Kirk Douglas 1916-2020
A three-time Academy Award-nominee and recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Oscar, actor Kirk Douglas made an indelible impression in a wide variety of classic films, from epics like "Spartacus" and "The Vikings," to searing dramas like "Champion" and "Paths of Glory," to the film noir "Out of the Past."
The Hollywood legend died on Wednesday, February 5, 2020, at the age of 103, his son, Michael Douglas, announced.
By CBSNews.com senior producer David Morgan
"The Strange Love of Martha Ivers"
Issur Danielovitch Demsky was born, in 1916, to Russian immigrant parents. After serving in the Navy in World War II, he changed his name to Kirk Douglas, and got his first movie role in "The Strange Love of Martha Ivers" (1946), a film noir co-starring Barbara Stanwyck.
"The Strange Love of Martha Ivers"
Kirk Douglas, Van Heflin and Barbara Stanwyck demonstrating the business end of a gun in "The Strange Love of Martha Ivers" (1946).
"Mourning Becomes Electra"
Kirk Douglas was among the cast of the film adaptation of Eugene O'Neill's play cycle "Mourning Becomes Electra" (1947), which starred Rosalind Russell, Raymond Massey, Michael Redgrave and Leo Genn. The film's three-hour length was cut drastically when it was deemed a box office failure, but was later restored.
"Champion"
Kirk Douglas quickly became a star, playing an unscrupulous boxer in "Champion" (1949), based on a Ring Lardner story. He earned his first of three Oscar nominations for Best Actor.
"I Walk Alone"
In 1948 Douglas starred in the film noir "I Walk Alone" (1948) with Burt Lancaster and Lizabeth Scott. It was the first of several films Douglas and Lancaster made together.
"Out of the Past"
One of the greatest film noirs, "Out of the Past" (1947), directed by Jacques Tourneur, starred Kirk Douglas and Jane Greer in a tale of attempted murder, robbery and a romantic triangle involving a private investigator (Robert Mitchum) hired by Douglas to locate his missing, gun-toting girlfriend.
"Young Man With a Horn"
In "Young Man With a Horn" (1950), directed by Michael Curtiz, Kirk Douglas plays a jazz musician whose marriage and friendships are decimated by his growing alcoholism. It co-starred Doris Day (left), Lauren Bacall, and Hoagy Carmichael.
"Young Man With a Horn"
Kirk Douglas and Lauren Bacall in "Young Man With a Horn" (1950).
"Detective Story"
A day in the life of a New York police precinct, 1951's "Detective Story" starred Kirk Douglas and Oscar nominee Eleanor Parker.
"Ace in the Hole"
The 1951 film "Ace in the Hole" (a.k.a. "The Big Carnival") was Billy Wilder's brutal tale of a manipulative newspaper reporter hoping to capitalize on a disaster: a man trapped in an underground collapse.
"Along the Great Divide"
Raoul Walsh directed the 1951 western "Along the Great Divide," starring Kirk Douglas as a federal marshal crossing paths with a lynch mob. With John Agar, Virginia Mayo and Walter Brennan.
"The Bad and the Beautiful"
Kirk Douglas starred as a Hollywood producer whose no-holds-barred approach burns more bridges than he can build in the 1952 melodrama "The Bad and the Beautiful," co-starring Lana Turner.
Douglas earned an Academy Award nomination, and the film won five Oscars for Supporting Actress Gloria Grahame, and for its screenplay, art direction, cinematography and costume design.
"20,000 Leagues Under the Sea"
Kirk Douglas with his pal Esmeralda the seal aboard Captain Nemo's Nautilus, in the Jules Verne adventure, "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" (1954). It was one of the biggest live-action Disney films to date, and the most successful, second only to "White Christmas" at the box office, and copping two Academy Awards.
"The Racers"
Kirk Douglas is a Grand Prix race car driver for whom "winning is the only thing," whose accident steers him into the arms of Bella Darvi, in Henry Hathaway's "The Racers" (1955).
"Ulysses"
Kirk Douglas starred as "Ulysses," the 1954 adventure based on Homer's epic, produced by Dino De Laurentiis and Carlo Ponti.
"Lust for Life"
Kirk Douglas received his third Oscar nomination for Best Actor for his performance as Dutch artist Vincent Van Gogh in Vincente Minnelli's evocative 1956 biography, "Lust for Life."
"Lust for Life"
Kirk Douglas as the tortured artist Vincent Van Gogh in "Lust for Life" (1956).
"Lust for Life"
Kirk Douglas as Dutch painter Vincent Van Gogh in "Lust for Life" (1956).
