extensive references and links to get you to know all there is to know about his Early life, Career and Personal life right away: Henry Fonda filmography, I Dream Too Much, You Only Live Once (film), Slim (film), That Certain Woman, Jezebel (film), Spawn of the North, The Mad Miss Manton, Jesse James (film), Young Mr. Lincoln, Drums Along the Mohawk, The Grapes of Wrath (film), Lillian Russell (film), The Return of Frank James, The Lady Eve, You Belong to Me (1941 film), Rings on Her Fingers, The Male Animal, Tales of Manhattan, The Big Street, Immortal Sergeant, The Ox-Bow Incident, My Darling Clementine, The Long Night (1947 film), The Fugitive (1947 film), Daisy Kenyon, On Our Merry Way, Fort Apache (film), Jigsaw (film), Benjy, Mister Roberts (1955 film), War and Peace (1956 film), The Wrong Man, 12 Angry Men (1957 film), The Tin Star, Stage Struck (1958 film), Warlock (1959 film), The Man Who Understood Women, Advise & Consent (film), The Longest Day (film), How the West Was Won (film), Spencer's Mountain, The Best Man (1964 film), Fail-Safe (1964 film), Sex and the Single Girl (film), The Rounders (1965 film), In Harm's Way, The Dirty Game, Battle of the Bulge (film), A Big Hand for the Little Lady, Welcome to Hard Times (film), Firecreek, Madigan, Yours, Mine and Ours (1968 film), Boston Strangler, Once Upon a Time in the West, An Impression of John Steinbeck: Writer, Too Late the Hero, The Cheyenne Social Club, There Was a Crooked Man..., Sometimes a Great Notion (film), Night Flight from Moscow, Ash Wednesday (1973 film), My Name is Nobody, Midway (film), Tentacles (film), Rollercoaster (film), Fedora (film), The Swarm (film), A Special Sesame Street Christmas, Roots: The Next Generations, City on Fire (1979 film), Wanda Nevada, Meteor (film), Gideon's Trumpet, On Golden Pond (1981 film)

Contains selected content from the highest rated entries, typeset, printed and shipped, combining the advantages of up-to-date and in-depth knowledge with the convenience of printed books. A portion of the proceeds of each book will be donated to the Wikimedia Foundation to support their mission.

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Publié par	Emereo Publishing
Date de parution	24 octobre 2012
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781743447796
Langue	English
Poids de l'ouvrage	16 Mo

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Topic relevant selected content from the highest rated entries, typeset, printed and shipped.

Combine the advantages of up-to-date and in-depth knowledge with the con-venience of printed books.

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Contents

Articles Henry Fonda Henry Fonda filmography I Dream Too Much You Only Live Once (film) Slim (film) That Certain Woman Jezebel (film) Spawn of the North The Mad Miss Manton Jesse James (film)

Young Mr. Lincoln Drums Along the Mohawk The Grapes of Wrath (film) Lillian Russell (film) The Return of Frank James The Lady Eve You Belong to Me (1941 film)

Rings on Her Fingers The Male Animal Tales of Manhattan The Big Street Immortal Sergeant The Ox-Bow Incident My Darling Clementine The Long Night (1947 film) The Fugitive (1947 film) Daisy Kenyon On Our Merry Way Fort Apache (film) Jigsaw (film) Benjy Mister Roberts (1955 film) War and Peace (1956 film) The Wrong Man

1 10 15 17 19 21 23 27 28 31 34 36 40 47 49 51 56 58 60 63 67 70 72 76 79 81 83 85 88 91 92 93 98 101

12 Angry Men (1957 film) The Tin Star Stage Struck (1958 film) Warlock (1959 film) The Man Who Understood Women Advise & Consent (film) The Longest Day (film)

How the West Was Won (film) Spencer's Mountain The Best Man (1964 film) Fail-Safe (1964 film) Sex and the Single Girl (film) The Rounders (1965 film) In Harm's Way

