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YTS.MX
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- My first name is Gloria,
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and I have just finished
a picture at Paramount
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called ''Sunset Boulevard.''
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SUNSET BOULEVARD
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- ''Sunset Boulevard'' is one of
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the greatest movies ever made.
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- You're Norma Desmond?
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SUNSET BOULEVARD
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Used to be in silent
pictures, used to be big?
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- I am big.
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It's the pictures that got small.
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- It's a wonderful Hollywood story,
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that thing about dealing
with growing older
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A HOLLYWOOD STORY
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and being discarded, when
you've once been idolized
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by millions of people,
and then those millions
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don't show up anymore.
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- All right, Mr. DeMille,
I'm ready for my close up.
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- I don't think anyone
could have played that part
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but Gloria Swanson.
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And ''Sunset Boulevard''
was her crowning moment.
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- I wonder if I might ask
you a personal question?
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- Oh, you too?
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You wanna know my age?
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- Gloria Swanson was only
50, but that was old then.
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And after ''Sunset Boulevard,''
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no one was asking me to
make another picture.
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- She never regained a foothold
after ''Sunset Boulevard,''
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but she was wise enough to know
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that ''Sunset Boulevard'' was her ticket.
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- I will show them, I will be
up there again, so help me!
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- So if she could carry that out again
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and in a different way,
that would be fabulous.
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She was ready to have
that attention again.
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- Now I am sure that most
of you remember the story
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of the film ''Sunset Boulevard.''
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It has to do with Norma Desmond,
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who was an aging film star,
whose career has vanished,
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and she's desperate to make a comeback.
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The fabulous Gloria Swanson herself.
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She, for some reason,
developed this mad idea
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to adapt her film, ''Sunset
Boulevard,'' as a musical.
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And she approached my writing
partner and I to do this.
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We were struggling songwriters,
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and this was a huge break for us both.
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In the movie, Norma has fallen in love
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with this young
screenwriter, who she hires
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to write her comeback picture.
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Norma, of course, has fallen
in love with the young man.
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Working together with Gloria Swanson,
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something similar was happening.
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She was becoming very captivated
by my working partner,
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who was also a handsome young writer.
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So you had the real life
story of a mature woman,
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fascinated by a younger man happening both
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in the ''Sunset Boulevard'' storyline,
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and in the true life
storyline that we were living.
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- We'd all been so close
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and it was such a big part of our lives.
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It's a story in itself
about three people's lives
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and the similarity with the original film.
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The whole background
was really quite weird.
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BOULEVARD A HOLLYWOOD STORY
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- My name's Steve Wilson, I'm the curator
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of the film collection at
the Harry Ransom Center
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at the University of Texas.
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I help students, and scholars,
and researchers like you
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find the material that they
need in our collections.
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DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKER
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We have extensive collections
in literature, art,
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photography, performing arts, and film.
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I take care of the film collection.
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Probably the foundation of our collection
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is the David O. Selznick archive.
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And we also have a lot of actors.
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We have Robert De Niro,
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and we also have the collection
of actress Gloria Swanson.
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She was an early film star.
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She was very well known
throughout the world,
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WHY CHANGE YOUR WIFE
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mostly through the films
of Cecil B. DeMille.
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Gloria Swanson was one of
the early women filmmakers
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to start her own production company.
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She was also into inventions,
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and she sponsored immigrants
from Eastern Europe
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to come to the United
States to invent things.
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She was also into yoga.
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She learned yoga from
the guy who brought yoga
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to the United States.
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I think she was a really
interesting person.
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We acquired Gloria Swanson's archive
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directly from her in 1980.
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It's a large archive,
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and she amassed quite a good collection
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that covers her entire career,
which is really remarkable.
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- So today probably if people
know her, they know her
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from her most famous
movie, ''Sunset Boulevard.''
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- That's the role that
she's best known for now.
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SUNSET BOULEVARD
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- I'm really curious to know
if she saved any materials
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relating to the musical version
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of ''Sunset Boulevard''
that she was planning.
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- There are materials related
to ''Boulevard'' in the archive.
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These materials include
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correspondence with the
collaborators for the musical.
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There is sheet music,
there are script materials.
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VOICE OF GLORIA SWANSON
I was rehearsing a song
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from a new musical review
that Dick Hughes wrote
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and should you care to hear
a couple amusing numbers
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from the show, well, just turn over.
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- I understand there are audio recordings,
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reel-to-reel tapes in the collection?
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- There are just a treasure trove
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of reel-to-reel recordings
of songs that she is singing.
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What was the
purpose of these recordings?
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- These recordings were
made to lure investors
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and to impress the
executives at Paramount,
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but these recordings were never intended
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to be seen by the public.
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- I've been a record
collector all my life,
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PUBLICIST AND PRODUCER
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so I was kind of aware of
the existence of the tapes.
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The entire show was written
by two young writers,
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Dickson Hughes, and Richard Stapley.
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- We are honored to present
this great personality
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of both the silent screen
and the movies of today
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in an excerpt from her
forthcoming production,
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a musical version of ''Sunset Boulevard,''
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written by Dick Hughes
and Richard Stapley.
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- Gloria actually performed
the most important song
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from their score on ''The
Steve Allen Show'' in '57.
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GLORIA SWANSON BIOGRAPHER
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- Max, Max?
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Well, what are you waiting for?
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- Norma Desmond, this aging,
sad,
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GRANDDAUGHTER OF FLORIA SWANSON
lonely film star.
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- What you're trying to say
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is you don't want me to love you.
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- She traps this young screenwriter
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in her web, and won't let him go.
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''Sunset Boulevard'' showed
how complicated love becomes.
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And falling in love with this
younger man, I mean, it hurt.
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- The audience left 20
years ago, now face it.
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- That's a lie, they still want me!
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- We were very close,
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and I think really had a great
appreciation of one another.
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This is
Gloria Swanson speaking.
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It so happens that that is my real name.
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- So for me, the joy of
being able to talk about her
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is not only keeping her alive,
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but maybe educating people
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about some of the myths
or truths of her life.
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- I am not Norma Desmond,
I'm Gloria Swanson.
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- This was a role for her, not her life.
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She wasn't, as Norma
Desmond, an aging film star,
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she was way beyond that.
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VOICE OF GLORIA SWANSON
A lot of people ask me if ''Sunset Boulevard''
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was my own life, which is rather odd.
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They had an idea that it
was perhaps some person
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or a combination of
personalities out there,
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but I don't actually know of anyone
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who lived like Norma Desmond.
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- Hey Steve, it's Jeffrey.
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- Hi!
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- Good morning.
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- Can you see my ''Sunset Boulevard''
poster on the wall back there?
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YOUTUBE'S TIRED OLD
QUEEN AT THE MOVIES
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I watched it twice last night.
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It's just the most brilliant screenplay.
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And it breaks so many taboos.
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Not only throwing the lid off
old Hollywood and showing it
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for the gargoyle place that it was,
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but also the stigma about an older woman
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and a younger man, that was unheard of.
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- Turn around darling, let me dry you.
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- And you know how this is gonna end.
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- Were you aware that Gloria Swanson
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attempted to make a musical
version of ''Sunset Boulevard?''
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- No, I wasn't aware of that.
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This is really interesting
to me because these days,
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every movie is made into a musical.
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''Legally
Blonde'' is now a singing,
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dancing, mega hit musical!
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- But, you know, back then in the '50s,
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that was very unusual.
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Well, how far along did they get with this
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and how faithful were
they to the screenplay,
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to the dialogue?
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Did they get orchestrations
of this musical?
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Did they do backer's auditions?
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Have you talked with anybody who did
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an original read-through
or sing-through of this?
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Who were her collaborators on this?
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- Two guys named Dickson
Hughes and Richard Stapley.
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Have you ever heard of them?
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- No.
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- Here for Steve.
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Thank you.
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Hello, hello.
- Hey, how are you?
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- Good to see you.
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- Good to see you.
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Good to see you.
- Thanks for having me.
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- I'm glad you could come over.
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00:10:31,695 --> 00:10:34,672
So what is the Fred
Bock Music Company actually?
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Well, it's a
music publishing company.
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We do a lot of choir music
for churches and schools,
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that's the bulk of what we do.
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My dad started the company 50 years ago,
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so it's pretty old.
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- Well I'm here for a reason.
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00:10:48,272 --> 00:10:49,582
- Yes, I'm sure.
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- You know, and the reason is that
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00:10:51,112 --> 00:10:53,332
you were close with Richard Stapley.
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00:10:53,332 --> 00:10:56,772
- Oh, Richard Stapley, yes,
I know Richard Stapley.
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00:10:56,772 --> 00:10:57,782
Knew Richard Stapley, yes.
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And how did Richard
Stapley come into your life?
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00:11:02,652 --> 00:11:04,062
- Fred Bock Publishing Group.
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00:11:04,062 --> 00:11:06,282
One day the phone rings in the office,
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00:11:06,282 --> 00:11:10,142
and my assistant says
there's a English gentleman
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on the phone named Richard Stapley,
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00:11:11,992 --> 00:11:14,631
who says that you are his publisher.
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I pick up the phone and introduced myself,
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and he introduced
himself, and sure enough,
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we're his publisher.
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He had some questions about
the songs that he had written
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that were in our catalog,
and so I made an arrangement,
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00:11:26,553 --> 00:11:28,682
PRESIDENT, FRED BOCK MUSIC COMPANY
let's have coffee.
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When I first met Richard,
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he struck me as being a little disheveled,
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00:11:34,462 --> 00:11:37,235
in an English professorial sort of way.
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And what I thought would be
a 30 minute get to know ya
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00:11:41,802 --> 00:11:44,485
turned into a three hour conversation.
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00:11:45,322 --> 00:11:48,272
Richard could tell a story,
there's no question about that.
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00:11:49,832 --> 00:11:51,701
And Richard had great stories to tell.
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And the most fantastical
story of all, of course,
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is the story of his attempt to make
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the first musical version
of ''Sunset Boulevard.''
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00:12:02,472 --> 00:12:05,575
I did have a video made.
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00:12:05,575 --> 00:12:08,662
I had him sit down and tell his story,
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00:12:08,662 --> 00:12:10,142
and I really didn't have any plan
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00:12:10,142 --> 00:12:11,602
as to what I was gonna do with it,
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00:12:11,602 --> 00:12:13,982
I just thought somebody needs to do this.
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00:12:13,982 --> 00:12:15,782
And we sat on it for
years and years and years,
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00:12:15,782 --> 00:12:17,732
and then all of a sudden you called me.
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You had a gut feeling
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00:12:20,322 --> 00:12:22,432
that this story needed to be recorded.
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- Absolutely.
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I just knew that this was something
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00:12:26,562 --> 00:12:28,335
that was gonna bubble back up.
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00:12:29,342 --> 00:12:30,892
And if I didn't do it,
253
00:12:30,892 --> 00:12:32,542
if I didn't collect this stuff,
254
00:12:32,542 --> 00:12:34,502
if I didn't get Richard on camera,
255
00:12:34,502 --> 00:12:36,732
the story would go away.
256
00:12:36,732 --> 00:12:37,935
To me, that was wrong.
257
00:12:39,572 --> 00:12:41,730
All right, so here we are, the attic.
258
00:12:42,722 --> 00:12:43,555
This is it.
259
00:12:45,042 --> 00:12:49,415
Somewhere in there is
a Richard Stapley box.
260
00:12:51,522 --> 00:12:52,572
Was there
anything he didn't wanna talk
261
00:12:52,572 --> 00:12:54,594
about in that interview?
262
00:12:54,594 --> 00:12:56,992
- There were some things he
was reluctant to talk about.
263
00:12:56,992 --> 00:12:59,119
He never said, ''I won't talk about it.''
264
00:13:00,772 --> 00:13:04,232
I just knew in my gut, if I
didn't get Richard on camera,
265
00:13:04,653 --> 00:13:06,332
it would all go away.
266
00:13:07,817 --> 00:13:10,136
When we got together in
Pasadena with Richard
267
00:13:10,307 --> 00:13:13,237
and asked him all sorts of
questions about his life,
268
00:13:13,262 --> 00:13:18,262
about his career, and
Richard told the whole story.
269
00:13:18,322 --> 00:13:21,702
Some of it came easily, some
of it did not come easily,
270
00:13:21,702 --> 00:13:23,495
but he told the story.
271
00:13:30,492 --> 00:13:33,232
NOVEMBER 6, 2006
- You want me to look at Tom rather than-
272
00:13:33,232 --> 00:13:34,275
- Look at Jim.
- Look at me.
273
00:13:34,275 --> 00:13:36,355
I just, yeah, carrying a conversation.
274
00:13:37,932 --> 00:13:39,912
- Richard grew up in England,
275
00:13:40,362 --> 00:13:42,205
prior to and during World War II.
276
00:13:44,562 --> 00:13:48,132
MGM signed him with the goal of making him
277
00:13:48,132 --> 00:13:49,575
the English Clark Gable.
278
00:13:50,732 --> 00:13:53,462
He's a very good looking
man, he carries himself well,
279
00:13:53,462 --> 00:13:55,765
he's British, and he can act.
280
00:13:57,122 --> 00:14:00,762
He moves to Hollywood, and his first film
281
00:14:00,762 --> 00:14:02,399
is ''The Three Musketeers.''
282
00:14:02,656 --> 00:14:04,052
- She's laying on the floor.
283
00:14:04,052 --> 00:14:05,641
She's all doubled up.
284
00:14:05,641 --> 00:14:08,882
- Well, it was the extraordinary
coming to Hollywood.
285
00:14:08,882 --> 00:14:11,842
Hollywood sent all these
marvelous films that were magic
286
00:14:11,842 --> 00:14:15,069
and helped us get through
the bad side of life
287
00:14:15,912 --> 00:14:18,032
and to come and be on the same stage
288
00:14:18,032 --> 00:14:20,253
with these people was really unreal.
289
00:14:20,278 --> 00:14:21,212
- I love you so.
290
00:14:21,237 --> 00:14:22,259
LITTLE WOMEN
291
00:14:22,284 --> 00:14:23,776
And even if you don't love me now,
292
00:14:24,252 --> 00:14:25,401
maybe you could learn to.
293
00:14:27,292 --> 00:14:29,002
- They put him in and a number of films
294
00:14:29,002 --> 00:14:30,542
opposite a number of big names
295
00:14:30,542 --> 00:14:32,495
to introduce him to the American market.
296
00:14:32,520 --> 00:14:34,347
- My life was meaningless until I met you.
297
00:14:34,402 --> 00:14:35,682
THE STRANGE DOOR
298
00:14:36,132 --> 00:14:38,125
- Well it couldn't have been going better.
299
00:14:39,467 --> 00:14:43,287
I was feeling confident and
completely at ease and happy,
300
00:14:43,312 --> 00:14:46,842
and I was really on top of the world.
301
00:14:46,842 --> 00:14:49,985
- No mortal man could endure
such a paragon of virtue.
302
00:14:51,152 --> 00:14:53,818
- He did work a lot, but
he was never challenged
303
00:14:53,842 --> 00:14:54,842
FRIEND OF RICHARD STAPLEY
304
00:14:54,902 --> 00:14:56,792
as an actor in those movies at all.
305
00:14:56,817 --> 00:14:58,822
- This information, in
the hands of the Russians,
306
00:14:58,847 --> 00:14:59,923
CHARGE OF THE LANCERS
307
00:14:59,955 --> 00:15:01,518
could turn the tide
of war against us.
308
00:15:02,482 --> 00:15:04,196
- Ultimately, it didn't work.
309
00:15:04,759 --> 00:15:06,649
He didn't become the star
that everybody thought
310
00:15:06,674 --> 00:15:08,641
FRIEND OF ROCHARD STAPLEY
that he was going to be.
311
00:15:10,372 --> 00:15:13,842
The acting didn't really
work out for him at MGM,
312
00:15:13,842 --> 00:15:16,085
and he was, at one point, cut loose.
313
00:15:17,762 --> 00:15:19,155
- Richard was a looker.
