University Press of Mississippi Ray Milland: Identity, Stardom, and the Long Climb to The Lost Weekend

Ray Milland (1907–1986) was the inaugural Welshman to win the Best Actor Academy Award, as well as a performer boasting a rich and varied oeuvre from the silent era in 1920s Britain to New Hollywood in the 1980s. Despite being one of the most prolific actors in cinema history who left behind a legacy of almost 180 film and television appearances across seven different decades, Milland remains a somewhat forgotten figure of cinematic history. Ray Milland: Identity, Stardom, and the Long Climb to “The Lost Weekend” fills this void in scholarship by offering a detailed examination of Milland as one of Hollywood’s most durable and fascinating performers of the studio era. The volume begins by exploring Milland’s unique Welsh identity in Hollywood, which was essentially erased by the studios. It then turns to his underexplored early career at MGM prior to signing with Paramount Pictures, where he remained for over two decades. Author Gillian Kelly discusses his early roles as a stereotypical “Brit” in Hollywood as well as his “stardom years” at Paramount where he often provided support for the studio’s leading ladies, including Claudette Colbert, Dorothy Lamour, and Paulette Goddard. A chapter is dedicated to his Oscar-winning performance in The Lost Weekend, and important later films like Dial M for Murder and Love Story also receive detailed analysis. Overall, Ray Milland provides a reappraisal of Milland’s earlier career and situates his performances within the broader tradition of star studies.