Steve McQueen died on this day, November 7, in 1980.
He went from a delinquent youth who did time in reform schools to the world’s most popular actor in the 1960s and the 1970s.
Nearly forty years after his death at the age of 50, Steve McQueen is still considered The King of Cool.
Riding an early wave of popularity in America, McQueen became an international star as the ‘Cooler King’ Hilts in the 1963 World War II P.O.W. classic ‘The Great Escape’ and his climactic motorcycle ride while being pursued by Nazi troops.
His signature role will always be as the taciturn detective in the 1968 mega-hit Bullitt, known the world over for the greatest car chase in cinematic history through San Francisco between McQueen’s Ford Mustang and the killer’s black Dodge Charger.