Sunset Blvd. 1950

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Sunset Blvd. (1950)
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The Tragic 1981 Death Of Sunset Boulevard Star William Holden

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Billy Wilder interview 1982
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Queen Kelly" presented in person by Gloria Swanson Part 1
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Gloria Swanson 1965 interview

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Two different characters - Gloria Swanson and Norma Desmond (Sunset Boulevard)


  Apr 16, 2020
This is about the differences between the Norma Desmond and the actress Gloria Swanson. Even though there are quite differences between them, the realistic Norma Desmond charachter shows her brilliant acting capability.

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BOULEVARD! A Hollywood Story - Official Trailer (2021)

Jeffrey Schwarz
Premiered Nov 1, 2022
"Boulevard! A Hollywood Story" is available from the filmmaker to rent or purchase here:

https://vimeo.com/ondemand/boulevarda...

Dickson Hughes and Richard Stapley, two young songwriters and romantic partners, find themselves caught in movie star Gloria Swanson’s web when she hires them to write a musical version of “Sunset Boulevard.” Life imitates art when Gloria falls for Richard, and the men find themselves living a real-life version of the classic film.

Produced and Directed by Jeffrey Schwarz
Produced by John Boccardo and Jeffrey Schwarz

Featuring:
Robert Osborne – film historian, in one of his final appearances
Brooke Anderson – granddaughter of Gloria Swanson
Cari Beauchamp – film historian and scholar of women in Hollywood
David del Valle – film historian and friend of Richard Stapley
Stephen Michael Shearer, author of Gloria Swanson: The Ultimate Star Stephen Bock – Richard Stapley’s friend and music publisher
Alan Eichler – friend of Dickson Hughes
Chandler Warren – Richard Stapley’s friend and attorney
Mark Saltzman – writer and authority on American musical theater
Laurie Franks – played Gloria Swanson in Dickson Hughes’ Swanson on Sunset
Richard Leibell – played Richard Stapley in Dickson Hughes’ Swanson on Sunset
Luke Yankee – director of Dickson Hughes’ Swanson on Sunset
Derrik Lewis – friend of Dickson Hughes
Richard Wuerth – friend of Dickson Hughes
Steve Hayes – host of Tired Old Queen at the Movies
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https://www.youtube.com/shorts/_P6SwyIiOTg


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DID SHE GET AWAY WITH MURDER? Sunset Boulevard Movie Reaction

Casual Nerd Reactions
Jul 20, 2022
Early Access, Polls & full length reactions on Patreon:    / casualnerdreactions 

My first time watching  Sunset Boulevard (1950).  I'm ready for my closeup! Whoa. Did she just get away with murder? Certainly, this lady lost her mind! This was an incredibly unique film that kept me fully invested and my mind wondering. I hope you enjoyed my Sunset Boulevard movie reaction & commentary

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Billy Wilder on making SUNSET BLVD

American Film Institute
Aug 4, 2020  #AFIMovieClub


During seminar at the AFI Conservatory, Billy Wilder talks about making SUNSET BLVD, which was released in August 1950 and this year celebrates its 70th anniversary.

AFI Movie Club is a program that raises the nation’s spirits by bringing artists and audiences together – even while we are apart. AFI selects an iconic movie each day for the world to watch together, creating a communal viewing experience. Audiences can “gather” at AFI.com/MovieClub to view the featured movie of the day with the use of their preexisting streaming service credentials. Learn more at AFI.com/MovieClub and join the conversation at #AFIMovieClub.

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Six Sunset Boulevard Quotes That Mean More Thank You Think!

The English Lab
May 21, 2023
Billy Wilder's Sunset Boulevard is a fantastic text that is studied by students for VCE English in the Reading and Creating unit of study.

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Story Analysis: SUNSET BOULEVARD | Coffee Class #6 with Young Screenwriters

Young Screenwriters
Streamed live on May 22, 2020  The Young Screenwriters Podcast LIVE!
NYU Film Professor John Warren breaks the screenplay for the subtle and ruthless classic, SUNSET BOULEVARD by Billy Wilder. Join John, Alexie Basil, and Adam Schaller for coffee and screenwriting discussion!