314
00:15:20,093 --> 00:15:21,498
Richard was blessed
315
00:15:21,537 --> 00:15:22,666
FRIEND OF RICHARD STAPLEY
316
00:15:22,691 --> 00:15:24,560
with a very photogenic face.
317
00:15:25,832 --> 00:15:30,181
Very handsome, very macho, very gay.
318
00:15:32,532 --> 00:15:35,125
He, like everybody else, kind of hid it.
319
00:15:36,412 --> 00:15:39,852
It was so unbelievably difficult
320
00:15:39,852 --> 00:15:42,902
to have been gay in the '50s.
321
00:15:42,902 --> 00:15:44,015
- You hate us so.
322
00:15:44,942 --> 00:15:47,242
I should think you'd be
glad to get rid of us.
323
00:15:47,242 --> 00:15:49,845
- No one knew, 'cause
no one wanted to know.
324
00:15:51,832 --> 00:15:53,822
- Richard's whole career had been one
325
00:15:53,822 --> 00:15:55,335
of being the leading man.
326
00:15:56,502 --> 00:15:59,925
As far as the public was
concerned, he was a straight guy.
327
00:16:00,902 --> 00:16:03,385
But, obviously there
was more to that story.
328
00:16:04,232 --> 00:16:07,242
You'd done
film, you'd done stage.
329
00:16:07,242 --> 00:16:10,795
Where were you at that point,
when you met Dickson Hughes?
330
00:16:12,182 --> 00:16:13,932
- How did I meet Dickson Hughes?
331
00:16:13,932 --> 00:16:15,242
Yeah.
332
00:16:15,242 --> 00:16:18,201
- He was, oh, I can't
answer this, I'm sorry.
333
00:16:18,981 --> 00:16:20,339
I just can't answer.
334
00:16:25,763 --> 00:16:26,795
Hello?
335
00:16:26,820 --> 00:16:29,670
UNEARTHED INTERWIV WITH DICKSON HUGHES
Oh yes, I'm calling for Mr. Dickson Hughes.
336
00:16:29,695 --> 00:16:30,528
Well it is him.
337
00:16:30,553 --> 00:16:32,102
- Yes, Mr.
Hughes, I'm writing a book
338
00:16:32,102 --> 00:16:34,402
about the making of ''Sunset Boulevard''
339
00:16:34,402 --> 00:16:37,112
from film to your musical version.
340
00:16:37,112 --> 00:16:38,189
Oh my God!
341
00:16:38,189 --> 00:16:39,258
Are you shocked?
342
00:16:39,258 --> 00:16:42,315
What in the,
what inspired you to do that?
343
00:16:44,702 --> 00:16:47,402
- Dickson Hughes was a piano player
344
00:16:47,402 --> 00:16:49,705
who sang and wrote songs.
345
00:16:50,982 --> 00:16:54,695
And he supported himself
by working bars or lounges.
346
00:16:55,562 --> 00:16:58,096
- I just love Dickson Hughes.
347
00:17:00,022 --> 00:17:01,955
He just naturally had a gift.
348
00:17:02,862 --> 00:17:06,405
Wonderful performer, and
composer, and pianist.
349
00:17:07,284 --> 00:17:09,661
FRIEND OF DICKSON HUGHES
He just makes it seem so easy.
350
00:17:09,717 --> 00:17:11,362
Everything he does, he's so relaxed.
351
00:17:13,902 --> 00:17:17,142
Richard
Stapley, S-T-A-P-L-E-Y?
352
00:17:17,142 --> 00:17:18,989
Right, Stapley
rather than Staply.
353
00:17:18,989 --> 00:17:22,762
Was my
collaborator at the time,
354
00:17:22,762 --> 00:17:26,542
and I was really the principle creator.
355
00:17:26,542 --> 00:17:30,042
He was the idea person, and
also he had, occasionally,
356
00:17:30,709 --> 00:17:33,002
some good critical assessments to make.
357
00:17:34,682 --> 00:17:37,252
I'm intrigued as
to why Mr. Stapley vanished.
358
00:17:37,252 --> 00:17:39,199
Can you tell me a bit about that?
359
00:17:46,372 --> 00:17:49,022
- Richard had been married
for a couple of years
360
00:17:49,022 --> 00:17:52,685
and the relationship was
not going well at all.
361
00:17:54,042 --> 00:17:55,912
He and his wife decided
362
00:17:55,912 --> 00:17:57,506
to see if they could
patch up their marriage.
363
00:17:58,932 --> 00:18:01,802
And so they drove up the California coast
364
00:18:01,802 --> 00:18:03,215
and stopped in Monterrey.
365
00:18:05,642 --> 00:18:08,912
And in the bar was a
gentleman playing piano
366
00:18:08,912 --> 00:18:09,945
and singing songs.
367
00:18:11,002 --> 00:18:14,325
Dickson Hughes, who was the
piano player at the hotel.
368
00:18:16,072 --> 00:18:18,105
Richard saw him across the room.
369
00:18:19,132 --> 00:18:24,132
And the moment that he saw
Dickson, it was electric.
370
00:18:25,459 --> 00:18:27,735
He knew his marriage was over,
371
00:18:28,612 --> 00:18:32,615
and that guy at the piano
was who he needed to be with.
372
00:18:34,802 --> 00:18:37,532
At the time, you couldn't
say, ''We're a couple,''
373
00:18:37,532 --> 00:18:40,901
and so they told everybody that
they were writing partners.
374
00:18:41,519 --> 00:18:43,072
And that worked out conveniently
375
00:18:43,072 --> 00:18:46,552
because Dickson was a very good composer,
376
00:18:46,552 --> 00:18:48,659
and Richard was a very good lyricist.
377
00:18:49,302 --> 00:18:51,941
And so they started writing songs.
378
00:18:51,966 --> 00:18:55,907
♪ I belong to the restless breed ♪
379
00:18:56,012 --> 00:18:57,292
- The musical person
380
00:18:57,292 --> 00:19:01,342
who had the real musical
talent, was Dickson.
381
00:19:01,342 --> 00:19:04,942
And I could communicate
very, very closely to him,
382
00:19:04,942 --> 00:19:07,452
even though I couldn't write music.
383
00:19:07,452 --> 00:19:09,822
There was something between the two of us
384
00:19:09,822 --> 00:19:12,071
that did make things work.
385
00:19:15,032 --> 00:19:18,162
I was always intensely
interested in musicals.
386
00:19:18,162 --> 00:19:21,722
We came up with an idea for
a show called ''About Time.''
387
00:19:21,722 --> 00:19:24,058
It was based on Time Magazine.
388
00:19:24,532 --> 00:19:26,682
- The big question was
who's gonna play the lead
389
00:19:26,682 --> 00:19:29,722
in ''About Time,'' which was the editor,
390
00:19:29,722 --> 00:19:31,712
and that was to be a woman?
391
00:19:31,712 --> 00:19:33,022
And somebody said,
392
00:19:33,022 --> 00:19:35,782
you really should go talk to
Gloria Swanson about this.
393
00:19:35,782 --> 00:19:37,878
- Tonight, we go after
the profile of a legend,
394
00:19:37,894 --> 00:19:39,028
THE MIKE WALLACE INTERVIEW
395
00:19:39,052 --> 00:19:41,582
the story of one of Hollywood's
most spectacular links
396
00:19:41,582 --> 00:19:44,875
with its glamorous heyday,
the story is Gloria Swanson.
397
00:19:50,142 --> 00:19:53,092
This is what she looked
like in the fabulous '20s,
398
00:19:53,092 --> 00:19:56,192
when she made a reported
million dollars a year
399
00:19:56,192 --> 00:19:57,962
as a super-seductive sex symbol
400
00:19:57,962 --> 00:20:01,209
in films like ''Male and
Female,'' and ''Zaza.''
401
00:20:02,292 --> 00:20:05,285
She was then called the most
glamorous woman in the world.
402
00:20:06,232 --> 00:20:07,772
Women copied her hairstyle
403
00:20:07,772 --> 00:20:10,772
and her seductive, come hither look,
404
00:20:10,772 --> 00:20:13,515
and she's sold more
tickets than Valentino.
405
00:20:14,862 --> 00:20:18,645
Today, Ms. Swanson is a legend
within her own lifetime.
406
00:20:19,642 --> 00:20:22,302
An opinionated woman with
an unpredictable future
407
00:20:22,302 --> 00:20:24,120
and a sensational past.
408
00:20:25,817 --> 00:20:26,972
- What I think we need to understand
409
00:20:26,972 --> 00:20:28,922
about when Gloria Swanson came to fame,
410
00:20:29,738 --> 00:20:34,338
FILM HISTORIAN
95% of all Americans lived within 15 miles
411
00:20:34,372 --> 00:20:35,672
of where they'd been born.
412
00:20:37,612 --> 00:20:40,125
They knew nothing about
the rest of the world.
413
00:20:41,172 --> 00:20:43,072
When the movie theater came to town,
414
00:20:43,072 --> 00:20:44,632
they could walk around the corner
415
00:20:44,632 --> 00:20:46,582
and there was the world on this screen.
416
00:20:47,932 --> 00:20:52,692
And then all of a sudden, walks
out this gorgeous creature
417
00:20:52,692 --> 00:20:55,122
with furs, and jewels,
418
00:20:55,122 --> 00:20:56,992
and clearly here's a woman
419
00:20:56,992 --> 00:20:59,475
who has been around the
block more than once.
420
00:20:59,758 --> 00:21:00,758
STAGE STRUCK
421
00:21:00,852 --> 00:21:03,462
And I like to think of
the young woman sitting
422
00:21:03,462 --> 00:21:05,029
in that audience going,
423
00:21:05,029 --> 00:21:07,369
''I've finally found my kindred soul.''
424
00:21:08,302 --> 00:21:11,742
And Gloria Swanson, more than anyone else,
425
00:21:11,742 --> 00:21:13,965
represented that sense of possibility.
426
00:21:14,902 --> 00:21:16,392
Imagine what that was like.
427
00:21:17,619 --> 00:21:19,694
VOICE OF GLORIA SWANSON
- And I've always believed
428
00:21:19,719 --> 00:21:22,662
that the screen should be
an auditorium of escape,
429
00:21:22,662 --> 00:21:23,495
a dream world.
430
00:21:24,652 --> 00:21:26,785
This is what I think women want.
431
00:21:28,575 --> 00:21:30,770
And it was she who made the pictures
432
00:21:30,795 --> 00:21:33,845
so well-known not only in
America, but throughout the world.
433
00:21:33,922 --> 00:21:37,391
And most of these pictures
allowed people to escape
434
00:21:37,712 --> 00:21:39,212
through romance and love.
435
00:21:39,594 --> 00:21:44,594
And I have a hunch that
romance and love are not dead.
436
00:21:46,897 --> 00:21:50,063
- Gloria Swanson was certainly
one of the greatest stars
437
00:21:50,134 --> 00:21:52,295
FILM HISTORIAN
of the silent film era.
438
00:21:53,362 --> 00:21:56,508
There was something about her
that was just made for films.
439
00:21:56,982 --> 00:22:01,085
And she's always
interesting-looking and provocative.
440
00:22:02,132 --> 00:22:04,062
From
the silent days to sound
441
00:22:04,062 --> 00:22:06,512
in the late '20s, the talkies arrived,
442
00:22:06,512 --> 00:22:10,072
did you believe that sound
films were gonna take over?
443
00:22:10,072 --> 00:22:11,862
Yes, I did, very much so.
444
00:22:12,266 --> 00:22:13,782
Well,
your first talking picture
445
00:22:13,782 --> 00:22:15,134
was '' The Trespasser,'' right?
446
00:22:15,134 --> 00:22:16,138
- That's correct, yes.
447
00:22:16,287 --> 00:22:17,389
It's Marion!
448
00:22:17,444 --> 00:22:18,482
THE TRESPASSER
449
00:22:18,506 --> 00:22:20,192
Jack, it's Marion.
450
00:22:20,192 --> 00:22:24,282
FILM HISTORIAN
- Her silent films resonated a stardom
451
00:22:24,282 --> 00:22:26,213
that could not be upheld in talkies.
452
00:22:26,238 --> 00:22:27,526
GLORIA SWANSON IN INDISCREET
453
00:22:27,706 --> 00:22:29,322
- Tomorrow, when I return to Budapest,
454
00:22:29,347 --> 00:22:30,573
TONIGHT OR NEVER
455
00:22:30,597 --> 00:22:32,982
I shall carry with me
the memory of this night
456
00:22:32,982 --> 00:22:34,252
and of you.
457
00:22:34,277 --> 00:22:36,850
Her sound movies
were not successful.
458
00:22:37,772 --> 00:22:41,012
- Gloria was in that in-between stage.
459
00:22:41,012 --> 00:22:43,202
She was 30-something,
460
00:22:43,202 --> 00:22:45,422
but no vehicle could be found
461
00:22:45,422 --> 00:22:47,889
that could use her successfully.
462
00:22:47,889 --> 00:22:50,118
- I wish I had known it
was going to end this way.
463
00:22:50,142 --> 00:22:51,142
INDISCREET
464
00:22:51,559 --> 00:22:55,445
- And at that point, no film
offers were forthcoming.
465
00:22:56,492 --> 00:22:59,755
And Gloria was pretty much out of work.
466
00:23:02,072 --> 00:23:04,215
But Gloria still lived like a star.
467
00:23:05,222 --> 00:23:07,325
She was Gloria Swanson, after all.
468
00:23:08,182 --> 00:23:12,982
So she had find some way
to maintain that lifestyle.
469
00:23:12,982 --> 00:23:16,442
- What she did was move
to New York in 1940
470
00:23:16,442 --> 00:23:18,622
and sort of reinvented herself.
471
00:23:18,622 --> 00:23:19,572
You know, Gloria,
472
00:23:19,572 --> 00:23:21,822
seeing you in Macy's
Department store the other day
473
00:23:21,822 --> 00:23:23,702
with all those people flocking around you
474
00:23:23,702 --> 00:23:24,972
asking for your autograph,
475
00:23:24,972 --> 00:23:27,562
made me certain they would
flock to see your next picture
476
00:23:27,562 --> 00:23:29,142
or tune in when you broadcast.
477
00:23:29,142 --> 00:23:31,851
As far as I'm concerned,
you're still box office.
478
00:23:34,852 --> 00:23:38,808
- Gloria Swanson was famous for
being herself at that point.
479
00:23:38,808 --> 00:23:41,342
Gloria Swanson became the character.
480
00:23:41,342 --> 00:23:44,682
And she always had the aura of a big star,
481
00:23:44,682 --> 00:23:46,558
even though she wasn't
making a lot of movies.
482
00:23:47,672 --> 00:23:48,727
- And she adored that.
483
00:23:48,752 --> 00:23:51,019
She adored being adored.
484
00:23:51,497 --> 00:23:53,532
She would do whatever she needed to do.
485
00:23:53,532 --> 00:23:56,442
- The Crown Jewel is
so dainty and feminine,
486
00:23:56,442 --> 00:23:58,725
yet it shaves so close and fast.
487
00:23:59,092 --> 00:24:00,455
THE BEAUTIFUL WORLD
OF ESSENCE OF NATURE
488
00:24:00,480 --> 00:24:02,372
She's got her own cosmetic line.
489
00:24:02,372 --> 00:24:03,242
How do you manage
490
00:24:03,242 --> 00:24:05,402
to keep such a beautiful complexion?
491
00:24:05,402 --> 00:24:07,132
- She has her own clothes line.
492
00:24:07,132 --> 00:24:08,972
- Once Hollywood's top of the star,
493
00:24:08,972 --> 00:24:11,032
Gloria is now a top dress designer.
494
00:24:11,912 --> 00:24:14,372
- She's designing these clothes,
495
00:24:14,372 --> 00:24:16,132
clothes for the average woman
496
00:24:16,132 --> 00:24:18,145
who really longs for couture.
497
00:24:19,032 --> 00:24:23,079
She never hesitated to
take the next opportunity.
498
00:24:24,017 --> 00:24:25,372
Television is coming in.
499
00:24:25,402 --> 00:24:27,130
- Gloria Swanson!
