He Had Great Potential
George Hamilton has been many things: a reality TV star, a spokesperson for fast food, and even a movie star. He’s probably most famous for his deep tan and camp portrayal in Zorro, The Gay Blade. What few people know is that one famed director thought he had the potential to be one of our time’s greatest actors. Yes, George Hamilton.
Let’s deep dive into Hamilton’s life and see how this talented actor became a sun-drenched camp icon.
1. He Was From A Broken Home
George Hamilton was born on August 12, 1939, in Memphis, Tennessee. His mother, Lucille “Teeny “ Hamilton, was extravagant and beautiful, and his father, George William “Spike” Hamilton, was a band leader. The marriage came to an abrupt end when Teeny walked in on Spike in an awkward position with one of the singers in the band.
Hamilton’s homelife would never be the same.
ABC Television, Wikimedia Commons
2. He Moved Around
After the divorce, Hamilton started living with his mother, but then she handed him over to live with his father for a year. Spike sat down with his son for some serious advice about women. He told him there were three things you had to do for a woman: give them food, let them fight you, and finally, you had to do what they wanted in the bedroom.
Well, Hamilton certainly took this advice to heart.
3. He Started Young
Since his father was doling out advice on women, George Hamilton got the idea to start early... but in a questionable and quite disturbing way. He had his first experience with a woman when he was just 12 years old. But that’s not the shocking part. The woman was with his stepmother. The same one that had helped end his parents’ marriage.
It seems that Hamilton should have gotten as far away from his dad as he could possibly get.
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4. He Wanted To Be In Medicine
Hamilton didn't want to be in show business like his father; he wanted to be a doctor. However, his parents didn’t like this idea and set him on a course toward becoming an actor. After winning an acting award at school, he got small parts in TV shows like The Donna Reed Show and The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin.
And then his looks won him his first starring role.
5. He Looked Like Someone Else
It wasn't just that George Hamilton was good-looking. He got his first role because he looked like someone else. The film was Crime and Punishment USA, and the makers of the film wanted to appeal to the “beat generation”. At the time, one of the heroes of this group was Anthony Perkins, and the producers thought that Hamilton’s resemblance to him would bring in an audience.
They were wrong.
6. He Got A Juicy Offer
Hamilton’s first movie had been a failure. In fact, producer Roger Corman simply said that the film cost him a lot of money. But this didn’t mean it didn't help Hamilton’s career. MGM brass saw something in Hamilton, and they wanted him for a juicy role in their next film.
Marianna Diamos, Los Angeles Times, Wikimedia Commons
7. He Was One Of The Last
This was a transitional period in Hollywood. The system of big studios signing on actors with a contract was coming to an end. George Hamilton was one of the last actors to get a contract with MGM. Sadly, Hamilton would have to put up with the studio’s habit of typecasting its actors.
Michael Ochs Archives, Getty Images
8. They Typecast Him
What MGM saw was that Hamilton could play a sensitive mama’s boy. The film they wanted him for was Home From The Hill, with Robert Mitchum. Here, Hamilton plays a young man who learns about manly pursuits from his womanizing father. Hmmm… sounds like Hamilton’s real childhood.
This film was not a critical darling, but it did perform decently at the box office. MGM certainly liked that.
Screenshot from Home from the Hill, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (1960)
9. He Dated A Co-Star
In his next film—All the Fine Young Cannibals—George Hamilton supported big stars Natalie Wood and Robert Wagner. Also in the film was Susan Kohner. Kohner played Hamilton’s onscreen sister, but it didn't stop the two from having an offscreen romance, which only sounds a little icky.
Hamilton realized that if he wanted to be a lead actor like Robert Wagner, he might have to lower his standards.
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10. He Sunk To Low-Budget
In the low-budget Angel Baby, Hamilton plays an evangelist. One of his co-stars was a young, unknown actor whose character was called Hoke Adams. Strangely, the crew simply called him “hot pants”. In one scene, Hamilton had to beat up Hoke, but it turned into an unintentionally comedic scene.