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Sunset Boulevard is STILL a Crazy, Meta Middle Finger to Hollywood | CineFix Top 100

CineFix - IGN Movies and TV
Jul 17, 2023  CineFix Top 100
“They took the idols and smashed them! And who’ve we got now? Some nobodies!”

Sunset Boulevard is a classic genre blending, film noir, dark comedy that skewered the state of the film industry in 1950. Maybe the most incredible thing about it is that it’s as relevant right now as it was nominated for 11 Academy Awards. But where, oh where, does it end up on our algorithmically confusing Top 100 list? Clint, Cal and Alex are about to find out!

Billy Wilder co-wrote and directed the film about Norma Desmond, an aging silent film star with her glory days very much in the past, as played by Gloria Swanson, an aging silent film star whose glory days were very much in the past when they made the film. With William Holden letting his himbo out before it was cool and cameos by Cecille B. DeMille, Buster Keaton and even the 40s top gossip columnist, there's a realistic bite to its satire that few movies about the industry have even come close to matching in the seven decades since.

00:00:00 - Intro
00:01:44 - The Pedigree
00:11:58 - Art of the Scene
00:39:13 - CineFix Movie Lists
00:47:52 - Things You (Probably) Didn't Know
00:54:36 - Movie MVP
00:58:32- Snakeskin Jacket Factor
01:03:47 - Top 100 Listed
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Memories of Gloria Swanson - Outtakes from BOULEVARD! A HOLLYWOOD STORY (2021)

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Gloria Swanson, Barbara Walters, 1981 Interview

Alan Eichler
Nov 29, 2015
Gloria Swanson is interviewed by Barbara Walters about her controversial 1981 autobiography "Swanson" and allegations of her one-time affair with Joseph P. Kennedy.  Walters also reads a letter denouncing Swanson from Eunice Kennedy Shriver.
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Gloria Swanson - Guardian NFT Lecture 10.09.81

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Gloria Swanson talks about QUEEN KELLY

Queen Kelly

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Queen Kelly

Directed by Erich von Stroheim
Uncredited:
Richard Boleslawski
Written by Erich von Stroheim
Uncredited:
Benjamin Glazer
Laura Hope Crews
Richard Boleslawski
Titles:
Marian Ainslee
Story by Erich von Stroheim
Produced by Joseph P. Kennedy
Erich von Stroheim
Gloria Swanson
Starring Gloria Swanson
Walter Byron
Seena Owen
Tully Marshall
Cinematography Paul Ivano
William H. Daniels
Gordon Pollock
Hal Mohr
(uncredited)
Gregg Toland
(European ending)
Edited by Viola Lawrence
Uncredited:
Richard Boleslawski
Music by Adolf Tandler
Distributed by United Artists
Release dates
October 1932
(Argentina)
November 1932
(France)
Running time 101 minutes
Country United States
Languages Silent film
English intertitles
Queen Kelly is an American silent film produced in 1928–29 and released by United Artists. The film was directed by Erich von Stroheim, starred Gloria Swanson, in the title role, Walter Byron as her lover, and Seena Owen. The film was produced by Joseph P. Kennedy, who was Swanson's lover at the time.[1]

In 1932, Swanson was able to release a part-sound version in Europe and South America only because of her contract with Stroheim.[citation needed] This version had an alternate ending directed by Richard Boleslawski and filmed by cinematographer Gregg Toland.[2]

Plot
Duration: 1 hour, 40 minutes and 53 seconds.1:40:53
Reconstructed version of Queen Kelly
Prince Wolfram (Byron) is the betrothed of mad Queen Regina V of Kronberg (Owen). As punishment for partying with other women, he is sent on manoeuvres. He sees Kitty Kelly (Swanson) walking with other convent students and flirts with her. She is embarrassed when he makes a comment after seeing that her underwear is visible, so she takes it off and throws it at him, to the horror of the nuns, who punish her for her "indecency".

