1964's "The Pink Panther" is not a complex film. There is little to suggest a full-fledged film series in its story of a jewel with the shape of a panther buried deep within. Somehow, that premise resulted in a series of films lasting decades, with eleven unique (or mostly unique) live-action entries. And the cartoon character who showed up in the title sequence, dancing to Henry Mancini's iconic theme music? There was a Saturday morning series starring him that ran in various incarnations from 1969 to 1980.
When writer Maurice Richlin pursued director Blake Edwards with an idea for a film about a jewel thief, neither man could have predicted the surprising longevity of that idea. Certainly, they couldn't have predicted that the extremely thin premise of "The Pink Panther" would result in a series of films running into the 1990s. Nor could they have predicted that the protagonist would be...
When writer Maurice Richlin pursued director Blake Edwards with an idea for a film about a jewel thief, neither man could have predicted the surprising longevity of that idea. Certainly, they couldn't have predicted that the extremely thin premise of "The Pink Panther" would result in a series of films running into the 1990s. Nor could they have predicted that the protagonist would be...
- 12/16/2023
- by Anthony Crislip
- Slash Film
Chicago – With her chin pointed high, eyes bulging, teeth gleaming and hands contorting as if performing a Transylvanian spell, screen actress Norma Desmond insists that she’s ready for her close-up. She descends her staircase and becomes fully engulfed in the gray haze of her delusions in one of the greatest and most unforgettable final scenes in cinema history.
This moment, like so many in Billy Wilder’s 1950 masterpiece, “Sunset Boulevard,” achieves a miraculous balancing act. It is darkly funny, deeply sad and richly unsettling. The same could be said of Gloria Swanson’s Oscar-nominated performance as Desmond, the aging icon of the silent era who dwells in a mansion fit for Miss Havisham and is doted upon by a solemn enabler named Max (Erich von Stroheim), who has dedicated his life to protecting his beloved diva from the world that has forgotten her. Not only did von Stroheim direct...
This moment, like so many in Billy Wilder’s 1950 masterpiece, “Sunset Boulevard,” achieves a miraculous balancing act. It is darkly funny, deeply sad and richly unsettling. The same could be said of Gloria Swanson’s Oscar-nominated performance as Desmond, the aging icon of the silent era who dwells in a mansion fit for Miss Havisham and is doted upon by a solemn enabler named Max (Erich von Stroheim), who has dedicated his life to protecting his beloved diva from the world that has forgotten her. Not only did von Stroheim direct...
- 11/12/2012
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Blu-ray & DVD Release Date: Nov. 6, 2012
Price: Blu-ray $24.99
Studio: Paramount
Gloria Swanson is Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard.
Sunset Boulevard starring William Holden (The Bridge on the River Kwai) and Gloria Swanson (Queen Kelly), Billy Wilder’s (Sabrina) classic 1950 film noir drama about the perils and temptations of Hollywood, arrives on Blu-ray for the first time in a newly restored edition.
The film details the dark and dangerous relationship between Joe Gillis (Holden), a hack screenwriter yearning for success, and Norma Desmond (Swanson), a faded silent movie star who draws him into her fantasy world where she dreams of making a triumphant return to the screen.
In preparing the film for its Blu-ray debut, Paramount’s restoration team secured a vintage print made at the time of release from the Library of Congress to view and study in order to present director Wilder’s original vision. Although none of the original nitrate materials survive,...
Price: Blu-ray $24.99
Studio: Paramount
Gloria Swanson is Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard.
Sunset Boulevard starring William Holden (The Bridge on the River Kwai) and Gloria Swanson (Queen Kelly), Billy Wilder’s (Sabrina) classic 1950 film noir drama about the perils and temptations of Hollywood, arrives on Blu-ray for the first time in a newly restored edition.
The film details the dark and dangerous relationship between Joe Gillis (Holden), a hack screenwriter yearning for success, and Norma Desmond (Swanson), a faded silent movie star who draws him into her fantasy world where she dreams of making a triumphant return to the screen.
In preparing the film for its Blu-ray debut, Paramount’s restoration team secured a vintage print made at the time of release from the Library of Congress to view and study in order to present director Wilder’s original vision. Although none of the original nitrate materials survive,...
- 8/20/2012
- by Laurence
- Disc Dish
A devilish Gold Derby reader sends us this hilarious YouTube clip of a pilot for a TV sitcom in 1965 starring Bette Davis that never got aired. It's bravura TV — vintage Bette in shrewdly crafted comedy — but it mysteriously stayed on the shelf despite socko talent behind it that included producer Aaron Spelling ("Charlie's Angels," "Beverly Hills 90210") and writer Mart Crowley ("The Boys in the Band" — a perfect camp fit for Bette, eh? Crowley and Spelling would team up again later to do a TV series for another grand diva, Joan Collins, that turned out to be a huge hit — "Dynasty"). When Bette Davis' TV series didn't sell to the networks, she didn't take the news well. "She was very disappointed that 'The Decorator' didn't go," writes Ed Sikov in "Dark Victory: The Life of Bette Davis" (Henry Holt Books, 2007). "No, not disappointed — hurt. Very hurt."
Below is just Part 1 of the pilot.
Below is just Part 1 of the pilot.
- 3/8/2009
- by tomoneil
- Gold Derby
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