87-426: Sunset Boulevard is a 1950 American black comedy film noir directed by Billy Wilder and co-written by Wilder and Charles Brackett . It is named after a major street that runs through Hollywood . The film stars William Holden as Joe Gillis, a struggling screenwriter , and Gloria Swanson as Norma Desmond, a former silent-film star who draws him into her deranged fantasy world, where she dreams of making
174-460: A dancing partner as required by the woman in exchange for the support. Many gifts, such as expensive clothing and an automobile to drive, may be lavished upon him. The relationship may include sexual services as well, and he also can be referred to as a "kept man." The word gigolo may be traced to a first usage in English as a neologism during the 1920s as a back-formation from gigolette ,
261-558: A screen test , saying she had "made 20 films for Paramount. Why do they want me to audition?" Her reaction was echoed in the screenplay when Norma Desmond declares, "Without me there wouldn't be any Paramount studios." In her memoir, Swanson recalled asking Cukor if it was unreasonable to refuse the screen test. He replied that since Norma Desmond was the role for which she would be remembered, "If they ask you to do ten screen tests, do ten screen tests, or I will personally shoot you." His enthusiasm convinced Swanson to participate, and she signed
348-656: A French word for a woman hired as a dancing partner. Both gigolo and gigolette were first recorded in French in the middle part of the 19th century, referring to dance club denizens in Montmartre paid to dance with, and sometimes have sex with, unaccompanied male visitors. In the latter part of the 19th century, particularly after the scandalous murder case known in Paris as the Pranzini Affair [ it ] ,
435-405: A comic manner. Comedians like Lenny Bruce , who since the late 1950s have been labeled as using " sick comedy " by mainstream journalists, have also been labeled with "black comedy". Sigmund Freud , in his 1927 essay Humour ( Der Humor ), although not mentioning 'black humour' specifically, cites a literal instance of gallows humour before going on to write: "The ego refuses to be distressed by
522-449: A contract for $ 50,000 (equivalent to $ 630,000 in 2023). In a 1975 interview, Wilder recalled Swanson's reaction with the observation, "There was a lot of Norma in her, you know." Wilder harks back to Swanson's silent film career when Norma shows Joe the film Queen Kelly , an earlier Gloria Swanson film directed by Erich von Stroheim , who himself portrays Norma's butler and former director and husband Max von Mayerling. Queen Kelly
609-541: A decade, which earned it the nickname "Phantom House". By 1949, it was owned by the former wife of J. Paul Getty . The house was later featured in Nicholas Ray 's Rebel Without a Cause (1955). It was demolished by the Gettys in 1957 to make way for the construction of an office building. During filming, considerable publicity was given to the health-conscious Gloria Swanson's youthful appearance, which made her look
696-416: A difficult time understanding her heavy Polish accent. He then reached out to Clara Bow , the famed " It girl " of the 1920s, but she declined citing that she had no interest in engaging in the film industry again due to how hard it was for her during the transition of sound films and that she'd prefer to remain in seclusion with her husband and sons while leaving her previous life behind her. They also offered
783-435: A failed screenwriter who lives with a silent film star and works in a cemetery. Gossip columnist Hedda Hopper , who plays herself in the movie, wrote that "Billy Wilder … was crazy about Evelyn Waugh's book The Loved One , and the studio wanted to buy it." Regardless, the plans for this adaptation fell through. The original script that followed nevertheless contains similarities to the novel. At one point, Norma mistakes Joe for
870-521: A far ridere su un argomento talmente drammatico di cui si ride perché non c'è altra soluzione possibile, si ha quella che nei cabaret di Berlino degli Anni '20 veniva chiamata la "risata verde". È opportuno distinguere una satira ironica, che lavora per sottrazione, da una satira grottesca, che lavora per addizione. Questo secondo tipo di satira genera più spesso la risata verde. Ne erano maestri Kraus e Valentin. Gigolo A gigolo ( / ˈ dʒ ɪ ɡ ə l oʊ , ˈ ʒ ɪ ɡ -/ JIG -ə-loh, ZHIG - )
957-448: A figure than Wilder had originally imagined. Franz Waxman 's musical score was the final element added to Sunset Boulevard . His theme for Norma was based on tango music , inspired by her having danced the tango with Rudolph Valentino . This style was contrasted with Joe's bebop theme. Waxman also used distorted arrangements of popular film-music styles from the 1920s and 1930s to suggest Norma Desmond's state of mind. The film's score
