Close-up on Sunset Boulevard: Billy Wilder, Norma Desmond, and the Dark Hollywood Dream

by Sam Staggs

Billy Wilder's Sunset Boulevard , a classic film noir and also a damning dissection of the Hollywood dream factory, evokes the glamour and ruin of the stars who subsist on that dream. It's also one long in-joke about the movie industry and those who made it great-and who were, in turn, destroyed by it. One of the most critically admired films of the twentieth century, Sunset Boulevard is also famous as silent star Gloria Swanson's comeback picture.

Sam Staggs's Close-Up On Sunset Boulevard tells the story of this extravagant work, from the writing, casting and filming to the disastrous previews that made Paramount consider shelving it. It's about the writing team of Billy Wilder and Charles Brackett-sardonically called "the happiest couple in Hollywood"-and their raucous professional relationship. It's about the art direction and the sets, the costumes, the props, the lights and the cameras, and the personalities who used those tools to create a cinematic work of art.

Staggs goes behind the scenes to William Holden, endlessly attacked by his bitter wife and already drinking too much; Nancy Olson, the cheerful ingenue who had never heard of the great Gloria Swanson; the dark genius Erich von Stroheim; the once famous but long-forgotten "Waxworks"; and of course Swanson herself, who-just like Norma Desmond-had once been "the greatest star of them all."

But the story of Sunset Boulevard doesn't end with the movie's success and acclaim at its release in 1950. There's much more, and Staggs layers this stylish book with fascinating detail, following the actors and Wilder into their post- Sunset careers and revealing Gloria Swanson's never-ending struggle to free herself from the clutches of Norma Desmond.

Close-Up On Sunset Boulevard also chronicles the making of Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical production of Sunset Boulevard and the explosive diva controversies that dogged it. The book ends with a shocking example of Hollywood life imitating Hollywood art. By the last page of this rich narrative, readers will We are those "wonderful people out there in the dark."

Genres: Nonfiction, Film, History, Biography, Audiobook

420 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Sam Staggs is the author of several books, including biographies of movies: All About All About Eve, Close-Up on Sunset Boulevard, When Blanche Met Brando, and Born to be Hurt. He has written for publications including Vanity Fair and Architectural Digest. He lives in Dallas, Texas.

Reviews

[Jean-Luke · Rating 3 out of 5]

Had Billy Wilder gotten his way, Sunset Boulevard would have opened with a morgue sequence which only a few Midwestern preview audiences ever got to see--they hated it, and Wilder subsequently scrapped this opening. Instead we have Joe Gillis floating like a dead goldfish in Norma Desmond's swimming pool.

The book covers pre-production, production, post-production, release and beyond. Way, way beyond--too far beyond--with one tedious chapter devoted entirely to assessing the cultural impact of the phrase "All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up." Where possible, the author conducts first hand interviews with the people involved, but even he gets gossipy (and bitchy) during the drama surrounding the musical adaptation, and spoils the rest. The book could have been eighty pages shorter and the better for it. Staggs doesn't lack a sense of humor, and somehow manages not to turn it into the Gloria Swanson Hour, giving various frequently overlooked individuals both in front of the camera and behind the scenes--art director Hans Dreier, costume designer Edith Head, or cinematographer John F. Seitz--their due. There's even an unexpected but always welcome reference to Penelope Fitzgerald's At Freddie's.

Fun fact: a dead body will not begin to float à la Joe Gillis until well after its demise. Remember how Jack sank like lead in Titanic?

[James Hartley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a nice read if you like the film, or Billy Wilder. There´s really not enough to pad out a whole book, as evidenced by the box texts which fill up the pages. As interesting as it is as a window into the making of movies at that time, if knowing how the character´s names changed over the course of various drafts of the screenplay (and other such details) rings your bell, this is for you.

[Carol Storm · Rating 2 out of 5]

Really good book in a way, but not for me. I was looking to learn more about the movie, Sunset Boulevard. Like how it was written, and shot, and what the story means. This guy just wants to dish about how fabulous Gloria Swanson was in real life -- like her gowns, and her hairstyles, and stuff like that. It felt like dozens of pages of that stuff for every paragraph about the script and how the characters developed over time. I bailed about halfway through.