The Dirty Game

Battle of the Bulge (film) A Big Hand for the Little Lady Welcome to Hard Times (film) Firecreek Madigan Yours, Mine and Ours (1968 film) Boston Strangler Once Upon a Time in the West An Impression of John Steinbeck: Writer Too Late the Hero The Cheyenne Social Club There Was a Crooked Man... Sometimes a Great Notion (film) Night Flight from Moscow Ash Wednesday (1973 film)

My Name is Nobody Midway (film) Tentacles (film) Rollercoaster (film) Fedora (film) The Swarm (film) A Special Sesame Street Christmas Roots: The Next Generations

104 111 113 115 119 121 126 133 140 142 145 150 152 154 159 161 166 169 171 173 176 184 188 197 198 202 205 206 209 211 213 216 223 226 229 233 235 237

City on Fire (1979 film) Wanda Nevada Meteor (film) Gideon's Trumpet On Golden Pond (1981 film)

References Article Sources and Contributors Image Sources, Licenses and Contributors

Article Licenses License

243 245 248 251 252

257 262

264

Henry Fonda

Born

Died

Cause of death

Occupation

Years active

Spouse

Children

Henry Fonda

Fonda in the 1937 filmSlim Henry Jaynes FondaMay 16, 1905Grand Island, Nebraska, U.S.

August 12, 1982 (aged 77)Los Angeles, California, U.S.

Heart disease

Actor

1935–1982

Margaret Sullavan (m. 1931-1932) Frances Ford Seymour (m. 1936-1950) Susan Blanchard (m. 1950-1956) Afdera Franchetti (m. 1957-1961) Shirlee Mae Adams (m. 1965-1982)

Jane Fonda Peter Fonda Amy Fishman

[1] Henry Jaynes Fonda(May 16, 1905–August 12, 1982) was an American film and stage actor.

Fonda made his mark early as a Broadway actor. He also appeared in 1938 in plays performed in White Plains, New [2] York, with Joan Tompkins. He made his Hollywood debut in 1935, and his career gained momentum after his Academy Award-nominated performance as Tom Joad inThe Grapes of Wrath, a 1940 adaptation of John Steinbeck's novel about an Oklahoma family who moved west during the Dust Bowl. Throughout six decades in Hollywood, Fonda cultivated a strong, appealing screen image in such classics asThe Ox-Bow Incident,Mister Robertsand12 Angry Men. Later, Fonda moved toward both more challenging, darker epics as Sergio Leone'sOnce Upon a Time in the West(portraying a villain who kills, among others, a child) and lighter roles in family comedies likeYours, Mine and Ourswith Lucille Ball.

Fonda was the patriarch of a family of famous actors, including daughter Jane Fonda, son Peter Fonda, granddaughter Bridget Fonda, and grandson Troy Garity; his family and close friends called him "Hank". In 1999, he was named the sixth Greatest Male Star of All Time by the American Film Institute.

