Catch the oh-so-cool Steve McQueen on DVDs

HOLLYWOOD - Just how cool was Steve McQueen?

Norman Jewison, who directed the legendary actor in 1965's The Cincinnati Kid and 1968's The Thomas Crown Affair, says McQueen was so cool that he couldn't understand him.

"He looked at me at one point and said, `Are you twisting my melon, man?'" Jewison recalls with a chuckle. "I never knew what he was talking about, he was so hip."

Jewison was well-aware of the volatile actor's reputation for being difficult when he replaced original director Sam Peckinpah on Cincinnati.

"David Foster, who was his publicity agent at the time, said, `Just watch him around the full moon, he goes a little nutty.' I remember scheduling the picture, and I remember not scheduling any heavy scenes with Steve around the full moon. He would get on his motorcycle and literally disappear and go into the desert."

This year marks the 75th anniversary of McQueen's birth and the 25th anniversary of his death from cancer at age 50.

One of the most popular actors of his generation, he was the box-office champ in 1968. And, with enduring appeal, he's featured in the advertising for Ford's 2005 Mustang, as well as Tag Heuer watches.

Yesterday, Warner Home Video released the Steve McQueen DVD collection, featuring a two-disc special edition of his 1968 thriller Bullitt, as well as the DVD debut of The Cincinnati Kid. On June 7, New Line Home Video will release the first season of Wanted: Dead or Alive, the TV series that made him a star.

A Turner Classic Movies documentary, Steve McQueen: The Essence of Cool, premieres today.

Jewison says McQueen, who never knew his father and was abandoned by his alcoholic mother, wanted him to be a father figure. "I said to him, `I can't be your father. I am too much a contemporary of yours, but I'll be your older brother who went to college. I'll look out for you.' He kind of liked that."

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