Screenshot from Angel Baby, Monogram Pictures(1961)
11. He Had To Fake A Fight
This unknown actor was actually Burt Reynolds, and he was much more of a tough guy than George Hamilton. Reynolds later said that letting Hamilton beat him up was the “toughest part” of making this film. The scene wound up looking hilariously awkward as Hamilton couldn't physically throw Reynolds like he was supposed to. Instead, Reynold had to jump out of his arms—but the ultimate effect was not convincing.
Still, Hamilton and Reynolds soon became friends.
12. He Was Unique
Hamilton did make an impression on Reynolds, who thought that Hamilton was unique. At the time, most actors were trying to be Marlon Brando or James Dean. Reynolds said that Hamilton was channeling David Niven. This wasn’t a popular choice at that time, but Reynolds respected him for it. He even thought that Hamilton could be the next Cary Grant.
But the studio had other ideas.
13. He Went In Another Direction
George Hamilton was becoming worried that he was getting typecast as the good-looking but not-so-macho type. He needed something different, and MGM agreed. The film that sent him in another direction was the western, A Thunder of Drums. However, this was also a doomed path, as the film lost money for MGM.
His next idea was to go Italian.
Screenshot from A Thunder of Drums, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (1961)
14. He Wanted It Bad
At this time, Hamilton had heard of a film set in Italy, and he was sure he was the best actor for one of the parts. The problem was that the role was for an Italian man, which Hamilton wasn’t. Another problem was that they had already hired an actor. But fate was on Hamilton's side. After lobbying hard, he actually snagged the role in Light in the Piazza.
Now he just had to pass as an Italian.
Screenshot from Light in the Piazza, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (1962)
15. He Was Foreign
George Hamilton hired a coach and worked on getting his accent right. Well, something clicked, and Hamilton got great reviews and even an award nomination. His nod came from the British Academy Awards, and it was for Best Foreign Actor.
Since Italy was working well for Hamilton, he decided to make more films there. But his life wasn't all work and no play. Amid his projects, he managed to find time for romance.
Florida Memory, Wikimedia Commons
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16. He Dated A Beauty
Hamilton quickly made two films in Italy. Sadly, Two Weeks in Another Town and The Victors were both box office disappointments. But Hamilton didn't waste his time in Italy. He’d arranged for a date with Jocelyn Lane, who was at this time one of the most beautiful women in the world. After meeting at the Trevi fountain, the two made their way to Lane’s apartment.
If Hamilton was feeling confident, he shouldn't have been. There was only trouble ahead.
17. He Had To Escape
In Lane’s apartment, George Hamilton had stripped off all his clothes and was ready for some funny business. The fun abruptly stopped when Lane’s boyfriend started pounding on the door. A still exposed Hamilton went out the window, crept along the ledge, and entered the next room. This was where the maid lived, and Hamilton ended up in bed with her instead.
It was time for Hamilton to get respectable, and he did in a big kind of way.
Evening Standard, Getty Images
18. He Dated The President's Daughter
At this time, Hamilton was still in a relationship with Kohner. In fact, they had decided to tie the knot. In 1966, he met Lynda Johnson, who just happened to be the daughter of then-President Lyndon Johnson. As it turned out, Johnson was also engaged. Their respective engagements didn’t stop the two from starting a relationship.
Hamilton was about to find out that it’s not easy dating the president’s daughter.
Dell Publishing, 1960. Photographer not credited, Wikimedia Commons
19. They Thought He Was A Spy
Tongues started wagging when George Hamilton took Johnson to the Academy Awards. But then another rumor started—one much more dangerous. Some people actually believed that Hamilton was working for the CIA. Hamilton didn’t seem bothered and turned his short relationship with Johnson into a boost for his career.
20. He Made A Demand
While dating Johnson, George Hamilton made the rather forgettable heist film, Jack of Diamonds. Because of his dalliance with the president’s daughter, Hamilton was a “hot commodity” in Hollywood. This gave him the courage to demand $100,000 for this film. He got it. Sadly, the costumes got more attention than the acting.
