Gardner McKay

Gardner McKay
Gardner McKay on the
cover of TV Week, 1959
Born George Cadogan Gardner McKay
June 10, 1932
New York City, U.S.
Died November 21, 2001 (aged 69)
Hawaii Kai, Hawaii, U.S.
Height 6 ft 5-in (1.96 m)
Spouse(s) Madeleine Madigan
On set of Adventures in Paradise (1960), L-R: George Tobias, Julie Newmar & Gardner McKay

George Cadogan Gardner McKay (June 10, 1932 – November 21, 2001) was an American actor, artist, and author. He is best known for the lead role in the TV series Adventures in Paradise, based loosely on the writings of James Michener. His character, Adam Troy, is a Korean War veteran who purchased the two-masted 82-foot (25 m) schooner Tiki III, and sailed the South Pacific. The show ran for three seasons on American ABC, from 1959 until 1962, for a total of 91 episodes.

Biography

Early Life

Born in New York City, McKay was the great-grandson[1] of the shipbuilder Donald McKay. He was the son of Kentuckian Hugh Deane McKay (born 1894), an ad executive, and socialite Catherine "Kitty" Gardner McKay (born 1904). Gardner has an older brother, Hugh. The father's business took the family to Paris, France. They traveled Europe a good deal, and Gardner attended private schools in France. Just before World War II began the family packed up and returned to the United States. Gardner and his brother Hugh were then sent to live with grandparents in Lexington, Kentucky. He fell in love with Kentucky, and said he considered it paradise.[2] He attended Cornell University in Ithaca, New York for two years,[3] where he majored in art, and wrote for the Cornell Daily-Sun and the campus magazine. At 19 he was devastate when his father died; he then left school. He moved to Greenwich Village where he worked as a sculptor and writer of article for publication. He took up photography, and some of his photos were published in The New York Times and Life Magazine.[4] He has had art work in the Museum of Modern Art in New York.[5] At an exhibit of his sculptures, McKay's looks attracted photographer Richard Avedon, who invited McKay to Paris to shoot a series of photographs with model Suzy Parker. This led to a modelling career. Town and Country magazine did a piece on McKay and his sculptures in its Man About Town section which led to an offer from an agent.[6]

Early Acting Career

McKay impressed Dore Schary who signed the actor to a contract with MGM. For that studio he appeared in episodes of The Thin Man and appeared in the film Raintree County, which stars Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift, and was partly filmed in Kentucky.

He left MGM and had guest roles in the TV series Death Valley Days, The Silent Service, and Jefferson Drum.[7]

Boots and Saddles

In the 1957–1958 season, McKay had played United States Army Lieutenant Dan Kelly in the 38-episode syndicated western series Boots and Saddles, with co-stars Jack Pickard and Patrick McVey.[8]

Adventures in Paradise

McKay did a screen test at 20th Century Fox for a TV series based on The Gunslinger. He did not get the role but was signed to the studio for a long term contract.

Dominick Dunne was searching for an actor to star in his planned Adventures in Paradise when he saw McKay at the coffee shop. Dunne later said, "I didn't know who he was. He was an extraordinarily handsome guy. I said, 'Are you an actor?' I gave him my card and said, 'If you're interested, call me.' " McKay called. Dunne said they did ten tests of actors. "His was the worst, but everybody reacted to him, I mean everybody - especially the women."[9]

McKay could also sail - he had made eight Atlantic crossings by the age of seventeen. Although previously unknown to the public, McKay appeared on the July 6, 1959, cover of Life Magazine just two months before the series premiered.[10]

During the series' run, McKay had small roles in some Fox films, including Holiday for Lovers (1959) and The Right Approach (1961).

Later Acting Career

McKay returned to Hollywood in 1963.[11] He had a support role in Fox's The Pleasure Seekers (1964).

McKay's final film was the 1968 I Sailed to Tahiti with an All Girl Crew, written and directed by Richard L. Bare.