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#17327871808071044-482: A film. Preparing for her imagined comeback, Norma undergoes rigorous beauty treatments. Joe secretly works nights in Betty's office, collaborating on an original screenplay. After Max discovers Joe's moonlighting, Max reveals that he was once a respected film director, who discovered Norma, made her a star, and was her first husband. After Norma divorced him, Max abandoned his career to become her servant. Norma discovers
1131-433: A funeral director and inquires about a coffin for herself and her deceased pet chimp. Wilder and Brackett began working on a script in 1948, but the result did not completely satisfy them. In August 1948, D. M. Marshman Jr. , formerly a writer for Life , was hired to help develop the storyline after Wilder and Brackett were impressed by a critique he provided of their film The Emperor Waltz (1948). In an effort to keep
1218-424: A genre in which dark humor is a core component. Cartoonist Charles Addams was famous for such humor, e.g. depicting a boy decorating his bedroom with stolen warning signs including "NO DIVING – POOL EMPTY", "STOP – BRIDGE OUT" and "SPRING CONDEMNED." Black comedy differs from both blue comedy —which focuses more on crude topics such as nudity , sex , and body fluids —and from straightforward obscenity . Whereas
1305-402: A gun; as he leaves the house, Norma shoots him three times, and he collapses into the pool. The flashback ends and the film returns to the present day, with Norma about to be arrested for murder. The mansion is overrun with police and reporters with newsreel cameras, which she believes are film cameras. Max pretends to "direct" her, and the police play along. As the cameras roll, Norma descends
1392-616: A man who grasped things by reason and never by feeling, and who enclosed himself in skepticism; [...] Swift can rightfully be considered the inventor of "savage" or "gallows" humor. Des termes parents du Galgenhumor sont: : comédie noire, plaisanterie macabre, rire jaune. (J'en offre un autre: gibêtises). humour macabre, humeur de désespéré, (action de) rire jaune Galgenhumor propos guilleret etwas freie, gewagte Äußerung Walter Redfern, discussing puns about death, remarks: 'Related terms to gallows humour are: black comedy, sick humour, rire jaune. In all, pain and pleasure are mixed, perhaps
1479-625: A manuscript with Joe and Betty's names on it and phones Betty, insinuating that Joe is not the man he seems. Overhearing the call, Joe invites Betty to the mansion to see for herself. When she arrives, he pretends that he is satisfied being a gigolo so that she can be with Artie. However, after she tearfully leaves, he packs to return to his old newspaper job in Dayton, Ohio . He bluntly informs Norma that there will be no comeback, that Max writes all of her fan mail, and that she has been forgotten. He disregards Norma's threat to kill herself as she brandishes
1566-400: A private screening for the various studio heads and specially invited guests. After viewing the film, Barbara Stanwyck knelt to kiss the hem of Gloria Swanson's skirt. Swanson later remembered looking for Mary Pickford , only to be told, "She can't show herself, Gloria. She's too overcome. We all are." Louis B. Mayer berated Wilder before the crowd of celebrities, saying, "You have disgraced
1653-413: A script she has written for a film about Salome . She plans to play the role herself in her return to the screen. Joe finds her script abysmal, but flatters her into hiring him as a script doctor . Joe moves into Norma's mansion at her insistence, and sees that Norma refuses to believe that her fame has evaporated. Her butler Max secretly writes all of the fan mail that she receives in order to maintain
1740-515: A specially constructed box and lowered under water, but the result disappointed Wilder, who insisted on further experiments. The shot was finally achieved by placing a mirror on the bottom of the pool and filming Holden's reflection from above, with the distorted image of the police officers standing around the pool forming a backdrop. Film historian Tom Stempel writes: "In both Double Indemnity and Sunset Boulevard , Seitz does something that has always impressed me. Both are films noir, and he finesses
