In 1957, Lizabeth Scott starred in her final major film role, opposite Elvis Presley in his second movie, Loving You. After an accomplished career that spanned 20 films, Scott chose to end her days of stardom and retreat to a life of seclusion.
Born in 1922 to Slovakian/Italian immigrints, Emma Matzo was brought up in the town of Scranton, Pennsylvania. As she approached adulthood, she decided to move to New York City for a shot at acting. After a swell of small jobs, she soon found herself the understudy for Tallulah Bankhead in the play, The Skin of Our Teeth.
Unfortunately for Scott, Bankhead never missed a performance. When Miriam Hopkins took over the role, Scott quit and return to her studies, modelling fashion for cash. But her luck changed when both Hopkins and her understudy were unable to perform. Scott was summoned and immediately prepared to step into the starring role. Her portrayal was received exceptionally well, and she was soon offered the role for the Boston run of the show. Credited as Elizabeth for the opening night, she soon dropped the E.
Meanwhile, Scott’s picture in an issue of Haper’s Bazaar had caught the gaze of a movie agent. Admiring her poise, he set up a test for her at Warner Bros. There, she met big-time producer Hal Wallis. He had originally spotted her at The Stork Club, and had requested to meet her, which Scott was forced to turn down after being offered the role in The Skin of Our Teeth in Boston.
As she performed to promising reviews in Boston, another someone by the name of Betty Bacal was being groomed at Warner Bros. She would soon become Lauren Bacall, and her debut in To Have and Have Not with Humphrey Bogart set up a career that seemingly has no end. In retrospect, the possibility that Lizabeth Scott unwittingly gave up by traveling to Boston is perhaps regretful. Could she have had Lauren Bacall’s career if she had been given her screen test? It’s an interesting question posed in producer Hal Wallis’ biography Hal Wallis: Producer to the Stars. But it’s nothing more than a “what if”, which can never be answered. In any case, Scott certainly had her own time to shine.
When she did test for Warners, it was not received exceptionally well. The studio branded her nothing more than a potential serial supporting cast member. But Wallis was always one for spotting talent and potential, his later discoveries would include Shirley Maclaine, Kirk Douglas and Charlton Heston. Wallis, ever a man in need of control, had plans for his own production company. After leaving Warners behind, he chose Lizabeth Scott as leading lady opposite Robert Cummings in the wartime romance You Came Along (1945). It was no secret that Wallis had “star” in mind for Scott.
In an effort to groom Scott into the vane of Lauren Bacall or Veronica Lake, she was given the nickname “The Threat”. But it certainly didn’t suit her next role, one of the finest of her career in 1946′s The Strange Love of Martha Ivers. As Toni Marachek, a poor girl fresh out of prison, Scott displayed fragility and desperation against the cold and domineering Barbara Stanwyck and tough but sympathetic Van Heflin. It also served as the debut for fellow Wallis breakthrough Kirk Douglas. Despite Scott’s role not actually being a part of the central storyline, Wallis ensured her name featured above the title (beneath Barbara Stanwyck and Van Helin).
The Strange Love of Martha Ivers was not a favourite amongst critics, partially due to the melodramatic script and perhaps the familiarity of Stanwyck’s character to her earlier and more famous portrayal in Billy Wilder’s Double Indemnity. But despite this, the film proved to be a smash hit and a big money-maker.
After just two solid performances, Scott secured equal billing against Humphrey Bogart in her next film, Dead Reckoning. While the script lacked in any outstanding motivation, it did feature an unsettling and memorable ending. Wallis was intent on Scott’s singing ability being given a share of the spotlight, and her role being that of a nightclub singer seemed the perfect opportunity. Yet while Wallis was an all-powerful producer, he was no match for the powers of the studio. He was overruled, and Scott’s solo Either It’s Love Or It Isn’t was dubbed. While she would be portrayed singing in other films, her real voice can only be heard on her 1958 album Lizabeth.
By age 25, Lizabeth Scott had firmly established herself as a major presence in the film industry. But her most symbolic role was still to come.
In 1949, Scott starred as what is often considered the most vicious femme fatale of all during the classic era; Jane in Too Late For Tears. The film’s premise involves Jane and her husband Alan driving along a quiet road one evening. The erratically moving car hurtling towards them throws a bag into Jane and Alan’s car. Inside; money! Alan wants to hand it in, but Jane feels far too much temptation.
Unusually, Too Late For Tears features Scott in the main role. Most film noirs of the day relegated the femme fatale to a supporting role, opposite some morally-challenged man on the run. But as the film proves, this vixen would never settle for anything but the best.
As Scott weaves her way around her husband, the criminal after his money, and a mysterious and unexpected visitor, her greed and reckless ways finally catch up with her in one unforgettable climax.
Though still potentially rather early in her career, Lizabeth Scott would walk away from films just 8 years later. Loving You was another Hal Wallis picture, a second vehicle for music star and newly discovered (again, by Wallis) film star Elivis Presley. Scott’s character Glenda is undoubtedly the film’s lead, and she plays the role with a combination of fierce determination and light, bright sparkle unseen in any of her other films.
Yet sadly, it was her last. Her album Lizabeth was released soon after, and she made a few appearances on a variety of television programs into the early 1960s, before disappearing from the spotlight completely (she stepped out briefly for a role in 1972′s Pulp, opposite Michael Caine and Mickey Rooney).
Many sources speculate her retreat was due to an article printed in the tabloid Confidential in 1955, which resulted in Scott launching legal action. Though it is widely believed that she objected to being labeled a lesbian, it’s not entirely true. The magazine’s insinuation regarding Scott’s sexuality was merely secondary; the main focus was the revelation that her name had apparently appeared in a call girl’s directory, apparently Scott paid female prostitutes for sex. That’s a nasty claim even by today’s standards, in 1955, it was far worse. Any evidence the magazine had has never been printed.
But Confidential made even more vicious claims about other stars, many of whom launched their own legal action. Some won, some lost, but most people moved on. In any case, people of intelligence didn’t pay serious attention to rags like Confidential.
Did the magazine end Scott’s career? No. Lizabeth Scott was a reliable star with plenty of potential; if she wanted to carry on, she would have. But she didn’t. Instead, she ended her film career as she started it – as a leading lady.
During her reign in Hollywood, Scott commanded quite a considerable salary, enabling her to invest wisely. In the years following Loving You, she would spend her time reading and taking classes at the University of Southern California. Some rare interviews reveal little about her personal life, which is obviously exactly how she wants it. Today, she continues to live in her large house on Hollywood Boulevard, making only the rarest public appearance but often responding to fan mail. Rumours will probably always be circulating about Lizabeth Scott, no matter how long she’s been out of the film business. It’s true that she never married or had children. Whether that makes her a lesbian or not… well, she’s an actress. It isn’t relevant at all. What matters is that Lizabeth Scott achieved fantastic success and made some truly remarkable films. And she’s still happy to write back to anyone who loves her enough to send her a birthday card (i.e. me)!
Pictures
Top: Lizabeth Scott’s 1958 record, Lizabeth.
Middle: In 2007, standing next to the image of herself on the poster for The Strange Love of Martha Ivers, at the AMPAS Centennial Celebration for Barbara Stanwyck.
Bottom: Lizabeth poses for a picture during the peak of her film career.
