SEVEN Actors Ernest Borgnine Publicly HATED in Hollywood

Ernest Borgnine, the Academy Award-winning actor, is a name that resonates within the annals of Hollywood history.

He was not only celebrated for his iconic roles but also for his unfiltered candor about the industry and the people within it.

In a rare and revealing interview, Borgnine shared his thoughts on the seven actors he most disliked working with, shedding light on the egos, behaviors, and behind-the-scenes tensions that defined his long and colorful career.

Early Life and Military Service

Born Hermes Efron Borgnino on January 24, 1917, in Hamden, Connecticut, Borgnine would go on to become one of the most respected and versatile actors of his generation.

As the son of Italian immigrants, his early life was marked by hardship and resilience.

Raised during the Great Depression, he faced the challenges of his parents’ separation at a young age and even spent time in Italy with his mother before returning to the United States.

Before the bright lights of Hollywood beckoned, Borgnine’s path seemed far removed from show business.

After high school, he took on various odd jobs and eventually enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1935.

He served with distinction for a full decade, including throughout World War II, ultimately rising to the rank of gunner’s mate first class.

This military career instilled in him qualities of discipline and courage—traits that would later define his powerful on-screen presence.

Transition to Acting

After the war, feeling directionless but encouraged by his mother, Borgnine took a leap of faith into acting.

Her belief in his larger-than-life personality led him to the Barter Theater in Virginia and later to New York, where he performed in the Broadway production of Harvey in 1951. Soon, Hollywood came calling.

Borgnine was not your typical matinée idol; his rugged looks and booming voice made him a natural fit for tough-guy and villain roles.

His performance as the cruel sergeant Fatso Judson in From Here to Eternity (1953) turned heads and opened doors.

However, it was his role in Marty (1955) that transformed his career and the public’s perception of him.

As Marty Piletti, a shy, kind-hearted butcher from the Bronx, Borgnine delivered a performance filled with vulnerability and heart, earning him an Academy Award for Best Actor, a Golden Globe, and a BAFTA—a remarkable trifecta for any performer.

Marty was more than just a hit; it demonstrated that audiences were hungry for authenticity over glamour.

Ernest Borgnine had arrived, and he was here to stay.

A Diverse Career

The decades that followed saw Borgnine carve out a long and diverse career in both film and television.

From action-packed blockbusters like The Dirty Dozen and The Flight of the Phoenix to war comedies like McHale’s Navy, he showcased his ability to switch between drama and humor with ease.

Later, he gained a new audience as Dominic Santini on Airwolf in the 1980s and even more so as the voice of Mermaid Man on SpongeBob SquarePants in his later years.

Borgnine was never the type to quietly fade away; he remained active well into his 90s, bringing warmth and energy to every performance.

His lifetime of work was honored in 2007 when he received a Screen Actors Guild Lifetime Achievement Award and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Personal Life and Marriages

Offscreen, Borgnine’s personal life was just as storied and occasionally turbulent.

He was married five times, with his first wife, Roa Kemans, entering his life after his Navy service.

They married in 1949 and had a daughter, Nancy.

Although the marriage ended in 1958, they remained connected through their shared role as parents.

His second marriage in 1959 was to acclaimed Mexican actress Katy Jurado.

This passionate and high-profile union was marked by clashes of strong personalities and hectic careers, leading to their divorce in 1963.

Borgnine’s third marriage, perhaps his most infamous, was to Broadway legend Ethel Merman.

The couple married in 1964 but divorced just 42 days later, a failure so profound that Merman dedicated an entire blank page to it in her autobiography.

Comedian Tim Conway, a close friend of Borgnine, summed it up best: “Ernie is volatile, and Ethel was a very strong lady. You put two bombs in a room, something is going to explode.”

His fourth marriage to Donna Rancourt lasted from 1965 to 1972, during which they had three children together: Christopher, Sharon, and Diana.

While this period coincided with some of his most productive years as an actor, the pressures of fame and personal struggles led to the marriage’s end.

Finally, in 1973, Borgnine found lasting love with Tova Traesnaes, a Norwegian-born businesswoman and founder of the Tova Corporation.

Their marriage lasted nearly four decades until his death in 2012.

Tova was not only a supportive partner but also played a key role in managing aspects of his public life in his later years.

Unfiltered Insights into Hollywood

Despite his jovial reputation, Ernest Borgnine was known to hold grudges.

In a rarely discussed interview, he named seven actors he truly disliked.

While he usually maintained a professional demeanor in public, he did not mince words in private.

At the top of his list was Frank Sinatra.

Although both were icons of their time, Borgnine took issue with Sinatra’s domineering presence in Hollywood, particularly during the filming of From Here to Eternity.

He found Sinatra’s attitude cold and his influence damaging, once describing him as a “guy who could freeze a room with a glance.”

Another actor he clashed with was Tony Curtis, whom he felt was arrogant and dismissive toward others on set during the filming of The Vikings (1958).

Montgomery Clift, a fellow actor from From Here to Eternity, also made the list.

Although Clift was respected for his method acting, Borgnine reportedly found him aloof and overly self-important.

Charlton Heston, known for his towering presence in epics like Ben-Hur, also rubbed Borgnine the wrong way due to their conflicting views on acting.

George C. Scott was said to be too intense and competitive for Borgnine’s liking, while Anthony Quinn had a personal fallout with him over a role both actors vied for in the 1960s.

Lastly, Burt Lancaster, one of the stars of From Here to Eternity, was viewed by Borgnine with a mixture of admiration and resentment.

These revelations painted a different side of Borgnine, showing him as a man of strong feelings and an even stronger sense of justice.

Conclusion

Through decades of acting, personal highs and lows, and a legacy of unfiltered honesty, Ernest Borgnine remained a fixture of Hollywood.

Whether as Marty the butcher, the commander of McHale’s Navy, or the booming voice behind Mermaid Man, he entertained audiences with a mix of heart, grit, and humor.

He passed away in 2012 at the age of 95, leaving behind a career that spanned more than six decades, five marriages, countless characters, and yes, a list of enemies he wasn’t afraid to name.

In the end, Ernest Borgnine was not just a tough guy on screen; he was a tough guy through and through, with a heart big enough to win an Oscar and a personality strong enough to never be forgotten.