Cape Fear, along with That Championship Season and the greatest drive-in classic of them all, Thunder Road, stands as the former hobo's valedictory. When you think of him riding the blinds and warming himself by the firesides in the hobo jungles that marked the way, you'll understand where the power came from.
shareA friend of mine partied with Mitch a couple of times back in the 50s when grass was a really daring thing to do. Though all of them were quite wealthy by most people's standards, he said that Mitch always stood out from the group because he was more mature and more responsible than most of the "bad boys" in the crowd. Women were basically just disposable commodities at these functions, but Mitch always was much more of a gentleman in his degeneracy.
Some of the specific tales are a bit rough for public consumption, and there's no question he was a serious drinker, occasional drugger and all-around party-til-we-all-pass-out dude, but he never did anything stupid like most of the rest, like drive dead drunk, pick fights in saloons, or lord it over the common scum. And the girls loved him because he never treated them like cattle, though he knew most of them were only rented for the weekend recreation.
Unfortunately my friendship didn't overlap with Mitch's so I never got to meet him, but I always had the feeling I'd really like the guy.
It probably helps to have had a rough life for a while, and it reminds me of what a lot of draftees told me back in the 60s -- the Army was one of the roughest times of their lives, but it was one of the best things they ever did because it taught them self-reliance, confidence, and how little a person really needed to get by. Most said they'd never do it again, but were glad they had done it.
Mitch's early tough times apparently built a lot of character, which I always thought came out in his acting -- at least the better roles.
That's a great story. I would have liked to have met him. I think he was the Spencer Tracy of his era--Tracy always said that for him acting was knowing your lines and showing up on time. Have you seen Thunder Road?
Buck35