[Harold Griffin · Rating 2 out of 5]

He who compiled this book (I hesitate to call him an author) bit far off more than he was capable of processing. The book deals with an interesting subject, a memorable movie, but wanders off in every conceivable direction to deal with the lives not only of all the stars but of almost everyone in any way associated with the film, and discusses the origins of the musical, the various divas who sang in the musical and their quarrels with Andrew Lloyd Webber, the films of Billy Wilder and the place of Sunset Boulevard and its catchphrases in popular culture. And more. And more.

The problem is organization, writing and style. The breadth of the book is not in and of itself a problem in the hands of a skilled writer who knows how to summarize and to focus. In the hands of Sam Staggs, the text wanders here there and everywhere and we are treated to pointlessly fulsome quotes from almost everyone he was successful in interviewing. And of course Staggs places himself, his interviews and his opinions front and center in his narrative, gushing here and spitting vitriol there.

Too many words, not near enough discipline. As Norma Desmond might have put it, the books have grown big but the writing has grown small.

[Richard Schaefer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sunset Blvd is one of the definitive movies about Hollywood and one of Billy Wilder’s masterpieces. It’s noir with gothic vibes and incisive commentary about the way the movie industry treats its hopefuls and its has-beens. And it’s certainly a movie whose history and making deserve a full length book; unfortunately, Sam Staggs wasn’t up for the challenge of writing that book. To call the length padded is to be generous; Staggs never met a tangent he didn’t like. Nearly half the book covers the years after the movie was made, and very little of it discusses the actual making of the movie. The interminable final quarter of the book studies the various attempts to turn the movie into a musical in painful detail, which is of no interest to someone wishing to learn about the film. He also does one of my least favorite things for a nonfiction writer to do: flippantly and in passing offers divisive opinions as if they’re not up for debate, such as claiming that Charlie Chaplin is overrated or that Jack Lemmon is a hack. And, to suit his hypothesis that Blvd is the high point of Wilder’s career, Staggs is extremely dismissive of everything Wilder made after it (except Some Like It Hot). While I picked up some trivia I didn’t know about the movie and its players, this book is a slog and I can’t recommend it.

[Becky Loader · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you haven't seen the movie "Sunset Boulevard," don't even think about reading Staggs' book!

Staggs dissects the classic American movie of the moving picture industry. Reading about Brackett and Wilder's process of writing an iconic movie is mesmerizing. My favorite part is about when they start talking with various actresses about starring in a movie about an over-the-hill has-been actress. When they approach Mae West, she is flabbergasted because she cannot imagine a man not being totally attracted to her, no matter her age! *snicker*

I enjoyed the back stage details and the great stories. Good read.

[Kasa Cotugno · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having read several in depth dives into beloved films (most notably Glen Frankel's recent book on Midnight Cowboy), I found this to be disappointing. Lightweight and not especially revealing or informative.

[Ricky Balas · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book was great! It was a detailed account of everything that went into this classic film which is one of my favorites.

[kabukigal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Staggs totally does his homework and then some, as he not only digs into every detail of the production, its actors and production team, but lists every TV, film and stage production to ever rip off this fabulous film. Sometimes its a bit much --do we really need to know every time "I'm ready for my close up, Mr. DeMille" appeared in print in the years following the film? Additionally, he delves into the history of the "Sunset Boulevard" musical --both Gloria Swanson's unfruitful battle to get the musical made and Sondheim's brief dalliance with it --through the Lloyd Weber's realized production and the messy shenanigans with all his Norma Desmonds. Generally, Staggs is an amusing and intelligent writer. However, he goes out on a limb that breaks off when he is trying to shoe-horn his judgement and theory that Wilder went to hell after leaving Brackett behind as co-screenwriter. Excuse me? His pronouncement that "The Apartment" sucks along with its star Jack Lemmon is so absurd, that it's impossible to take seriously. Luckily, his deluded pronouncement of the evils of I.A.L. Diamond are in a very short chapter near the end of the book.

[Quinn da Matta · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was just going to be about the making of this great film, which I was genuinely excited about. And it was great because of all the detail, research, and interviews. But that turned out to just be the first half of the book. The book then does a deep dive into the cultural phenomenon of the film's afterlife--its appearances in pop culture, the various Broadway shows (and all the drama that went into bringing the different shows to life), and even stories of the gay porn versions of the film. A serious must-read for any fan of this movie, the creators and stars, or a great Hollywood production, in general.

