At 91, Kim Novak Returned After A Decades-Long Break From Hollywood To Criticism That She ‘Destroyed Her Face’

Aug 05, 2024

Born Marilyn Pauline Novak on Feb. 13, 1933, in Chicago, Illinois, Kim Novak is best known for her role in Alfred Hitchcock's "Vertigo." Beyond that iconic performance, she was well-received in other movies of the era, such as “Picnic,” "The Man With the Golden Arm," "Pal Joey" and more. She has won two Golden Globe Awards, a Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival and has been honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. 

But although she made an impact in Tinseltown, Novak's career was relatively short. Her first film role was in 1953, and by 1966, she had semi-retired from acting, choosing instead to live on a ranch in Big Sur with her horses. However, she still graced the screen in occasional appearances over the next few decades, but since 1991, she hasn't acted at all.

Instead, she now chooses to focus on her painting and life on the ranch she once shared with her late husband, Robert Malloy, who was an equine veterinarian. In fact, the couple met after he made a house call when one of her Arabian mares suffered colic.

But while the life of a Hollywood actress might seem perfect, Novak has endured her fair share of troubles. She once told The Hollywood Reporter: "I've had a lot of obstacles in my life. And I'm here." This included sexual abuse while she was still a teenager. What's more, after Novak was believed to be in an interracial relationship with Sammy Davis Jr., it's alleged that Columbia Pictures co-founder Harry Cohn threatened to have Davis Jr.'s legs broken unless he married a Black woman in 48 hours. 

In contrast to the drama of Hollywood, Novak enjoys a tranquil life on her ranch. Let's take a look at how the star is faring after turning 91 in 2024.

Considering what she went through as a young model and actress, it's perhaps unsurprising that although she was at the top of Hollywood's roster, Novak left the glitz and glam for a quiet life on the land. In 2021, Novak published a memoir titled "Kim Novak: Her Life and Art," in which she shared intimate details about her life.

She revealed that she had been sexually abused when she was still a teenager. Furthermore, she suffered great maltreatment from entertainment mogul Cohn. She described her time with him and how he treated her as horrible. She also slept in the film studios and was paid less than her male co-stars. 

After Novak was believed to be in an interracial romance with famous Black musician Davis Jr. because they often went to each other's houses, it's been alleged that Cohn threatened the couple. A BBC documentary reported that Cohn sent mobsters to Davis Jr. and threatened that if he didn't marry a Black woman in 48 hours, he would get his legs broken. While Novak clarified that they hadn't dated, she chose to distance herself from Davis Jr. to avoid further trouble for him.

The actress became engaged to renowned filmmaker Richard Quine but soon after, they broke it off. Novak then married Richard Johnson in 1965, but by the following year, the couple had divorced. 

This was around the time the actress quit acting for the most part and moved to her ranch in Big Sur, where she spent her days painting and being with her horses. She also eventually found true love when she met veterinarian Malloy and the two were married in 1976.

After their blissful union, the couple moved to a ranch in Oregon, where she continued painting as the lovebirds were surrounded by nature and their horses and other animals. However, in 2000, tragedy struck when their house was razed in a fire. Thankfully she, her husband and their animals — which included dogs, horses, llamas and a family of Canada geese — all survived, but her paintings and an autobiography she had been working on for years sadly did not. Authorities noted that the cause of the fire was a tree that had fallen over a power line.

Despite the tragedy, the couple had each other, and they continued to live a peaceful life outside of the glare of Hollywood. But sadly, in 2020, Novak revealed that her husband of 44 years had passed away from an undisclosed illness at the age of 80. Heartbroken, Novak mourned the loss of her life's great love. She told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview, "I'm surviving." She also painted his portrait and said:

“I talk to it every night. I’ve got this wonderful little smile on the corners of his lips, so when I say something, he’s always saying, ‘Oh, yeah?'”

In fact, Novak revealed her art is what gets her through these days. She still lives in the ranch she and her husband rebuilt in Oregon and admitted to not being bothered by the pandemic. She told THR:

“If Bob’s not with me, I’d just as soon just cuddle up with my dogs. I don’t mind having the separation from people. In fact, I’m enjoying it.”

She also said she leans on her animals for emotional support since she and Malloy never had children. Beyond painting and living a quiet life on her ranch, Novak is also a mental health activist.

Despite being such an in-demand star during her heyday, Novak knew she would never call Hollywood home. Novak, who now makes very few public appearances but does sometimes give interviews, reflected on the challenges of stardom with The Guardian in 2021:

“You can get lured into loving yourself too much. That’s why I left Hollywood. I didn’t want to get into all of that. I didn’t want to lose myself. I needed to leave to save myself. I like who I am, even with the suffering you go through, even with the fact that when you’re vulnerable you feel everything so intensely.”

She added while it was “exciting to dress up in gorgeous clothes and to feel sexy,” it was also “a trap.” 

“You become satisfied with that being enough, then later in life it isn’t enough. So many people, once they got older and were no longer looked at for their beauty, just fell apart,” she remarked.

Upon turning 90 in 2023, Novak opened up to People about her legacy.

“What's wonderful is sometimes movies get less appreciated later and people get less appreciated," she said. "But with me, it's worked the opposite. I'm so grateful because I've become more respected as an actress. I think my style of acting is understood now, where it wasn't then, because at that time in the '50s, I think there was some overacting… I just was expressing myself as I always do, honestly and truthfully.”

These days, Novak is happy to peacefully while away her time painting, riding her horses and cozying up to her dogs. She added:

“When I'm gone it's going to be fascinating for people to look at my art and figure out what I was saying about my experiences in Hollywood, in my childhood and all of my life.”

Despite pretty much retiring as an actress, Novak continued to make public appearances. Among them was the 2014 Oscars, where she presented an award. However, it was her looks more than her presence that made the most waves, particularly after former President Donald Trump took to social media to berate her. He wrote:

“I'm having a real hard time watching the Academy Awards (so far). The last song was terrible! Kim should sue her plastic surgeon!”

Others also commented on her facial appearance, saying her skin looked unnatural, taut and over-filled. 

“She looks like she went to Pricilla Presley's "doctor" Why do people who have money to get proper plastic surgery do such things to themselves??” one user remarked, while another said, “She did destroy her gorgeous face with surgery and I would sue her surgeon if he thought that looked good, stop the check Kim.”

“But the stretching across the mouth and eyes is too tight and have ruined her looks, not enhanced them,” another commented.

Novak later hit back at Trump’s criticism, calling it “bullying” and defending herself in a Facebook post.

“After my appearance on the Oscars this year, I read all the jabs. I know what Donald Trump and others said, and I’m not going to deny that I had fat injections in my face. They seemed far less invasive than a face-lift. It was done in 2012 for the TCM interview special. In my opinion, a person has a right to look as good as they can, and I feel better when I look better,” she wrote.

It appeared Novak, who overcame breast cancer in the 2010s and revealed she had bipolar disorder in 2013, was not one to sit back and allow others to ridicule her. While she later admitted she “trusted somebody doing what I thought they knew how to do best” and “should have known better,” she wasn’t going to let some negative opinions get her down. 

In 2024, Novak turned 91 surrounded by loved ones at a picnic with “lots of fudge,” according to her close friend Sue Cameron.

What do you think of how Kim Novak handled the criticisms leveled against her? Are you a fan of her earlier film work? Let us know your thoughts and let others in on her inspiring story.