As a follow-up to yesterday's entry on The Colony Palms Hotel, today's post features 50's matinee idol Rock Hudson during a few visits to Palm Springs. Bob Beerman, staff photgrapher for Modern Screen Magazine, shot these images between 1954 & 1955.
Betty Abbott was a script girl at Universal, working on nine successive Rock Hudson pictures at the beginning of his career. At night, the two would get together socially and gab about what had happened during the day at the studio.
The gossip rags of the day claimed that Betty was on her way to being the "second Mrs. Hudson," which would seem fairly believable when looking at these photos taken at the Palm Springs Racquet Club.
As most are aware of now, Hudson was gay and most of the dating fodder published in the rags was for appearance's sake. Whether Betty knew she was being used for publicity purposes or not is unknown.
From much of what I have read though, most in Hollywood knew about Rock and his sexual preferences.
Here the two enjoy a frosty treat at a local ice cream shop.
Rock butches it up for these two photos, as he looks under the hood of the car of Palm Springs resident and actor Charles Farrell.
Farrell was big in the silent era and had a respectable career that spanned into the talkies as well as TV "My Little Margie." Once retired from the screen, he opened up The Racquet Club along with actor Ralph Bellamy.
See more Rock Hudson photos on my Rock Hudson photo web page.
5 comments:
I'd assume that Betty Abbott knew about Rock Hudson's private life since most of Hollywood did. Fortunately times are changing so this isn't such a big issue anymore.
I think my favorite Rock Hudson films are the those directed by Douglas Sirk like "Magnificent Obsession" and "All That Heaven Allows". All in glorious Technicolor and melodrama!
BTW, you have a great "Old Hollywood" photo web page archive. I love it.
Was this before or after he met Lucy and Ethel poolside in Palm Springs?
- "Would you like a piece of Rock, Mr. Candy?"
K. - Those two movies are some of my faves two; studied both of them in a film class at college. So many cool subtexts going on in both.
Chris - Love that episode!
Rock and Charles Ferrall had something else in common besides having been movie stars. Ferrall was also a closeted gay man who had had a marriage of convenience.
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