Henry Fonda

Life and career

Family history and early life [3] Fonda was born in Grand Island, Nebraska to advertising-printing jobber William Brace Fonda and his wife, Elma [4] Herberta (nae Jaynes), in the second year of their marriage. The Fonda family had fled from Northern Italy, to the Netherlands in the 16th century, and then to the United States in the 17th century, settling in the town now called [5] Fonda, New York. Fonda was brought up as a Christian Scientist, though he was baptized an Episcopalian at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Grand Island, and claimed that "my whole damn family was nice". They were a close family and highly [6] supportive, especially in health matters, as they avoided doctors due to their religion. Fonda was a bashful, short boy who tended to avoid girls, except his sisters, and was a good skater, swimmer, and runner. He worked part-time in his father's print plant and imagined a possible career as a journalist. Later, he worked after school for the phone company. He also enjoyed drawing. Fonda was active in the Boy Scouts of America, Teichmann reports that he [7] reached the rank of Eagle Scout. When he was about fourteen, his father took him to observe a lynching, from the [8] window of his father's plant, of a young black man accused of rape. This so enraged the young Fonda that a keen [9] social awareness of prejudice was present within him for his entire adult life. By his senior year in high school, he grew suddenly to over six feet but remained a shy teenager. He then attended the University of Minnesota, majoring [10] in journalism, but he did not graduate. He took a job with the Retail Credit Company. At age 20, Fonda started his acting career at the Omaha Community Playhouse when his mother's friend Dodie Brando (mother of Marlon Brando) recommended that he try-out for a juvenile part inYou and I, in which he was [3] cast as Ricky. He was both fascinated by the stage, learning everything from set construction to stage production, [11] and also profoundly embarrassed by his acting ability. When he received the lead inMerton of the Movies, he realized the beauty of acting as a profession, as it allowed him to deflect attention from his own tongue-tied personality and create stage characters relying on someone else's scripted words. Fonda decided to quit his job and go East in 1928 to strike his fortune. He arrived on Cape Cod and had just finished a role at the Cape Playhouse in Dennis, Massachusetts when a friend took him over to Falmouth where he instantly became a valued member of the new University Players, an intercollegiate summer stock company, where he worked with Margaret Sullavan, his [12] [13] future wife, and which would be responsible for a lifelong friendship with James Stewart. He landed his first professional role in the University Players production ofThe Jest, by Sem Benelli, when Joshua Logan, a young sophomore at Princeton who had been double-cast in the show, gave Fonda the part of Tornaquinci, "an elderly Italian with long, white beard and heavy wig." Also in the cast ofThe Jestwith Fonda and Logan were Bretaigne [14] Windust, Kent Smith, and Eleanor Phelps.

Early career

The tall (6'1.5") and slim (160 lbs) Fonda headed for New York City, where he was soon joined by Stewart (after Fonda's short marriage to Margaret Sullavan) and the two roommates struggled but honed their skills on Broadway. Fonda appeared in theatrical productions from 1926 to 1934. They fared no better than many Americans in and out of work during the Depression, with [15] sometimes no money even to take the subway. Fonda got the first break going to Hollywood to make his first film appearance in (1935) as the leading man in 20th Century Fox's screen adaptation ofThe Farmer Takes a Wife, reprising his role from the Broadway

Henry Fonda inThe Lady Eve.

Henry Fonda

production of the same name which gained him critical recognition. Suddenly, Fonda was making $3,000 a week and [16] dining with Hollywood stars like Carole Lombard. Stewart soon followed him to Hollywood, and they roomed together again, in lodgings next door to Greta Garbo. In 1935 Fonda starred in the RKO filmI Dream Too Much with the famous opera star Lily Pons.The New York Timesproclaimed "Henry Fonda, the most likable of the new [17] crop of romantic juveniles". Fonda's film career blossomed as he costarred with Sylvia Sidney and Fred MacMurray inThe Trail of the Lonesome Pine(1936), the first Technicolor movie filmed outdoors. He also starred with ex-wife Margaret Sullavan inThe Moon's Our Home, and a short re-kindling of their relationship led to a brief consideration of re-marriage. Sullavan then married Fonda's agent Leland Hayward and Fonda married socialite Frances Ford Seymour, who had little interest in the movies or the theater. Fonda got the nod for the lead role inYou Only Live Once(1937), also costarring Sidney, and directed by Fritz Lang. Fonda's first child Jane Fonda was born on December 21, 1937. A critical success opposite Bette Davis, who had picked Fonda, in the filmJezebel(1938) was followed by the title role inYoung Mr. Lincoln(1939), his first collaboration with director John Ford and as Frank James inJesse James (1939). Another 1939 film was Drums along the Mohawk directed by John Ford where he played Gil Martin. Fonda's successes led Ford to recruit him to play "Tom Joad" in the film version of John Steinbeck's novelThe Grapes of Wrath(1940), but a reluctant Darryl Zanuck, who preferred Tyrone Power, insisted on Fonda's signing a [18] seven-year contract with the studio, Twentieth Century-Fox. Fonda agreed, and was ultimately nominated for an Academy Award for his work in the 1940 film, which many consider to be his finest role, but his friend James Stewart won the Best Actor award for his role inThe Philadelphia Story. Second child Peter Fonda was born in 1940. He starred inThe Return of Frank James(1940) with Gene Tierney.