Hamilton still had one more way to cash in on dating the president’s daughter.
21. He Avoided The Draft
Around this time, American soldiers were heading to Vietnam. Hamilton was the right age, and it looked like he’d be heading to Asia. Hamilton didn’t actually have to sign up, as he was the sole support for his mother. What most people believed was that dating the president’s daughter got him out of fighting for his country.
Staying home from Vietnam meant he could easily find more work as an actor.
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22. He Hit The TV
Before there were extravagant prime-time soaps like Dallas and Dynasty, there was Harold Robbins’ The Survivors. George Hamilton joined the large cast, and it was going to be a big deal. They even got Lana Turner in her only TV appearance ever. Well, it turned out America wasn’t really interested in the show, and ABC canceled it before the entire season had aired.
But Hamilton shrewdly turned this canceled show into another job.
ABC Television, Wikimedia Commons
23. He Struck Out Again
ABC replaced Harold Robbins’ The Survivors with the drama Paris 7000. Strangely enough, Hamilton got a part in this series as well. No one was directly blaming Hamilton, but it did seem strange when Paris 7000 was also a complete failure. Maybe it was time for Hamilton to try something completely different.
Michael Ochs Archives, Getty Images
24. He Met An Icon
At the beginning of the 1970s, George Hamilton tried producing. He’d decided to make a movie about a motorcycle driver when he heard about real-life stunt rider Evel Knievel. When Hamilton went to visit Knievel in the hospital—recovering from one of his many injuries—Hamilton realized that his movie should be about Knievel.
He also wanted to star in it.
Unknown Author, Wikimedia Commons
25. He Mixed Business With Pleasure
Hamilton did make Evel Knievel, and he did play the titular character. The reviews weren’t great, but good enough to move him toward his next project. This was Medusa, and he would film it entirely in Greece. At the same time, Hamilton was getting ready to marry actress Alana Collins.
That’s when Hamilton decided to mix business with pleasure.
Screenshot from Evel Knievel, Fanfare Films(1971)
26. He Funded His Honeymoon
Medusa was not a successful film, but some suggest that George Hamilton didn’t care. Christopher Wicking, the screenwriter on the film, thought that Hamilton only made Medusa to get a free honeymoon in Greece out of the deal. He also hired his new bride as an actor in the film.
Producing wasn’t really working out so well for Hamilton, so he decided to return to a sure thing.
Screenshot from Medusa, American National Enterprises (1973)
27. He Faded Away
What followed for Hamilton was a long list of appearances in TV shows like McCloud and Columbo, and made-for-TV movies such as Institute for Revenge and The Users. It looked like he might just fade into the mist of big-screen stars that lived their remaining years on the small screen.
And then something astonishing happened.
Screenshot from Columbo, NBC (1971–1978)
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28. He Wanted To Suck Blood
Hamilton was sitting around the pool with friends and doing Dracula impressions when he got an idea. What if Dracula had to live in modern-day New York City? Luckily, Hamilton’s friends were filmmakers, and soon they were getting ready to make the comedy Love at First Bite. Hamilton had little experience doing comedy, but he knew he had to play the famed vampire.
He just had to hope that audiences would like him.
Screenshot from Love at First Bite, American International Pictures (1979)
29. He Was Camp
Audiences could not get enough of Love at First Bite. In fact, for quite a few years, it was “one of the highest-grossing independent films of all time”. While Gene Siskel said that Hamilton had “no idea how to play comedy”, most other critics thought he was just the right amount of camp to make it funny.
At this late in the game, Hamilton had discovered comedy. And he was ready for more.
Screenshot from Love at First Bite, American International Pictures (1979)
30. He Tried It Again
Hamilton won a Saturn Award and got a nod from the Golden Globes for Love at First Bite, so he decided to give this comedy thing another chance. He got back in the producer's chair for Zorro, The Gay Blade. This was going to be an acting challenge, as Hamilton would play two roles: Zorro and his gay brother Bunny Wigglesworth.
Hamilton had slayed as a Vampire, and he needed his Zorro to be just as successful.
