Born Clifford Parker Robertson III on the 9th September 1923, in La Jolla, California USA, Cliff was an award-winning actor with a career that spanned more than 50 years. Some of his most prominent roles were as Lt. JG John F. Kennedy in the film “PT 109” (1963), as Charly Gordon in the film “Charly” (1968), then as Henry Ford in the film “Ford: The Man and the Machine” (1987), and as Uncle Ben Parker in the “Spiderman” trilogy, 2002, 2004 and 2007. Cliff passed away in September 2011.
Have you ever wondered how rich Cliff Robertson was, at the time of his death? According to authoritative sources, it has been estimated that Robertson’s net worth is as high as $5 million, an amount earned through his successful career as an actor, which began in the mid- 40s until 2007. During his career, Cliff appeared in more than 100 film and TV titles.
Cliff Robertson Net Worth $5 Million
Cliff was the product of his father’s second marriage. His father, Clifford Parker Robertson, Jr. married five or six times, and his second wife was Audrey Olga Robertson. Their marriage didn’t last long, as they divorced when Cliff was only one year old. His mother died soon after divorcing his father, and as his father had remarried he lived with his maternal grandmother, Mary Eleanor Willingham. His father visited him on rare occasions, however, he was still proud of his father, saying only nice things about the man. Cliff went to La Jolla High School, California, and after matriculation enlisted in the US Merchant Marine and served in World War II. After the war, Cliff enrolled at Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio, however, he left college before graduation and started working as a journalist.
He began his acting career with several minor roles in TV series in the mid- ‘40s, and then in 1953 got his first notable role, as Rod Brown in the TV series “Rod Brown of the Rocket Rangers”, and then continued with lead roles in such films as “Picnic” (1955) next to William Holden, Kim Novak and Betty Field, then “Autumn Leaves” (1956), with Joan Crawford,and Vera Miles, “The Girl Most Likely” (1958) starring Jane Powell and Keith Andes, and “Battle of the Coral Sea” (1959), all of which not only increased his wealth, but also established him as a rising actor. He continued dominantly into the ‘60s, with the role as Lt. JG John Kennedy, for which then President John F. Kennedy handpicked Cliff to portray him in the film “PT 109” (1963), then the following year starred in the war drama “633 Squadron”, and also appeared next to Henry Fonda in the drama “The Best Man”.
Four years later, he was chosen for the role of Charly Gordon in “Charly”, for which he won the Academy Award in the category Best Actor in a Leading Role, and reprised the role of Charly in the sequel “Charly II”, released in 1980. Cliff enjoyed success in the ‘70s playing such characters as Philip Nolan in the drama “The Man Without a Country” (1973), then J. Higgins in the mystery thriller “Three Days of the Condor” (1975), the second man to walk on the moon, Buzz Aldrin in the biopic “Return to Earth” in 1976, while in 1977 he portrayed William Martin in the TV series “Washington: Behind Closed Doors”. Two years later he tried himself in a horror, playing the husband David Ballard of a deceased wife whose spirit haunts him, in the film “Dominique”.
Nothing changed for Cliff in the ‘80s, as he continued to line-up successes, starting with an appearance in the Golden Globe Award- nominated drama “Two of a Kind” (1982), then continuing as Playboy supremo Hugh Hefner in the film “Star 80” in 1983, and the same year Dr. Michael Ranson in the TV series “Falcon Crest” (1983-1984). He then portrayed treasure hunter Mel Fisher in the film “Dreams of Gold: The Mel Fisher Story” in 1986, and the following year he was Henry Ford in the biopic of the American industrialist, entitled “Ford: The Man and the Machine”, all of which steadily increased his wealth.
From the end of the ‘80s onwards, he slowly commenced his retirement from acting, though he was still present in a number of successful productions. In 1991 he featured in the romantic drama “Wild Hearts Can’t Be Broken”, with Gabrielle Anwar and Michael Schoeffling, while in 1996 he was the President in the sci-fi action adventure “Escape from L.A.”, staring Kurt Russell, Steve Buscemi and Stacy Keach. In 1999 he had a role in the family drama “Family Tree”, and in the new century he was chosen for the role of Uncle Ben Parker in the film “Spider-Man”, and the sequels “Spider-Man 2” (2004), and “Spider-Man 3” (2007), which was his last on-screen appearance. He had also featured in the horror films “13th Child” in 2002, and “Riding the Bullet” in 2004.
Regarding his personal life, Cliff was married and divorced twice, firstly to Cynthia Stone from 1957 until 1960. – the couple had a daughter. In 1966 he married actress Dina Merrill, with whom he also had a daughter before they divorced in 1989.
During his life, Cliff was an avid aviator, and owned several vintage aircraft which included a German Messerschmitt ME-108 and an iconic British World War 2 Spitfire. Also, his aviation skills helped land him several roles, including in the film “633 Squadron”. Cliff also co-founded the Young Eagles Program with help from the president of Experimental Aircraft Association, Tom Poberezny, of which Cliff was a member. Cliff was the chairman of the program for two years, and helped many children achieve their dream of flying, and also educated the children about aviation. He was actually in flight during the September 11 2001 attacks, and was forced by the air traffic control to land at the nearest airport.
