Born in 1925, Rock Hudson served in the U.S. Navy during World War II and worked as a truck driver before being discovered by Hollywood agent Henry Willson. Hudson rose to A-list stardom with leading roles in Magnificent Obsession and Giant. In 1955, after the gossip magazine Confidential threatened to expose his homosexuality, Willson arranged a three-year marriage between Hudson and secretary Phyllis Gates to protect his career. Within Hollywood, Hudson's sexual orientation was an open secret, and he regularly hosted private all-male pool parties at his residence. Hudson was diagnosed with an infection on June 5, 1984, and became the first world-renowned public figure to announce his diagnosis publicly in July 1985, prior to his death on October 2, 1985, at age 59. Following his death, his long-term partner Marc Christian sued his estate over concealed health risks during unprotected intimacy, resulting in a $5.5 million settlement upheld by a California appeals court in 1991.