Robert Duvall: The Hollywood great whose machismo held hidden depths

Robert Duvall is only onscreen for a small complete 10 minutes successful Apocalypse Now, but that’s much than capable clip for him to bargain Francis Ford Coppola’s twisted warfare epic. Crouching shirtless connected a Vietnamese formation moments aft ordering nan firebombing of nan shoreline, his Lieutenant Colonel Bill Kilgore delivers nan film’s astir quoted line: “I emotion nan smell of napalm successful nan morning.”

That line, arsenic memorable and shocking arsenic it is, is only nan set-up. As Coppola’s camera slow moves successful connected Kilgore’s face, nan soldier’s eyes partially obscured by his oversized U.S. Cavalry hat, he reminisces fondly astir nan nightmarish decease and demolition wrought by a erstwhile napalm onslaught he had instigated. “The smell, you cognize that gasoline smell? The full hill. Smelled like... victory,” he says, pinch unspeakable pride. Then, pinch thing for illustration grief: “Someday this war’s gonna end.”

It is 1 of nan awesome moments successful cinematic history, a glimpse astatine a man who has fixed himself wholly to nan warfare machine. It is difficult to ideate anyone but Robert Duvall, who has died astatine nan property of 95, astatine nan acheronian bosom of it. He was 1 of nan astir talented American actors ever to grace nan screen, blessed pinch a uncommon expertise to bring stoic, tightly-wound man to vivid life. An undercurrent of earthy vulnerability offset his ain virile machismo. He won an Oscar for playing a state euphony prima successful 1983’s Tender Mercies, and was nominated six much times, including for his little quality successful Apocalypse Now and for arguably his champion known performance, arsenic nan trusted consigliere Tom Hagen successful The Godfather.

Duvall was calved successful San Diego connected January 5, 1931, and whitethorn person inherited immoderate of his earthy authority from his parents. His begetter William was a rear admiral successful nan U.S. Navy, while his mother was a comparative of nan Confederate wide Robert E. Lee. Duvall would spell connected to play Lee successful 2003’s Gods and Generals.

As a student he avoided pursuing his begetter into Naval Academy by showing nary aptitude for thing isolated from acting. He did service successful nan U.S. Army for a year, earlier being discharged successful 1954 and moving to New York City. While a student of nan influential acting coach Sanford Meisner, he worked various menial jobs and lived pinch chap aspiring stars Dustin Hoffman and Gene Hackman.

After cutting his teeth connected shape pinch starring performances successful Arthur Miller’s A View from nan Bridge and Tennessee Williams’s A Streetcar Named Desire, Duvall made his movie debut successful 1962’s To Kill a Mockingbird. Duvall won nan portion of reclusive neighbour Boo Radley aft impressing nan film’s screenwriter Horton Foote. Foote, who would besides spell connected to constitute Tender Mercies, later called Duvall “our number 1 actor.” That talent is visible moreover from his first moments onscreen arsenic Boo Radley. Although nan characteristic ne'er speaks successful nan film, Duvall is capable to convey his humanity pinch conscionable his soulful eyes and a slight, heartwarming smile.

As his profession progressed, Duvall recovered his grizzled countenance lent itself particularly good to Westerns. In 1969’s True Grit he was nan criminal who finds himself successful a climactic horseback shoot-out pinch John Wayne. A mates of years later, he was different outlaw hunted down by Burt Lancaster successful Lawman.

While immoderate critics likened Duvall to nan awesome Shakespearean Laurence Olivier - pinch a writer for The Times calling him “the American Olivier” successful 1980 - Duvall shrugged disconnected nan comparison. His ain favourite domiciled was playing a Texas Ranger named Augustus McCrae successful an acclaimed 1989 CBS miniseries based connected Larry McMurtry’s caller Lonesome Dove. “Let nan English play Hamlet and King Lear,” nan New York Times quotes Duvall arsenic saying, “and I will play Augustus McCrae, a awesome characteristic successful literature.”

While McCrae whitethorn person been his favourite role, it’s arsenic Tom Hagen that Duvall will apt beryllium champion remembered. In some The Godfather and The Godfather Part 2 he is nan apparently mild-mannered lawyer who is yet eased retired of nan soul Corleone circle successful favour of a “wartime consigliere” - but who is besides responsible for delivering nan severed horse’s caput that truthful intimidates nan Hollywood shaper Jack Woltz.

Duvall saw thing of himself successful Hagen, telling nan AV Club successful 2022: “As an character and a characteristic both, you can’t measurement complete nan line. He’s an adopted son, truthful he is simply a personnel of nan family, benignant of; possibly not a 1000 percent, but he’s very important to nan family. And arsenic an actor, you can’t measurement complete that statement either. You person to benignant of support yourself successful nan inheritance a small spot and past beryllium called upon erstwhile needed.”

That consciousness of modesty ran done Duvall’s career. Although he had nan talent and compelling surface beingness to rival immoderate starring man, Duvall was ever happy to play immoderate portion served nan story, nary matter really subtle nan domiciled aliases abbreviated nan surface time. “I've ever tried to beryllium a characteristic actor,” he told Reuters successful 2013. “And I deliberation successful my profession that I've done that.”

Off screen, he was joined 4 times: to dancer Barbara Benjamin from 1964 to 1975, to Gail Youngs from 1982 to 1986, and to different dancer, Sharon Brophy, from 1991 to 1995. In 2005 he joined Luciana Pedraza, who was 41 years his junior, and they remained together until his death. He ne'er had immoderate children. “I conjecture I’m shooting blanks,” he surmised to Details mag successful 2007. “[I’ve tried] pinch a batch of different women, successful and retired of marriage. I thought of adoption, but we haven’t yet.”

He will beryllium remembered arsenic 1 of Hollywood’s greats, but Duvall erstwhile said he was not overly concerned pinch being remembered astatine all. Asked for an epitaph by GQ successful 2014, he replied simply: “Ashes.”

“I don’t request a gravestone,” he added. “Cremation’s good pinch me.”