1827-1308: A spese di chi è più ricco e potente di te. Io sono specialista nella risata verde, quella dei cabaret di Berlino degli anni Venti e Trenta. Nasce dalla disperazione. Esempio: l'Italia è un paese dove la commissione di vigilanza parlamentare Rai si comporta come la commissione stragi e viceversa. Oppure: il mistero di Ustica è irrisolto? Sono contento: il sistema funziona. racconto di satira grottesca [...] L'obiettivo del grottesco è far percepire l'orrore di una vicenda. Non è la satira cui siamo abituati in Italia: la si ritrova nel cabaret degli anni '20 e '30, poi è stata cancellata dal carico di sofferenze della guerra. Aggiungo che io avevo spiegato in apertura di serata che ci sarebbero stati momenti di satira molto diversi. Satira ironica, che fa ridere, e satira grottesca, che può far male. Perché porta alla risata della disperazione, dell'impotenza. La risata verde. Era forte, perché coinvolgeva in un colpo solo tutti i cardini satirici: politica, religione, sesso e morte. Quello che ho fatto è stato accentuare l'interazione tra gli elementi. Non era di buon gusto? Rabelais e Swift, che hanno esplorato questi lati oscuri della nostra personalità, non si sono mai posti il problema del buon gusto. Quando la satira poi riesce
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#17327871808071914-461: A triumphant return to the screen. Erich von Stroheim plays Max von Mayerling, her devoted butler, and Nancy Olson , Jack Webb , Lloyd Gough , and Fred Clark appear in supporting roles. Director Cecil B. DeMille and gossip columnist Hedda Hopper play themselves, and the film includes cameo appearances by silent-film stars Buster Keaton , H. B. Warner , and Anna Q. Nilsson . Praised by many critics when first released, Sunset Boulevard
2001-404: Is a male escort or social companion who is supported by a person in a continuing relationship. The term gigolo usually implies a man who adopts a lifestyle consisting of a number of such relationships serially rather than having other means of support. The gigolo is expected to provide companionship, to serve as a consistent escort with good manners and social skills, and often to serve as
2088-411: Is a down-on-his-luck screenwriter trying to interest Paramount Pictures in a story he submitted. Script reader Betty Schaefer harshly critiques it, unaware that Joe is listening. Later, while fleeing from repo men seeking his car, Joe turns into the driveway of a seemingly deserted mansion inhabited by forgotten silent film star Norma Desmond. Learning that Joe is a writer, Norma asks his opinion of
2175-401: Is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo , particularly subjects that are normally considered serious or painful to discuss. Writers and comedians often use it as a tool for exploring vulgar issues by provoking discomfort, serious thought, and amusement for their audience. Thus, in fiction , for example, the term black comedy can also refer to
2262-620: Is an acknowledged coping mechanism. It has been encouraged within these professions to make note of the context in which these jokes are told, as outsiders may not react the way that those with mutual knowledge do. A 2017 study published in the journal Cognitive Processing concludes that people who appreciate dark humor "may have higher IQs, show lower aggression, and resist negative feelings more effectively than people who turn up their noses at it." Examples of black comedy in film include: Examples of black comedy in television include: Examples of gallows speeches include: Military life
2349-429: Is full of gallows humor, as those in the services continuously live in the danger of being killed, especially in wartime. For example: Workers in the emergency services are also known for using black comedy: There are several titles such as It Only Hurts When I Laugh and Only When I Laugh , which allude to the punch line of a joke which exists in numerous versions since at least the 19th century. A typical setup
2436-500: Is one of only three not to win in any category, the others being My Man Godfrey (1936) and American Hustle (2013). At the time its eleven Oscar nominations were exceeded only by the fourteen received by All About Eve , which won six awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. Many critics predicted that the Best Actress award would be given to Gloria Swanson or Bette Davis for All About Eve and were surprised that
2523-439: Is that someone badly hurt is asked "Does it hurt?" – "I am fine; it only hurts when I laugh." The term was part of the language before Freud wrote an essay on it—'gallows humor.' This is middle European humor, a response to hopeless situations. It's what a man says faced with a perfectly hopeless situation and he still manages to say something funny. Freud gives examples: A man being led out to be hanged at dawn says, 'Well,
2610-470: Is the story and it is Billy Wilder's sour valedictory to let the ghost of Gillis tell the story, facedown in the gelid swimming pool exactly the Hollywood reward that Joe gets only in his dreams. And so this breathtaking portrait of Hollywood failure is wrapped up in rueful, ruined success." Of the various films that have attracted Academy Award nominations in all four acting categories , Sunset Boulevard