500
00:24:28,991 --> 00:24:31,591
- She was the cover girl
on the very first TV Guide.
501
00:24:32,157 --> 00:24:33,229
THE GLORIA SWANSON HOUR
502
00:24:33,254 --> 00:24:36,422
She agreed to do this
talk show in New York.
503
00:24:37,542 --> 00:24:39,112
That's what she was doing
504
00:24:39,112 --> 00:24:42,618
when Billy Wilder found
her for ''Sunset Boulevard.''
505
00:24:43,365 --> 00:24:45,756
- You've made a rope of words
and strangled this business,
506
00:24:45,781 --> 00:24:46,801
SUNSET BOULEVARD
507
00:24:46,826 --> 00:24:49,449
but there's a microphone right
there to catch the last gurgles,
508
00:24:49,497 --> 00:24:52,383
and Technicolor to photograph
the red swollen tongue.
509
00:24:59,252 --> 00:25:02,025
- Initially, Gloria's part was not as big,
510
00:25:03,092 --> 00:25:06,642
but they became more enamored
with her and her ability
511
00:25:06,642 --> 00:25:08,292
and what she brought to the part.
512
00:25:09,302 --> 00:25:12,443
Norma Desmond was created in process.
513
00:25:12,827 --> 00:25:15,527
- Everything that's in ''Sunset Boulevard''
514
00:25:15,552 --> 00:25:17,492
is mirrored in her life.
515
00:25:17,492 --> 00:25:18,372
- And remember darling,
516
00:25:18,372 --> 00:25:19,672
I don't work before 10 in the morning
517
00:25:19,672 --> 00:25:22,242
and never after 4:30 in the afternoon.
518
00:25:22,242 --> 00:25:26,235
- She put it all out there
to create Norma Desmond.
519
00:25:27,782 --> 00:25:30,062
She was willing to show herself
520
00:25:30,062 --> 00:25:33,732
in a way that anybody with
a different kind of pride
521
00:25:33,732 --> 00:25:36,321
never would have allowed
themselves to be characterized.
522
00:25:36,812 --> 00:25:38,312
Gloria never would have thought
523
00:25:38,312 --> 00:25:41,238
about how it was gonna
reflect on her in real life.
524
00:25:41,238 --> 00:25:43,172
- Now, I didn't know you
were planning a comeback.
525
00:25:43,172 --> 00:25:45,797
- I hate that word, it's a return!
526
00:25:46,282 --> 00:25:47,932
A retur to the millions of people
527
00:25:47,932 --> 00:25:50,205
who've never forgiven me
for deserting the screen.
528
00:25:52,932 --> 00:25:55,172
Gloria Swanson,
one of the great personalities
529
00:25:55,172 --> 00:25:56,672
of this generation, in a role
530
00:25:56,672 --> 00:25:59,305
that comes to an actress
once in a lifetime.
531
00:25:59,762 --> 00:26:03,362
- When she finally hit the
jackpot with ''Sunset Boulevard,''
532
00:26:03,362 --> 00:26:05,242
it rejuvenated her career.
533
00:26:05,242 --> 00:26:06,807
- Ms. Gloria Swanson!
534
00:26:07,652 --> 00:26:10,930
- She got a kind of fresh start.
535
00:26:11,492 --> 00:26:13,762
She really allowed herself
536
00:26:13,762 --> 00:26:16,382
to become a movie star a second time.
537
00:26:16,382 --> 00:26:19,032
The most famous
movie star of them all,
538
00:26:19,032 --> 00:26:21,232
the answer is glorious Gloria.
539
00:26:21,232 --> 00:26:24,072
Hollywood is at her feet.
540
00:26:24,072 --> 00:26:28,433
- She was nominated for best
actress for ''Sunset Boulevard,''
541
00:26:28,642 --> 00:26:32,141
and it was absolutely expected
that she was gonna win.
542
00:26:32,166 --> 00:26:33,994
- The nominations for
the best actress are,
543
00:26:34,019 --> 00:26:35,968
THE 23RD ACADEMY
AWARDS MARCH 29,1951
544
00:26:35,992 --> 00:26:38,695
Ms. Anne Baxter in ''All
About Eve'' 20th Century Fox.
545
00:26:39,922 --> 00:26:42,555
Ms. Betty Davis, ''All About
Eve'' 20th Century Fox.
546
00:26:43,802 --> 00:26:46,329
Ms. Judy Holliday in ''Born
Yesterday,'' Columbia.
547
00:26:46,872 --> 00:26:49,022
Eleanor Parker in
''Caged,'' Warner brothers.
548
00:26:49,922 --> 00:26:52,722
And Ms. Gloria Swanson in
''Sunset Boulevard,'' Paramount.
549
00:26:53,852 --> 00:26:55,704
The winner is Judy Holliday.
550
00:27:02,252 --> 00:27:04,752
- Gloria really thought
this was finally her year.
551
00:27:05,802 --> 00:27:08,012
She really wanted the approval
552
00:27:08,012 --> 00:27:11,545
and the acknowledgement
that she was still there.
553
00:27:13,613 --> 00:27:15,977
- There weren't a lot of
opportunities for her in film,
554
00:27:17,042 --> 00:27:18,632
because all that hit
555
00:27:18,632 --> 00:27:20,965
right at the time when she was of an age,
556
00:27:20,965 --> 00:27:23,515
when it would be very
difficult to cast her anyway.
557
00:27:24,445 --> 00:27:25,517
That was wonderful,
558
00:27:25,542 --> 00:27:27,302
and it was a magic, wonderful picture.
559
00:27:27,302 --> 00:27:29,482
I wept when it was over.
560
00:27:29,482 --> 00:27:32,502
I sort of knew, I guess,
there'd be nothing to follow it,
561
00:27:32,502 --> 00:27:34,692
perhaps there never will be.
562
00:27:34,692 --> 00:27:36,792
- I don't think Gloria
Swanson could ever get away
563
00:27:36,792 --> 00:27:38,792
from Norma Desmond the rest of her life.
564
00:27:40,262 --> 00:27:43,079
She was so identified with Norma Desmond.
565
00:27:43,079 --> 00:27:45,279
In the people's minds
she was Norma Desmond,
566
00:27:46,372 --> 00:27:49,082
to the point that she wasn't
being offered other things.
567
00:27:49,082 --> 00:27:50,892
Well, are
you through with Hollywood?
568
00:27:50,892 --> 00:27:51,725
Following Sunset-
569
00:27:51,725 --> 00:27:52,902
- Now, wait a minute, am
I through with Hollywood
570
00:27:52,902 --> 00:27:54,302
or are they through with me?
571
00:28:00,847 --> 00:28:02,492
We told her
that we had this property.
572
00:28:03,034 --> 00:28:05,842
A musical review called ''About Time''
573
00:28:05,842 --> 00:28:08,525
that we'd like to have her listen to.
574
00:28:10,402 --> 00:28:12,945
She sent us a telegram
with her phone number.
575
00:28:15,362 --> 00:28:19,195
Turns out that she was, at that
time, house guesting in LA.
576
00:28:21,052 --> 00:28:24,142
- She was staying at a friend's
house on Mulholland Drive,
577
00:28:24,142 --> 00:28:26,555
a very glamorous Japanese mansion.
578
00:28:27,612 --> 00:28:30,402
It was 10 minutes, I suppose,
before she made her entrance,
579
00:28:30,402 --> 00:28:32,915
and when she did, her
entrance was dramatic.
580
00:28:36,002 --> 00:28:39,705
It was with a steaming cup of liquid.
581
00:28:41,072 --> 00:28:44,569
We had taken the content of
the review to play it for her.
582
00:28:44,569 --> 00:28:46,032
Visualize the stage setting
583
00:28:46,032 --> 00:28:48,269
representing open pages of a magazine.
584
00:28:48,269 --> 00:28:50,682
For the moment, only one side is lighted,
585
00:28:50,682 --> 00:28:52,452
and there, we see a beautiful model
586
00:28:52,452 --> 00:28:53,702
posing in a brassiere ad.
587
00:28:54,722 --> 00:28:55,992
She thought
that sounded like a role
588
00:28:55,992 --> 00:28:57,287
that she would have fun with,
589
00:28:57,822 --> 00:28:59,042
but she had just recently
590
00:28:59,042 --> 00:29:01,295
had a very bad experience in New York.
591
00:29:02,356 --> 00:29:03,622
She had done a play called ''Nina,''
592
00:29:03,622 --> 00:29:05,392
which was just blasted by the critics,
593
00:29:05,392 --> 00:29:06,985
and they didn't much like her.
594
00:29:08,042 --> 00:29:10,552
And she was still smarting from the wounds
595
00:29:11,006 --> 00:29:13,035
of some unkind, critical response.
596
00:29:13,902 --> 00:29:15,652
She said she just would never, ever
597
00:29:15,652 --> 00:29:18,170
do anything on Broadway again.
598
00:29:18,642 --> 00:29:20,792
- So I said, well, this
is the end of that.
599
00:29:21,742 --> 00:29:25,859
And then she said, ''Unless
somebody could come up
600
00:29:25,859 --> 00:29:30,759
''with an idea of making 'Sunset
Boulevard' into a musical.''
601
00:29:33,382 --> 00:29:35,392
Well, the minute
she said that, of course,
602
00:29:35,392 --> 00:29:38,443
we got very excited and said,
oh my god, what a thought.
603
00:29:39,168 --> 00:29:42,375
We said, let us think about
this and get back to you.
604
00:29:42,630 --> 00:29:44,497
BOULEVARD! A HOLLYWOOD STORY
605
00:29:44,742 --> 00:29:47,312
Next morning, we got up, Stapley and I,
606
00:29:47,685 --> 00:29:51,152
just wildly excited about
this incredible project
607
00:29:51,152 --> 00:29:52,925
that we might get involved with.
608
00:29:54,342 --> 00:29:56,192
Felt that show needed a moment
609
00:29:56,192 --> 00:30:00,032
at the very beginning to show
who this woman really is,
610
00:30:00,032 --> 00:30:01,542
and he had a great idea,
611
00:30:01,542 --> 00:30:03,172
and that was to do this number
612
00:30:03,172 --> 00:30:05,505
based on her next to
last line in the film.
613
00:30:06,115 --> 00:30:08,435
- There's nothing else, just us.
614
00:30:10,118 --> 00:30:10,951
And the cameras.
615
00:30:12,132 --> 00:30:15,972
And those wonderful people
out there in the dark.
616
00:30:17,572 --> 00:30:18,599
So I sat down at the piano,
617
00:30:18,599 --> 00:30:20,365
and I started just noodling.
618
00:30:21,402 --> 00:30:23,709
Those wonderful people
out there in the dark.
619
00:30:24,302 --> 00:30:26,742
It's an absolute full disclosure
620
00:30:26,742 --> 00:30:28,542
of who and what this woman really is
621
00:30:28,542 --> 00:30:30,585
underneath her neurosis and her madness.
622
00:30:32,597 --> 00:30:35,032
Drive back up to the house the next day,
623
00:30:35,032 --> 00:30:37,982
and we said, what do you think of this?
624
00:30:37,982 --> 00:30:41,409
- I was on this side,
and Gloria was that side,
625
00:30:41,409 --> 00:30:45,448
and here is Dickson playing
on his piano, our music.
626
00:30:46,829 --> 00:30:50,207
GLORIA SWANSON SING ''WONDERFUL PEOPLE''
♪ However they flatter ♪
627
00:30:50,207 --> 00:30:53,433
♪ I'll still be out where ♪
628
00:30:53,433 --> 00:30:56,292
♪ The people who matter ♪
629
00:30:56,292 --> 00:30:58,628
♪ The people who care ♪
630
00:30:58,628 --> 00:31:02,948
♪ Are the ones who silently give me ♪
631
00:31:02,948 --> 00:31:07,610
♪ That magical spark ♪
632
00:31:07,610 --> 00:31:11,391
♪ Those wonderful people ♪
633
00:31:11,391 --> 00:31:14,724
♪ Out there in the dark ♪
634
00:31:18,722 --> 00:31:19,832
In that song,
635
00:31:19,857 --> 00:31:23,137
there was something
extraordinary captured.
636
00:31:23,233 --> 00:31:24,490
FROM BOULEVARD! DEMO TAPES
637
00:31:24,515 --> 00:31:28,052
I just want to tell you all
how happy I am to be back in the studio,
638
00:31:28,052 --> 00:31:29,842
making a picture again.
639
00:31:29,842 --> 00:31:34,382
You don't know how much
I've missed you all.
640
00:31:34,382 --> 00:31:36,452
- It was really very, very moving
641
00:31:36,452 --> 00:31:38,952
because that part was everything
642
00:31:38,952 --> 00:31:40,452
that she'd ever dreamed about.
643
00:31:41,832 --> 00:31:45,029
If only I could do this every night.
644
00:31:45,462 --> 00:31:48,115
That was the last thing
when she got off the set.
645
00:31:49,122 --> 00:31:51,002
She was always thinking of those people
646
00:31:51,002 --> 00:31:52,952
out in the dark that never let me down.
647
00:31:57,898 --> 00:31:59,258
She called Paramount.
648
00:31:59,877 --> 00:32:03,285
She called her pal there
was a man named DA Duran.
649
00:32:04,682 --> 00:32:07,472
He was an old chum from her Paramount days
650
00:32:07,472 --> 00:32:10,493
who was in a responsible
position there at the studio.
651
00:32:11,127 --> 00:32:13,334
She called him up, she
says, ''DA, this is Gloria.
652
00:32:13,359 --> 00:32:15,329
''Now listen, I want
you to hear something,''
653
00:32:15,329 --> 00:32:16,865
and she put the phone out to me,
654
00:32:16,865 --> 00:32:18,692
and I'm there sitting at the piano
655
00:32:18,692 --> 00:32:20,932
so I started to do the song.
656
00:32:20,932 --> 00:32:22,402
And I could hear his voice
657
00:32:22,402 --> 00:32:25,959
going like, ''Gloria, what is this?''
658
00:32:26,422 --> 00:32:29,019
So after I finished the
first section of the song,
659
00:32:29,019 --> 00:32:31,192
she said, ''Isn't that brilliant?''
660
00:32:31,192 --> 00:32:34,362
And he said, ''Well, it's very
interesting, what is it?''
661
00:32:34,362 --> 00:32:35,502
So then she said, well,
662
00:32:35,502 --> 00:32:37,802
she met these two brilliant young men,
663
00:32:37,802 --> 00:32:39,952
and we had the marvelous thought
664
00:32:39,952 --> 00:32:43,192
of doing a Broadway musical
based on ''Sunset Boulevard,''
665
00:32:43,192 --> 00:32:45,595
and what did she need
to do to get the rights?
666
00:32:47,232 --> 00:32:51,622
- She decided that she and I
should go down to Paramount
667
00:32:51,622 --> 00:32:53,125
and meet DA Duran.
668
00:32:54,772 --> 00:32:55,979
She said, ''Don't worry, you know,
669
00:32:55,979 --> 00:32:57,819
''I've known DA Duran forever
670
00:32:57,819 --> 00:33:00,379
''and he always gives
me everything I want.''
671
00:33:01,222 --> 00:33:04,862
We'd gone down to Paramount,
and I was all dressed up,
672
00:33:04,862 --> 00:33:06,782
and she was really dressed up
673
00:33:06,782 --> 00:33:08,382
with a veil and everything else.
674
00:33:09,283 --> 00:33:11,798
We got down to the studio,
they opened the gates.
675
00:33:12,822 --> 00:33:15,352
And we drove in in the car,
676
00:33:15,352 --> 00:33:19,502
and then suddenly Gloria
became really Gloria Swanson.
677
00:33:19,502 --> 00:33:21,572
- And teach your friend some manners.
678
00:33:21,572 --> 00:33:23,492
Tell him without me, he
wouldn't have any job,
679
00:33:23,492 --> 00:33:25,662
because without me, there
wouldn't be any Paramount Studio.
680
00:33:25,662 --> 00:33:27,512
- You're right, Ms. Desmond.
681
00:33:27,512 --> 00:33:31,462
- And it was so marvelous
to see this professional
682
00:33:31,462 --> 00:33:34,881
take over the private in that one moment.