World War II service Fonda played opposite Barbara Stanwyck inThe Lady Eve(1941), and teamed with Gene Tierney in the successful screwball comedyRings on Her Fingers(1942 ) - Tierney was one of Fondas favorite co-stars, they appeared in three films together. He was acclaimed for his role inThe Ox-Bow Incident(1943). Fonda then enlisted in the Navy to fight in World War II, saying, "I [19] don't want to be in a fake war in a studio." Previously, he and [20] Stewart had helped raise funds for the defense of Britain. Fonda served for three years, initially as a Quartermaster 3rd Class on the destroyer USSSatterlee. He was later commissioned as a Lieutenant Junior Grade in Air Combat Intelligence in the Central Pacific and was [21] awarded a Presidential Citation and the Bronze Star.

Fonda after enlisting in United States Navy in November 1942.

Henry Fonda

Post-war career

After the war, Fonda took a break from movies and attended Hollywood parties and enjoyed civilian life. He and Stewart would listen to records and invite Johnny Mercer, Hoagy Carmichael, Dinah Shore, and Nat King Cole over for music, with the latter [22] giving the family piano lessons. Fonda played Wyatt Earp in John Ford'sMy Darling Clementine(1946) and appeared in the filmFort Apache(1948) as a rigid Army colonel, along with John Wayne and Shirley Temple in her first adult role. Fonda did seven post-war films until his contract with Fox expired, the last being Otto Preminger'sDaisy Kenyon(1947), opposite Joan Crawford.

Fonda inThe Tin Star.

Refusing another long-term studio contract, Fonda returned to Broadway, wearing his own officer's cap to originate the title role inMister Roberts, a comedy about the Navy, where Fonda, a junior officer, wages a private war against the captain. He won a 1948 Tony Award for the part. Fonda followed that by reprising his performance in the national tour and with successful stage runs inPoint of No ReturnandThe Caine Mutiny Court-Martial. After a few years almost completely absent from films, he starred in the 1955 film version ofMister Robertsopposite James Cagney, William Powell and Jack Lemmon, continuing a pattern of bringing his acclaimed stage roles to life on the big screen. On the set ofMister Roberts, Fonda came to blows with John Ford, who punched him during filming, and vowed never to work for him again. He never did (though he appeared in Peter Bogdanovich's acclaimed documentary"Directed by John Ford"and spoke glowingly of Ford therein).

Fonda followedMr. Robertswith Paramount Pictures's production of the Leo Tolstoy epicWar and Peace, in which he played Pierre Bezukhov opposite Audrey Hepburn, and which took two years to shoot. Fonda worked with Alfred Hitchcock in 1956, playing a man falsely accused of robbery inThe Wrong Man, an unusual semi-documentary work of Hitchcock's based on an actual incident and partly filmed on location. In 1957, Fonda made his first foray into production with12 Angry Men, based on a teleplay and a script by Reginald Rose and directed by Sidney Lumet. The low budget production was completed in only seventeen days of filming mostly in one claustrophobic jury room and had a strong cast including Jack Klugman, Lee J. Cobb, Martin Balsam, and E. G. Marshall. The intense film about Fonda inHow the West Was Wontwelve jurors deciding the fate of a young Puerto Rican man accused of murder was well-received by critics worldwide. Fonda shared the Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations with co-producer Reginald Rose and won the 1958 BAFTA Award for Best Actor for his performance as "Juror #8", who with logic and persistence eventually sways all the jurors to an acquittal. Early on the film drew poorly, but after winning critical acclaim and awards, it proved a success. In spite of the good outcome, Fonda vowed that he would [23] never produce a movie again, fearing that failing as a producer might derail his acting career. After western moviesThe Tin Star(1957) andWarlock(1959), Fonda returned to the production seat for the NBC western television seriesThe Deputy(1959–1961), in which he starred as Marshal Simon Fry. His co-stars were Allen Case and Read Morgan. About this time, Fonda's fourth troubled marriage was unraveling.

