That's a reference to the traditional grey morning suit worn by the groom at a formal wedding. The film's narrative structure bears a marked resemblance to that of American Beauty (1999). Holdens last movie, Blake Edwardss S.O.B., was another masterpiece of Hollywood cynicism. Forensic evidence recovered at the scene suggested that he was conscious for at least half an hour after the fall. After living in the home for a year he moved, and the house sat vacant for a little over a decade, earning the moniker "The Phantom House" in the process. Billy Wilder originally approached William Haines to play one of Norma's bridge partners. On the morning of February 1, 1922, Taylor--who had been romantically involved with her-- was shot and killed in his Hollywood bungalow. When Joe and Norma sit down to watch one of her old movies, Joe pulls out a cigarette and places the bottom end in his mouth. He starred in the 1953 . The larger version is seen at the temple that Samson brings down in the movie Samson and Delilah (1949), which Cecil B. DeMille was shooting when Norma visits him at Paramount. But she fits it like a round peg in a square hole. Joes voice even starts to take on more and more of her theatrical flourish after too much exposure. At one point Norma mentions working with Mabel Normand and Marie Prevost. Also in 1969, Holden starred in director Terence Young's family film L'Arbre de Nol, co-starring Italian actress Virna Lisi and French actor Bourvil, based on the novel of the same name by Michel Bataille. Oh, wake up, Norma. And here is how he obtained his new movie tag. The one on the Paramount studio soundstage; the one whose driveway William Holden ducks into at 10060 Sunset Blvd; and the one used for the exteriors, which is the one shown here. According to reports, Taylor went to the feds for help filing charges against Normands cocaine suppliers. When Billy Wilder went back to him later to secure a close-up, DeMille charged him another $10,000. At one point Norma mistakes Joe for a funeral director and asks for her coffin to be white, as well as specially lined with satin. Film News. In their scene together in Artie's bathroom Gillis mentions to Betty in his dramatic flirtation about having spent "12 years in the Burmese jungle", when coincidentally, just a few years later his character, Shears, finds himself lost there in David Lean's The Bridge on the River Kwai. Upon telephoning her, however, Wilder found that Negri's Polish accent, which had killed her career, was still too thick for such a dialog-heavy film. Norma goes to visit Cecil B. DeMille, several of whose films Swanson had starred in. It was built in 1924 by William Jenkins, at a cost of $250,000. It was only natural that he should film several sequences on the studio's backlots. The only addition was the swimming pool, which wasn't equipped with a means of circulating the water so it was useless after filming. The Pharmacy was filmed only 500 feet (150 meters) from a scene in Armed and Dangerous (1986) & Falling Down (1993), The parking lot behind Rudy's Shoeshine where Joe Gillis pulls his car out of is 1751 Vine Street - about a half a block North of Hollywood Blvd (you can tell by the scene's POV of the Taft building that sits on the corner of Hollywood and Vine). Louis B. Mayer's reaction is well documented but Mae Murray also found the film offensive. This was a first for Gloria Swanson, but proved a big boon in helping her develop her character's descent into madness. On Joe's and Betty's night walk through the Paramount backlot, his calling the false building fronts "Washington Square" would be an accurate reference, as that neighborhood in New York was full of brownstone houses, apartments, and other turn-of-the-century architecture. Some speculated it was because he was dating an older woman at the time (actress Libby Holman, 16 years his senior) and didn't want people to think the movie was a parody of that relationship. Marlon Brando was considered, but the producers thought he was too much of an unknown as a film actor. And so tonight, my golden boy, you got your wish". But she wanted to rewrite her dialogue (as was her custom)a nonstarter for Wilder, who seldom let his actors change their lines even slightly from what was on the page. Holden was born William Franklin Beedle, Jr., on April 17, 1918, in O'Fallon, Illinois, son of Mary Blanche Beedle (ne Ball), a schoolteacher, and her husband William Franklin Beedle, an industrial chemist. William Holden had a similar trajectory as a young artist in Hollywood. Thirty-one years later, the actor who played Gillis, William Holden, met his end. It was not particularly successful. But it was too difficult to put a camera underwater to get the shot, so Wilder and cinematographer John Seitz came up with an ingenious solution: they put a mirror on the bottom of the pool and filmed the reflection from above. Holden starred in some of Hollywood's most popular and critically acclaimed films, including Sunset Boulevard (1950), Sabrina (1954), Picnic (1955), The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), The Wild Bunch (1969) and Network (1976). Sunset Boulevard (1950) 1950, 1h 50min - Drama Gloria Swanson, as Norma Desmond, an aging silent-film queen, and William Holden, as the struggling young screenwriter who is held in thrall by her madness, created two of the screen's most memorable characters in "Sunset Boulevard." Fat Man: "A husky fellow like you?" Normas waxworks card sharps were Swedish-born Anna Q. Nilsson, H. B. Warner and Buster Keaton. Oh, and while were at it, Wilder didnt submerge any cameras to get that underwater shot. The body was found by Henry Peavey, who took over for convicted embezzler Edward F. Sands as Taylors valet. The building manager found the body of the legendary actor who starred in 70 films and was a good friend of President Ronald Reagan nearly a week later, per The Washington Post. He had made Swanson a star by. When Joe tells Betty that next time he will write "The Naked and the Dead", he is referring to the best-seller written by Norman Mailer and published in 1948. Just us and the cameras, and those wonderful people out there in the dark! Norma Desmond didnt need dialogue, she can say whatever she wants with her eyes. Gillis: "No, swimming pool." It was named after a major street that runs through Hollywood, the center of