683
00:33:37,252 --> 00:33:39,787
They certainly
were most enthusiastic,
684
00:33:40,552 --> 00:33:43,155
and there was an option
granted for one year.
685
00:33:44,462 --> 00:33:48,263
It was always her personal
assurance from DA Duran.
686
00:33:48,442 --> 00:33:51,782
Gloria, don't worry, it's
all okay, it'll be fine.
687
00:33:51,782 --> 00:33:54,725
Just a very personal reassurance.
688
00:33:55,672 --> 00:33:57,042
Probably as much as anything
689
00:33:57,042 --> 00:33:59,085
just not wanting to make her unhappy.
690
00:34:00,162 --> 00:34:02,792
- Well, it wasn't given in per se,
691
00:34:02,792 --> 00:34:05,693
I mean it was given very, very casually.
692
00:34:06,042 --> 00:34:10,252
Nothing really appeared to
be hard and fast signed.
693
00:34:10,252 --> 00:34:12,722
It was always okay to go ahead,
694
00:34:12,722 --> 00:34:14,422
as long as we approve the numbers.
695
00:34:18,192 --> 00:34:19,882
We were commissioned by her
696
00:34:19,882 --> 00:34:21,675
to do this adaptation.
697
00:34:22,832 --> 00:34:25,662
She did have at the time
a very rich boyfriend
698
00:34:26,502 --> 00:34:28,772
who was madly devoted to her
699
00:34:28,772 --> 00:34:30,762
and would help her in any way he could
700
00:34:30,762 --> 00:34:32,465
to foot some of the bills.
701
00:34:33,322 --> 00:34:36,482
- And for the next three months,
they were in Palm Springs
702
00:34:36,482 --> 00:34:38,157
writing ''Sunset Boulevard.''
703
00:34:42,137 --> 00:34:44,677
- Well, at our age we were very impressed
704
00:34:44,702 --> 00:34:47,052
to be staying in Palm Springs
705
00:34:47,052 --> 00:34:48,792
in this lyrical kind of place,
706
00:34:48,792 --> 00:34:50,715
which was wonderful to create in.
707
00:34:51,875 --> 00:34:53,732
And she was like a child she was so happy
708
00:34:53,732 --> 00:34:55,955
because she felt
everything was going right.
709
00:34:56,964 --> 00:34:58,814
GLORIA SWANSON'S LETTER
TO FANS FEBRUARY.1955
710
00:34:58,839 --> 00:35:01,822
If you haven't heard the good news,
let me tell you that ''Sunset Boulevard''
711
00:35:01,822 --> 00:35:04,072
is now in the throes of being written
712
00:35:04,072 --> 00:35:06,622
into a musical for the stage.
713
00:35:06,622 --> 00:35:09,322
I can barely contain myself.
714
00:35:09,322 --> 00:35:12,082
Another wish has been granted me,
715
00:35:12,082 --> 00:35:14,505
and I am truly blessed.
716
00:35:15,705 --> 00:35:18,986
MAPS! MAPS! MAPS!
♪ We assure every tour ♪
717
00:35:19,011 --> 00:35:23,404
♪ Shows all studios both
well known and obscure ♪
718
00:35:23,404 --> 00:35:26,364
UNTITLED LOVE STORY
♪ Where am I ♪
719
00:35:26,364 --> 00:35:30,865
♪ In this some type of love story ♪
720
00:35:30,865 --> 00:35:33,480
♪ Where's the part ♪
721
00:35:33,480 --> 00:35:36,062
♪ For me ♪
722
00:35:36,062 --> 00:35:39,030
STAY CLOSE
♪ Stay close ♪
723
00:35:39,030 --> 00:35:44,030
♪ As a swift wave is close to the sea ♪
724
00:35:44,202 --> 00:35:47,742
- Gloria did not go to
Rodgers and Hammerstein
725
00:35:47,742 --> 00:35:49,215
and commission this musical.
726
00:35:50,832 --> 00:35:55,672
Instead, she took two unknown
songwriters just starting out,
727
00:35:55,672 --> 00:35:56,832
and thought she would get
728
00:35:56,832 --> 00:35:58,587
a Broadway quality score out of it.
729
00:35:58,587 --> 00:36:01,265
DOORS ARE CLOSED
♪ The doors are closed ♪
730
00:36:01,265 --> 00:36:03,819
♪ Where's the key ♪
731
00:36:03,819 --> 00:36:05,622
I first saw ''Sunset Boulevard''
732
00:36:05,622 --> 00:36:08,523
when it first was released in 1950.
733
00:36:08,523 --> 00:36:11,202
It was a wonderful movie experience,
734
00:36:11,202 --> 00:36:14,448
but it never occurred to me that
it should have songs added to it.
735
00:36:14,651 --> 00:36:16,172
- There was a time in this business
736
00:36:16,172 --> 00:36:19,178
when they had the eyes
of the whole wide world,
737
00:36:19,178 --> 00:36:21,662
but that wasn't good
enough for them, oh no.
738
00:36:21,662 --> 00:36:23,722
They had to have the
ears of the world, too.
739
00:36:23,722 --> 00:36:25,572
So they opened their big mouths,
740
00:36:25,572 --> 00:36:29,272
and out came talk, talk, talk!
741
00:36:29,272 --> 00:36:31,722
They once had the eyes
of the world, but no,
742
00:36:31,722 --> 00:36:33,492
TALK! TALK! TALK!
that just wouldn't do.
743
00:36:33,492 --> 00:36:35,252
But the eyes
of the world are not enough
744
00:36:35,252 --> 00:36:37,152
if you don't have the world's ears, too.
745
00:36:37,152 --> 00:36:38,872
They all
agree that talk's a thing
746
00:36:38,872 --> 00:36:40,732
they could not do without,
747
00:36:40,732 --> 00:36:42,802
so they opened up their big mouths
748
00:36:42,802 --> 00:36:45,649
and look what came out.
749
00:36:45,649 --> 00:36:48,313
♪ But you've got to
have talk, talk, talk ♪
750
00:36:48,313 --> 00:36:49,913
♪ Chatter, chatter, chatter ♪
751
00:36:49,913 --> 00:36:51,227
♪ Talk, talk, talk ♪
752
00:36:51,227 --> 00:36:52,948
♪ Frill, and sass, and patter ♪
753
00:36:52,948 --> 00:36:56,089
♪ Loud, distracting, strident and rough ♪
754
00:36:56,089 --> 00:36:58,522
♪ But pantomime acting isn't enough ♪
755
00:36:58,522 --> 00:36:59,686
- No?
- No!
756
00:36:59,686 --> 00:37:01,909
♪ Talk, talk, talk ♪
757
00:37:01,909 --> 00:37:04,932
''Sunset Boulevard'' doesn't
immediately lent itself
758
00:37:04,932 --> 00:37:07,152
to the idea of the Broadway stage
759
00:37:07,152 --> 00:37:10,157
because the film itself is very dark.
760
00:37:10,632 --> 00:37:11,822
The story remained the same,
761
00:37:11,822 --> 00:37:13,432
but restructuring the storyline
762
00:37:13,432 --> 00:37:16,172
to make it a theatrical
piece rather than a film
763
00:37:16,172 --> 00:37:19,652
was a tremendous amount
of reworking the material.
764
00:37:19,652 --> 00:37:21,875
- We didn't need dialogue, we had faces.
765
00:37:23,062 --> 00:37:25,632
So the Broadway
of the 1950s, you're saying,
766
00:37:25,632 --> 00:37:27,502
was not as suitable, necessarily,
767
00:37:27,502 --> 00:37:29,803
to this kind of dark material?
768
00:37:29,803 --> 00:37:33,063
''I COULD HAVE DANCE ALL
NIGHT'' FROM MY FAIR LADY
769
00:37:33,063 --> 00:37:36,542
♪ I could've danced all night ♪
770
00:37:36,542 --> 00:37:40,982
- The depths and madness
of ''Sunset Boulevard,''
771
00:37:40,982 --> 00:37:43,002
musically that really wasn't
772
00:37:43,002 --> 00:37:46,182
what show tunes did at that point.
773
00:37:46,182 --> 00:37:48,422
There might've been power,
and passion, and yearning.
774
00:37:48,447 --> 00:37:49,597
There were a lot of emotions
775
00:37:49,644 --> 00:37:50,784
ETHEL MERMAN IN GYPSY
776
00:37:50,809 --> 00:37:53,032
that '50s Broadway could encompass,
777
00:37:53,032 --> 00:37:54,503
but Billy Wilder himself had said,
778
00:37:54,528 --> 00:37:55,611
DIRECTOR, SUNSET BOULEVARD
779
00:37:55,636 --> 00:37:58,007
''Oh no, it shouldn't be a musical.
It should be an opera.''
780
00:37:58,032 --> 00:38:00,772
A mad scene's perfectly
appropriate in that.
781
00:38:00,772 --> 00:38:07,238
THE TRESPASSER
♪ Lo, your magic spell is everywhere ♪
782
00:38:07,826 --> 00:38:14,834
♪ Lo, I knew you well and found you fair ♪
783
00:38:15,312 --> 00:38:17,724
Ms. Swanson,
how important to you is music?
784
00:38:18,307 --> 00:38:19,638
Oh, I can't live without it.
785
00:38:19,663 --> 00:38:20,973
LOVE YOUR SPELL IS EVERYWHERE
786
00:38:20,998 --> 00:38:23,162
I don't know one note from another.
787
00:38:23,162 --> 00:38:26,025
I don't even know which key I sing in.
788
00:38:27,112 --> 00:38:29,170
I wanted to be an opera singer,
789
00:38:29,602 --> 00:38:31,512
but somehow I got waylaid
790
00:38:31,512 --> 00:38:34,672
and I got on the merry-go-round
of the picture business,
791
00:38:34,672 --> 00:38:36,309
and couldn't get off.
792
00:38:36,309 --> 00:38:38,142
♪ Way ♪
793
00:38:43,172 --> 00:38:44,342
- Everything was going beautifully
794
00:38:44,342 --> 00:38:45,792
when we went to Palm Springs.
795
00:38:46,762 --> 00:38:50,075
It was fun, it was
hilarious, it was a joy.
796
00:38:51,432 --> 00:38:53,342
She was very, very friendly,
797
00:38:53,342 --> 00:38:56,105
and basically she had this sweet quality.
798
00:38:57,572 --> 00:39:00,373
She laughed easily, if you
told something amusing.
799
00:39:01,117 --> 00:39:03,855
She was an extraordinary person.
800
00:39:05,482 --> 00:39:09,005
She was interested in
so many things in life.
801
00:39:10,132 --> 00:39:14,112
I remembered really the
sweetness of Gloria,
802
00:39:14,112 --> 00:39:17,252
and the understanding of humanity.
803
00:39:17,252 --> 00:39:19,602
But as soon as she knew there was a chance
804
00:39:19,602 --> 00:39:22,052
of doing Norma Desmond every night,
805
00:39:22,052 --> 00:39:25,325
she became more and more Norma Desmond.
806
00:39:26,372 --> 00:39:28,022
And less and less Gloria Swanson.
807
00:39:31,672 --> 00:39:34,792
One day I can remember
that she was on her knees,
808
00:39:34,792 --> 00:39:38,262
and she had all the
photographs of her past
809
00:39:38,262 --> 00:39:39,262
spread on the floor.
810
00:39:40,652 --> 00:39:43,622
When friends came round,
she'd show her old films.
811
00:39:43,622 --> 00:39:45,672
You know, they must've seen it 100 times.
812
00:39:46,834 --> 00:39:48,799
Gloria said to me this one day,
813
00:39:48,799 --> 00:39:50,834
''Let's go out someplace.''
814
00:39:51,358 --> 00:39:53,089
And I said, ''Well, where
do you want to go?''
815
00:39:53,114 --> 00:39:54,674
And she said, ''Indio.''
816
00:39:56,272 --> 00:39:57,446
So we went to Indio.
817
00:39:57,446 --> 00:39:59,372
We might've had a date
milkshake on the way,
818
00:39:59,372 --> 00:40:00,872
'cause they do have good ones.
819
00:40:01,519 --> 00:40:03,008
INDIO FEED and GENERAL
820
00:40:03,032 --> 00:40:04,572
And we got into Indio,
821
00:40:04,572 --> 00:40:08,005
and we went past one of
those feeding stores.
822
00:40:09,452 --> 00:40:11,597
And she said, ''Oh my god, look!''
823
00:40:11,622 --> 00:40:12,952
And I said, ''What?''
824
00:40:12,952 --> 00:40:15,714
She said, ''Those baby
chicks, they're so cute.''
825
00:40:15,746 --> 00:40:16,775
CHICKS FOR SALE
826
00:40:16,800 --> 00:40:18,579
She said, ''Let's buy three.
827
00:40:18,604 --> 00:40:21,408
''One for you, one for Dick, one for me.''
828
00:40:22,852 --> 00:40:27,359
So she went in and had three
chicks bagged to take home.
829
00:40:27,359 --> 00:40:29,409
I said, ''Gloria, what are
we gonna do with 'em?''
830
00:40:30,242 --> 00:40:34,230
So, we got back, she made
her entrance for dinner.
831
00:40:34,662 --> 00:40:36,948
And when she did, it was dramatic.
832
00:40:37,472 --> 00:40:39,792
There was Gloria in her Balenciaga gown,
833
00:40:39,792 --> 00:40:42,795
and stiletto shoes, and
looking magnificent.
834
00:40:44,492 --> 00:40:48,386
And then suddenly, a sort of
screech and a yell from her.
835
00:40:51,678 --> 00:40:54,142
She had trodden on one of the chickens
836
00:40:54,142 --> 00:40:55,855
with her stiletto shoes.
837
00:40:58,555 --> 00:40:59,888
And it was dead.
838
00:41:01,186 --> 00:41:05,389
She said, ''Oh my god, why do
I kill everything I love?''
839
00:41:07,502 --> 00:41:09,922
She said, ''Well, we're
gonna have to bury it.''
840
00:41:13,752 --> 00:41:16,275
Indeed, she put on a veil,
841
00:41:17,482 --> 00:41:20,221
and we sort of formed a procession.
842
00:41:24,882 --> 00:41:26,292
What anyone might've thought
843
00:41:26,292 --> 00:41:29,242
to see this procession going
down to the end of the garden,
844
00:41:30,522 --> 00:41:32,785
and ceremoniously burying this chick.
845
00:41:35,122 --> 00:41:39,284
So then we started to be
really a little edgy, I think.
846
00:41:39,922 --> 00:41:43,022
I was a bit concerned, you
know, I mean I really was.
847
00:41:43,022 --> 00:41:44,865
I thought, this is just weird.
848
00:41:50,032 --> 00:41:51,912
- As the writing and the development
849
00:41:51,912 --> 00:41:54,698
of ''Sunset Boulevard''
the musical happened,
850
00:41:55,232 --> 00:41:58,505
the tension is starting to
build between the three of them.
851
00:41:59,702 --> 00:42:00,722
And she was fully aware
852
00:42:00,722 --> 00:42:03,982
that Dickson and Richard
were in a relationship.
853
00:42:03,982 --> 00:42:05,192
- There was no mystery
854
00:42:05,192 --> 00:42:07,222
that Richard and Dickson were a couple.
855
00:42:08,072 --> 00:42:09,582
Gloria knew that the moment
856
00:42:09,607 --> 00:42:12,960
that they walked into
her house on Mulholland.
857
00:42:13,822 --> 00:42:16,285
What was happening at this time, though,
858
00:42:18,292 --> 00:42:21,452
was that Gloria was starting
859
00:42:21,452 --> 00:42:26,237
to have romantic
inclinations towards Richard,
860
00:42:26,832 --> 00:42:31,192
who she knew was in a
relationship with Dickson.
861
00:42:31,192 --> 00:42:33,172
It was all very queer,
862
00:42:33,172 --> 00:42:35,245
but queerer things were yet to come.