"It took me 100 hours to become a good actor," said McKay. "Then I committed professional suicide."[12]

McKay had just decided to end his acting career, when he got a phone call from the noted director George Cukor, offering him the opportunity to star in a romantic comedy film opposite Marilyn Monroe. The film was Something's Got to Give. McKay had made up his mind and turned it down. Cuckor and Monroe were shocked. Monroe phoned him to see if she could get him to change his mind. McKay said, "She was so delightful on the phone, so winning, so seductive in a way," but he said no. He added "I didn’t belong in acting."[13] The film was never completed. Instead McKay went sailing in the Caribbean and South America for a year and a half.[14] "Not doing anything really," he said later. "I didn't give myself an excuse for being there."[12] He moved to Paris, where he had lived as a boy.[15]

Later Career

McKay left Hollywood to pursue his interest in photography, sculpture, and writing. He exhibited his sculpture at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, besides holding individual exhibitions. His lifeboat rescue photographs of the Andrea Doria were published internationally.

McKay wrote many plays and novels, and was a literary critic for the Los Angeles Herald Examiner between 1977 and 1982. He taught writing classes at the University of California at Los Angeles, University of Southern California, University of Alaska, and the University of Hawaii.

He wrote and co-directed a TV film Me (1973) for Hollywood Television Theatre on PBS. He wrote a script for another TV movie, Sea Marks (1976), based on his play.[12][16]

"I'm through with acting," he said in 1976. "I'll never do a series again. I can't. It's a mental mess-up for me. I got all sorts of attention I didn't deserve and I was too sensitive to hear things about myself. People loved me and hated me for absolutely no good reasons."[12]

His play Toyer was produced by the Arena Players Repertory Theater in New York opening November 28, 1993.[17] Toyer was produced in London at the Arts Theatre in 2009.[18]

His play Sea Marks was produced in New York in 1981 at the Players Theatre, and in 2014 Sea Marks was produced Off-Broadway at the Irish Repertory Theatre.[19][20]

A verse by McKay became the lyrics for the song "Black Bean Soup" sung by the actor and singer David Soul. It was the B-side of the hit single "Don't Give Up on Us". Soul sang it as a duet with actress Lynne Marta.[21] It has sold 1.16 million copies in the UK.[22][23] It is also part of the soundtrack on two episodes of the TV series, Starsky & Hutch .[24]

Gardner bought a wooded property in Beverly Hills and kept a menagerie of animals: Lions, cheetahs, dogs, and a monkey which he brought back from his sojourn to South America.

Awards

McKay's awards included three National Endowment for the Arts fellowships for playwriting, the Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Play, and Sidney Carrington Prize. He was a winner in Canadian Regional Drama Festival, and runner-up in the Hemingway Short Story Contest.[25][26]

Last years

McKay settled in Hawaii, where he died from prostate cancer in 2001 at the age of 69. He was survived by his wife Madeleine Madigan, a painter, and two children. Gardner is buried in Kentucky.

Select Writings

Plays

  • Sea Marks (1972)
  • Masters of the Sea (1991)[27]
  • This Fortunate Island
  • Toyer (1993)[28]
  • In Order of Appearance (2003)[29]
  • Untold Damage[30]

Novels

  • Toyer (1999)[31]
  • The Kinsman (2011)[32]
  • Trompe L'Oeil (2015)[33]
  • Ten, Bloomsbury Square (2015)[34]

Memoir

  • Journey Without a Map (2013)[35]

Short stories

  • Stories on the Wind: An Anthology of Short Stories (2017)[36]
  • Stories on the Wind: Volume 2: An Anthology of Short Stories.[37]

