Edward Montgomery Clift (October 17, 1920 – July 23, 1966) was an American film actor. He was known for his brooding, sensitive working-class character roles. He received four Academy Award nominations during his career.

Clift was born in Omaha, Nebraska, the son of Ethel Fogg (she had been adopted by the Fogg family) and William Brooks Clift, at that time Vice-President of Omaha National Bank. Clift had a twin sister, Roberta, and a brother, William Brooks (born eighteen months earlier). Clift was always treated as the baby of the family, although he was only minutes younger than Roberta.

Their mother Ethel, nicknamed "Sunny", spent part of her life and her husband's money seeking to claim her southern lineage. At age 18 she was told the secret of her birth. Clift was the great-grandson of Montgomery Blair, Postmaster General under President Abraham Lincoln. He was also the great great-grandson of Francis Preston Blair, a journalist and adviser to President Andrew Jackson, and Levi Woodbury, an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court.