863
00:42:36,322 --> 00:42:38,232
- Romance has to do with moonlight,
864
00:42:38,232 --> 00:42:39,912
it has to do with poetry,
865
00:42:39,912 --> 00:42:41,312
it has to do with dancing,
866
00:42:41,312 --> 00:42:42,482
it has to do with things
867
00:42:42,482 --> 00:42:44,842
that are away from that quick business
868
00:42:44,842 --> 00:42:46,319
of ''Darling, I love you, goodbye.
869
00:42:46,319 --> 00:42:48,382
''I'm off to make that dollar.''
870
00:42:48,382 --> 00:42:50,285
- Grandma was romantic.
871
00:42:51,217 --> 00:42:52,217
HUSBAND NO1
872
00:42:53,072 --> 00:42:55,045
She liked men very much.
873
00:42:55,113 --> 00:42:56,113
HUSBAND NO2
874
00:42:56,352 --> 00:42:57,615
She fell in love easily,
875
00:42:57,694 --> 00:42:58,694
HUSBAND NO3
876
00:42:58,742 --> 00:43:00,740
and met terrific men,
877
00:43:00,772 --> 00:43:01,957
HUSBAND NO4
878
00:43:01,982 --> 00:43:04,076
but didn't stay married very long.
879
00:43:04,970 --> 00:43:05,970
HUSBAND NO5
880
00:43:06,082 --> 00:43:08,415
She was very independent,
881
00:43:09,082 --> 00:43:11,563
and just kind of wanted things her way,
882
00:43:12,002 --> 00:43:14,222
so I'm not sure that worked well
883
00:43:14,222 --> 00:43:16,285
in a male-female relationship.
884
00:43:17,652 --> 00:43:19,772
- She loved the idea of being in love,
885
00:43:19,772 --> 00:43:22,475
but I don't know how often she really was.
886
00:43:23,992 --> 00:43:27,297
She spent so much time
portraying characters,
887
00:43:27,682 --> 00:43:30,415
and so little time living real life.
888
00:43:31,767 --> 00:43:34,577
She'd made a lot of movies
where the boy and the girl
889
00:43:34,602 --> 00:43:36,993
get together, and they
live happily ever after.
890
00:43:37,682 --> 00:43:40,565
And that just never seemed
to work for her in real life.
891
00:43:42,332 --> 00:43:44,812
- At the end of the three
months in Palm Springs,
892
00:43:44,812 --> 00:43:47,516
they had basically written the show.
893
00:43:47,912 --> 00:43:50,524
They had written about 20 or 25 songs.
894
00:43:51,042 --> 00:43:53,946
They had reshaped the script
to make it work on the stage,
895
00:43:54,382 --> 00:43:56,750
and they felt like they
really had something to show.
896
00:43:57,292 --> 00:43:58,682
And so what they determined
897
00:43:58,682 --> 00:44:01,992
was they really needed to go to New York
898
00:44:01,992 --> 00:44:03,572
to find financial backing,
899
00:44:03,572 --> 00:44:05,762
to find a producer, to find a director,
900
00:44:05,762 --> 00:44:07,712
if they were gonna get this thing done.
901
00:44:08,702 --> 00:44:12,452
And so, the troupe moved to
New York from Los Angeles
902
00:44:12,477 --> 00:44:14,627
with hopes of putting
the show on Broadway.
903
00:44:15,932 --> 00:44:18,212
Gloria was already there.
904
00:44:18,212 --> 00:44:20,722
She was in her apartment on Park Avenue,
905
00:44:20,722 --> 00:44:22,905
and Dickson and Richard stayed with her.
906
00:44:24,892 --> 00:44:27,542
- Coming in contact really
with Gloria Swanson,
907
00:44:27,542 --> 00:44:28,925
it was complicated.
908
00:44:29,852 --> 00:44:35,849
Unexplained, unintended
matters become uncontrollable.
909
00:44:37,842 --> 00:44:39,792
Of course, she was an attractive woman.
910
00:44:40,642 --> 00:44:43,959
I just thought, what would
happen if I took her in my arms,
911
00:44:44,852 --> 00:44:46,849
and, you know, where would that lead?
912
00:44:47,192 --> 00:44:48,654
- Happy New Year, darling.
913
00:44:49,529 --> 00:44:52,945
- And so click, then I
thought how dangerous.
914
00:44:53,789 --> 00:44:55,289
Oh, it would've been disaster.
915
00:44:56,337 --> 00:44:57,680
So it didn't happen?
916
00:44:58,266 --> 00:44:59,099
- No.
917
00:45:01,718 --> 00:45:03,725
But it was in her mind, and in my mind.
918
00:45:04,992 --> 00:45:07,382
- Clearly she wanted more
919
00:45:07,382 --> 00:45:09,795
than what Richard was willing to give,
920
00:45:10,332 --> 00:45:12,752
and because she's Gloria Swanson,
921
00:45:12,752 --> 00:45:14,755
she was used to getting what she wanted.
922
00:45:17,032 --> 00:45:18,422
- Richard was very handsome.
923
00:45:18,422 --> 00:45:22,195
He was used to working
people to get what he wanted.
924
00:45:22,879 --> 00:45:25,239
FRIEND OF RICHARD STAPLEY
I think that was the way he lived.
925
00:45:27,162 --> 00:45:29,442
Dickson saw what was going on,
926
00:45:29,442 --> 00:45:31,445
so it must have been very strange.
927
00:45:33,262 --> 00:45:36,335
- By this time, I just wanted to get out.
928
00:45:37,402 --> 00:45:39,646
It was awkward staying at home,
929
00:45:40,222 --> 00:45:43,182
and it was affecting my own private life,
930
00:45:43,182 --> 00:45:46,155
and I was beginning to not know me.
931
00:45:47,892 --> 00:45:50,715
It was affecting the
relationship with Dickson.
932
00:45:51,712 --> 00:45:53,892
He was a sort of level person.
933
00:45:53,892 --> 00:45:56,675
I mean, he wasn't a
rebel like I tend to be.
934
00:45:58,742 --> 00:46:01,302
I remember the time that angered her
935
00:46:01,302 --> 00:46:04,875
when I just had to get out
of the house, and be myself.
936
00:46:07,392 --> 00:46:10,182
I just literally
disappeared into New York.
937
00:46:10,182 --> 00:46:11,242
I didn't want to go anywhere,
938
00:46:11,242 --> 00:46:13,142
I just wanted to be with human beings.
939
00:46:14,982 --> 00:46:16,415
And that was rebellion.
940
00:46:17,852 --> 00:46:19,592
I was gone for quite a long time,
941
00:46:20,310 --> 00:46:22,834
and I came back like about
three o'clock in the morning.
942
00:46:23,646 --> 00:46:25,170
And there was Gloria.
943
00:46:25,542 --> 00:46:27,950
It was like icicles were hanging down.
944
00:46:29,292 --> 00:46:30,785
She was very upset.
945
00:46:32,312 --> 00:46:34,232
It was at that time that I thought
946
00:46:34,232 --> 00:46:36,555
the show is not gonna go on.
947
00:46:38,172 --> 00:46:41,930
- Gloria lost interest
if it was unrequited,
948
00:46:42,571 --> 00:46:45,522
and Stapley rejecting her,
949
00:46:45,522 --> 00:46:48,692
that started the loss of interest,
950
00:46:48,692 --> 00:46:51,405
not necessarily in the
project, but in him.
951
00:46:52,932 --> 00:46:55,152
- Richard and Dickson had been
there for a couple of weeks,
952
00:46:55,152 --> 00:46:56,792
and they'd been working this show out,
953
00:46:56,792 --> 00:46:58,262
and they'd been pitching it around,
954
00:46:58,262 --> 00:47:00,485
and they're getting interest in the show.
955
00:47:01,092 --> 00:47:03,642
They've got some financial
backers that are very interested
956
00:47:03,642 --> 00:47:04,965
in talking to Gloria.
957
00:47:06,462 --> 00:47:08,802
They finally got Robert Fryer,
958
00:47:08,802 --> 00:47:11,024
who was one of the biggest
producers at the time.
959
00:47:11,982 --> 00:47:15,132
She proceeded to call Paramount,
960
00:47:15,132 --> 00:47:17,003
and spoke to somebody there,
961
00:47:17,512 --> 00:47:19,385
but they weren't taken seriously.
962
00:47:20,462 --> 00:47:23,252
And they told her that she
couldn't get the rights
963
00:47:23,252 --> 00:47:24,305
to do the musical.
964
00:47:26,522 --> 00:47:27,775
- They just said no.
965
00:47:29,105 --> 00:47:30,819
And she said, ''Paramount told me
966
00:47:30,819 --> 00:47:32,729
''I had not renewed the rights.''
967
00:47:34,802 --> 00:47:37,475
And funny enough, there
never really were any rights.
968
00:47:38,342 --> 00:47:40,645
It was all kind of wishy-washy.
969
00:47:44,032 --> 00:47:46,002
I mean, I supposed I should
have been caring enough
970
00:47:46,002 --> 00:47:47,784
to say well, let's see the contracts,
971
00:47:48,102 --> 00:47:51,585
but you feel if she waves
a wand that it's safe.
972
00:47:52,685 --> 00:47:54,209
It was the end of the world.
973
00:47:55,282 --> 00:47:56,195
It all blew up.
974
00:47:58,622 --> 00:48:01,162
- Was it the thing that had her attention
975
00:48:01,162 --> 00:48:03,032
for a period of time?
976
00:48:03,032 --> 00:48:05,592
Yes, and when you had Gloria's attention,
977
00:48:05,592 --> 00:48:06,940
you had her attention.
978
00:48:09,092 --> 00:48:11,352
And she would be very much into
979
00:48:11,352 --> 00:48:13,225
making this into an actuality.
980
00:48:14,382 --> 00:48:18,345
But, she lived a multitude
of lives in those years.
981
00:48:19,350 --> 00:48:20,879
''WHAT'S THE ANSWER''
FROM BOULEVARD!
982
00:48:20,904 --> 00:48:23,015
♪ The lovely things that fate invents ♪
983
00:48:23,015 --> 00:48:26,392
♪ Have puzzled me before ♪
984
00:48:26,417 --> 00:48:27,817
I don't know how
much she would've
985
00:48:27,842 --> 00:48:29,443
thought about it
after it was over.
986
00:48:30,082 --> 00:48:33,526
If it didn't happen, she
was onto something else.
987
00:48:33,526 --> 00:48:37,222
♪ He walked in here without a warning ♪
988
00:48:37,222 --> 00:48:41,201
♪ Flashing his charming boyish grin ♪
989
00:48:41,201 --> 00:48:45,840
♪ And suddenly the twilight
seems bright as morning ♪
990
00:48:45,840 --> 00:48:49,257
♪ How did this all begin ♪
991
00:48:51,242 --> 00:48:53,965
- Dickson and I, we were hardly speaking.
992
00:48:55,012 --> 00:48:58,575
The laughter and the closeness
we'd had was all gone,
993
00:48:59,736 --> 00:49:03,809
and I said, ''Dickson, this
is separation and giving up
994
00:49:03,809 --> 00:49:08,214
''the collaboration, and
the whole thing is sunk.''
995
00:49:08,214 --> 00:49:12,013
♪ What's the answer ♪
996
00:49:12,013 --> 00:49:15,568
♪ I feel like falling ♪
997
00:49:15,568 --> 00:49:19,050
♪ But then my mind tells me ♪
998
00:49:19,050 --> 00:49:21,914
♪ I'll have to pay ♪
999
00:49:21,914 --> 00:49:25,116
♪ I know I should resist ♪
1000
00:49:25,116 --> 00:49:29,372
♪ But he's all I'm dreaming of ♪
1001
00:49:29,372 --> 00:49:33,836
♪ So what's the answer ♪
1002
00:49:33,836 --> 00:49:36,169
♪ It's love ♪
1003
00:49:41,762 --> 00:49:43,632
So did you lose contact then
1004
00:49:43,632 --> 00:49:46,455
with Hughes and with
Swanson in this period?
1005
00:49:47,482 --> 00:49:48,562
- Well, let's say...
1006
00:49:54,772 --> 00:49:56,835
This was the beginning of the bad times.
1007
00:49:58,322 --> 00:50:02,052
We're now at
cruising altitude, 35,000 feet.
1008
00:50:02,052 --> 00:50:04,632
Indications are that our
arrival at London Airport
1009
00:50:04,632 --> 00:50:05,905
may be ahead of schedule.
1010
00:50:08,112 --> 00:50:11,019
- I went back to England,
and I disappeared.
1011
00:50:16,372 --> 00:50:17,552
What am I doing now?
1012
00:50:17,552 --> 00:50:20,585
I haven't acted a film, my
agent doesn't know where I am.
1013
00:50:21,492 --> 00:50:25,182
I had to get back into my own
stratosphere, my own life,
1014
00:50:25,182 --> 00:50:28,315
my own career, I mean a lot
of damage was done to it.
1015
00:50:30,022 --> 00:50:32,584
And then, an extraordinary thing happened.
1016
00:50:33,008 --> 00:50:34,948
I was signed to do a leading part
1017
00:50:35,017 --> 00:50:38,187
in a television series,
''Man from Interpol.''
1018
00:50:38,212 --> 00:50:39,932
And this is a story
1019
00:50:39,932 --> 00:50:43,529
of the ''Man from Interpol.''
1020
00:50:44,492 --> 00:50:46,872
- I was really quite thrilled about it.
1021
00:50:46,872 --> 00:50:49,444
My name is Smith, I'm with Interpol.
1022
00:50:49,469 --> 00:50:50,819
Just try something
like that again
1023
00:50:50,844 --> 00:50:52,488
and I'll put a bullet
through your leg.
1024
00:50:52,513 --> 00:50:53,733
He's committed murder.
1025
00:50:54,122 --> 00:50:55,695
That's what I want him for.
1026
00:50:55,695 --> 00:50:57,672
I don't think I've ever had an assignment
1027
00:50:57,672 --> 00:50:59,205
I've wanted more to solve.
1028
00:50:59,205 --> 00:51:01,782
- And all of a sudden,
for the next 25 years,
1029
00:51:01,782 --> 00:51:04,485
he works consistently under
the name Richard Wyler.
1030
00:51:05,612 --> 00:51:08,725
And Richard Stapley ceases to exist.
1031
00:51:09,762 --> 00:51:11,519
He did a number of movies in Europe,
1032
00:51:11,842 --> 00:51:13,762
a lot of spaghetti westerns,
1033
00:51:13,762 --> 00:51:18,382
and he also became a
professional motorcycle driver,
1034
00:51:18,382 --> 00:51:20,002
and won championships.
1035
00:51:20,002 --> 00:51:22,082
Richard first
raced in the United States,
1036
00:51:22,082 --> 00:51:23,092
but the tracks of England
1037
00:51:23,092 --> 00:51:24,892
have seen most of his driving skills.
1038
00:51:24,892 --> 00:51:26,729
He'll be soon racing
off to the film studios
1039
00:51:26,729 --> 00:51:29,092
to outwit the international crooks.
1040
00:51:29,092 --> 00:51:30,422
But you'll agree with us, no doubt,
1041
00:51:30,422 --> 00:51:32,417
that no one can say of Richard Wyler,
1042
00:51:32,640 --> 00:51:34,456
''I bet he's a softy in real life.''
1043
00:51:35,195 --> 00:51:37,211
Now that the
guest on our show tonight
1044
00:51:37,211 --> 00:51:38,752
is somebody who struts your screens
1045
00:51:38,752 --> 00:51:41,151
as the man from Interpol,
Mr. Richard Wyler.
1046
00:51:47,539 --> 00:51:50,852
- I'm going to call Elizabeth Wyler.
1047
00:51:50,852 --> 00:51:55,022
She was married to Richard
for quite some time,
1048
00:51:55,022 --> 00:51:58,645
and I don't know really what
to expect out of this call.
1049
00:51:59,404 --> 00:52:01,240
NO MUTUAL CONTACTS
1050
00:52:01,631 --> 00:52:03,404
SAY HI
1051
00:52:04,912 --> 00:52:07,372
Hey Elizabeth, it's Jeffrey,
can you hear me okay?
