by Diane Howard
Steve McQueen was a man of paradox. He displayed humility and defiance, stinginess and generosity, gentleness and violence, self-assurance and insecurity.
Director Norman Jewison said, “He was a loner, and he was troubled, and he was looking for a father.”
Author Esther O’Reilly observed: “They said that he could act with the back of his head! No fancy dialogue or frills required – his mere presence loomed larger than life in every shot. Put him next to some of the finest actors in the business, and he would undercut every one of them simply by being in the frame. His piercingly distinctive blue eyes were set in a rough-hewn, unconventionally handsome face that rarely betrayed strong emotion. His smallest physical gesture was precisely calculated and gracefully executed. You couldn’t best him, you couldn’t buy him, you couldn’t touch him. He was the King of Cool.