[Jay Parker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sam Staggs gives us the behind-the-scenes story of one of the best films ever made about the movie business, Sunset Blvd. If you love the movie already, you'll love the movie more after reading it. If you're not a fan of the film, the book might change your mind. We see Wilder and his writing partner, Charles Brackett, become inspired and pound out the script. We see the location choices and the casting process, and we get a beautiful glimpse of Gloria Swanson building the iconic character Norma Desmond.

[Glenn · Rating 1 out of 5]

Actually, I did not finish. I abandoned this spiteful, tiresome faux history at page 144, at the parenthetical "('Mauvaise Graine' obviously influenced Godard's 'Breathless.' Ironically, it's Godard's 1959 film that has dated while Wilder's bursts with freshness and youth.)" It's not that I'm thin-skinned on behalf of Godard; it's more like "Nobody asked you, pal." About 40 pages prior, Staggs comments on the chimp in "My Friend Irma Goes West" thusly: "The monkey, by the way, is the best actor in this Martin and Lewis comedy." I know, I know — BAZINGA!, right. Staggs is not merely trite but predictable, and eventually insufferable. I see there's a new "making of" book about "Sunset Boulevard" out, and I look forward to checking it out once I've got the taste of this tripe out of my sensibility.

[Jarrett Neal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everything--and I mean everything!--you always wanted to know about Sunset Boulevard, its director, writers, cast, and enduring legacy as one of the finest films ever made. The authors is unmistakably an enormous fan of the film, yet the book gushes with so much history, trivia, analysis, gossip, biography, and anecdotes that by the end you'll wish he had practiced more restraint. Still, fans should give it a read.

[Judith Squires · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable read that's all about Sunset Boulevard. I like the movie, but I'm not among those who think it's the best film ever, but it is a "one of a kind" to be sure. And the author goes into such minutae, even including the famous ring/cigarette holder that Norma Desmond wears. Perhaps the most interesting part if the Billy Wilder/Charles Brackett screenwriting partnership, which Wilder abruptly ended after this movie.

[Colleen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Biographers have a fine line that can be crossed when interjecting themselves into the work. A few people -- Eve Golden -- Betty Fussell (I know there is controversy with her bio on Mabel Normand, but I love it) can do it, but many others Jane Ellen Wayne, Charlotte Chandler I'm looking at you! it comes off as egotistical and weird.

In this book, egotistical and weird. A lot of the book was padded and unneccessary too. Yes, "ready for my closeup Mr. Demille" and "return" not "comeback" are part of daily cliche vocabulary, but I don't think it's necessary to list all that out. Every single movie made on Hollywood--while Sunset Boulevard was groundbreaking--also isn't necessarily referencing Sunset Boulevard.

I think parts on Mommie Dearest and Crawford were also irrelevant and a form of padding. Why wasn't Fedora given equal page time? If you were going to critically examine Wilder & Sunset Boulevard, I would think more space would be devoted to Fedora. It obviously was self referential, besides the reclusive old movie star & Holden connection.

Also, from the very beginning, the author made it clear that Wilder's days post Brackett were terrible and hinted he would reveal more later! It was revealed in almost the last chapter: the author hates Jack Lemmon. The Apartment (in my opinion and in lots of others) is a great movie--not as great as Sunset Boulevard but only by inches. So Jack Lemmon's twitchiness and neuroticism annoys the author--well my grandmother had issues with Jimmy Stewart because of his voice, but she still liked certain Stewart movies.

I can't stand Tom Cruise, but I'd never make the claim that Magnolia isn't a great movie, worthy of being watched and applauded. And yes, Wilder's great movies did tend to fall into the Charles Brackett era, but also coincidentally enough during the studio era as well. Pretty much every film maker that was active during the studio days (hmm, exception could be made for Hitchcock) had their greatest films pre 1950.

In going over the list of my top 10 Wilder films, 5 were with Brackett, other 5 post Brackett, so I don't really see his co-author as a holding him back significantly. Other things besides the padding, random asides, author inserting himself into the situation (his visit to Nancy Olson was borderline creepy in a way) and hatred of Jack Lemmon (also has issues with Streisand), and I thought his comment about the man that took advantage of Swanson in her later years was somewhat jerkish.

There were also innaccuracies: Norma Talmadge was not involved in any drug scandal, so I do not know why she was paired with Mabel Normand, except that they were very good friends. Talmadge's off screen image (at least with press) was always impeccable.

Parts of the book I did like though--the cross country trip Swanson made with that friend of hers--I wish that would be turned into a book or movie badly.

[Michael Connolly · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sunset…Blvd?