1052
00:52:07,372 --> 00:52:09,402
Yeah, I heard that, I heard,
1053
00:52:09,402 --> 00:52:10,652
I can hear ya now.
1054
00:52:10,652 --> 00:52:12,522
You're crystal
clear right now, perfect.
1055
00:52:12,522 --> 00:52:13,552
Okay, yeah.
1056
00:52:13,552 --> 00:52:16,434
- If you have some time to talk with me,
I just have lots of questions.
1057
00:52:16,537 --> 00:52:19,349
I'll answer
as best I can, Jeffrey.
1058
00:52:19,404 --> 00:52:21,442
I'll just spill the beans.
1059
00:52:22,882 --> 00:52:24,793
Can we start
from the beginning?
1060
00:52:27,498 --> 00:52:29,401
After I came to England,
1061
00:52:29,426 --> 00:52:31,896
I decided I really liked it here,
1062
00:52:31,921 --> 00:52:33,474
and really wanted to live here.
1063
00:52:34,442 --> 00:52:36,250
I was in my early thirties,
1064
00:52:36,712 --> 00:52:38,985
and I thought, well
it's time to get married
1065
00:52:39,402 --> 00:52:40,752
so I could stay in England.
1066
00:52:41,962 --> 00:52:45,211
He was the only person I knew in London,
1067
00:52:45,472 --> 00:52:48,525
and so we decided to get married.
1068
00:52:49,722 --> 00:52:52,360
He was devastatingly attractive,
1069
00:52:52,736 --> 00:52:56,839
and I thought, uh-oh, this is dangerous.
1070
00:52:57,952 --> 00:53:00,662
He was gorgeous, and people were envious
1071
00:53:00,662 --> 00:53:02,252
of my handsome husband,
1072
00:53:02,252 --> 00:53:05,865
and so we lived quite
little glamorous lives.
1073
00:53:07,162 --> 00:53:10,755
I was going off with Richard
when he was making films.
1074
00:53:12,189 --> 00:53:14,609
I went to Rio with him when he made
1075
00:53:14,634 --> 00:53:16,461
the first one he made down there,
1076
00:53:16,499 --> 00:53:19,055
''Dick Smart,'' I think it was called.
1077
00:53:20,122 --> 00:53:24,742
The second film he made in
Brazil was ''The Girl from Rio.''
1078
00:53:24,742 --> 00:53:25,719
- Don't be nasty.
1079
00:53:25,744 --> 00:53:26,844
Daddy doesn't like it.
1080
00:53:26,853 --> 00:53:28,213
THE GIRL FROM RIO
1081
00:53:28,313 --> 00:53:30,662
It was
not a first rate movie
1082
00:53:30,662 --> 00:53:33,472
by any stretch of the imagination,
1083
00:53:33,472 --> 00:53:37,075
but in Rio, they vied for our company.
1084
00:53:38,032 --> 00:53:40,095
Down there, he was a movie star.
1085
00:53:41,182 --> 00:53:45,597
In the '70s, by this time
he was no spring chicken,
1086
00:53:46,072 --> 00:53:49,202
so he had bit parts.
1087
00:53:49,202 --> 00:53:51,617
One in an Alfred
Hitchcock movie,
1088
00:53:51,642 --> 00:53:52,642
FRENZY
1089
00:53:52,857 --> 00:53:54,520
And one in a Michael Winner movie.
1090
00:53:54,552 --> 00:53:55,579
SCORPIO
1091
00:53:55,612 --> 00:53:57,168
CONNECTING ROOMS
- Excuse me, please.
1092
00:53:57,193 --> 00:53:59,672
He could've
gone on working comfortably,
1093
00:53:59,672 --> 00:54:02,412
doing small roles,
1094
00:54:02,412 --> 00:54:05,224
and been okay, made a living.
1095
00:54:06,186 --> 00:54:08,741
But he didn't want to play bit parts.
1096
00:54:10,242 --> 00:54:11,955
They weren't good enough for him.
1097
00:54:13,542 --> 00:54:15,932
He just ended up, unfortunately,
1098
00:54:15,932 --> 00:54:20,485
in the place where youth and
good looks are so important,
1099
00:54:21,492 --> 00:54:25,125
when you become old, it doesn't
work out that way anymore.
1100
00:54:30,212 --> 00:54:33,885
He presented himself as a very macho man.
1101
00:54:33,931 --> 00:54:35,294
MAN FROM INTERPOL FINS A BRIDE
1102
00:54:35,318 --> 00:54:39,815
But, there was always Richard's
sexuality to consider.
1103
00:54:41,262 --> 00:54:43,055
Which was never discussed.
1104
00:54:44,172 --> 00:54:48,625
I'm a Scorpio, and we're very intuitive.
1105
00:54:49,922 --> 00:54:51,803
I didn't question Richard.
1106
00:54:52,352 --> 00:54:53,945
He knew that I knew.
1107
00:54:55,592 --> 00:54:58,452
There were a hell of a lot
of married gay men around,
1108
00:54:58,452 --> 00:55:00,263
as you must well know.
1109
00:55:01,278 --> 00:55:04,595
It was more of a friendship
than a deep love affair.
1110
00:55:06,522 --> 00:55:08,512
- Richard never confessed to having
1111
00:55:08,512 --> 00:55:13,495
a homosexual relationship with
anyone other than Dickson.
1112
00:55:15,282 --> 00:55:17,509
In fact, if one were to ask him,
1113
00:55:17,509 --> 00:55:18,952
''Are you gay, Richard?''
1114
00:55:18,952 --> 00:55:20,509
He would say, ''No.''
1115
00:55:21,692 --> 00:55:23,965
He had a way of reinventing himself.
1116
00:55:25,382 --> 00:55:29,062
He invented himself as this
no-name kid, Richard Stapley,
1117
00:55:29,062 --> 00:55:30,905
into Richard Stapley the actor.
1118
00:55:31,742 --> 00:55:34,725
He then reinvented Richard
Stapley into Richard Wyler,
1119
00:55:35,654 --> 00:55:37,872
and then he reinvented Richard Wyler
1120
00:55:37,872 --> 00:55:39,592
back into Richard Stapley.
1121
00:55:40,301 --> 00:55:42,028
His mind was able to compartmentalize that
1122
00:55:42,053 --> 00:55:43,659
and just put it away.
1123
00:55:45,432 --> 00:55:47,582
We had
some good times together
1124
00:55:47,582 --> 00:55:49,532
VOICE OF ELIZABETH WYLER
in the early days,
1125
00:55:49,532 --> 00:55:53,572
but the last few encounters with Richard
1126
00:55:53,572 --> 00:55:55,795
had not been that pleasant.
1127
00:55:56,752 --> 00:55:59,412
I couldn't go on like we were going on.
1128
00:55:59,967 --> 00:56:01,795
We weren't living together anymore,
1129
00:56:02,852 --> 00:56:06,678
and it was never a right,
that's it, we're finished.
1130
00:56:07,032 --> 00:56:09,289
I said, ''Richard, if you want a divorce,
1131
00:56:09,289 --> 00:56:12,097
''you just send me the
papers and I'll sign them.''
1132
00:56:12,582 --> 00:56:14,183
Nothing ever came of it,
1133
00:56:14,542 --> 00:56:16,955
so we never divorced.
1134
00:56:23,986 --> 00:56:25,519
- Hello?
- Hello, Dickson?
1135
00:56:25,582 --> 00:56:27,102
Oh, how are you?
1136
00:56:27,102 --> 00:56:29,062
Is this a good time
to chat for a little while?
1137
00:56:29,062 --> 00:56:30,032
Sure.
1138
00:56:30,032 --> 00:56:32,462
Is there anything
else that comes to mind
1139
00:56:32,462 --> 00:56:36,742
about Gloria Swanson, or about
your years working with her?
1140
00:56:36,742 --> 00:56:39,832
I realize I've pumped you absolutely dry
1141
00:56:39,832 --> 00:56:41,222
for every detail.
1142
00:56:41,222 --> 00:56:42,522
Yeah, of
course, because it was
1143
00:56:42,522 --> 00:56:44,267
such a major event in my life.
1144
00:56:44,267 --> 00:56:47,472
You know, I scarcely, I'm hardly
likely to forget anything.
1145
00:56:47,472 --> 00:56:51,302
Yes, what's the
next episode in this long saga?
1146
00:56:51,302 --> 00:56:53,062
Then came
the invitation for her
1147
00:56:53,062 --> 00:56:55,762
to do the song on ''The Steven Allen Show.''
1148
00:56:55,762 --> 00:56:58,862
I was living in Malibu at
the time, and she called me.
1149
00:56:58,862 --> 00:57:00,399
She said she was gonna do the song,
1150
00:57:00,399 --> 00:57:02,232
''Those Wonderful People
Out There in the Dark,''
1151
00:57:02,232 --> 00:57:04,172
and would I come to New York
1152
00:57:04,172 --> 00:57:07,362
and supervise the staging of the number?
1153
00:57:07,362 --> 00:57:09,202
And I said of course I will.
1154
00:57:09,202 --> 00:57:10,912
- And the story, as most
of you know, I suppose,
1155
00:57:10,912 --> 00:57:13,382
of Norma Desmond, the
great star of silent films
1156
00:57:13,382 --> 00:57:15,212
who tries to make a comeback,
1157
00:57:15,212 --> 00:57:16,772
and she is coached,
you remember the story,
1158
00:57:16,772 --> 00:57:19,525
by her former director,
Max, who's now her butler.
1159
00:57:20,441 --> 00:57:22,172
When we got
the number on its feet,
1160
00:57:22,172 --> 00:57:24,442
the actor that they had hired to play Max
1161
00:57:24,442 --> 00:57:27,112
was not getting the lines right,
1162
00:57:27,112 --> 00:57:29,972
and finally she, and again
movie star temperament,
1163
00:57:29,972 --> 00:57:30,975
said, ''Well, he's not getting it
1164
00:57:30,975 --> 00:57:32,779
''and Dickson knows all the lines,
1165
00:57:32,779 --> 00:57:35,432
''so why don't we just have
him do the lines off camera?''
1166
00:57:35,432 --> 00:57:37,452
So she had the guy fired,
1167
00:57:37,452 --> 00:57:39,632
so they had me play Max.
1168
00:57:39,632 --> 00:57:42,492
- Oh it's no use, Max, I loathe the scene.
1169
00:57:42,492 --> 00:57:44,365
It's too long, far too many words!
1170
00:57:45,312 --> 00:57:46,145
Here.
1171
00:57:46,145 --> 00:57:48,152
Now Norma, be reasonable.
1172
00:57:48,152 --> 00:57:50,512
You want to be back
there again, don't you?
1173
00:57:50,512 --> 00:57:52,146
- Of course I want to.
1174
00:57:52,146 --> 00:57:54,512
Well then, stop fighting it.
1175
00:57:54,512 --> 00:57:56,882
- Oh Max, it's all those words.
1176
00:57:56,882 --> 00:58:00,902
I used to be able to express
every expression with my face.
1177
00:58:01,935 --> 00:58:03,042
What did you do
1178
00:58:03,042 --> 00:58:05,992
with all the pages of music and lyrics?
1179
00:58:05,992 --> 00:58:06,892
What did I do with it?
1180
00:58:06,892 --> 00:58:10,022
I put it in a file folder and put it away.
1181
00:58:10,022 --> 00:58:12,475
I had to get on with
my life and my career.
1182
00:58:13,562 --> 00:58:15,252
After we did ''The Steve Allen Show,''
1183
00:58:15,252 --> 00:58:17,325
she suggested that I leave California
1184
00:58:17,325 --> 00:58:20,907
to come and relocate
to New York, so I did.
1185
00:58:21,290 --> 00:58:23,023
TONIGHT A MUSICAL CARNIVAL
1186
00:58:23,836 --> 00:58:26,886
♪ Let it be known, I'm a native ♪
1187
00:58:26,886 --> 00:58:29,622
♪ I found my home, I'm a native ♪
1188
00:58:29,622 --> 00:58:32,912
When I got to New York, I had various jobs
1189
00:58:32,912 --> 00:58:37,061
playing in various supper clubs
and hotel cocktails lounges.
1190
00:58:37,061 --> 00:58:41,062
♪ Stay close ♪
1191
00:58:41,062 --> 00:58:41,895
♪ Every moment ♪
1192
00:58:41,895 --> 00:58:45,219
I'd become music director for
a show called ''Talent 59,''
1193
00:58:46,246 --> 00:58:49,292
and that led to my whole
career as a musical conductor
1194
00:58:49,292 --> 00:58:52,363
for stock companies, and
touring companies, and so on.
1195
00:58:52,363 --> 00:58:54,672
♪ Stay close ♪
1196
00:58:54,672 --> 00:58:56,464
So I was busy.
1197
00:58:56,464 --> 00:58:58,881
♪ Stay close ♪
1198
00:58:59,892 --> 00:59:03,323
I stayed in New York until 1983.
1199
00:59:04,462 --> 00:59:06,982
By that time, New York had changed.
1200
00:59:06,982 --> 00:59:08,142
It was a much more abrasive place
1201
00:59:08,142 --> 00:59:10,992
than it had been when I first arrived.
1202
00:59:10,992 --> 00:59:12,782
I could not see myself getting to be
1203
00:59:12,782 --> 00:59:15,899
a really old person living
in that dreadful climate.
1204
00:59:16,382 --> 00:59:19,382
And so, I moved back to Los Angeles.
1205
00:59:20,262 --> 00:59:21,665
♪ That wonderful silence ♪
1206
00:59:21,735 --> 00:59:23,736
GLORIA SWANSON SINGS
''WONDERFUL PEOPLE''
1207
00:59:23,760 --> 00:59:27,576
♪ Comes over the sets ♪
1208
00:59:27,576 --> 00:59:31,153
♪ And there are those faces ♪
1209
00:59:31,153 --> 00:59:34,769
♪ I'll never forget ♪
1210
00:59:34,769 --> 00:59:36,522
She really
kept it alive in her head
1211
00:59:36,522 --> 00:59:38,445
and in her emotion.
1212
00:59:39,492 --> 00:59:41,883
She had the master copy,
1213
00:59:41,883 --> 00:59:44,192
and I know that she used to get it out
1214
00:59:44,192 --> 00:59:46,872
almost every time she
would have anybody over
1215
00:59:46,872 --> 00:59:50,672
for dinner or cocktails
to play it for them.
1216
00:59:50,672 --> 00:59:52,692
It's really
rather heartbreaking.
1217
00:59:52,692 --> 00:59:53,912
It never died for her.
1218
00:59:53,912 --> 00:59:56,055
That's right,
it never did, absolutely.
1219
00:59:58,672 --> 01:00:00,162
- There was a wonderful era
1220
01:00:00,162 --> 01:00:01,962
in the world of entertainment
1221
01:00:01,962 --> 01:00:06,762
before television, before
talkies, a magic world.
1222
01:00:06,762 --> 01:00:08,682
I'd love to have you enjoy it with me
1223
01:00:08,682 --> 01:00:11,325
as it comes again to life in my memory.
1224
01:00:12,282 --> 01:00:14,182
- Our very special guest star this evening
1225
01:00:14,182 --> 01:00:16,012
is Ms. Gloria Swanson.
1226
01:00:16,012 --> 01:00:18,328
- Here's a lovely lady,
Ms. Gloria Swanson.
1227
01:00:19,543 --> 01:00:22,132
- One thing about my grandma
that I loved so much,
1228
01:00:22,132 --> 01:00:25,782
she was always in the present,
always forward-thinking.
1229
01:00:25,782 --> 01:00:27,242
- The election is coming up, you know,
1230
01:00:27,242 --> 01:00:29,472
and really and truly this is important.
1231
01:00:29,472 --> 01:00:31,425
- She was just active.
1232
01:00:32,752 --> 01:00:37,322
She was able to move through life so well.
1233
01:00:37,322 --> 01:00:39,112
She was a wonderful role model.
1234
01:00:39,112 --> 01:00:41,225
- Today, now, this is all we have.
1235
01:00:41,225 --> 01:00:43,129
This is eternity.
