NEILE ADAMS ON MCQUEEN! (CONCLUSION)

Married to Ali MacGraw

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NEILE: "Steve's mother was a young girl living in Beech Grove, Indiana and she got pregnant, got married real fast and then he vanished (Steve's father). He just left her there. (Steve as an infant was taken to St. Louis and dropped off at her parents). She left him with Uncle Claude and that was the one person he really idolized in a sort of hands-off way. And he lived there and he went to school there and he worked on the farm. (Steve's mother later sent for him but soon he ran afoul of the law and his mother had him placed in The Chino, California Boy's Republic--a sort of boot camp of the West). And she said. "What was I supposed to do? I didn't have a job. I didn't know how to handle him. I had a husband who was abusive. And I thought it was safer for him to be at The Boys Republic".

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"John Sturges (the Director) said, "I have this new movie I want to shoot about World War II and a bunch of escapees". So, off we went to Germany. Behind all that (success) too, he said he always felt everything was going to be taken away from him. As soon as we came out West, the first thing we did was start looking for his father; he tried to trace him. He just wanted to tell him what a shit he was more than anything. But by the time we found him, he was already dead. We found a woman who was living with him and she said he always used to--when he would see you on the show (Television's "Wanted Dead or Alive") and he would watch it every week and say, "I wonder if that's my boy?" But they never got together, unfortunately.

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"He really was crazy about the kids. He had a big time with them because he always saw the world through the eyes of a child anyway. Steve was now one of the top box office stars, and he got an Oscar nomination for "The Sand Pebbles" (to be featured during our virtual festival) . He was just boppin' along, just really doing great.

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"On "Bullitt" (also to be featured) was when I noticed the most change as it occurred in him. He always wanted me on location. Now, it was 'he was so busy', well--I found out later he was having some flings here and again. It was disturbing, to say the least. But it didn't make me say, 'I want to leave this marriage'. I wasn't made that way. Steve was now 37--38 years old and he was coming into his mid-life. Suddenly sex, drugs and rock and roll were on the scene. And everything was free and everything was abundant. And of course, Steve was the first one to jump on the bandwagon. That's when the new motto came in: "I'm going to live life the way I see it, the way I want it, the way I like it". Well, he told me once, 'You know, I have a feeling that I'm not going to be around too long. Not in my old age.

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"He started "Le Mans" (also to be featured) cause that had been a dream of his since the Taiwan days (during filming of "The Sand Pebbles"). It was a horror from beginning to end. Nothing was right. And finally (Director) John Sturges said: "I'm too old and too rich for this shit", and he threw the script and he was gone.

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"You know, for the first fourteen years of our lives together, he never layed a hand on me. And then, during this period, he became violent. I knew it was just a matter of time before my turn would be next. Everybody was disappearing from his life. And sure enough it was. So, I filed for divorce and he was stunned that I did that. He just couldn't believe that I had the nerve to do it first and I said, 'Well, it's time'.

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1972: "Then he told me, "I think I'm going to marry Ali" (MacGraw). I said, "Well, good luck". And he told me she was willing to give up work. I said: "You;re going to make her stop working? She's a big movie star". He said "She wants to stop". I said "Well, have a good time. Good luck to you guys".

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1980: "When he did "Tom Horn" (also to be featured), he was not feeling well. He kept having some lung problems. They thought it was some kind of desert disease, you know. And I went to visit him one day at the beach and he came up the drive with a cane and my heart just broke and I said "Oh my God, what's the matter with him?" And then he told me that the doctors told him to move out of Malibu. So, he found this place in Santa Palo and he moved there.

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"When we were young and we were together, we used to say, "Now look. If we should ever have anything terminal, I'll give you some pills and you'll give me some pills". I said "Okay". That was out little pact. But when the time came, of course, he fought like a demon. And Steve wanted some of the tumors removed (Steve had Mesothelioma). Well, you know I spoke to my doctor and he said, 'He'll not survive that operation'. So, it just became a waiting game. So, it was November 6th and he died that night."

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Tomorrow: Lord Richard Attenborough!