the American film industry . Holman was 16 years older than him and was afraid people would think the movie was a parody of their relationship. The photos of the young Norma Desmond that decorate the house are all genuine publicity photos from Gloria Swanson's heyday. Hola, identifcate . It also alludes to the fact that Pomona was one of three towns in California's Inland Empire region (Riverside and San Bernardino were the others) that were frequently used during Hollywood's Golden Age for testing preview audiences' reactions to unreleased films. Here's some backstage information to enhance your experience the next time you visit the Paramount lot.. Wilder was no fan of improvisation and was very protective of his words. Now that we are getting closer to Awards Season in here in Hollywood, Im getting more and more interest from nominees and prospective nominees who want to know in advance if they are going home with the gold, Marie Bargas, known for years as the Hollywood Witch, told Den of Geek. Norma's bed originally belonged to French actress/singer Gaby Deslys. April 17, 2019 6:00AM. The actor-turned-director bitched about that goddamned butler role for the rest his life. David Lynch is an avid fan of the movie, having referenced it in films such as Inland Empire (2006), Mulholland Drive (2001)--which has a similar title and theme about the misfortunes of aspiring artists in Hollywood--and the television show Twin Peaks (1990), where Lynch himself played an FBI Bureau Chief named Gordon Cole. Betty is engaged to be married to Jack Webbs character, Arthur Artie Green, who is such a good buddy to Joe that he offers to put him up on the couch for a few weeks. Joe could have slept with Norma and loved Betty, and owned the pool that would be his final resting place. The last name of the studio executive played by Fred Clark is Sheldrake. He became bitter about the throwaway roles Hollywood kept giving him. Vega subsequently confirmed that this was a reference to Holden.[50]. As far as being a forgotten star, past her prime, Norma is only 50 in the movie, Swanson was 53 when she made it and was herself very busy on the then-new medium of television. Watch Sunset Boulevard: Centennial Collection, When Norma Desmond says to the guard at the "Paramount Studio" gates, "Without me there wouldn't be any 'Paramount Studio'" the words could apply to, When Max is telling Joe about directing Madam's first pictures, there is a bad dub of the word "sixteen". Billy Wilder was a friend of the danish silent movie star Asta Nielsen, and based the Norma Desmond caracter on her. The 2014 book by William J. Mann, Tinseltown: Murder, Morphine, and Madness at the Dawn of Hollywood, names Ross Blackie Madsen Sheridan as the killer, based on a death bed confession from actress Margaret Gibson, who beat a 1917 rap on prostitution and opium dealing. Such extravagances were so commonplace that when Wilder was planning to shoot the funeral of Normas chimpanzee, the director told the crew to just set-up the usual monkey-funeral sequence.. She reads everyone and everything in Hollywood, except Joes script. Wilder was, well, the wilder of the two, often bawdy and crass, while Brackett was genteel. Billy Wilder's Sunset Boulevard is one of his three or four masterpieces, a seminal Hollywood black comedy-satire, which unlike most films keeps improving with the passage of time.. Benfiting from a glorious and iconic cast, the film concerns a faded silent film star, played by Gloria Swanson (in a variation of her own onscreen persona), who lives in the past with her butler (and former . William Holden movies: 15 greatest films, ranked worst to best, include 'Sunset Boulevard,' 'Network,' 'Stalag 17'. (1949), and "Father Is a Bachelor" (1950). Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Sunset Boulevard DVD Special Collector's Edition William Holden Gloria Swanson at the best online prices at eBay! His killer was never identified. Also, the house didn't have a pool, so Paramount paid to have one installed on the condition that if Mrs. Getty didn't like it, they'd remove it after filming was over. It always will be! One of only 13 films to be nominated for Best Film, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress and Best Director. The next decade saw Holden's career flourish. See production, box office & company info. Principal photography took place from 11 April to 18 June 1949. But Joe wouldnt have fallen so hard if he werent so shackled. A disagreement over the montage where Norma puts herself through hell getting thinner and younger for her comeback nearly resulted in physical violence: Brackett thought it was too mean, while Wilder felt it was necessary to show what lengths a desperate actor would go to in Hollywood. You murdered me. Features the only Oscar-nominated performances of Erich von Stroheim and Nancy Olson. As day breaks. For a number of years, exhibitors voted Holden among the most popular stars in the country: On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. For added meta-truthfulness, Wilder wanted to have that film's lead actress, Hedy Lamarr, be there too, so that DeMille could ask her to let Norma sit in her chair (you know, those behind-the-scenes chairs that have the star's name on them). Swanson argued that a woman like Norma would have been obsessed with her appearance and would have done her utmost not to look old. A screenwriter develops a dangerous relationship with a faded film star determined to make a triumphant return.A screenwriter develops a dangerous relationship with a faded film star determined to make a triumphant return.A screenwriter develops a dangerous relationship with a faded film star determined to make a triumphant return. It was meant to be slightly humorous in a morbid way, but the audience at the first test screening found it flat-out hysterical, setting the wrong mood for the rest of the picture. The original nitrate negatives for the film have long disappeared. He stayed at Paramount for The Remarkable Andrew (1942) with Brian Donlevy, then made Meet the Stewarts (1943) at Columbia. The exterior shots were of a house located not on Sunset but Irving Boulevard, near the corner of Wilshire, owned by the J. Paul Getty family. The address of Norma Desmond's house is given as 10086 Sunset Boulevard.
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