2697-503: The Dior look of the mid-1940s. Embellishments were added to personalize them and reflect Norma Desmond's taste. Swanson recalled in her biography that the costumes were only "a trifle outdated, a trifle exotic." Head later described her assignment as "the most challenging of my career," and explained her approach with the comment, "Because Norma Desmond was an actress who had become lost in her own imagination, I tried to make her look like she
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2784-593: The Hollywood Freeway . The scenes of Gillis and Betty Schaefer on Paramount's back lot were filmed on the actual studio back lot, and the interior of Schwab's Drug Store was carefully recreated for several scenes. The exterior scenes of the Desmond house were filmed at a house on Wilshire Boulevard built during the 1920s by the millionaire William O. Jenkins . Jenkins and his family lived in it for only one year before then leaving it abandoned for more than
2871-551: The French humour noir ) was coined by the Surrealist theorist André Breton in 1935 while interpreting the writings of Jonathan Swift . Breton's preference was to identify some of Swift's writings as a subgenre of comedy and satire in which laughter arises from cynicism and skepticism , often relying on topics such as death. Breton coined the term for his 1940 book Anthology of Black Humor ( Anthologie de l'humour noir ), in which he credited Jonathan Swift as
2958-456: The Holocaust, in which Wilder's family perished. In 2020 Olson recounted that friends who had attended the screening told her that Wilder had simply told Mayer "Go fuck yourself." The few other criticisms were not so venomous. According to one often-told but later discredited anecdote, actress Mae Murray , a contemporary of Swanson, was offended by the film and commented, "None of us floozies
3045-405: The camera before filming to suggest "mustiness," a technique he had also used for Wilder's Double Indemnity (1944). The film had the option to be shot in color, but it was instead shot in black and white to be more reflective of the noir genre. Wilder was adamant that the corpse of Joe Gillis be seen from the bottom of the pool, but creating the effect was difficult. The camera was placed inside
3132-432: The camera tactfully withdraws with "the traditional directorial attitude taken towards Dracula's jugular seductions". He writes that the narrative contains an excess of "cheap sarcasm", but ultimately considers it a valuable part of Joe's characterization as a hack writer . David Thomson notes the irony of having Gillis tell the story: "The man who can't dream up a viable story line becomes the best pitch he'll ever hear. He
3219-415: The character's name is that it is a combination of the names of silent film actress Mabel Normand and director William Desmond Taylor , a close friend of Normand's who was murdered in 1922 in a never-solved case sensationalized by the press. Cinematographer John Seitz stated that Wilder "had wanted to do Evelyn Waugh 's 1948 novel The Loved One , but couldn’t obtain the rights." Waugh's story follows
3306-445: The comedy is used to mock the victim. In the last cases, the victim's suffering is trivialized, which leads to sympathizing with the victimizer, as analogously found in the social commentary and social criticism of the writings of (for instance) Sade . Among the first American writers who employed black comedy in their works were Nathanael West and Vladimir Nabokov . The concept of black humor first came to nationwide attention after
3393-539: The corpse of Joe Gillis recounting his murder to the others. The audience reacted with laughter and seemed unsure whether to view the rest of the film as drama or comedy. After a similar reaction during its second screening in Poughkeepsie, New York , and a third in Great Neck , the morgue opening was replaced by a shorter poolside opening, using footage filmed on January 5, 1950. In Hollywood, Paramount arranged
3480-718: The dancer Gaby Deslys , who died in 1920. It had originally been bought by the Universal prop department at auction after Deslys's death. The bed appeared in The Phantom of the Opera (1925) starring Lon Chaney . Wilder also made use of authentic locales. Joe's apartment is in the Alto Nido, a real apartment block in central Hollywood that was often home to struggling writers. It is located at 1851 Ivar Ave. and Franklin Ave. west of
3567-505: The day is certainly starting well.' It's generally called Jewish humor in this country. Actually it's humor from the peasants' revolt, the forty years' war, and from the Napoleonic wars. It's small people being pushed this way and that way, enormous armies and plagues and so forth, and still hanging on in the face of hopelessness. Jewish jokes are middle European jokes and the black humorists are gallows humorists, as they try to be funny in
