It has been 40 years since his death (7/11/80) and yet to this day he remains in the consciousness of the world as the most "cool male figure in Hollywood". After all, the nickname given to him: "The king of cool" is not accidental. And he was such a "type" Steve McQueen, which no one managed to overcome. And from Hollywood passed charmers and charmers who could oust him from his throne.
But the McQueen myth remains alive and hard to overcome. Because it was not only his impressive appearance: tall, blond, blue eyes, handsome. Not even his style. It was also his character.
Disobedient, authentic, unpredictable, cruel, masculine, but at the same time romantic, tender and fragile as those who knew him well said. But she was also a woman. Incurably female. And in his short life he lived a liberated life, which created the legend around his name.
The life of the famous actor was not easy. His childhood was difficult. His father abandoned him and his alcoholic mother when he was just six months old. Thus, from an early age he was called to manage the abandonment, both by his father and by his mother, since many times he left him to his grandparents and "forgot" to take him.
His mother was an alcoholic and housed her lovers with little Steve living scenes that hurt his soul. Among the images he had growing up were those of lovers beating and abusing his mother. At the age of 12 and without anyone controlling him and caring about him, he became involved with gangs.
Illegality came into his life and until he was 16 he went in and out of reformatory. Until he decided to run away and seek his fortune alone. He did a lot of work, from a child for all the errands in a nursing home, to a worker in an oil well and a salesman and car mechanic. And if we believe the bad tongues of Hollywood, the handsome young McQueen also accompanied the mature, rich ladies.
In 1947 he enlisted in the Marines, in the armor, but his unruly character caused him to be "taken down" seven times. In fact, during his tenure he disappeared for two weeks with the girl he was dating at the time and when he was caught he spent 41 days in solitary confinement.
In fact, the punishment then was to clean the reefs of a ship, a very unhealthy job. And as they say, it was so unhealthy that decades later it would have cost him his life since he had inhaled asbestos which was the generative cause of his death.
Although for many, being nice is almost like a curse Hollywood, since many stay in appearance and find it difficult to be convinced of talent, this was not the case in McQueen. The actor with the abundant acting talent had "forced" to say about him that "he could even play with his back turned to the lens".
His talent filled the big screen and the roles he played were typical. Although he sometimes seemed not to take his acting skills seriously, he was an impeccable professional, while it is characteristic that he did not want to be dubbed in dangerous scenes.
Steve McQueen had said many professionally no. many of them were resounding, as he turned down the role of Peppard in Breakfast at Tifanny's, the role of Marlon Brando in Revelation Now, but also that of Dirty Harry.
There, he never said no to women and speed. He was a fan of hedgehogs and fast cars. But he also enjoyed having a good time, partying, drinking, and taking drugs. Passions that reinforced the myth around his name, since there are many stories about his life. Other confirmed and other rumors and gossip of the time. After all, he never cared what was said about him.
Women adored Steve McQueen. They were all in love with him. But what did he love? Legend has it that thousands of women passed through his bed. True or false, only he knew. What is certain is that he was an incurably woman and his first two wives experienced this weakness, well in their skin.
The list of McQueen's conquests also included several "famous" Hollywood ladies, who how can they resist his charm? Among the stars who succumbed to their blonde colleague were: Anne Margaret, Jacqueline Bisset, Sharon Tate and Faye Dunaway.
The actor has been married three times. His third wife, Barbara Midi, could be proud to be the only woman who was not cheated on by Steve McQueen. The second, however, Ali McGraw could say that she was the only woman that McQueen loved. But what to do? He was unfaithful to her, while during the years they were together he lived the most tender side of him but also the hardest, since the jealousy he felt for him, brought out the bad version of himself.
He met McGraw in '72, on the set while she was still married to the powerful producer, Robert Evans. The attraction they felt was scary and for his sake she left her husband, but also her career, since the actor wanted her at home and only for him.
They remained married for seven years and during this time their married life had it all: passion, love, violence, quarrels, separations and reunions. But he also had plenty of horn on the part of the actor, who although married continued the liberated life that included in addition to women, alcohol, parties and drugs.
Their separation was episodic, and after their divorce they were never seen again. Even in his last moments before he passed away, fighting with him cancer, Steve refused to be visited by McGraw. They say he loved her and could not bear to look at her.
Much has been written and said about McQueen. As we said, sometimes real facts and sometimes rumors and just gossip. However, for many years the religious faith of the famous remained unknown actress.
It was revealed by the pastor Greg Laurie, who, among other things, is a fan of the actor. According to the pastor, McQueen came close to the religious faith towards the end of his life, while he was baptized a Christian a few months before he learned that he was suffering from a galloping form of cancer.
In fact, when he was traveling to Mexico for another operation (which was his last before the voyage), he visited the evangelist, Billy Graham, who gave him the Bible.
The surgery was performed at the Juarez Clinic. Steve McQueen breathed his last a few hours after a heart attack in his room. According to the pastor, they found the actor dead holding the Bible in his hands.
In fact, as he reveals, McQueen said that the only thing he regretted in his life was that he did not have enough time to talk to the world about Christ and what he did for him.