Remembering Robert Mitchum, Star of ‘Night of Hunter’ and ‘Cape Fear’
Robert Mitchum was one of those stars that had a way of making every role look easy, from a war hero or a dangerous villain. Born on August 6, 1917, in Bridgeport, Connecticut, Mitchum didn’t follow a straight path to Hollywood. He grew up during hard times, hitching rides on freight trains, working odd jobs and even spending time on a chain gang after a vagrancy arrest. Acting wasn’t part of the plan, at least not at first, until his sister encouraged him to join the Players Guild of Long Beach, which broke him into the movie industry.
Mitchum’s big break came in the mid-1940s with war films like Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo, but it was the film noir classic Out of the Past that truly cemented his image. As private eye Jeff Bailey, Mitchum delivered dry lines with such ease that it became the blueprint for countless noir heroes to come.
Everett Collection
His career spanned decades and genres, from Westerns like El Dorado to thrillers like Night of the Hunter and Cape Fear, where he played one of the time period’s most chilling villains, Max Cady. In the 1980s, he surprised audiences again with roles in TV miniseries like The Winds of War and War and Remembrance, showing that even in his later years, he could still command the screen.
Offscreen, Mitchum had a reputation for being a bit of a rebel. He was famously arrested for marijuana possession in 1948, a huge scandal at the time. Throughout his life, Mitchum downplayed his own talent, often claiming he just showed up and did what he was told.
Despite his gruff exterior, Mitchum was known to be deeply devoted to his family. He married Dorothy Spence in 1940, and they remained together for nearly 60 years, raising three children. Their enduring marriage was rare in Hollywood. Ultimately, Mitchum passed away on July 1, 1997, at the age of 79, from complications of lung cancer and emphysema.
Remind 
Collecting the 1950s
Aug. 2022
For fans of the Nifty Fifties enjoy this treasure trove of ’50s memorabilia.
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