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3654-890: The definitive recipe for all punning' (Puns, p. 127). En français on dit « rire jaune », en flamand « groen lachen » Les termes jaune, vert, bleu évoquent en français un certain nombre d'idées qui sont différentes de celles que suscitent les mots holandais correspondants geel, groen, blauw. Nous disons : rire jaune, le Hollandais dit : rire vert ( groen lachen ); ce que le Néerlandais appelle un vert (een groentje), c'est ce qu'en français on désigne du nom de bleu (un jeune soldat inexpéribenté)... On voit que des confrontations de ce genre permettent de concevoir une étude de la psychologie des peuples fondée sur les associations d'idées que révèlent les variations de sens (sémantique), les expressions figurées, les proverbes et les dictions. Q: Critiche feroci, interrogazioni parlamentari: momenti duri per la satira. A: Satira è far ridere
3741-501: The edited Salome script to her former director Cecil B. DeMille at Paramount. She starts getting calls from Paramount executive Gordon Cole but refuses to speak to anyone except DeMille. Eventually, she has Max drive her and Joe to Paramount in her 1929 Isotta Fraschini . DeMille welcomes her affectionately and treats her with great respect, but tactfully evades her questions about the script. Max then learns that Cole only called her because he wants to rent her Isotta Fraschini for use in
3828-399: The face of situations which they see as just horrible. At least, Swift's text is preserved, and so is a prefatory note by the French writer André Breton, which emphasizes Swift's importance as the originator of black humor, of laughter that arises from cynicism and scepticism. When it comes to black humor, everything designates him as the true initiator. In fact, it is impossible to coordinate
3915-477: The fact that both are set in the sunniest of locales, Los Angeles... he brings together the light and the dark in the same film without any seams showing... he brings together the realistic lighting of Joe Gillis out in the real world with the gothic look of Norma Desmond's mansion." Edith Head designed the costumes. Wilder, Head, and Swanson agreed that Norma Desmond would have kept somewhat up-to-date with fashion trends, so Head designed costumes closely resembling
4002-593: The film a positive review based on 112 reviews, with an average rating of 9.5/10. The critical consensus states: "Arguably the greatest movie about Hollywood, Billy Wilder's masterpiece Sunset Boulevard is a tremendously entertaining combination of noir, black comedy, and character study." Sunset Boulevard attracted a range of positive reviews from critics. Time described it as a story of "Hollywood at its worst told by Hollywood at its best", while Boxoffice Review wrote "the picture will keep spectators spellbound." James Agee , writing for Sight & Sound , praised
4089-431: The film and said Wilder and Brackett were "beautifully equipped to do the cold, exact, adroit, sardonic job they have done." Good Housekeeping described Swanson as a "great lady [who] spans another decade with her magic," while Look praised her "brilliant and haunting performance." Some critics accurately foresaw the film's lasting appeal. The Hollywood Reporter wrote that future generations would "set themselves
4176-461: The film's final scenes. The film's dark, shadowy black-and-white cinematography was the work of John F. Seitz . Wilder had worked with Seitz on several projects before, and trusted his judgment, allowing him to make his own decisions. Seitz recalled asking Wilder what he required for the pet chimpanzee's funeral scene, to which Wilder replied, "you know, just your standard monkey funeral shot." For some interior shots, Seitz sprinkled dust in front of
4263-447: The first third of the script was written when filming began in early May 1949, and Wilder was unsure how the film would end. The fusion of writer-director Billy Wilder's biting humor and the classic elements of film noir make for a strange kind of comedy, as well as a strange kind of film noir. There are no belly laughs here, but there are certainly strangled giggles: at the pet chimp's midnight funeral, at Joe's discomfited acquiescence to
4350-550: The fugitive traces of this kind of humor before him, not even in Heraclitus and the Cynics or in the works of Elizabethan dramatic poets. [...] historically justify his being presented as the first black humorist. Contrary to what Voltaire might have said, Swift was in no sense a "perfected Rabelais." He shared to the smallest possible degree Rabelais's taste for innocent, heavy-handed jokes and his constant drunken good humor. [...]
