Steve McQueen

There's just something about those piercing blue eyes that grabs you and pulls you into whatever chase, rescue or love affair he happens to be a part of on screen. He is magnetic, the strong silent type that could outrun and out maneuver anyone in a car, boat or mortocyle chase and shoot them down before they even knew what was coming in a gunfight. He could give a woman a kiss that would make her eyes cross and get her in his bed in record time just by flashing that patened little half smile of his. He is an icon, a legend. Steve McQueen.

Steve McQueen was born Terence Steven McQueen on March 24, 1930 in Beech Grove, Indiana. He married his first wife, Neile, in 1956. They had two sons, Terry and Chad, before divorcing in 1972. Following his first marriage, he was married twice more. First, from 1973 to 1978, to his costar from The Getaway, Ali MacGraw and then to Barbara Minty from January 1980 until his death later that year.

Sadly, Steve McQueen passed away in Mexico on November 7, 1980. He'd been hit with two consecutive heart attacks that had followed a surgery he'd had less than twenty-four hours earlier to remove cancer from his lung and stomach. For nearly a year, he had been suffering quietly with mesothelioma, a form of lung cancer brought on by exposure to asbestos, that was continually getting worse and killing him. During that time, McQueen had tried a variety of unsuccessfully homeopathic remedies in an attempt to lengthen the live he so loved. Though he had smoked cigarettes for years, it was his exposure to asbestos in his racing suits that ultimately caused his cancer. An asbestos lining was popular for the time in the suits drivers wore while racing cars and the dangers of such a practice had not yet come to light. It was even remarked by his ex-wife, Neile, that Steve would often soak a rag in liquid asbestos to wear over his mouth while he raced in order to block out the fumes of the cars' exhaust. His ashes were scattered at sea.

During his life, Steve McQueen starred in thirty films and also played the role of Josh Randall in the television series Wanted: Dead or Alive. His string of blockbusters and iconic roles is impressive to say the least and the list of parts he turned down is eye opening. Steve McQueen was the highest paid star of the 1960s. A highly sought after actor, he became a poster boy for the tough and sexy, always cool leading man whose most memorable roles will continue to live on in popular culture.

While Steve McQueen's filmography is extensive, with some thirty movie titles, some are far more memorable than others. Although he got his start with little known leads in movies like 1958's sci-fi thriller, The Blob, it was his roles in movies such as The Magnificent Seven, Papillon and The Great Escape that brought him the most notoriety. These are the films, along with others like The Getaway, Junior Bonner, Cincinatti Kid, Thomas Crown Affair, The Towering Inferno, Bullitt and The Sand Pebbles that have left the most lasting impressions on fans.

Along with his string of hits, there were also some surprising misses. Some of the roles McQueen turned down, or wasn't able to fill, became huge earners for other actors. Starring roles in such films as Breakfast at Tiffany's, Ocean's Eleven, Dirty Harry, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, First Blood, A Bridge too Far, Apocolypse Now, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Superman and Close Encounters of the Third Kind could have all been his.

Steve McQueen was only 50 years old when he died. He left behind two sons, a wife and two ex-wives. He was, and still is, the epitome of cool, earning him the nickname, "The King of Cool". He had a lifelong love of racing and motorcycles and did much of his own driving in his films such as Bullitt and The Great Escape. He was even able to show off some of his technique in the Oscar nominated documentary about motorcycle racing, On Any Sunday and by appearing as an uncredited dirt bike rider in the film Dixie Dynamite.

He served as a private in the United States Marine Corps until 1950 when he was honorably discharged. Steve gained a reputatation amongst directors and producers of being difficult to work with as he would often request items, such as razors and jeans, to be left in bulk in his dressing room. It was later learned that he was giving the itmes to a boys home for troubled kids that he had even spent some time at as a youngster.

McQueen began acting in 1952 at a Neighborhood Playhouse and continued on in films and television until his death. Even thirty plus years after his death, his film roles live on and have shown that they will continue to endure. Steve McQueen created the blueprint for the strong, tough but sexy leading man that actors are still striving to match today.