At various points during the reading of this book I had to remind myself that it was, purportedly, a study of Billy Wilder’s opus Sunset Blvd. Indeed, readers are promised “the story of this extravagant work, from the writing, casting and filming to the disastrous previews that made Paramount consider shelving it.”

Alas, this accounts for only the first third of Staggs’ book. The lion’s share is given over to an exhausting and entirely superfluous account of the musical and its lengthy gestation. (A particular low point, for me, came when Staggs asks Petula Clark, the fifth woman to play Norma Desmond on stage, if she is an animal lover. By that point, I was quite convinced that Staggs had forgotten the film and his initial remit altogether.)

With some 900(!) pages to pad out, there are tangents aplenty: appraisals of Norma Desmond-inspired drag shows; an actual catalogue of the numerous times mainstream media have quoted famous lines from the movie; the baffling inclusion of an account of Gloria Swanson’s last love affair; and a chapter devoted to bashing Billy Wilder’s entire oeuvre post-1950, to name but a few.

The relegation of William Holden to a glorified footnote may come as a surprise to some readers, what with him being the star of the movie.

To be perfectly honest, my fears were aroused even before Staggs’ attention wavered. “Here I am reading a book about the making of one of my favourite films,” I said to myself, “and I’m not enjoying it.” The tone was altogether too gossipy for my tastes. Rather than a thoughtful treatise on the craftsmanship that went into making the picture, we get Staggs dishing the dirt. For instance, on his fruitless search for Swanson’s last lover, the author laments: “I would have loved to hear his side of the story…along with his views on Gloria Swanson.” Surely this is the stuff of tabloid magazines, I thought.

My decision to buy ‘Close-Up On Sunset Boulevard’ was swung by a very positive write-up in Publishers Weekly. On reflection, I wonder if Sam, as a contributor to that very same periodical, might not have been in a position to call in a few favours. Whatever the case may be, my advice: avoid this like a couple of repo men, and go get yourself the BFI Film Classics study by Steven Cohan for a more disciplined, eloquent and insightful take.

[Jen · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was a little too gossipy for my taste. Found out some interesting things but nothing all that stunning. It was like a REALLY long magazine article.

[Kyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit too "dishy" for my taste. I would have preferred reading more about the actual making of the film. Most of the book only covers the affect the movie had on popular culture.

[Keith · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 out of 5. Film historian Sam Staggs provides an in-depth account of the development, creation, and legacy of Sunset Boulevard (1950), one of the greatest movies of Hollywood’s golden age - and the first to truly give audiences a look into the ugliness of the entertainment industry. Close-up on Sunset Boulevard is filled with well-researched information, maybe too much for its own good.


[Image: Gloria Swanson as Norma Desmond]

Staggs gives us a close-up on many of the personalities involved in the movie, with co-writer/director Billy Wilder, his co-writer Charles Brackett, star Gloria Swanson, costume designer Edith Head, supporting actor Erich von Stroheim, and composer Franz Waxman being particularly interesting. Rightfully pushing back against the popular auteur theory, Staggs analyzes the impact that Brackett had on the 16 films he collaborated on with Wilder and laments the change that occurred in the director’s output when he decided to collaborate with co-writer I.A.L. Diamond post-Sunset Boulevard. While I disagree with him on the supposedly lower quality of Wilder’s later movies, it is undeniable that Brackett’s influence can be felt in their work together 1938-1950. Where the book loses me is in later chapters where Staggs provides too much information on events after the release of the film. Far too much time is spent on the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical adaptation for my tastes. If I ever read Close-up on Sunset Boulevard again I will skip some chapters.

Even with that caveat, this book is worth reading for anyone interested in old movies. Staggs is a good author, he was just in need of a more ruthless editor for this book.

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[Image: Book Cover]

Citation:
Staggs, S. (2021). Close-up on Sunset Boulevard: Billy Wilder, Norma Desmond, and the dark Hollywood dream [audiobook]. Blackstone Publishing. https://www.audible.com/pd/Close-Up-o... (Original work published 2002)

Title: Close-up on Sunset Boulevard: Billy Wilder, Norma Desmond, and the Dark Hollywood Dream
Author(s): Sam Staggs
Year: 2002
Genre: Nonfiction - Film history
Page count: 420 pages
Date(s) read: 10/18/24 - 10/25/24
Book # 200 in 2024
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[Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought I knew everything I should know about "Sunset Blvd" and that this would be a light, easy read. Wrong on all counts. First, the author gives backstory on each of the major players. I didn't know a ton about the working relationship between Billy Wilder and Charles Brackett and how Wilder suddenly pulled the plug on it after this film.