References

  1. ↑ Video on YouTube
  2. ↑ McKay, Gardner. Journey Without a Map. Shiptree Publication (2013) ISBN 978-0615779256
  3. ↑ Sullivan, John (November 24, 2001). "Gardner McKay, 69, TV Heartthrob Who Turned to Writing". The New York Times. Retrieved June 14, 2017.
  4. ↑ McKay, Gardner. Journey Without a Map. Shiptree Publication (2013) ISBN 978-0615779256
  5. ↑ Alexander, Shana. "A New Apollo for the Ladies". Life Magazine. July 6, 1959. p. 90-91.
  6. ↑ Author Gardner McKay; Gave Up Acting to Write: [FINAL Edition] McLellan, Dennis. The Washington Post 23 Nov 2001: B07.
  7. ↑ The Lowdown on Gardner McKay Wolters, Larry. Chicago Daily Tribune 4 Oct 1959: sA.
  8. ↑ "Boots and Saddles". Classic TV Archivers. Retrieved September 12, 2009.
  9. ↑ OBITUARIES / Gardner McKay, 69, Abandoned Acting for Writing: Dennis McLellan. The Los Angeles Times 23 Nov 2001: A63.
  10. ↑ Alexander, Shana. "A New Apollo for the Ladies". Life Magazine. July 6, 1959. p. 90-91.
  11. ↑ Gardner McKay Back from Year in Jungle Hopper, Hedda. Chicago Daily Tribune 15 Jan 1963: a2.
  12. 1 2 3 4 New life for Gardner McKay By Arthur Unger. The Christian Science Monitor 10 May 1976: 23.
  13. ↑ Dunne, Dominic. "The Real McKay". Vanity Faire. January 1999. pg. 106-110
  14. ↑ Obituary: Gardner McKay Anonymous. Variety; Los Angeles Vol. 385, Iss. 3, (Dec 3-Dec 9, 2001): 69.
  15. ↑ Dunne, Dominic. "The Real McKay". Vanity Faire. January 1999. pg. 106-110
  16. ↑ Gardner McKay: From Paradise to Playwriting: Skipper of Tiki Turns Playwright Smith, Cecil. Los Angeles Times 17 July 1973: c1.
  17. ↑ Frank, Leah D. Theatre "Review: Toying with Women." New York Times. November 28, 1993.
  18. ↑ Billington, Michael. "Theatre: Toyer". The Guardian. 27 Feb 2009.
  19. ↑ Roberts, David. "Sea Marks at the Irish Repertory Theatre". Theatre Reviews Limited. May 5, 2014.
  20. ↑ Pucell, Carey. "Romantic Drama Sea Marks Extends at Irish Rep." Playbill. May 27, 2014
  21. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001. Record Research. p. 227.
  22. ↑ Ami Sedghi (4 November 2012). "UK's million-selling singles: the full list". Guardian. Retrieved 4 November 2012.
  23. ↑ "David Soul - Don't Give Up On Us (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2014-03-27.
  24. ↑ McKay, Gardner. Soundtrack. Starsky & Hutch; "The Set Up. pt. 1" (1975). and Starsky & Hutch; "Death Notice" (1977). IMDB
  25. ↑ BWW editors. EMH Productions presents TOYER. Broadway World. August 24, 2017
  26. ↑ “Gardner McKay; Profile”. The Author’s Guild.
  27. ↑ McKay, Gardner. Masters of the Sea: A Tragedy with Comedy in Three Acts. Samuel French, Inc., 1991. ISBN 9780573692987
  28. ↑ McKay, Gardner. Toyer. Samuel French, Inc. (2010). ISBN 978-0573692970
  29. ↑ McKay, Gardner. In Order of Appearance. Samuel French, Inc (2003). ISBN 978-0573628702
  30. ↑ McKay, Gardner. Untold Damage. Samuel French. ISBN 9780573701351
  31. ↑ McKay, Gardner. Toyer. Vision; Warner Books (1999) ISBN 978-0446607735
  32. ↑ McKay, Gardner. The Kinsman. Peninsula Press (2011). ISBN 978-1883684327
  33. ↑ McKay, Gardner. Trompe L'Oeil. Shiptree Publication (2015) ISBN 978-0692207406
  34. ↑ McKay, Gardner. Ten, Bloomsbury Square. Shiptree Publication (2015) ISBN 978-0996668200
  35. ↑ McKay, Gardner. Journey Without a Map. Shiptree Publication (2013) ISBN 978-0615779256
  36. ↑ McKay, Gardner. Stories on the Wind: An Anthology of Short Stories. Shiptree Publication (2017) ISBN 978-0996668231
  37. ↑ McKay, Gardner. Stories on the Wind: Volume 2: An Anthology of Short Stories. Shiptree Publications (2018). ISBN 978-0996668248
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