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Boston Globe (12/Mar/1986) - Milland's best work was very, very good

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Milland's best work was very, very good

APPRECIATION

"He rarely got the kind of roles that he deserved," director Billy Wilder said of Ray Milland. "He was nice ... maybe too nice."

Ray Milland, who died of cancer Monday at age 79, won an Oscar for best actor for his portrayal of a withered alcoholic in Wilder's "The Lost Weekend" and starred as the husband conspiring to murder his wife (Grace Kelly) in Alfred Hitchcock's "Dail M for Murder." These were the highlights of a career that included nearly 200 movies over seven decades.

Despite his talent for playing downbeat and sinister characters, Milland was often relegated to light leading men in inconsequential films. The studios never knew quite how to handle a man who spent a good portion of his career taking any role that came along.

In the 1960s and '70s, Milland made his living playing in producer Roger Corman's exploitation horror films. Milland starred as the victim in "The Premature Burial" (1962), portrayed "The Man with X-Ray Eyes" (1963) and, in perhaps his most embarrassing role, played a white bigot whose head is transplanted on to Roosevelt Grier's body in "The Thing With Two Heads" (1972).

"He was a man who was afraid to say no," John Houseman said in a telephone interview. "He needed work and was always afraid that his career was over after a picture was over. He should have been tougher, but he was such a pleasant man that he never pushed it. He always thought he was lucky to be working. But his best work was truly memorable."

Although Milland is best known for his performance as the alcoholic writer in "The Lost Weekend," his portrayal of the sinister husband in "Dial M for Murder" is an even more remarkable example of his ability.

Milland brought a warm charm to his role as a cold-blooded killer. Whether he is whispering sweet nothings into Grace Kelly's ear or explaining, in his velvety voice, how much he hates to be without her, Milland is utterly convincing. How could such a sweet, well-mannered man conspire to kill his beautiful wife? Consequently, when it is finally clear that he's orchestrating her murder, the terror becomes even more frightening.

"Milland did everything he was told and then made it better," said director Alfred Hitchcock, a man known for his faint praise of actors, in an interview when "Dial M for Murder" was released in 1954. "He made a great movie for Billy Wilder and a very good movie for me."

It's too bad Milland didn't spend more of his career with filmmakers who appreciated his talents. As it is, he leaves us with two great movies, and not many actors can lay claim to that many.