1236
01:00:43,129 --> 01:00:46,592
- That curiosity, that spark in her,
1237
01:00:46,592 --> 01:00:48,612
her mind just never stopped.
1238
01:00:48,612 --> 01:00:50,962
- There is nothing
practically in a tin can
1239
01:00:50,962 --> 01:00:52,722
that doesn't have sugar in it.
1240
01:00:52,722 --> 01:00:56,202
- She was current on
absolutely everything.
1241
01:00:56,202 --> 01:00:58,623
- Ms. Swanson, what is the
secret of your eternal youth?
1242
01:00:58,678 --> 01:00:59,678
AIRPORT 1975
1243
01:00:59,832 --> 01:01:01,302
- Well, I just take natural food.
1244
01:01:01,302 --> 01:01:04,442
I will not have poison
food, I don't like it.
1245
01:01:04,442 --> 01:01:07,826
- And she was so gracious to her fans.
1246
01:01:08,282 --> 01:01:13,282
She was extremely
appreciative of her audience.
1247
01:01:13,302 --> 01:01:16,152
- I certainly am beholden to the public
1248
01:01:16,152 --> 01:01:19,138
who've given me a wonderful life.
1249
01:01:19,452 --> 01:01:20,802
I have no complaints,
1250
01:01:20,802 --> 01:01:23,364
and I don't understand why I'm so blessed.
1251
01:01:26,632 --> 01:01:28,459
Thank you, Gloria Swanson.
1252
01:01:28,862 --> 01:01:30,092
Goodbye, and lots of love
1253
01:01:30,092 --> 01:01:33,335
to all of you wonderful
people out there in the dark.
1254
01:01:34,672 --> 01:01:36,382
- Grandma was in the
hospital and was sick,
1255
01:01:36,382 --> 01:01:38,201
and almost at her end.
1256
01:01:40,480 --> 01:01:42,485
It was Easter Sunday night,
1257
01:01:43,842 --> 01:01:45,175
and Grandma was asleep.
1258
01:01:46,672 --> 01:01:48,119
She woke up and I said,
1259
01:01:48,144 --> 01:01:51,500
''Oh Grams, it's Brooke
and I'm here to see you.
1260
01:01:52,592 --> 01:01:55,490
And she said, ''I love you so much.''
1261
01:01:56,155 --> 01:01:58,618
And that was the last words she ever said.
1262
01:02:00,322 --> 01:02:03,615
I had that moment, and
it meant so much to me.
1263
01:02:07,227 --> 01:02:09,435
TEN YEARS LATER...
1264
01:02:11,263 --> 01:02:12,392
In London tonight,
1265
01:02:12,392 --> 01:02:14,439
Andrew Lloyd Weber's newest musical,
1266
01:02:14,439 --> 01:02:18,605
''Sunset Boulevard,'' premiered
to rapturous applause.
1267
01:02:18,630 --> 01:02:19,856
When it was first announced
1268
01:02:19,856 --> 01:02:22,202
that Lloyd Weber was gonna do this,
1269
01:02:22,202 --> 01:02:23,842
I thought, wait a minute!
1270
01:02:23,842 --> 01:02:25,537
GLENN CLOSE AS NORMA DESMOND
- I am big.
1271
01:02:25,562 --> 01:02:27,725
It's the pictures that got small!
1272
01:02:29,362 --> 01:02:31,722
I really didn't
want to see the show,
1273
01:02:31,722 --> 01:02:34,652
because I had been so
close to the property
1274
01:02:34,652 --> 01:02:36,642
for such a long time that to see
1275
01:02:36,642 --> 01:02:37,842
what somebody else had done
1276
01:02:37,842 --> 01:02:41,648
was just more than I was
prepared to cope with.
1277
01:02:41,648 --> 01:02:45,053
- The best new musical of 1995 goes to
1278
01:02:45,078 --> 01:02:46,358
1995 TONY AWARDS
1279
01:02:48,139 --> 01:02:49,203
''Sunset Boulevard.''
1280
01:02:51,932 --> 01:02:55,562
I don't want
to sound like a sore loser,
1281
01:02:55,562 --> 01:02:58,422
but I felt, oh well, just
one more disappointment
1282
01:02:58,422 --> 01:03:00,641
in this whole long saga.
1283
01:03:00,641 --> 01:03:03,283
♪ With one look ♪
1284
01:03:03,283 --> 01:03:06,506
♪ I can break your heart ♪
1285
01:03:07,009 --> 01:03:09,452
♪ With one look ♪
1286
01:03:09,477 --> 01:03:12,724
♪ I play every part ♪
1287
01:03:13,109 --> 01:03:14,862
- ''Sunset Boulevard'' was gonna be opening
1288
01:03:14,862 --> 01:03:18,290
at the Shubert in Los
Angeles with Glenn Close.
1289
01:03:18,742 --> 01:03:20,822
And the Times did a huge feature story
1290
01:03:20,822 --> 01:03:23,502
on Andrew Lloyd Weber,
and how brilliant he was
1291
01:03:23,502 --> 01:03:25,592
to come up with this idea,
1292
01:03:25,592 --> 01:03:28,067
as if nobody had ever
thought of it before.
1293
01:03:28,467 --> 01:03:31,000
''WITH ONE LOOK'' BY
ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER
1294
01:03:32,922 --> 01:03:35,482
So I wrote a short letter to the editor
1295
01:03:35,482 --> 01:03:37,012
saying that it had been done before,
1296
01:03:37,012 --> 01:03:40,482
that Gloria Swanson herself
had commissioned a version
1297
01:03:40,482 --> 01:03:42,524
with Dickson Hughes and Richard Stapley.
1298
01:03:42,989 --> 01:03:44,532
And they printed the letter,
1299
01:03:44,872 --> 01:03:48,142
and about a week or so
later I got a phone call
1300
01:03:48,142 --> 01:03:51,392
from Dickson Hughes, saying
that he had read my letter
1301
01:03:51,392 --> 01:03:53,805
and he'd called information
and got my number.
1302
01:03:54,172 --> 01:03:56,219
So we arranged to have lunch.
1303
01:03:56,797 --> 01:03:59,382
When I met Dickson, he
started telling me the story
1304
01:03:59,382 --> 01:04:02,452
about the triangle, and
how it all unfolded.
1305
01:04:02,452 --> 01:04:04,432
As Dickson was telling me all this,
1306
01:04:04,432 --> 01:04:06,329
a light bulb went off in my head.
1307
01:04:06,652 --> 01:04:07,842
I started thinking, gee,
1308
01:04:07,842 --> 01:04:09,946
maybe we could do something with this.
1309
01:04:10,242 --> 01:04:13,002
And I said to him, let's
make the real story
1310
01:04:13,002 --> 01:04:16,235
of he, and Gloria Swanson,
and Richard as a musical.
1311
01:04:16,642 --> 01:04:18,452
And we'll use the songs from the show,
1312
01:04:18,452 --> 01:04:20,633
and make it about the
writing of the musical.
1313
01:04:20,882 --> 01:04:23,375
The Andrew Lloyd Weber
version hadn't opened yet,
1314
01:04:23,572 --> 01:04:25,662
and I thought gee, wouldn't it be great
1315
01:04:25,662 --> 01:04:28,402
if we could get this version on first,
1316
01:04:28,402 --> 01:04:30,288
and beat the other one?
1317
01:04:30,313 --> 01:04:31,866
SWANSON ON SUNSET
A MUSICAL MEMOIR
1318
01:04:31,891 --> 01:04:32,974
BY DICKSON HUGHES
1319
01:04:33,232 --> 01:04:34,922
And I thought
that was such a great idea
1320
01:04:34,922 --> 01:04:36,669
that I went ahead and did it.
1321
01:04:36,669 --> 01:04:40,022
That was how we came to
produce ''Swanson on Sunset.''
1322
01:04:40,022 --> 01:04:44,705
- God smiled on us, and
beckoned us to play our parts.
1323
01:04:45,882 --> 01:04:48,995
I'm in Lucasville, Ohio
visiting my mother.
1324
01:04:49,933 --> 01:04:53,629
The phone was ringing when
I got there, it was Dickson.
1325
01:04:54,822 --> 01:04:56,529
He said, ''Remember when I mentioned
1326
01:04:56,529 --> 01:04:59,132
''Swanson on Sunset'' to you?
1327
01:04:59,132 --> 01:05:01,332
I think you could do that.
1328
01:05:01,332 --> 01:05:04,232
He said, ''I've got some money
now, and we're gonna start.''
1329
01:05:04,232 --> 01:05:07,052
It's going to be Norma Desmond's salary,
1330
01:05:07,052 --> 01:05:12,326
a Norma Desmond production
starring Norma Desmond!
1331
01:05:12,649 --> 01:05:15,339
I enjoyed doing it very, very much.
1332
01:05:15,372 --> 01:05:18,242
- Miss Swanson, this is Richard Stapley.
1333
01:05:18,242 --> 01:05:21,365
- The role was going to be
that of Richard Stapley.
1334
01:05:22,382 --> 01:05:23,762
I auditioned for it.
1335
01:05:23,762 --> 01:05:25,742
I waited for a call, I got a call,
1336
01:05:25,742 --> 01:05:29,010
and they said yeah, we'd
love to have ya in the show.
1337
01:05:29,010 --> 01:05:31,032
- Good evening, and welcome.
1338
01:05:31,032 --> 01:05:34,822
I performed in it playing
myself 30 years ago.
1339
01:05:34,822 --> 01:05:37,222
- He was obviously too
old to be playing himself,
1340
01:05:37,222 --> 01:05:39,042
but I thought since he's the real person,
1341
01:05:39,042 --> 01:05:40,542
that would justify it.
1342
01:05:40,542 --> 01:05:41,692
- How do you do mister-
1343
01:05:41,692 --> 01:05:43,402
- Hughes, Dickson Hughes.
1344
01:05:43,402 --> 01:05:45,032
- It was a little odd that Dickson
1345
01:05:45,032 --> 01:05:48,243
is probably pushing 60 at this point.
1346
01:05:48,692 --> 01:05:51,692
And this guy who's playing
his former boyfriend
1347
01:05:51,692 --> 01:05:54,252
is nowhere near his contemporary,
1348
01:05:54,252 --> 01:05:57,422
so it was sort of like a vanity production
1349
01:05:57,422 --> 01:05:59,742
of a vanity production
of a vanity production.
1350
01:05:59,742 --> 01:06:01,202
- Who could resist?
1351
01:06:01,202 --> 01:06:02,748
All they have to do is look at you.
1352
01:06:03,766 --> 01:06:05,513
To tell the truth, the
first time I saw you.
1353
01:06:05,862 --> 01:06:07,112
- There was an age difference there
1354
01:06:07,112 --> 01:06:08,763
when we played some of the scenes.
1355
01:06:09,072 --> 01:06:11,412
But, he really wanted to tell the story
1356
01:06:11,412 --> 01:06:15,309
from his own eyes,
voice, and vantage point.
1357
01:06:15,309 --> 01:06:17,857
- ''Sunset Boulevard'' as a musical?
1358
01:06:18,272 --> 01:06:19,558
Said it would never happen.
1359
01:06:22,842 --> 01:06:24,382
I wasn't in contact
1360
01:06:24,382 --> 01:06:26,082
with Stapley at all at this point.
1361
01:06:26,107 --> 01:06:27,127
VOICE OF DICKSON HUGHES
1362
01:06:27,152 --> 01:06:29,905
He just pulled away from our relationship.
1363
01:06:31,002 --> 01:06:32,625
He just withdrew,
1364
01:06:33,512 --> 01:06:37,142
and how many years,
it's been 25 or 30 years
1365
01:06:37,142 --> 01:06:38,542
I guess since I've seen him.
1366
01:06:40,642 --> 01:06:41,969
- I never thought about Richard.
1367
01:06:42,662 --> 01:06:44,312
He was like a name in the script.
1368
01:06:45,382 --> 01:06:47,932
It didn't occur to me that
there was a real person,
1369
01:06:48,982 --> 01:06:53,982
but on opening night at the
Cinegrill, he showed up.
1370
01:06:56,452 --> 01:06:58,422
He came storming in.
1371
01:06:58,692 --> 01:07:00,655
He was tearing into the place.
1372
01:07:01,682 --> 01:07:04,315
He felt that Dickson was
doing this behind his back.
1373
01:07:05,155 --> 01:07:06,022
And was he?
1374
01:07:06,022 --> 01:07:06,855
- Yeah.
1375
01:07:07,962 --> 01:07:10,625
- It was a very unpleasant confrontation.
1376
01:07:11,792 --> 01:07:13,912
I was really angered
1377
01:07:13,912 --> 01:07:15,915
that he didn't get in touch and tell me.
1378
01:07:17,198 --> 01:07:20,191
There was a relationship
between Dickson and I
1379
01:07:20,522 --> 01:07:21,832
which was unusual,
1380
01:07:21,832 --> 01:07:25,205
and came at an extraordinary
time in my life.
1381
01:07:26,802 --> 01:07:28,964
I'd always been a very private person,
1382
01:07:29,066 --> 01:07:31,425
and then suddenly the truth came out.
1383
01:07:32,452 --> 01:07:34,998
I was just mad, I was ready to sue.
1384
01:07:35,602 --> 01:07:37,102
And I said, well that has to go,
1385
01:07:37,102 --> 01:07:39,045
that has to go, that has to go.
1386
01:07:39,045 --> 01:07:40,262
- How did that happen?
1387
01:07:40,262 --> 01:07:43,042
Wasn't he married when you first met?
1388
01:07:43,305 --> 01:07:46,183
- Yes, it's a long story.
1389
01:07:46,582 --> 01:07:50,042
- His entire life is
now being put out there
1390
01:07:50,042 --> 01:07:52,982
on public display, including the fact
1391
01:07:52,982 --> 01:07:56,089
that he was involved
in a gay relationship.
1392
01:07:57,962 --> 01:08:00,612
He comes from an era where
you don't talk about that,
1393
01:08:01,892 --> 01:08:06,892
and to acknowledge that
he has affections for men
1394
01:08:06,952 --> 01:08:10,969
would destroy his entire public persona
1395
01:08:10,969 --> 01:08:13,175
and the only way he
knows how to make money.
1396
01:08:15,782 --> 01:08:17,372
When a relationship ends,
1397
01:08:17,372 --> 01:08:20,115
and it ends contentiously,
as this one did,
1398
01:08:20,582 --> 01:08:23,342
there's anger, and a lot of hurt feelings,
1399
01:08:23,752 --> 01:08:28,275
and because of this show,
they were forced to reconcile.
1400
01:08:29,252 --> 01:08:31,472
And they were able to
reconcile to the point
1401
01:08:31,472 --> 01:08:33,693
where they could sit down and talk,
1402
01:08:33,942 --> 01:08:36,342
and put the show together in a way
1403
01:08:36,342 --> 01:08:37,862
that both of them felt comfortable,
1404
01:08:37,862 --> 01:08:41,792
and felt like it was a true
representation of what happened.
1405
01:08:41,792 --> 01:08:44,285
- Now you're changing the
title to ''Swanson on Sunset.''
1406
01:08:44,310 --> 01:08:45,865
Is that what you're calling it now?
1407
01:08:45,865 --> 01:08:48,165
- This is Dickson Hughes
getting his own back.
1408
01:08:50,753 --> 01:08:51,870
- It was at the Cinegrill.
1409
01:08:51,895 --> 01:08:53,322
SWANSON ON SUNSET
A MUSICAL MEMOIR
1410
01:08:53,347 --> 01:08:55,007
Wonderful supper club, cabaret room,
1411
01:08:55,007 --> 01:08:56,392
right in the heart of Hollywood,
1412
01:08:56,392 --> 01:08:57,992
across from the Chinese Theatre.
1413
01:08:59,992 --> 01:09:01,855
We had like a three or four week run.
1414
01:09:02,852 --> 01:09:06,465
There were a few reviews
that were not that strong.
1415
01:09:08,602 --> 01:09:10,985
So the audiences were kinda weak.
1416
01:09:12,082 --> 01:09:14,432
- There was talk of recasting.