I knew of the other actresses they had considered for Norma Desmond, but I didn't know how much Gloria Swanson poured into the character. She was also responsible for getting Cecil B. DeMille to appear and his dialogue with and about Norma humanizes the character more than anywhere else in the film. The original conception of Norma was either as a joke of an older woman or a clinging harpy; Swanson made the character sympathetic. She lost herself in the role, unable to leave it at the studio when she would come home to her mother and daughter. Unfortunately, her performance was so good that rather than give her the big screen comeback she deserved, people had difficulty separating the actress and the character forever after.

The first half of the book is about the movie and the stars and director and writers, what they did before and after the film. The second half of the book is about Swanson's attempt to turn it into a musical in the late 1950s and early 1960s, the film's disappearance as prints became beat up and fell out of circulation, and then the film's reappearance in revival houses and its appreciation by new generations. And then it's about Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical and constant tumult over who can play Norma Desmond. There's great detail about the scandals and lawsuits involving Patti LuPone and Faye Dunaway. I like that this writer is opinionated. He feels that LuPone was great at the singing but not believable as a silent movie queen, while Glenn Close truly inhabited the role but the singing was hit or miss. He states that in his opinion, Diahann Carroll was all around the best Norma.

He also goes into detail about Billy Wilder's poor taste as a writer which was mitigated in his partnership with Charles Brackett and by the studio system, yet could run rampant with his next major collaborator I.A.L. Diamond, particularly as the Production Code relaxed.

I also enjoyed learning more about Nancy Olson and her marriages to lyricist Alan Jay Lerner and producer Alan Livingston. I recommend this book to anyone who loves "Sunset Blvd" -- there are always more layers one can peel back on this dense and profound work.

[Douglas Gibson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am such a cinephile that it is nearly impossible for me to pick a favorite movie, but when asked, most of the time, I will say Sunset Blvd, bit if I have had a few martins I am more likely to say Grease 2 or Butcher, Baker, Nightmare Maker, but without Martinis, it’s hands down Sunset Blvd- so this book was a must read for me.
When this author writes one of these books- he really does his research! I also read and recommend his, “All About All About Eve.”
This time around Staggs leaves no stone on Sunset Blvd unturned. After reading this one you will know more about Sunset Blvd than you thought it was possible to know!
Aside from all the details about the making of the movie that you want to learn more about, Staggs also has chapters on all the movies that copy cat off Sunset, all the movies that have allusions to Sunset, drag performances of sequels and interpretations of Sunset (all of which I am dying to see!) and a brief analysis of Billy Wilder’s entire filmography.
One of the main reasons I devoured this book is its many details about the musical. First, there is an entire chapter about the 5 years Gloria Swanson tried to produce a Sunset musical, and then several chapters and a pre Webber musical, and then finally the Webber opus- including the feud with ALW and LuPone and Close! This queen even goes as far as to rank the best (and worst) musical divas. Spoiler- he loves Patti’s voice, says she’s the best at singing Norma (well, dud) but doesn’t love how she acted the role.
Well, despite his Patti diss, I highly recommend this one with 4 out of 5 stars.

[Studvet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating with a treasure chest of detail never heard before, and he really knows his stuff. Everything is in detail with a interesting but academic, non-sensationalist bent. Really fascinating, particularly the casting of the stage musical. Not 5 stars like his All About Eve as there is part of the book where he rabbits on a bit about all the projects which allude to the film and this gets a bit tedious. The story of the actual filming ends quite early in the book, which is disappointing, but largely made up for by the fascinating post-history and the in - depth analysis of Gloria Swanson which establishes her as a real star of stars and shows what a talented, intelligent and great person she was. Her Norma Desmond is still the best greatest female character created in film - largely thanks to her and her willingness to play it with all the characters flaws, exposing herself completely, and in doing so creates a grotesquely tragic character who draws real empathy - truly riveting. That takes the rarest of talents. How she never won the Oscar amazes me, but she herself had a premonition she wouldn't win.

[Andrés · Rating 3 out of 5]

Si te interesa muchísimo la peli, como es mi caso, es un complemento estupendo para ampliar información y analizar los entresijos de la misma. Ahora bien, creo que le sobran bastantes páginas de datos secundarios o incluso terciarios que no aportan más que anécdotas sin gran relevancia para el tema del que se ocupa el libro.