Enthralled by her beauty, he kidnaps her that night from the convent, takes her to his room and professes his love for her. When the queen finds them together the next morning, she whips Kelly and throws her out of the castle. Regina then puts Wolfram in prison for not wanting to marry her.

Endings
In the original ending, Kelly goes to German East Africa to visit her dying aunt and is forced to marry a repulsive man named Jan. The aunt dies after the wedding and Kelly refuses to live with him, instead becoming the madam of her aunt's brothel. Her extravagances and style earn her the name "Queen Kelly".

In the alternate ending, Kelly dies in despair after her humiliation at the hands of the queen and a contrite Wolfram visits her body.

Cast
Gloria Swanson - Kitty Kelly, aka Queen Kelly
Walter Byron - Prince Wolfram
Seena Owen - Queen Regina V
Sylvia Ashton - Kelly's Aunt
Wilson Benge - Prince Wolfram's Valet
Sidney Bracey - Prince Wolfram's Lackey
Florence Gibson - Kelly's Aunt
Madge Hunt - Mother Superior
Tully Marshall - Jan Vryheid
Madame Sul-Te-Wan - Kali Sana, Aunt's Cook
Wilhelm von Brincken - Prince Wolfram's adjutant
Gordon Westcott - Lackey
Production

Whipping scene with Seena Owen and Gloria Swanson
The production of the costly film was shut down after complaints by Swanson about the direction the film was taking. Though the European scenes were full of innuendo, and featured a philandering prince and a sex-crazed queen, the scenes set in Africa were grim and, Swanson felt, distasteful. In later interviews, Swanson had claimed that she had been misled by the script which referred to her character arriving in, and taking over, a dance hall; looking at the rushes, it was obvious the 'dance hall' was actually a brothel.

Stroheim was fired from the film, and the African storyline scrapped. Swanson and Kennedy still wanted to salvage the European material because it had been so costly and time-consuming, and had potential market value. An alternate ending was, however, shot on November 24, 1931. In this ending, Kelly dies after her experiences with the prince (it is implied to be suicide). Prince Wolfram is shown visiting the palace. A nun leads him to the chapel, where Kelly's body lies in state. These scenes were directed by Richard Boleslawski, photographed by Gregg Toland, and edited by Viola Lawrence.[1] This has been called the 'Swanson Ending'.

Distribution

Queen Kelly, L to R, Seena Owen, Gloria Swanson
The film was not released theatrically in the United States, but it was shown in Europe and South America with the 'Swanson ending' added. This was due to a clause in Stroheim's contract.[citation needed]

In 1933, von Stroheim submitted a script called Poto Poto to MGM. Though it was never produced, the script contained several elements recycled from the African story of Queen Kelly. A short extract of the film appears in Sunset Boulevard (1950), representing an old silent picture Swanson's character Norma Desmond - herself a silent movie star - had made. Von Stroheim is also a primary character in Sunset Boulevard as her ex-director, ex-husband, and current butler. By some accounts, von Stroheim suggested the clip be used for its heavy irony. This was the first time viewers in the U.S. got to see any footage of the infamous collaboration.

In the 1960s, it was shown on television with the Swanson ending, along with a taped introduction and conclusion in which Swanson talked about the history of the project.

By 1985, Kino International had acquired the rights to the movie and restored two versions: one that uses still photos and subtitles in an attempt to wrap up the storyline, and the other the European "suicide ending" version. Kino remains the rights holder and is responsible for all distribution, including television and home video.