Cliff died just a day following his 88th birthday, on the 10th September 2011 in Stony Brook, New York USA, from natural causes.
Academy Award for Best Actor (1969), National Board of Review Award for Best Actor (1968), Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Single Performance By An Actor In A Leading Role (1966)
Nominations
Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture – Drama
Movies
“PT 109” (1963), “Charly” (1968), “Ford: The Man and the Machine” (1987), “Wild Hearts Can’t Be Broken”, “The Man Without a Country” (1973), “Three Days of the Condor” (1975), “Escape from L.A.” (1996), “Family Tree” (1999)
TV Shows
“Spiderman”, “Rod Brown of the Rocket Rangers”, “Falcon Crest” (1983-1984), “Washington: Behind Closed Doors” (1974-1984)
#
Quote
1
[on Joan Crawford] I think she felt fraudulent, precisely because she had crossed the railroad tracks - had come up from nothing - and that therefore she felt she wasn't the real thing because she was just "acting". But Joan was the real thing.
2
[on trying to get a sequel for Charly (1968)] You don't have to be a 17-year-old zealot to wage guerrilla warfare. Some of us, by nature, are intrigued by the challenge. I never intended to play Don Quixote and I don't intend to go out looking for more windmills, I can tell you. I love making movies very much.
3
[on being blacklisted in Hollywood after exposing David Begelman in 1977] People told me I set a dangerous precedent. My ex-wife said that if I had played the game I would have owned the town, but I was always too independent.
4
Show business is like a bumpy bus ride. Sometimes you find yourself temporarily juggled out of your seat and holding onto a strap. But the main idea is to hang in there and not be shoved out the door.
5
[on director Frank Perry] I've been in so many bad movies and worked with so many bad directors that I go into a film expecting nothing. That's why I respect and admire Frank Perry so much. He's a rare man and I've worked with enough stiffs to know the difference, pal, but he knows the problems of actors and I know the problems of a director. Frank is as far away from Otto Preminger as you can get.
6
The year you win an Oscar is the fastest year in a Hollywood actor's life. Twelve months later they ask, "Who won the Oscar last year?".
7
This isn't exactly a stable business. It's like trying to stand up in a canoe with your pants down.
8
As long as I get phone calls from the Museum of Modern Art, that all the film buffs love it, that's a residual. It isn't a financial residual and it isn't an artistic residual, but it's an ego residual.
The reason that Cliff Robertson was not at the Oscars to receive his Best Actor award was because he was in the middle of filming the movie, Too Late the Hero (1970) in the Philippines. The director Robert Aldridge would not allow him to leave due to budget restraints.
3
He appeared in two different comic book company adaptations: Shame in Batman (1966) a DC comics adaption, and Uncle Ben in the Spider-man trilogy, a Marvel comics adaption.
4
Following his death, he was interred at Cedar Lawn Cemetery in East Hampton, New York.
5
Both he and his then wife Dina Merrill played "Special Guest Villains" in Batman (1966).
6
He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6801 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on December 17, 1986.
7
Robertson, a longtime resident of Water Mill, New York at the time of his death, died at Stony Brook University Medical Center, a day after his 88th birthday.
8
After serving as a merchant marine, he studied at Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio. He left the college without getting his degree. He moved to New York City where he studied at the Actors Studio.
9
In 1972, he said that "Nobody made more mediocre films than I did", including Too Late the Hero (1970), which he described as "a bunch of junk".
10
His parents are Clifford Parker Robertson Jr. and the former Audrey Olga Willingham. His father was described as "the idle heir to a tidy sum of ranching money". They have divorced when he was a year old, and his mother died of peritonitis a year later in El Paso, Texas. Robertson was raised by his maternal grandmother, Mary Eleanor "Eleanora" Willingham; an aunt and an uncle.
After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, 18-year-old Cliff - then serving on a merchant ship in the Pacific Ocean - was reported dead to his family in California.
17
He personally campaigned for Congressman Mo Udall in the New Hampshire Democratic Presidential primary in 1976.
18
Was responsible for unraveling a major studio fraud in the 1970s, which led to the downfall of powerful Columbia Pictures president David Begelman. The morality of Hollywood was such that it did more short-term harm to Robertson's career than to Begelman's, who soon after was hired to run MGM. The full story is told in David McClintick's 1982 bestseller, "Indecent Exposure".
Was a member of the jury at the Berlin International Film Festival in 1989.
21
Special guest at Roger Ebert's 4th annual Overlooked Film Festival in Champaign, Illinois. [March 2002]
22
He owned a number of vintage aircraft, including an original German Messerschmitt ME-108, which was on display at the Parker-O'Malley Air Museum (closed in 2009) in Ghent, New York.
Personally chosen by John F. Kennedy to portray a World War II US Navy Lieutenant Kennedy in PT 109 (1963).
25
Was a well-known sailplane pilot, and was also the voice in the "Running On Empty" documentary video about the Barron Hilton Cup, a prestigious soaring competition.