Editing Ray Milland (section)

===''The Lost Weekend'', 1945===
The pinnacle of Milland's career and acknowledgment of his serious dramatic abilities came when he starred in ''[[The Lost Weekend]]'' (1945). Milland recalled how after returning from an emcee engagement in Peru, he found a book delivered to his home, with a note from Paramount's head of production [[Buddy DeSylva]] that read, "Read it. Study it. You're going to play it."<ref>Milland, (1974) p.211</ref> Milland found the book unsettling and felt its subject matter, that of an alcoholic writer, to be challenging and alien to him. He was also concerned that it would require 'serious acting', something that he believed he had not undertaken up to that point in his career.<ref>Milland, (1974) p.212</ref> The film was to be produced by [[Charles Brackett]] and directed by [[Billy Wilder]]; the pair were also collaborating to write the screenplay.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.loc.gov/today/pr/2011/11-240.html|title=2011 National Film Registry More Than a Box of Chocolates|publisher=loc.gov|access-date=7 July 2013}}</ref> Milland had already worked with both men, having starred in the comedy ''[[The Major and the Minor]]'' (1942), and he was excited by their involvement.

[[File:Ray Milland in The Lost Weekend with El in Background.jpg|Milland in character as Don Birnam in ''The Lost Weekend'' (1945)|left|thumb|200px]]

Milland's main concern with taking on the role of Don Birnam in ''The Lost Weekend'' was that he might overact and look amateurish. After a shambolic attempt to act parts of the script while actually drunk, Milland quickly realized that he needed to understand alcoholism.<ref>Milland, (1974) p.214</ref> After the cast and crew had arrived on location in New York, Milland was allowed to spend a night in a psychiatric ward of [[Bellevue Hospital Center|Bellevue Hospital]], where the patients were suffering from alcoholism and [[delirium tremens]]. He found the experience extremely disturbing and left at three in the morning.<ref>Milland, (1974) pp.216–7</ref> Milland lost eight pounds for the role and spoke with the book's author, [[Charles R. Jackson]], to gain insight into the illness.<ref>Milland, (1974) p.218</ref> After the external shots in New York were complete, in which hidden cameras were used to capture Milland walking the streets, the crew returned to Hollywood. Milland found the set work far more challenging, knowing that the close-ups would give his acting no place to hide. Between the strain of acting and the morbidity of the subject, Milland's home life deteriorated and he left for a period of two weeks.<ref>Milland, (1974) p.219</ref> When the shoot was over, Muriel and he left for a vacation in Canada. He later said that his role in ''The Lost Weekend'' "was the only part [he was] really proud of."<ref name="gold"/>

Returning to filming, Milland was assigned to a Mitchell Leisen-directed historical drama called ''[[Kitty (1945 film)|Kitty]]'' (1945), opposite Paulette Goddard.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/276627|title=Kitty|work=Turner Classic Movies|access-date=30 September 2016|first=Jeremy|last=Arnold}}</ref> He was meant to follow it with ''Olympia''.<ref>SCREEN NEWS HERE AND IN HOLLYWOOD: Paramount Signs Ray Milland for the Lead in 'Olympia' – Three Films Due Today
Special to THE NEW YORK TIMES. [[The New York Times]] 7 April 1944: 22.</ref>

Instead, he did a romantic comedy, ''[[The Well-Groomed Bride]]'' opposite [[Olivia de Havilland]]. Many of the crew members on ''The Well-Groomed Bride'' had also worked on ''The Lost Weekend'', and Milland recalled an encounter with a sound mixer, who told him that he had seen a rough cut of ''Weekend'' and thought Milland was not only sure to be nominated for an Academy Award, but that he would probably win. Milland had not considered himself worthy of an award, but over the next few months, he thought of little else, and was desperate to be nominated. After the first preview, reaction was mixed, but Brackett stated that they had produced "something really worthwhile".<ref name="Milland223">Milland, (1974) p.223</ref> Milland found the initial feedback to his role congratulatory but hushed, leading him to feel that the film would bomb as a piece of cinema and would be seen as a social document.<ref name="Milland223"/> When the film was released in New York, the favourable reviews took both Milland and the studio by surprise. Milland was lauded, and he not only won that year's [[Academy Award for Best Actor]], but also the [[Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama|Golden Globe Award for Best Actor–Drama]], the [[Cannes Film Festival|Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor]], the [[National Board of Review|National Board of Review Award for Best Actor]], and the [[New York Film Critics Circle Awards|New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor]]. He was the first Welsh actor to win an Oscar, and when he collected the award from [[Ingrid Bergman]], he gave one of the shortest acceptance speeches of any [[Academy Awards|Oscar]] winner.<ref name="WAEoW">{{cite book |editor1-first=John |editor1-last=Davies|editor1-link=John Davies (historian)|editor2-first=Nigel |editor2-last=Jenkins | editor2-link=Nigel Jenkins| editor3-first=Baines |editor3-last=Menna|editor4-first=Peredur I. |editor4-last=Lynch|title=The Welsh Academy Encyclopaedia of Wales |year=2008 |publisher=University of Wales Press|page=557 |location=Cardiff |isbn=978-0-7083-1953-6}}</ref> His performance was so convincing, Milland was beleaguered for years by rumours that he actually was an alcoholic.<ref name=obit/> He steadfastly asserted that he was not.

Milland's success in ''The Lost Weekend'' resulted in his contract being rewritten, and he became Paramount's highest-salaried actor. When the film was premiered across Europe, Milland was sent to attend each opening.<ref>Milland, (1974) p.228</ref> When he appeared in Cardiff, the capital city of Wales, he was given the keys to the city.<ref>Milland, (1974) p.229</ref>