Henry Fonda

The 1960s saw Fonda perform in a number of war and western epics, including 1962'sThe Longest DayandHow the West Was Won, 1965'sIn Harm's WayandBattle of the Bulge. In the Cold War suspense filmFail-Safe(1964), Fonda played the President of the United States who tries to avert a nuclear holocaust through tense negotiations with the Soviets after American bombers are mistakenly ordered to attack the USSR. He also returned to more light-hearted cinema inSpencer's Mountain(1963), which was the inspiration for the TV series,The Waltons. Fonda appeared against type as the villain 'Frank' in 1968'sOnce Upon a Time in the West. After initially turning down the role, he was convinced to accept it by actor Eli Wallach and director Sergio Leone, who flew from Italy to the United States to persuade him to take the part. Fonda had planned on wearing a pair of brown-colored contact lenses, but Leone preferred the paradox of contrasting close-up shots of Fonda's innocent-looking blue eyes with the vicious personality of the character Fonda played. Fonda's relationship with Jimmy Stewart survived their disagreements over politics—Fonda was a liberal Democrat, and Stewart a conservative Republican. After a heated argument, they avoided talking politics with each other. The two men teamed up for 1968'sFirecreek, where Fonda once again played the heavy. In 1970, Fonda and Stewart costarred in the westernThe Cheyenne Social Club, a minor film in which they humorously argued politics. They had first appeared together on film inOn Our Merry Way(1948), a comedy which also starred William [24] Demarest and Fred MacMurray and featured a grown-up Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer.

Late career Despite approaching his seventies, Fonda continued to work in both television and film through the 1970s. In 1970, Fonda appeared in three films, the most successful of these ventures beingThe Cheyenne Social Club. The other two films wereToo Late the Hero, in which Fonda played a secondary role, andThere Was a Crooked Man, about Paris Pitman Jr. (played by Kirk Douglas) trying to escape from an Arizona prison. Fonda made a return to both foreign and television productions, which provided career sustenance through a decade in which many aging screen actors suffered waning careers. He starred in the ABC television seriesThe Smith Familybetween 1971 and 1972. 1973's TV-movieThe Red Pony, an adaptation of John Steinbeck's novel, earned Fonda an Emmy nomination. After the unsuccessful Hollywood melodrama,Ash Wednesday, he filmed three Italian productions released in 1973 and 1974. The most successful of these,My Name Is Nobody, presented Fonda in a rare comedic performance as an old gunslinger whose plans to retire are dampened by a "fan" of sorts. Fonda continued stage acting throughout his last years, including several demanding roles in Broadway plays. He returned to Broadway in 1974 for the biographical drama,Clarence Darrow, for which he was nominated for a Tony Award. Fonda's health had been deteriorating for years, but his first outward symptoms occurred after a performance of the play in April 1974, when he collapsed from exhaustion. After the appearance of a heart arrhythmia brought on by prostate cancer, a pacemaker was installed following surgery and Fonda returned to the play in 1975. After the run of a 1978 play,First Monday of October, he took the advice of his doctors and quit plays, though he continued to star in films and television. In 1976, Fonda appeared in several notable television productions, the first beingCollision Course, the story of the volatile relationship between President Harry Truman (E.G. Marshall) and General MacArthur (Fonda), produced by ABC. After an appearance in the acclaimed Showtime broadcast ofAlmos' a Man, based on a story by Richard Wright, he starred in the epic NBC miniseriesCaptains and Kings, based on Taylor Caldwell's novel. Three years later, he appeared in ABC'sRoots: The Next Generations, but the miniseries was overshadowed by its predecessor, Roots. Also in 1976, Fonda starred in the World War II blockbusterMidway. Fonda finished the 1970s in a number of disaster films. The first of these was the 1977 Italian killer octopus thriller Tentacoli(Tentacles) andRollercoaster, in which Fonda appeared with Richard Widmark and a young Helen Hunt. He performed once again with Widmark, Olivia de Havilland, Fred MacMurray, and Josa Ferrer in the killer bee action filmThe Swarm. He also acted in the global disaster filmMeteor(his second role as a sitting President of the United States afterFail-Safe), with Sean Connery, Natalie Wood and Karl Malden, and then the Canadian