4437-544: The full details of the story from Paramount Pictures and avoid the restrictive censorship of the Breen Code , they submitted the script a few pages at a time. The Breen Office insisted certain lines be rewritten, such as Gillis's "I'm up that creek and I need a job," which became "I'm over a barrel. I need a job." Paramount executives thought Wilder was adapting a story called A Can of Beans (which did not exist) and allowed him relative freedom to proceed as he saw fit. Only
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#17327871808074524-468: The grand Hollywood houses remained, and Wilder, then a Los Angeles resident, found them to be a part of his everyday world. Many former stars from the silent era still lived in them, although most were no longer involved in the film business. Wilder wondered how they spent their time now that "the parade had passed them by" and began imagining the story of a star who had lost her celebrity and box-office appeal. The character of Norma Desmond mirrors aspects of
4611-432: The grand staircase for what she thinks is a close-up for DeMille. She stops and makes an impromptu speech about how happy she is to be making a film again, then walks towards the camera, before she gets arrested by the authorities. The street known as Sunset Boulevard has been associated with Hollywood film production since 1911, when the town's first film studio, Nestor , opened there. The film workers lived modestly in
4698-512: The growing neighborhood, but during the 1920s, profits and salaries rose to unprecedented levels. With the advent of the star system , luxurious homes noted for their often incongruous grandeur were built in the area. As a young man living in Berlin in the 1920s, Billy Wilder was interested in American culture, with much of his interest fueled by the country's films. In the late 1940s, many of
4785-492: The illusion. At her New Year's Eve party, Joe realizes that she has fallen in love with him. He tries to let her down gently, but Norma slaps him and retreats to her room, distraught. Joe visits his friend Artie Green and again meets Betty, who thinks a scene in one of Joe's scripts has potential. When he phones Max to have him pack his things, Max tells him Norma has cut her wrists with his razor. Joe then returns to Norma, and their relationship becomes sexual. Norma has Max deliver
4872-532: The illusions." Pauline Kael described the film as "almost too clever, but at its best in its cleverness", and also wrote that it was common to "hear Billy Wilder called the world's greatest director." When Wilder died in 2002, obituaries singled out Sunset Boulevard for comment, describing it as one of his most significant works, along with Double Indemnity and Some Like It Hot . Film writer Richard Corliss describes Sunset Boulevard as "the definitive Hollywood horror movie", noting that almost everything in
4959-404: The industry that made and fed you! You should be tarred and feathered and run out of Hollywood!" Upon hearing of Mayer's slight, Wilder strode up to the mogul and retorted with a vulgarity that one biographer said was allegedly because Mayer, who was Jewish, suggested that Wilder, who was also Jewish, would be better off being sent back to Germany, an extraordinary sentiment so soon after the war and
5046-439: The joke: whether the joke is being told by the threatened person themselves or by someone else. Black comedy has the social effect of strengthening the morale of the oppressed and undermines the morale of the oppressors. According to Wylie Sypher , "to be able to laugh at evil and error means we have surmounted them." Black comedy is a natural human instinct and examples of it can be found in stories from antiquity. Its use
5133-471: The mid-1940s, she worked in television and on the New York stage and had last appeared in the 1941 film Father Takes a Wife . Though Swanson was not seeking a movie comeback, she became intrigued when Wilder discussed the role with her. Swanson was glad for the opportunity to earn a greater salary than she had been making in television and on stage. However, she was chagrined at the notion of submitting to
5220-601: The military in World War II , and his return to the screen afterward had been moderately successful. Holden was enthusiastic about the script and eager to accept the role. He did not know at the time that his salary of $ 39,000 (equivalent to $ 490,000 in 2023) was much less than had been offered to Clift. For the role of Betty Schaefer, Wilder wanted a newcomer who could project a wholesome and ordinary image to contrast with Swanson's flamboyant and obsessive Desmond. He chose Nancy Olson , who had recently been considered for
5307-503: The most fêted actresses of the silent-screen era, known for her beauty, talent, and extravagant lifestyle. In many ways, she resembled the Norma Desmond character, and like her, had been unable to make a smooth transition into talking pictures . The similarities ended there; Swanson made a handful of talking pictures. She accepted the end of her film career and, in the early 1930s, moved to New York City, where she worked in radio. In
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#17327871808075394-450: The originator of black humor and gallows humor (particularly in his pieces Directions to Servants (1731), A Modest Proposal (1729), Meditation Upon a Broomstick (1710), and in a few aphorisms ). In his book, Breton also included excerpts from 45 other writers, including both examples in which the wit arises from a victim with which the audience empathizes, as is more typical in the tradition of gallows humor, and examples in which
