When Cary Grant’s ego made him the number one enemy: “Ignored by everyone”
If you’re looking for a star who symbolises the suave charm of the Golden Age of Hollywood, then look no further than Cary Grant.
Born in a poor English family under the name Archibald Leach, Grant moved to the US as a teenager and quickly acclimatised to the glitz and glamour across the pond. He established himself as one of the archetypal leading men, setting a template that would be followed for generations to come.
Beginning his movie career in the early 1930s, Grant went on to star in some monumental hits over the next three decades. He was just as capable in a drama as he was at comedy, making films that spanned the likes of His Girl Friday to North by Northwest. In an era where good-looking actors were usually typecast as uncomplicated heroes, Grant’s ability to laugh at himself led to a career most of his contemporaries could only dream of.
The actor earned a pretty favourable reputation across his career. Audrey Hepburn once described him as her favourite ever co-star, and there are numerous other reports of him being a complete gem on set. However, everyone has their bad days, as the star discovered while making the 1935 adventure movie The Last Outpost.
Set during World War I, The Last Outpost stars Grant as British military officer Captain Michael Andrews. After getting wounded while escaping enemy capture, Andrews spends time in a hospital, where he falls in love with a beautiful nurse named Rosemary, played by Gertrude Michael. Alas, his romantic plans are scuppered when he discovers that Rosemary is actually married to a spy named Stevenson, played by Claude Rains, who just so happens to be the one who rescued Andrews in the first place.
As per his book, Cary Grant: A Brilliant Disguise, author Scott Eyman chronicles his subject’s particularly frosty relationship with this film’s director, Charles Barton. “Grant didn’t like Barton, didn’t like him at all,” he wrote.
Adding: “He had asked for an A-list director in pre-production but had been turned down. Grant bridled at Barton and asked Claude Rains to join him in asking for another director, to which Rains replied, ‘Don’t try using me to solve your problems. I’m very happy with Charlie’s direction’.”
In an attempt to remove Barton, Grant started acting up, taking his frustrations out on everyone. After just two weeks, the director had had enough and left the production. However, before he skipped town, he told the crew what had gone on, which made his aggressor public enemy number one.
“Grant must have wondered what had happened overnight,” Eyman continued. “He was ignored by everyone. The wardrobe man was slow to bring his coat and just tossed it on his chair. [The script supervisor] was always preoccupied when [Grant] fumbled his lines and looked to her for help. It was the same with everyone: the propman, makeup man, and hairdresser.”
Following Barton’s departure, Louis J Gasnier took over production. He’d had his share of hits with The Perils of Pauline being particularly groundbreaking, but not for around 20 years. As a result, the movie was received unenthusiastically by punters and critics alike, so Grant’s crash-out achieved a grand total of nothing.