31. The Calls Stopped Coming In
Zorro, the Gay Blade didn’t get anywhere close to the success of Love at First Bite. Sadly, Hamilton wasn’t getting many calls from Hollywood for films, so he returned to television. He specialized in mini-series and prime time soaps, working with legends like Joan Collins and Elizabeth Taylor.
But this certainly wasn't the first time Hamilton had met Taylor. You could say they had history.
Unknown Author, Wikimedia Commons
32. She Thought He Was Cute
Back when he first signed on with MGM, Hamilton had been having lunch at the commissary, and Taylor walked right up to him. Hamilton was just a teenager at the time, and Taylor said that she thought he was cute and suggested that he look her up when he got older. Well, Hamilton did look her up, and they started dating in 1986.
Sadly, it would be a short-term thing.
33. He Got A Parting Gift
When it came time for the end of their relationship, Hamilton and Taylor parted as friends. Following their split, Taylor even gave Hamilton a gift. Since the movie they made together was about gambling, she gave him an ace of hearts. While this may sound a little cheap, this card was like no other. It was solid gold.
Taylor may have thought him cute, but others saw the perfect villain.
Silver Screen Collection, Getty Images
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34. He Did It Twice
Hamilton had a villainous look that TV shows loved to take advantage of. One show thought he was so bad that they used him twice. He played the villain in two episodes of Columbo. Once in 1975 and then in 1991. He plays the murderer in both episodes, and both characters—strangely enough—drive a Mercedes.
He played a villain on TV, but he almost became one in real life.
Screenshot from Columbo, NBC (1968–2003)
35. He Made A Dangerous Friend
One of Hamilton’s female friends was the disgraced First Lady of the Philippines, Imelda Marcos. While Hamilton may have thought that the two were just travel and shopping buddies, Marcos may have used Hamilton for nefarious purposes. This had the potential to be a big legal problem for Hamilton.
36. He Took Their Money
You see, Marcos and her husband had taken millions of pesos away from their citizens. Some believed that Hamilton was somehow involved in robbing the Filipino people of their money, while others claimed he'd been used as a front. When it came out that millions of said dollars had moved through Hamilton's own accounts, the actor found himself in some real trouble.
37. He Went To Trial
Hamilton was in too deep with Imelda Marcos, and he had to go to trial. They called him an “unindicted co-conspirator," and he testified only because they offered him immunity. In the end, Imelda Marcos pleaded ignorance about her husband’s activities and got an acquittal. Hamilton took a lesson from this debacle and found himself a younger woman.
Al Ramones & Domie Quiazon, Wikimedia Commons
38. He Dated A Swimsuit Model
Hamilton and his wife Alana had divorced just three years after the wedding, and in 1995, Hamilton started dating swimsuit model Kimberley Blackford. At the time, Hamilton was 56 and Blackford was in her late 20s. But this wasn’t just Hamilton pulling a midlife crisis. It was a serious relationship, and the two had a son together.
But dating a swimsuit model didn’t mean Hamilton would stay away from his ex-wife.
39. He Tried To Take Down Regis And Kathie Lee
Hamilton and his ex-wife, Alana, had not been a couple for 20 years when they decided to reunite. But this wasn’t for romance, it was for TV. The two were trying to take down daytime TV’s royal couple, Regis Philbin and Kathie Lee Gifford. The George & Alana Show lasted for only one season.
It was almost as short as Hamilton’s role in Bulworth.
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40. He Had A Famous Look-A-Like
Many people thought that Hamilton had a Hollywood doppelganger. This was the A-list star and ultra handsome Warren Beatty. Beatty thought it would be fun to capitalize on this resemblance. He brought Hamilton on for a cameo in his political satire, Bulworth. Doing cameos for other people’s movies wasn't going to cut it for Hamilton. He had to try something different.
41. He Was Too Old
The new millennium brought Hamilton to a new audience. In 2001, he appeared on Broadway as Billy Flynn in Chicago. He followed that up with a stint on Dancing with the Stars, where his over-60 body failed to keep up with his partner. He and Edyta Silkwinska got the heave on in the sixth round.
