Kirk Douglas is a great and beloved actor but who has some nutty ideas about gun control, as in “no citizen should be allowed to own a handgun”, etc.
He was appearing in a western movie, Colt six-shooter by his side, when his co-star chided him for his inconsistency about toting guns on camera while preaching confiscation in the name of public safety.
“But you don’t understand, this is all make-believe!!”
“No, Kirk, this is all about `make-money’!”
Anyway, my favorite Kirk Douglas film is his role as the WW1 French Army officer (oops, lots of guns there, too).
He was great in “20,000 Leagues under the Sea”, as well.
Paths of Glory, an early Kubrick film. Great work.
One of the best scenes in filmdom is Paths of Glory, when Kirk tells Aldophe Menjou, playing a corrupt French general to go to hell. Of course the most touching scene is the ending with the German girl singing.
He was great in Out of The Past, and The Strange Loves of Martha Ivers. He was a bit subdued in those films, but that’s what being second fiddle to Robert Mitchum and Barbara Stanwyck respectively, can do to an actor.