Biographie

If he had not heeded wife Anne Douglas's advice, he would have been on producer Mike Todd's private plane in 1958 when it crashed and killed all on-board. Todd's wife Elizabeth Taylor was also scheduled to be on the plane but canceled due to a bad cold.

Had appeared in a stage production of "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" and later bought the film rights. He didn't make a movie of this and eventually turned the rights over to his son Michael Douglas, who was able to secure financing and produce the film Vol au-dessus d'un nid de coucou (1975).

Wore lifts in many of his films, which made him appear about 5' 11" or 6' 0" on screen. Once, as a prank, Burt Lancaster found his lifts on a film set and hid them from him, which allegedly infuriated him.

Hedda Hopper told him after he became a star with Le champion (1949), "Now that you're a big hit, you've become a real S.O.B." Douglas replied "You're wrong. I was always an S.O.B. You just never noticed before.".

At the 1987 American Academy of Dramatic Arts tribute to Douglas, Burt Lancaster, said "Kirk would be the first person to tell you he's a very difficult man." After a pause, he added "And I would be the second.".

I've finally gotten away from Burt Lancaster. My luck has changed for the better. I've got nice-looking girls in my films now.

Virtue is not photogenic. What is it to be a nice guy? To be nothing, that's what. A big fat zero with a smile for everybody.

I've made a career of playing sons of bitches.

In order to achieve anything you must be brave enough to fail.

I came from abject poverty. There was nowhere to go but up.

La caravane de feu (1967) - $300,000 + %10 of the gross.

Paris brûle-t-il ? (1966) - $50,000

Première victoire (1965) - $400,000

Sept jours en mai (1964) - $250 .000

Town Without Pity (1961) - $1,000,000