5481-555: The part of Norma Desmond to Norma Shearer , but she rejected the role due to both her retirement and distaste for the script. They were considering Fred MacMurray to play opposite her as Joe. Wilder and Brackett then visited Mary Pickford , but before even discussing the plot with her, Wilder realized she would consider a role involving an affair with a man half her age an insult, so they departed. They had considered pairing Montgomery Clift with her. According to Wilder, he asked George Cukor for advice, and he suggested Swanson, one of
5568-695: The particular type of laughter that it arouses ( risata verde or groen lachen ), and said that grotesque satire , as opposed to ironic satire, is the one that most often arouses this kind of laughter. In the Weimar era Kabaretts , this genre was particularly common, and according to Luttazzi, Karl Valentin and Karl Kraus were the major masters of it. Black comedy is common in professions and environments where workers routinely have to deal with dark subject matter. This includes police officers , firefighters , ambulance crews, military personnel, journalists, lawyers, and funeral directors , where it
5655-399: The provocations of reality, to let itself be compelled to suffer. It insists that it cannot be affected by the traumas of the external world; it shows, in fact, that such traumas are no more than occasions for it to gain pleasure." Some other sociologists elaborated this concept further. At the same time, Paul Lewis warns that this "relieving" aspect of gallows jokes depends on the context of
5742-476: The publication of a 1965 mass-market paperback titled Black Humor , edited by Bruce Jay Friedman . The paperback was one of the first American anthologies devoted to the concept of black humor as a literary genre. With the paperback, Friedman labeled as "black humorists" a variety of authors, such as J. P. Donleavy , Edward Albee , Joseph Heller , Thomas Pynchon , John Barth , Vladimir Nabokov, Bruce Jay Friedman himself, and Louis-Ferdinand Céline . Among
5829-504: The recent writers suggested as black humorists by journalists and literary critics are Roald Dahl , Kurt Vonnegut , Warren Zevon , Christopher Durang , Philip Roth , and Veikko Huovinen . Evelyn Waugh has been called "the first contemporary writer to produce the sustained black comic novel." The motive for applying the label black humorist to the writers cited above is that they have written novels, poems, stories, plays, and songs in which profound or horrific events were portrayed in
5916-581: The recipient was newcomer Judy Holliday for Born Yesterday . Bette Davis believed that her and Swanson's comparable characters effectively "cancelled each other out", allowing Holliday to win. Swanson recalled the press's reaction following Holliday's win: "It slowly dawned on me that they were asking for a larger-than-life scene, or better still, a mad scene. More accurately, they were trying to flush out Norma Desmond." Black comedy Black comedy , also known as black humor , bleak comedy , dark comedy , dark humor , gallows humor or morbid humor ,
6003-658: The role of Delilah in Cecil B. DeMille's Samson and Delilah . DeMille, often credited as the person most responsible for making Swanson a star, plays himself, with his scenes filmed on the set of Samson and Delilah at Paramount Studios. He calls Norma "young fella", which had been his nickname for Swanson. Norma's friends who come to play bridge with her, referred to by Joe as "the waxworks", were Swanson's silent-era contemporaries Buster Keaton , Anna Q. Nilsson , and H. B. Warner , portraying themselves. Hedda Hopper also played herself, reporting on Norma Desmond's downfall in
6090-468: The role of Norma Desmond. Wilder, however, recalled first wanting Mae West and Marlon Brando for the leads. West rejected the offer outright. West portrayed herself as a sex symbol through her senior years, and was offended that she should be asked to play a Hollywood has-been. The filmmakers approached Greta Garbo , whom they had worked with previously on Ninotchka (1939), but she was not interested. Wilder contacted Pola Negri by telephone, but had
6177-495: The role of gigolo; at Norma's Mack Sennett -style "entertainments" for her uneasy lover; and at the ritualized solemnity of Norma's "waxworks" card parties, which feature such former luminaries as Buster Keaton as Norma's has-been cronies. Wilder preferred to leave analysis of his screenplays and films to others. When asked if Sunset Boulevard was a black comedy , he replied: "No, just a picture". According to Brackett, Wilder and he never considered anyone except Gloria Swanson for
6264-482: The same age as Holden. Wilder insisted that the age difference between the characters be delineated, and instructed makeup supervisor Wally Westmore to make Swanson look older. Swanson argued that a woman of Norma Desmond's age, with her considerable wealth and devotion to self, would not necessarily look old, and suggested Holden be made up to appear younger. Wilder agreed, and Westmore was assigned this task, which allowed Swanson to portray Norma Desmond as more glamorous
6351-432: The script is "ghoulish". He remarks that the story is narrated by a dead man whom Norma Desmond first mistakes for an undertaker, while most of the film takes place "in an old, dark house that only opens its doors to the living dead". He compares von Stroheim's character Max with the concealed Erik , the central character in The Phantom of the Opera , and Norma Desmond with Dracula , noting that, as she seduces Joe Gillis,
6438-442: The silent era. He had also been commissioned to complete the interior design for the homes of movie stars, including the house of Mae West. William Haines , an interior designer and former actor, later rebutted criticism of Dreier's set design with the observation, " Bebe Daniels , Norma Shearer , and Pola Negri all had homes with ugly interiors like that." The bed in the shape of a boat in which Norma Desmond slept had been owned by