Otra cosa, no comparto para nada los juicios del penúltimo capítulo. Staggs pretende despachar en apenas unas páginas el resto de la carrera de Wilder como director aludiendo a que, básicamente, a partir de El crepúsculo de los dioses su filmografía va decayendo poco a poco. Creo que las películas que Wilder rodó inmediatamente después como El gran carnaval o Testigo de cargo, que el autor sí defiende, son extraordinarias. Más que una degeneración lenta y progresiva y el "ya nada es como antes" al que alude Staggs, yo veo a un director consciente del cambio de paradigma en los estudios y que simplemente prueba cosas nuevas. Sabrina, Irma la dulce, Primera plana, El Apartamento o Un, dos, tres son películas magníficas. Lo que sí encuentro en Wilder y que comparto con Staggs es que, con el paso del tiempo, su cinismo y su ironía ácida se vuelven más melancólicos y nostálgicos que en sus primeras películas, como es natural por otra parte.

[Kayla · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was rated a 1.5 by a reviewer on my blog. It may or may not have spoilers; I do not know because I have not read the book myself

You are familiar with Sunset Boulevard even if you haven't seen all of it. The film has become a pop culture touchstone and has been quoted or referenced in all sorts of venues. From inspiring Metallica’s 1997 single “The Memory Remains,” having David Lynch name his character on Twin Peaks after one of the film’s incidental characters, being quoted in animation projects such as Rob Zombie’s The Haunted World of El Superbeasto and Tiny Toon Adventures, or inspiring the mix or reality and fantasy seen in films like Wes Craven’s New Nightmare or the sillier Seed of Chucky, artists of all stripes owe a great debt to Billy Wilder’s 1950 noir drama. If you have ever said that “it was the pictures that got small,” or told an imaginary Mr. DeMille you were “ready for your close-up,” than you do too. 

If you haven't seen it, it won't be stealing too much of the film’s thunder to tell you that it opens on a swimming pool, one with a dead man floating face-down in it. Our narrator, (the man in question) remarks ironically via voice-over that he always wanted a swimming pool and proceeds to tell us about his days as a struggling screenwriter and how a chance encounter with a former silent movie queen led to his demise. 

The film was ground-breaking in the way that it cast actors in roles that mirrored their own lives, Gloria Swanson gave a career best performance as the faded star of the silent screen and Erich von Stroheim (once one of the best and most innovative and respected directors of the silent era) plays her butler, each had tasted fame and were tossed aside by the cruel whims of fate. Add to this that Cecil B. Demille, Buster Keaton, Hedda Hopper and others appear as themselves and you have a film with many links to a very dark reality, mixed with a few layers of fantasy. A combination like this had never been seen before and has never been done in quite the same way since. It’s a film about fractured dreams and how crime and sensation came bring an altogether different type of fame. 

Even over half a century later the film retains a crispness that most from its era have lost. This is due in part to its creepy mood and the fact that it is (believe it or not) a dreadfully funny piece of work. It’s a film that should be seen by everyone, if for no other reason than as a pop reference point. I wish I could be as enthusiastic about Stagg’s book as I am about the film that inspired it. While he proves himself very knowledgeable on the subject and the prose is readable, the book is a mess. It is structured in an odd fashion, the first part concerning the background of the film and the people who made it.  The author seemed content to wander off-course whenever he pleased sometimes mocking the filmmaker’s other efforts, sometimes telling a gossipy tale of questionable value.  A potentially traumatizing story featuring Dragnet’s Jack Webb (which had nothing to do with the film) is told lightly as though it were an amusing anecdote. He had the tendency to dwell on facts that seemed pointless to the task at hand and are included (presumably) only because of his interest in them. 

The book is of some value to those who love the film, or are just encountering it and wish to know more. It is packed with many facts and stories, but his analysis has little depth and his observations rarely stray far past the obvious. There are some great bits, an in-joke the costume designer Edith Head included as a sort of middle finger to DeMille gave me more appreciation for her brass, and a crude comment Wilder uttered within the hearing of Nancy Reagan made me laugh out loud. The second half of the book is dedicated to the influence the film has had on popular culture and is of mixed results. 