Henry Fonda

productionCity on Fire, which also featured Shelley Winters and Ava Gardner. Fonda had a small role with his son, Peter, in 1979'sWanda Nevada, with Brooke Shields. As Fonda's health continued to suffer and he took longer breaks between filming, critics began to take notice of his extensive body of work. In 1979, the Tony Awards committee gave Fonda a special award for his achievements on Broadway. Lifetime Achievement awards from the Golden Globes and Academy Awards followed in 1980 and 1981, respectively. Fonda continued to act into the early 1980s, though all but one of the productions he was featured in before his death were for television. These television works included the critically acclaimed live performance of Preston Jones'The Oldest Living Graduateand the Emmy nominatedGideon's Trumpet(co-starring Fay Wray in her last performance). On Golden Pondin 1981, the film adaptation of Ernest Thompson's play, marked one final professional and personal triumph for Fonda. Directed by Mark Rydell, the project provided unprecedented collaborations between Fonda and Katharine Hepburn, along with Fonda and his daughter, Jane. The elder Fonda played an emotionally brittle and distant father who becomes more accessible at the end of his life. Jane Fonda has said that elements of the story mimicked their real-life relationship, and helped them resolve certain issues. She bought the film rights in the hope that her father would play the role, and later described it as "a gift to my father that was so unbelievably [25] successful." Premiered in December 1981, the film was well received by critics, and after a limited release on December 4On Golden Ponddeveloped enough of an audience to be widely released on January 22. With eleven Academy Award nominations, the film earned nearly $120 million at the box office, becoming an unexpected blockbuster. In addition to wins for Hepburn (Best Actress), and Thompson (Screenplay),On Golden Pondbrought Fonda his only Oscar -for Best Actor (he would become the oldest recipient of the award; it also earned him a Golden Globe Best Actor award). Fonda was by that point too ill to attend the ceremony, and his daughter Jane Fonda accepted on his behalf. She said when accepting the award that her dad would probably quip, "Well, ain't I lucky." After Fonda's death, some film critics called this performance "his last and greatest role".

Marriages and children Fonda was married five times and had three children, one of them being adopted. His marriage to Margaret Sullavan in 1931 soon ended in separation, which was finalized in a 1933 divorce. In 1936, he married Frances Ford Seymour, [26] whom he met at Denham Studios in England on the set ofWings of the Morning, the first British picture to be filmed in technicolor. They had two children, Peter and Jane, both of whom have had Oscar nominations. In 1950, Seymour committed suicide. Fonda married Susan Blanchard, the stepdaughter of Oscar Hammerstein II, in 1950. [27] Together, they adopted a daughter, Amy Fishman (born 1953), and divorced three years later. In 1957, Fonda [28] married Italian Countess Afdera Franchetti; they divorced in 1961. Soon after, Fonda married Shirlee Mae Adams, and remained with her until his death in 1982. Fonda's relationship with his children has been described as "emotionally distant." In Peter Fonda's 1998 autobiographyDon't Tell Dad, he described how he was never sure how his father felt about him, and that he did not [29] tell his father he loved him until his father was elderly and he finally heard the words, "I love you, son." His daughter Jane rejected her father's friendships with Republican actors such as John Wayne and James Stewart, and as a result, their relationship was extremely strained. Jane Fonda also reported feeling detached from her father, especially during her early acting career. Henry Fonda introduced her to Lee Strasberg, who became her acting teacher, and as she developed as an actress using the techniques of "The Method", she found herself frustrated and unable to understand her father's effortless acting style. In the late 1950s, when she asked him how he prepared before going on stage, she was baffled by his answer, "I don’t know, I stand there, I think about my wife, Afdera, I don't know."