6525-499: The sticks." To promote the film, Gloria Swanson traveled by train throughout the United States, visiting 33 cities in a few months. The publicity helped attract people to the cinemas, but in many areas away from major cities it was considered less than a hit. The film earned an estimated $ 2,350,000 at the U.S. box office in 1950 ($ 29,760,166 in 2023 dollars ). Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports that 98% of critics gave
6612-601: The task of analyzing the durability and greatness" of the film, while Commonweal said that in the future "the Library of Congress will be glad to have in its archives a print of Sunset Boulevard." In a rare negative review of the film, The New Yorker deemed it "a pretentious slice of Roquefort " containing only "the germ of a good idea". Despite praising it as a "great motion picture" with "memorable" acting, Thomas M. Pryor wrote in The New York Times that
6699-454: The term black comedy is a relatively broad term covering humour relating to many serious subjects, gallows humor tends to be used more specifically in relation to death, or situations that are reminiscent of dying. Black humour can occasionally be related to the grotesque genre. Literary critics have associated black comedy and black humour with authors as early as the ancient Greeks with Aristophanes . The term black humour (from
6786-419: The twilight years of several real-life faded silent-film stars, such as the reclusive existences of Mary Pickford and Pola Negri and the mental disorders of Mae Murray , Valeska Surratt , Audrey Munson and Clara Bow . Dave Kehr has asserted that Norma Talmadge is "the obvious if unacknowledged source of Norma Desmond, the grotesque, predatory silent movie queen" of the film. The most common analysis of
6873-411: The use of the dead Joe Gillis as narrator was a plot device "completely unworthy of Brackett and Wilder". In 1999, Roger Ebert described Swanson as giving "one of the all time greatest [acting] performances", but singled out von Stroheim's performance as "hold[ing] the film together". He included it in his Great Movies list, calling it "the best drama ever made about the movies because it sees through
6960-410: Was that nuts." Sunset Boulevard had its official world premiere at Radio City Music Hall on August 10, 1950. After a seven-week run, Variety magazine reported the film had grossed "around $ 1,020,000", ($ 12,917,178 in 2023 dollars ) making it one of that theater's most successful pictures. Variety also noted that, while it was "breaking records in major cities, it is doing below average in ...
7047-426: Was always impersonating someone." Head later said she relied on Swanson's expertise because "she was creating a past that she knew and I didn't." Head also designed the costumes for William Holden and the minor characters, but Wilder instructed von Stroheim and Nancy Olson to wear their own clothing. The overstated decadence of Norma Desmond's home was created by set designer Hans Dreier , whose career extended back to
7134-516: Was having an affair with a woman 15 years his senior, the singer Libby Holman , which some have suggested was his real reason for withdrawing from the film. Forced to consider the available Paramount contract players, Wilder and Brackett focused on William Holden, who had made an impressive debut a decade earlier in Golden Boy (1939). Following an appearance in Our Town (1940), he served in
7221-488: Was nominated for 11 Academy Awards (including nominations in all four acting categories ) and won three. It is often ranked among the greatest movies ever made . As it was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the U.S. Library of Congress in 1989, Sunset Boulevard was included in the first group of films selected for preservation in the National Film Registry . In 1998, it
7308-591: Was not released in the United States for over 50 years after Swanson walked off the set. Montgomery Clift was signed to play Joe Gillis for $ 5,000 per week for a guaranteed twelve weeks, but withdrew just before the start of filming, claiming his role of a young man involved with an older woman was too close to the one he had played in The Heiress (1949), in which he felt he had been unconvincing. An infuriated Wilder responded, "If he's any kind of actor, he could be convincing making love to any woman." Clift himself
7395-478: Was ranked number 12 on the American Film Institute 's list of the 100 best American films of the 20th century. In 2007, it was 16th on their 10th Anniversary list . At a mansion on Sunset Boulevard , police officers and photographers discover the body of Joe Gillis floating face down in the swimming pool. In a flashback , Joe relates the events leading to his death. Six months earlier, Joe
7482-598: Was recorded for compact disc by the Royal Scottish National Orchestra , conducted by Joel McNeely , and released in 2002. The surviving parts of the original score were released in 2010. Wilder and Brackett, nervous about a major screening in Hollywood, held a preview in Evanston, Illinois , in late 1949. The original edit opened with a scene inside a morgue , with the assembled corpses discussing how they came to be there. The story began with
7569-603: Was widespread in middle Europe , from where it was imported to the United States. It is rendered with the German expression Galgenhumor (cynical last words before getting hanged ). The concept of gallows humor is comparable to the French expression rire jaune (lit. yellow laughing ), which also has a Germanic equivalent in the Belgian Dutch expression groen lachen (lit. green laughing ). Italian comedian Daniele Luttazzi discussed gallows humour focusing on
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