"Gunfight at the O.K. Corral"
Kirk Douglas (as Doc Holliday) reteamed with Burt Lancaster (as Wyatt Earp) in the 1957 western "Gunfight at the O.K. Corrall."
"Paths of Glory"
Stanley Kubrick's searing "Paths of Glory" (1957) starred Kirk Douglas as a French Army Colonel who finds himself at odds with military commanders who seek to court-martial 100 servicemen for cowardice in the wake of a failed attack against German defenses.
"Paths of Glory"
Kirk Douglas as Colonel Dax in Stanley Kubrick's "Paths of Glory" (1957).
"The Indian Fighter"
Kirk Douglas starred in the 1956 western "The Indian Fighter" as the leader of a wagon train to Oregon. With Elsa Martinelli as Onahti.
"The Vikings"
Richard Fleischer (who directed "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea") helmed the 1958 adventure "The Vikings," shot in Norway and starring Kirk Douglas, Tony Curtis, Janet Leigh and Ernest Borgnine.
"The Devil's Disciple"
Guy Hamilton (who later directed several James Bond films) directed the 1959 adaptation of George Bernard Shaw's "The Devil's Disciple." The Colonial-era film starred Kirk Douglas, Burt Lancaster and Laurence Olivier.
"Strangers When We Meet"
Kirk Douglas and Kim Novak are married neighbors who engage in an affair in the 1960 film "Strangers When We Meet."
"Spartacus"
If there were one film for which Kirk Douglas would be best remembered, it is "Spartacus" (1960), the epic tale of a slave revolt against the Roman Empire.
"Spartacus"
Douglas, the film's executive producer, not only played the rebellious slave; in a show of real courage, he broke with Hollywood's blacklisting of the 1950s and hired a screenwriter who had been banned for alleged Communist ties.
"It enraged me," Douglas said. "And I decided the hell with it, I'm producing 'Spartacus,' and I'm using Dalton Trumbo's name!"
"Spartacus"
After a week of shooting, Douglas fired the original director of "Spartacus," Anthony Mann, and brought in his "Paths of Glory" director Stanley Kubrick.
While the two were in conflict during production -- Kubrick threw out script pages, including Douglas' dialogue, muting much of the imprisoned slave's performance -- the film was a tremendous box office success and won four Academy Awards.
Kubrick typically distanced himself from the film as a "work for hire," but cooperated in the 1991 restoration of the film's 65mm negative, which restored footage that had been cut following objections by the Catholic Legion of Decency.
"The Last Sunset"
In "The Last Sunset" (1961), Rock Hudson plays a lawman trying to bring a man wanted for murder (Kirk Douglas) back north from Mexico.
"Town Without Pity"
In "Town Without Pity" (1961), Kirk Douglas played an Army officer assigned to defend four U.S. servicemen charged with rape. With Christine Kaufmann as the 16-year-old victim who faces a grueling cross-examination.
"Seven Days in May"
In John Frankenheimer's 1964 thriller, "Seven Days in May," Kirk Douglas plays a Marine Corps Colonel who uncovers a planned coup d'etat by the Joint Chiefs of Staff, led by an Air Force General (played by Burt Lancaster), who seek to subvert the signing of a nuclear disarmament pact with the Soviet Union.
Kirk and Anna
Actor Kirk Douglas and his second wife, Anna, are photographed in New York on November 15, 1963.
Kirk married his first wife, actress Diana Dill, in 1943; they had two sons who both followed their father into the movie business: Michael, the Oscar-winning actor ("Wall Street") and producer ("One Flew Over the Cukoo's Nest"); and Joel, an assistant director and producer.
Kirk's two sons with Anna Buydens also entered movies: producer Peter Douglas and actor Eric Douglas.
Monaco
Actor Kirk Douglas and his wife Anne are seen with their two children, Erick (age 9) and Peter (12) in Monaco, August 11, 1967, during a cruise on producer Sam Spiegel's yacht.
"In Harm's Way"
Kirk Douglas, as a U.S. Navy officer, with Jill Haworth in Otto Preminger's 1965 drama, "In Harm's Way."
"In Harm's Way"
Kirk Douglas, as a U.S. Navy officer in Otto Preminger's "In Harm's Way" (1965).
"Cast a Giant Shadow"
Frank Sinatra and Kirk Douglas talk on the set of "Cast a Giant Shadow," in Israel, January 15, 1966.
"Cast a Giant Shadow"
In "Cast a Giant Shadow" (1965), Kirk Douglas starred as a former U.S. Army officer who, after World War II, leads the Israeli defense forces during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. John Wayne appeared as Douglas' commanding officer during the film's depiction of the invasion of Normandy.