Accolades
The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists:

2002: AFI's 100 Years...100 Passions – Nominated[3]
See also
Sadie Thompson (1928)
The Love of Sunya (1927)
References
 Koller, Michael (August 2007). "Erich von Stoheim's Damned Queen: Queen Kelly". Senses of Cinema (44).
 Profile, silentera.com; accessed December 17, 2017.
 "AFI's 100 Years...100 Passions Nominees" (PDF). Retrieved August 19, 2016.
External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Queen Kelly.
Queen Kelly at IMDb
Queen Kelly (with Italian title cards) is available for free viewing and download at the Internet Archive
Queen Kelly at Rotten Tomatoes
Queen Kelly at Silent Era
vte
Films directed by Erich von Stroheim
Blind Husbands (1919)The Devil's Pass Key (1920)Foolish Wives (1922)Merry-Go-Round (1923)Greed (1924)The Merry Widow (1925)The Wedding March (1928)Queen Kelly (1932)Walking Down Broadway (1933)
Categories: 1932 films1929 filmsSilent American drama filmsAmerican black-and-white films1929 drama filmsFilms directed by Edmund GouldingFilms directed by Erich von StroheimFilms directed by Sam WoodAmerican silent feature filmsUnited Artists filmsFilms set in EuropeFilms about prostitutionFiction about monarchy1920s American films1930s American films

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The Exceptional Narration of Sunset Boulevard

The Gemsbok

Film analysis covering why Sunset Boulevard represents one of the best uses of voiceover narration in cinema history.



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Sunset Boulevard Explained: The Hollywood Nightmare


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First Time Watching *SUNSET BOULEVARD* (1950) my existential crisis | NOIRVEMBER

Movies With Mia

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What Makes this Film Great | Sunset Boulevard (1950)

Aaron Hunter
2 years ago
Continuing our look at the seedy side of Hollywood with this American classic from 1950 - is there anything to say about Sunset Blvd that hasn't been said? Let's see . . .

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Stories about the making of Sunset Boulevard

Apr 16, 2020
Stories about the making of Sunset Boulevard from performers, directors and reviewers


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Portrait of a '60% Perfect Man': Billy Wilder interview (1982)

FilMagicians
 May 19, 2017
French film critic Michel Ciment interviews Billy Wilder about his life and film-making.

Cast
Billy Wilder          Himself
Michel Ciment  Himself - Interviewer
Jack Lemmon  Himself
Walter Matthau  Himself
I.A.L. Diamond  Himself
Transcript

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Sunset Blvd. at 70: Broken Dreams - 70th Anniversary Video | Movie Birthdays

Movie Birthdays

Nov 27, 2020  #sunsetblvd #billywilder #moviebirthdays
Sunset Blvd. 70th Anniversary Video Essay

This video looks back at Billy Wilder’s classic dark Hollywood tale Sunset Blvd. Arguably one of the greatest Hollywood directors of all time, Wilder defied categorisation as he moved from genre to genre delivering timeless classics that have come to define American cinema. Sunset Blvd. followed in the tradition of his earlier film noir offerings such as The Lost Weekend and Double Indemnity to portray a satirical and haunting look at Hollywood and the obsessive nature of filmmaking. The film has a standout performance from screen legend Gloria Swanson, who alongside Billy Wilder must never be forgotten by modern audiences. Check out the video and let me know what you think in the comments

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Billy Wilder's Sunset Boulevard - a look back (deutsch untertitelt)


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The Making of Wilder and Brackett's Sunset Boulevard: Forum at SFU

SFU Continuing Studies
May 22, 2013
In this April 2013 lecture at SFU's Vancouver campus, Donald Brackett, an SFU Continuing Studies instructor, explored the dynamics behind the creation of the 1950 film noir classic Sunset Boulevard, and the highly combustible and competitive partnership between its director, Billy Wilder, and its writer/producer, Charles Brackett.

The lecture also covered the film's large social impact on popular culture—in particular, the fascination with fame that saturates our contemporary social networks and the film's prophetic nature in showing—over 60 years ago— the dangers of unbridled star-adulation and self-absorption. Some cinematic works of art have such an intuitive prescience into the human condition that they seem as fresh and insightful today as when they were produced. Sunset Boulevard is just such a film.

As Charles Brackett's nephew, Donald Brackett brings a wealth of personal knowledge and insight to this topic. He specializes in the history, theory, and practice of art, design, music, and architecture. He is also a well-known art historian and curator, and the author of many essays, articles, monographs, and books.