His next venture would also be an epic fail.
Screenshot from Chicago, Miramax Films (2002)
42. He Wanted To Replace Barker
In 2006, the game show The Price is Right had an opening for its host. Hamilton wanted to replace long-time host Bob Barker, who was quitting because of his age. Hamilton stepped up for an audition, but the job ultimately went to funny man Drew Carey. But Hamilton was not about to say goodbye to TV.
CBS tv, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
43. He Walked Away Early
In 2009, Hamilton appeared in the UK edition of I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! Hamilton did indeed want to get out of there. He stepped away from the show for personal reasons and ended up in seventh place. He did make an impression, as many of the contestants broke down in tears when he left.
Hamilton’s real life was about to take center stage.
Angela George at https://www.flickr.com/photos/sharongraphics/, Wikimedia Commons
44. He Had Some Great Stories
A while back, Hamilton kept TV mogul Merv Griffin entertained with crazy stories about his life with his mother. Griffin thought the stories were funny and touching enough to make a film about them. Many years later—and after Griffin’s passing—they made My One and Only starring Renée Zellweger as Hamilton’s mom.
As it turned out, Hamilton had had his hands full with his mother.
45. She Took Him On The Road
One of the stories about Hamilton’s mother has her announcing a road trip in order to avoid all the people she owed money to. Mom’s marriage had ended, and she was taking her two sons on a trip not to see the countryside but to “visit every man I ever went out with”. She said she wanted to know if she’d made a mistake with any of them.
Hamilton must have liked the idea of airing out his family secrets. Because he did it again.
CBS Television, Wikimedia Commons
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46. He Put His Family On The Air
Hamilton had divorced Alana in 1975, and she had turned around and married pop star Rod Stewart and had two kids with him. Someone had the great idea that this blended family of the Hamiltons and the Stewarts would make a great reality show. Well, after one season of Stewarts & Hamiltons, America agreed it wasn’t a great idea, and the show ended.
47. He Tried Fatherhood
One of Hamilton’s children is actor Ashley Hamilton, who has had his share of problems. He had two marriages that lasted, when combined, less than one year. He got in serious trouble for impersonating an officer, and has suffered some near-fatal experiences. Additionally, he has also struggled with substances, drinking, and eating disorders.
Thankfully, though, he had his father in his corner.
48. He Never Gave Up On His Son
Ashley later shared how supportive his father has always been—even at his lowest points: “I had some really hard times. But my dad never gave up on me no matter what.” According to Ashley, Hamilton is a big believer in second chances and held out hope that his son could overcome his demons. It seems that he was right, as Ashley has been able to navigate his own recovery with grace.
49. He Played The Colonel
In 2016, Hamilton appeared in a series of commercials for fast food powerhouse KFC. In the ads, Hamilton appears as a much more suave version of the Colonel himself. He then compares the crispy skin of the extra crispy chicken to his own skin from overexposure to the sun.
So, the end of Hamilton’s career saw him doing commercials for fast food. It could have been so much better.
50. He Wasn’t Serious About Acting
Academy Award-winning director Louis Malle had worked with Hamilton in 1965 on Viva Maria! with Brigitte Bardot. Malle was very happy with Hamilton’s work, but he was left with a question about the actor. He wondered why Hamilton was more interested in being a celebrity than acting. Malle believed that Hamilton had the talent to be one of the great actors of the time.
One thing that may have slowed down Hamilton’s career was the amount of time he spent chasing women—or having them chase him.
Archivio Cameraphoto Epoche, Getty Images
51. He Loves The Ladies
You’d be hard-pressed to find anyone who didn’t think Hamilton was a man of extraordinary good looks, and the women of the movies agreed. In addition to his marriage to model Alana Stewart, Hamilton has had romantic ties to Hollywood icon Elizabeth Taylor, Swedish actor Britt Ekland, French star Jeanne Moreau, and British actor Vanessa Redgrave.
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Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31
