Billy Wilder (1906 - 2002)
Billy Wilder was probably the greatest of the directors who graduated from writing in the early Forties, others included John Huston and Preston Sturges. Wilder's wisecracking dialogue in his comedies recalls Sturges but he made some great serious films too.
A Jew Wilder fled to Paris when Hitler became Chancellor of Germany. In the US he joined with Charles Brackett to co-script Ninotchka (1939) one of his idol Ernst Lubitsch's greatest films. The team for to stay together when Wilder started directing films with the light comedy The Major and the Minor (1942) with Ginger Rogers. This was followed by the war melodrama Five Graves to Cairo (1943) which unusual for the time included a reasonably human portrayal of Rommel by Erich Von Stroheim. The success of these films meant the team had considerable control over future projects.
The brilliant Double Indemnity (1944) was next, the epitome of film noir. The Lost Weekend (1945) a harsh account of alcoholism frowned on by the front office won four Academy Awards : Best Picture, Director, Screenplay and Actor (Ray Milland). The rest of the Forties was perhaps inevitably a bit disappointing but Wilder was back in form with the devastating portrait of Hollywood which is Sunset Boulevard (1950). Sadly though this movie ended the partnership between Wilder and Brackett. From 1957 he worked with I.AL. Diamond on the scenarios.
Wilder's 1950s movies included some reasonable though not outstanding comedies Sabrina (1954) and The Seven Year Itch (1956). His dramatic movies from this period like Stalag 17 (1953) and Witness for the Prosecution (1957) are probably better. Some Like It Hot (1959) though provided Wilder with one of his biggest successes and probably his best comedy, coaxing a fine performance from Marilyn Monroe. Another stand out in the film was Jack Lemmon who became a Wilder favourite in his comedies of the Sixties beginning with The Apartment (1960), an excellent film it won the Best Picture Oscar and was Billy Wilder's last major popular and critical success. The best of his later films is probably The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970).
Filmography
1929 PEOPLE ON SUNDAY/ MENSCHEN AM SONNTAG screenwriter
1931 DER MANN, DER SEINEN MORDER SUCHT screenwriter
1931 EMIL AND THE DETECTIVE/ EMIL UND DIE DETEKTIVE screenwriter
1933 ADORABLE story
1934 MAUVAISE GRAINE director, screenwriter
1934 MUSIC IN THE AIR screenwriter
1934 ONE EXCITING ADVENTURE story
1935 THE LOTTERY LOVER screenwriter
1937 CHAMPAGNE WALTZ story
1938 BLUEBEARD'S EIGHTH WIFE screenwriter
1938 THAT CERTAIN AGE screenwriter
1939 MIDNIGHT screenwriter
1939 NINOTCHKA screenwriter
1939 WHAT A LIFE screenwriter
1940 ARISE, MY LOVE screenwriter
1940 RHYTHM ON THE RIVER story
1941 BALL OF FIRE screenwriter—from story "A to Z"
1941 HOLD BACK THE DAWN screenwriter
1942 THE MAJOR AND THE MINOR director, screenwriter
1943 FIVE GRAVES TO CAIRO director, screenwriter
1944 DOUBLE INDEMNITY director, screenwriter
1945 THE LOST WEEKEND director, co-screenwriter
1948 THE EMPEROR WALTZ director, screenwriter, story
1948 A FOREIGN AFFAIR director, screenwriter
1948 A SONG IS BORN from story "From A to Z"
1950 SUNSET BLVD. director, co-screenwriter, co-story
1951 THE BIG CARNIVAL/ ACE IN THE HOLE director, producer, screenwriter, story
1953 STALAG 17 director, producer, co-screenwriter
1954 SABRINA director, producer, co-screenwriter
1955 THE SEVEN YEAR ITCH director, screenwriter
1957 LOVE IN THE AFTERNOON director, producer, screenwriter
1957 THE SPIRIT OF ST. LOUIS director, screenwriter
1957 WITNESS FOR THE PROSECUTION director, screenwriter
1959 SOME LIKE IT HOT director, producer, co-screenwriter
1960 THE APARTMENT director, producer, screenwriter
1961 ONE, TWO, THREE director, producer, screenwriter
1963 IRMA LA DOUCE director, producer, screenwriter
1964 KISS ME, STUPID director, producer, screenwriter
1966 THE FORTUNE COOKIE director, producer, screenwriter
1970 THE PRIVATE LIFE OF SHERLOCK HOLMES director, producer, screenwriter
1972 AVANTI! director, producer, screenwriter
1974 THE FRONT PAGE director, screenwriter
1978 FEDORA director, producer, screenwriter
1980 PORTRAIT OF A 60% PERFECT MAN performer
1981 BUDDY BUDDY director, screenwriter
1986 DIRECTED BY WILLIAM WYLER performer
1989 THE EXILES performer
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Written content of the Golden Age of Hollywood Website (except where indicated) copyright Derek McLellan, 2007.