His attempts to be exhaustive are at times exhausting to read, take for instance the nearly two pages dedicated to recounting news and magazine headlines that feature some variation of Swanson’s “ready for my close-up” line. He happily didn’t shy away from some of the film’s stranger spawn, such as a number of drag shows or two gay porn parodies done in the early nineties. Oddly, as complete as it seemed he did miss a few references (such as the aforementioned Metallica song) or skirted others. He mentioned a shot of a road sign in Lynch’s Mulholland Drive but missed a more obvious shot of Paramount Studios (complete with a replica of the famous car that von Strohiem’s character chauffeured). Staggs also spent a surprising amount of pages chronicling the film’s bumpy journey to the Broadway stage.

Staggs is an even bigger film snob than I am (those of you who know me understand that takes some doing) and unfortunately seems unable to pass any chance to editorialize when straight reporting would often have served him better. After reading the book one could easily come away with the feeling that the only film that he liked other than this one was All About Eve (which he wrote a similar book about). He devotes the better part of a chapter to explaining what he found wrong in every film that Billy Wilder made after this one to the point where it feels like he had some personal axe to grind. If the book were restructured and trimmed of a significant amount of clutter, it could be a great read, but instead is only recommendable to completists. Wilder, who was 95 at the time of the book’s publication, died shortly after. I hope he never read the book and you shouldn't either. 

Original Post at: http://babygotstacks.com/2015/01/28/c...

[Jillian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m a major film nerd, and so I love reading books about Old Hollywood and classic film. My most recent read? Close-Up on Sunset Boulevard.

I watched Billy Wilder’s classic 1950 film for the first time during quarantine, so I was excited to read this and learn more. Sam Staggs does an excellent job of delving into the development, production, and release of this film. It’s well-sourced, and he had tremendous access to firsthand information from people involved in the production or their family members. I would definitely call it the definitive account of the making of Sunset Boulevard.

Where this book lost me was when it delved into the stage production of Sunset Boulevard, which I was only vaguely aware of, and how the film has been interpreted, copied, and remembered in history. I found this less interesting, and it slowed down the book.

[Pierre Stolte · Rating 2 out of 5]

Talk about author intrusion. Sam couldn't keep himself out of the book, and honestly, he needed to take a vacation from it.

The first half about the making of the film and its reception were great but short.

The latter half about its influences and the making of the musical(s) was tedious at best and went on far too long, with too many in references that would be meaningless to anyone outside theatrical or drag circles (well, they were meaningless to me). And did I care that Andrew Lloyd Webber essentially screwed with every leading lady in his staging of the film? Okay, kinda, but it just confirmed my low opinion of him.

[Shelley Mitchell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overburdened slog

Interesting information bogged down by so much detail that should have been footnotes. What shouldn't have been in footnotes should have been removed entirely by the editor. It fell into the category of authorly conceit. Aside from these annoyances, there were far too many supposed "connections" that were simply ridiculous. The author's close-up examination of "All About Eve" was far superior to this. I can only presume he had a better editor for that book. I slogged through this for the information that was new to me, and wonder whether it was worth the slog.

[Daniel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very frustrating book. On the one hand he did his reporting and there's some interesting stuff here. On the other hand he goes off on tangents (like a sidebar on gay porn takeoffs of "Sunset Boulevard") and makes factual errors ("Stalag 17" is NOT set in a "concentration camp"). His belief that Wilder's career ended with this film is simply mindboggling, having much to do with his dislike of Jack Lemmon and I.A.L. Diamond. He is also a very self-indulgent writer insisting on presenting his interview with Nancy Olsen as if it's an episode of a sitcom. Take this was a HUGE grain of salt.

[Noah Goats · Rating 3 out of 5]

Billy Wilder is my absolute favorite director, and Sunset Boulevard is one of his best films. In this book Sam Staggs explores the making of the movie and the people involved in its creation. I really enjoyed the first half of it, but Staggs has a habit of going off on uninteresting tangents and the book just kept chugging away for page after page even after Staggs was done talking about the key events related to it. So, if you love Sunset Boulevard as I do, I recommend that you read up to the chapter covering Oscar night the year it came out and stop there.

[Timothy J Bandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved the damned book!

Didn't expect it. Was not prepared for it. I was amazed! Use of language, sentence structure--great. History of films--fascinating. It was a fun read but also very serious and sometimes terribly sad. Not a perfect read, wanders a bit now and then but completely forgivable. Mr. Staggs waded through a mass of archives, interviews etc. and made his "cast" human. And the man has a "barbed" wit that I really enjoyed. Enough! Take a chance! It's a blast for all of us little people in the dark.