"The Arrangement"
Kirk Douglas as a suicidal advertising executive, with mistress Faye Dunaway, in Elia Kazan's "The Arrangement" (1969).
"The War Wagon"
In the 1967 western "The War Wagon," John Wayne seeks revenge on an unscrupulous businessman by hijacking a gold shipment from an impregnable stagecoach. Kirk Douglas plays the safecracker Wayne hires for the job.
"The War Wagon"
Kirk Douglas on the set of "The War Wagon."
"There Was a Crooked Man"
"There Was a Crooked Man" (1970), directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz ("All About Eve") and written by David Newman and Robert Benton ("Bonnie and Clyde"), starred Kirk Douglas as a convicted robber and Henry Fonda as a prison warden intent on tracking down Douglas after he escapes to retrieve his hidden loot.
"The Fury"
Kirk Douglas starred in Brian De Palma's elegantly bloody thriller "The Fury" (1978), about a pair of telepathically-gifted teenagers, played by Amy Irving (pictured) and Andrew Stevens, being pulled into a covert government agency to weaponize their powers.
Cannes
Actor Kirk Douglas is pictured during the 32nd Cannes International Film Festival, May 12, 1979.
"The Final Contdown"
Kirk Douglas played the commander of the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Nimitz, which inexplicably passes through a time portal, landing off Pearl Harbor just one day before the Japanese attack in 1941, in the sci-fi thriller "The Final Countdown" (1980). The film co-starred Martin Sheen and James Farentino.
Cannes
Actor Kirk Douglas gives a press conference as president of the jury during the 33rd Cannes International Film Festival, May 17, 1980.
Academy Awards
Actor Michael Douglas applauds his father, Kirk Douglas, during the 57th annual Academy Awards, March 25, 1985, in Hollywood, Calif.
"Tough Guys"
Kirk Douglas and Burt Lancaster reunited in the 1986 action-comedy "Tough Guys," about a pair of gangsters released from prison who decide rehabilitation isn't quite for them. It was their fifth film together (not counting their cameos in "The List of Adrian Messenger"). The two also appeared on stage in "The Boys in Autumn," playing Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn as adults.
Legion d'Honneur
American actor Kirk Douglas answers journalists' questions after being awarded the Chevalier of the French Legion d'Honneur, March 1, 1985, in Paris.
Paris
Actor Kirk Douglas arrives at the Cinematheque for a press conference on the publication of his book, January 26, 1989 in Paris. In addition to several memoirs, including "The Ragman's Son" and "My Stroke of Luck," Douglas also penned novels, such as "Dance With the Devil," "The Gift," and "Last Tango in Brooklyn."
Paris
Actor Kirk Douglas poses during the TF1 television program "7/7," September 30, 1990 in Paris.
Kennedy Center Honors
President Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton pay tribute to the Kennedy Center Honorees in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., December 4, 1994. The honorees are, from the right, actor Kirk Douglas; singer Aretha Franklin; composer Morton Gould; Broadway producer Harold Prince; and folk singer Pete Seeger.
Mr. Clinton said that, after watching Douglas' films with the first lady, he wondered "whether, when the history of this administration is over, it will be more like 'Spartacus' or 'Gunfight at the O.K. Corral.'"
Academy Awards
Actor Kirk Douglas salutes the audience at the 68th annual Academy Awards after receiving an Oscar for lifetime achievement, March 25, 1996, in Los Angeles. Douglas won an honorary Oscar for 50 years as a creative and moral force in the motion picture community.
Hollywood
Actor Jack Nicholson (left), who starred in the film version of "One Flew Over the Cukoo's Nest" produced by Michael Douglas, greets Kirk Douglas after a ceremony honoring Michael, who placed his hands and footprints in cement at the world-famous Chinese Theatre, September 10, 1997 in Hollywood, Calif. Michael Douglas was the first "second generation" movie star to be so honored; Kirk's handprints were immortalized in 1962.
Los Angeles
Actor Kirk Douglas talks to students during the opening of the 100th playground that he has made possible through his donations, December 14, 2000, in Los Angeles, Calif.
"It Runs in the Family"
The 2003 film "It Runs in the Family," a tale of three generations of a New York clan, featured three generations of a Hollywood clan: Kirk Douglas, son Michael Douglas, and Michael's son, Cameron Douglas. The film also featured Bernadette Peters, Diana Douglas (Kirk's ex-wife, and mother of Michael), and Rory Culkin.
A Lust For Life
The actor always knew the meaning of being a tough guy: "If toughness means to persevere," Douglas said, "not to be knocked down by some obstacles that come in your path - yes, I guess I am tough."
Left: Kirk Douglas as Vincent Van Gogh in "Lust for Life."
By CBSNews.com senior producer David Morgan