1417
01:09:14,432 --> 01:09:17,355
Recasting Dickson, maybe recasting me.
1418
01:09:18,852 --> 01:09:20,865
There were names that were bantered about.
1419
01:09:21,332 --> 01:09:22,951
Faye Dunaway was one of 'em.
1420
01:09:23,462 --> 01:09:25,498
- We tried to get a star.
1421
01:09:25,962 --> 01:09:29,576
I went to every older
actress that I could get to,
1422
01:09:29,959 --> 01:09:31,886
but everybody turned me down.
1423
01:09:31,911 --> 01:09:38,185
- And that, my dear Dickson,
I'm sorry to say, is that.
1424
01:09:39,562 --> 01:09:41,772
- I know that he wanted
''Swanson on Sunset''
1425
01:09:41,772 --> 01:09:42,925
to be successful,
1426
01:09:43,782 --> 01:09:46,382
and I know he was very
disappointed when it was not.
1427
01:09:47,582 --> 01:09:50,443
There was just no money
to go on and do any more,
1428
01:09:51,292 --> 01:09:52,365
so that was it.
1429
01:09:56,855 --> 01:10:00,852
- It's 2003, and I'm
living in West Hollywood,
1430
01:10:00,852 --> 01:10:02,659
just off Melrose Place,
1431
01:10:02,922 --> 01:10:04,941
and working as a screenwriter,
1432
01:10:05,129 --> 01:10:07,949
and so I'm home most of the time.
1433
01:10:08,192 --> 01:10:09,964
And I noticed this
1434
01:10:09,989 --> 01:10:12,232
click click clickety clack
of a typewriter next door,
1435
01:10:12,257 --> 01:10:13,257
SCREENWRITER
1436
01:10:13,282 --> 01:10:14,685
and I love the sound.
1437
01:10:15,852 --> 01:10:18,569
And I kept peering next
door to see who it was.
1438
01:10:21,460 --> 01:10:23,082
You know, a couple weeks go by,
1439
01:10:23,082 --> 01:10:25,432
and then I finally saw
this elderly gentleman
1440
01:10:25,432 --> 01:10:27,492
come out a couple times.
1441
01:10:27,492 --> 01:10:29,612
And finally, I knock on the door,
1442
01:10:29,612 --> 01:10:33,969
and I said to him, ''Hi, I'm
Barbara, I live right there,
1443
01:10:33,969 --> 01:10:35,879
and I really love listening
1444
01:10:35,879 --> 01:10:37,584
to the sound of the typewriter.''
1445
01:10:38,282 --> 01:10:41,255
He started laughing, and then
invited me in for a drink,
1446
01:10:42,162 --> 01:10:44,265
and the friendship started from there.
1447
01:10:46,352 --> 01:10:48,295
- Richard was a very hard worker,
1448
01:10:48,800 --> 01:10:50,832
and when I knew him in his later years,
1449
01:10:50,832 --> 01:10:54,645
he was very busy writing
books and screenplays.
1450
01:10:55,506 --> 01:10:56,981
He was always trying to make it.
1451
01:10:57,006 --> 01:10:59,085
He never kind of gave
up trying to make it.
1452
01:11:01,292 --> 01:11:03,782
- He felt like he had a lot more to say,
1453
01:11:03,782 --> 01:11:05,075
and a lot more to give.
1454
01:11:06,012 --> 01:11:08,612
And that's why he was always
working on his stories.
1455
01:11:09,682 --> 01:11:13,815
He felt like his star had
waned dramatically, and it had,
1456
01:11:14,662 --> 01:11:17,852
and he really felt like he
needed to redeem himself,
1457
01:11:17,852 --> 01:11:21,325
and leave that perfect legacy
of hey, this is what I've got.
1458
01:11:21,350 --> 01:11:23,390
TO SLIP and FALL IN LA
A MEMOIR BY RICHARD STANLEY
1459
01:11:23,415 --> 01:11:25,862
- By the time he wrote his autobiography,
1460
01:11:25,862 --> 01:11:27,322
I think he had come to terms
1461
01:11:27,322 --> 01:11:30,132
with who he was, and his identity.
1462
01:11:30,132 --> 01:11:31,844
- Richard.
- Richard?
1463
01:11:31,844 --> 01:11:32,992
- Stapley.
1464
01:11:32,992 --> 01:11:35,342
- Well, he told me a lot
of his other escapades,
1465
01:11:35,342 --> 01:11:36,875
but he never mentioned men.
1466
01:11:38,532 --> 01:11:39,882
- There was an individual
1467
01:11:39,882 --> 01:11:42,711
who was complicated like
anybody in the arts.
1468
01:11:43,152 --> 01:11:46,562
It was fascinating when
I did my work on Gloria,
1469
01:11:46,562 --> 01:11:48,492
because in her archives
1470
01:11:48,492 --> 01:11:51,622
held at the Harry Ransom
Center in Austin, Texas,
1471
01:11:51,622 --> 01:11:55,180
I found letters between the two men.
1472
01:11:55,562 --> 01:11:58,542
And you can tell in Richard's writing
1473
01:11:58,542 --> 01:12:01,735
that Richard was deeply
in love with Dickson.
1474
01:12:03,442 --> 01:12:06,692
Dearest Dickson,
I see at one and the same time
1475
01:12:06,692 --> 01:12:09,052
my first sight of the United States,
1476
01:12:09,052 --> 01:12:11,852
and the very road we used to
take so often to the beach.
1477
01:12:13,202 --> 01:12:16,385
Little did I know, I'd be
driving along it so frequently.
1478
01:12:17,282 --> 01:12:19,272
I remember as if it were yesterday,
1479
01:12:19,272 --> 01:12:21,322
and I said I love you for the first time.
1480
01:12:22,452 --> 01:12:24,835
They were, and are tender, sweet things.
1481
01:12:25,962 --> 01:12:26,875
I do miss you.
1482
01:12:27,862 --> 01:12:29,952
I remember the Christmas at the beach,
1483
01:12:29,952 --> 01:12:32,435
when we were so poor,
yet so rich in spirit.
1484
01:12:33,452 --> 01:12:36,842
It isn't so much a morbid
remembrance of things past,
1485
01:12:36,842 --> 01:12:39,855
as a sadness of the
frailty of human nature.
1486
01:12:41,462 --> 01:12:44,185
I wish we hadn't drifted
so far away, Dick.
1487
01:12:44,742 --> 01:12:46,305
Always, Richard.
1488
01:12:50,252 --> 01:12:52,990
- He was a very sophisticated gentleman.
1489
01:12:53,342 --> 01:12:57,068
He'd been there and back,
and everybody loved him.
1490
01:12:57,652 --> 01:12:59,872
He was always on top of things,
1491
01:12:59,872 --> 01:13:02,408
looking forward to the next project.
1492
01:13:02,408 --> 01:13:05,630
♪ Happy days are here again ♪
1493
01:13:05,630 --> 01:13:08,932
♪ Those skies above are clear again ♪
1494
01:13:09,381 --> 01:13:11,522
- Dickson always had gigs.
1495
01:13:11,522 --> 01:13:14,055
People hired him for
weddings, and parties.
1496
01:13:15,632 --> 01:13:19,095
He had students, and I was one of 'em.
1497
01:13:20,452 --> 01:13:21,808
Dickson was humble.
1498
01:13:22,332 --> 01:13:24,242
He was very kind of cool and laid back,
1499
01:13:24,242 --> 01:13:25,795
and he let other people shine.
1500
01:13:26,342 --> 01:13:27,778
DICKSON HUGHES
SINGS AND PLAYS!
1501
01:13:27,802 --> 01:13:29,932
He had that little studio
apartment up the hill,
1502
01:13:29,932 --> 01:13:31,645
I think it was under rent control.
1503
01:13:32,502 --> 01:13:35,702
He had his nice Cadillac
he always took care of,
1504
01:13:35,702 --> 01:13:37,566
and he always managed.
1505
01:13:40,562 --> 01:13:42,472
Then he got that good, steady job
1506
01:13:42,472 --> 01:13:44,605
at the Ritz-Carlton in Pasadena.
1507
01:13:46,002 --> 01:13:47,454
He'd wear his tuxedo.
1508
01:13:47,842 --> 01:13:50,565
He always looked perfect
for whatever he had to do.
1509
01:13:51,542 --> 01:13:53,882
- Not only was he a passionate person,
1510
01:13:53,882 --> 01:13:56,350
but he was a very spiritual person.
1511
01:13:59,862 --> 01:14:03,722
He was constantly working with people
1512
01:14:03,722 --> 01:14:05,505
on an empathetic level.
1513
01:14:06,922 --> 01:14:09,492
- Marianne Williamson,
she lectures on a book
1514
01:14:09,492 --> 01:14:11,582
called ''A Course in Miracles.''
1515
01:14:11,582 --> 01:14:15,862
Dickson read that book, it
was dog-eared next to his bed.
1516
01:14:15,862 --> 01:14:18,265
He knew it chapter and
verse, and he lived it.
1517
01:14:21,292 --> 01:14:23,112
He was one of the very first people
1518
01:14:23,112 --> 01:14:25,942
that would go to study
with Marianne Williamson,
1519
01:14:25,942 --> 01:14:27,855
long before she became famous.
1520
01:14:28,762 --> 01:14:31,302
She started Project Angel Food
1521
01:14:31,302 --> 01:14:33,742
at the height of the AIDS crisis.
1522
01:14:33,742 --> 01:14:36,015
It supplied one hot meal a day to people
1523
01:14:36,015 --> 01:14:38,568
that had life-challenging illnesses.
1524
01:14:39,042 --> 01:14:40,522
The first fundraiser they ever had
1525
01:14:40,522 --> 01:14:42,962
was in her apartment in West Hollywood,
1526
01:14:42,962 --> 01:14:44,922
and Dickson played piano for her.
1527
01:14:44,922 --> 01:14:46,662
- This is really a super evening,
1528
01:14:46,662 --> 01:14:48,679
and I'm honored to be here.
1529
01:14:49,932 --> 01:14:54,015
- I don't think it all
was happy ever after.
1530
01:14:55,092 --> 01:14:57,643
He just got older, and he got weaker.
1531
01:15:01,182 --> 01:15:03,582
- Dickson was in a nursing
home in Palm Springs.
1532
01:15:04,482 --> 01:15:06,425
He was battling Alzheimer's.
1533
01:15:08,892 --> 01:15:10,852
VOICE OF ELIZABETH WYLER
Richard never discussed
1534
01:15:10,852 --> 01:15:12,492
Dickson Hughes with me.
1535
01:15:12,492 --> 01:15:14,165
I never discussed it with him.
1536
01:15:15,302 --> 01:15:20,002
But then Richard said that
he and Dickson Hughes,
1537
01:15:20,002 --> 01:15:22,402
at the last few years of his life,
1538
01:15:22,402 --> 01:15:24,545
they saw a lot of one another.
1539
01:15:26,036 --> 01:15:29,026
- Stapley was there, and
he put Dickson on the phone
1540
01:15:29,222 --> 01:15:30,435
to say hello to me.
1541
01:15:34,054 --> 01:15:35,872
And I said hello to him,
1542
01:15:35,872 --> 01:15:39,132
but I'm not sure that Dickson
1543
01:15:39,132 --> 01:15:41,335
was sure sometimes who he was talking to.
1544
01:15:42,652 --> 01:15:44,449
- Dickson said to me, he said,
1545
01:15:44,449 --> 01:15:46,669
''Death came from the
hand of the same creator
1546
01:15:46,669 --> 01:15:47,904
that gave you life.''
1547
01:15:48,602 --> 01:15:51,692
Birth, life, death, so it can't be bad.
1548
01:15:51,717 --> 01:15:52,988
Death can't be bad.
1549
01:15:53,900 --> 01:15:57,687
''WHEN YOU LOVE'' FROM BOULEVARD!
♪ When you love ♪
1550
01:15:57,687 --> 01:16:01,749
♪ And truly love ♪
1551
01:16:01,749 --> 01:16:06,309
♪ You'll never ♪
1552
01:16:06,309 --> 01:16:08,892
♪ Ask for more ♪
1553
01:16:23,282 --> 01:16:26,595
- Richard Stapley was not
having an easy time of it.
1554
01:16:27,802 --> 01:16:30,972
He was not being sought after,
1555
01:16:30,972 --> 01:16:32,585
and he couldn't get an agent.
1556
01:16:33,972 --> 01:16:37,942
- He got a motorcycle, and
he was delivering scripts
1557
01:16:37,942 --> 01:16:40,542
to the studios as a messenger.
1558
01:16:40,542 --> 01:16:43,282
And for a little while, he had
this little business going,
1559
01:16:43,282 --> 01:16:46,665
but it didn't last, and
pretty soon that era changed.
1560
01:16:48,852 --> 01:16:51,565
- He had not prepared for
the latter part of his life,
1561
01:16:52,882 --> 01:16:56,490
and he found himself
getting deeper into debt,
1562
01:16:57,002 --> 01:17:00,026
and having a difficult time surviving.
1563
01:17:01,722 --> 01:17:05,922
- He was writing a screenplay
that he felt very strongly
1564
01:17:05,922 --> 01:17:08,492
would be a real blockbuster.
1565
01:17:08,492 --> 01:17:10,422
He wrote almost every day,
1566
01:17:10,422 --> 01:17:13,084
but we just never got anywhere with it,
1567
01:17:13,652 --> 01:17:17,852
so it was a very frustrating
and difficult time for him.
1568
01:17:17,852 --> 01:17:19,555
- Hello, Richard.
- Well, hello.
1569
01:17:19,580 --> 01:17:21,245
- How are you today?
- Oh I'm all right.
1570
01:17:21,245 --> 01:17:23,262
- But, he was a fighter.
1571
01:17:23,262 --> 01:17:26,919
He kept saying, ''Tomorrow
it's gonna get better.
1572
01:17:26,919 --> 01:17:29,742
''Tomorrow something good's
gonna happen for me.''
1573
01:17:29,742 --> 01:17:32,430
- The biggest thing is never to give up.
1574
01:17:32,862 --> 01:17:34,882
- I guess we all believed in him,
1575
01:17:34,882 --> 01:17:37,679
and didn't like to see him
in the situation he was in,
1576
01:17:37,679 --> 01:17:40,695
and so we tried to do
what we could to help.
1577
01:17:42,922 --> 01:17:46,586
But, I was pretty sure
that it was a lost cause
1578
01:17:46,942 --> 01:17:49,125
because he was living in another time.
1579
01:17:50,382 --> 01:17:54,662
- I felt like I had done
what a friend should do,
1580
01:17:54,662 --> 01:17:57,042
in being realistic with him
1581
01:17:57,042 --> 01:18:01,645
about his options as an
older man with no money.
1582
01:18:03,302 --> 01:18:07,079
And that's when I suggested
that we do these autograph shows
1583
01:18:07,662 --> 01:18:10,322
filled with old movie stars,
1584
01:18:10,322 --> 01:18:13,602
and people that never
quite became movie stars.
1585
01:18:14,062 --> 01:18:16,242
You're sitting there with a
bunch of photographs of you
1586
01:18:16,242 --> 01:18:18,632
40 years ago, and the people look at them
1587
01:18:18,632 --> 01:18:20,282
and they look up, is this you?
1588
01:18:20,282 --> 01:18:21,749
- Richard Stapley.
- Oh, okay.
1589
01:18:21,749 --> 01:18:23,429
And Richard Wyler.
- Yeah.
1590
01:18:23,895 --> 01:18:27,592
- The only reason they're
interested is what you used to be.
1591
01:18:27,592 --> 01:18:29,012
- I'd like to play a very good part
1592
01:18:29,012 --> 01:18:31,619
in ''Desperate Housewives.''
1593
01:18:31,619 --> 01:18:33,535
''Desperate Housewives?''
- Yes.
1594
01:18:33,560 --> 01:18:35,515
Like a desperate guy
on ''Desperate Housewives?''
1595
01:18:35,515 --> 01:18:36,665
- A desperate guy, yes.
1596
01:18:39,732 --> 01:18:42,432
- He finally had to come to terms
1597
01:18:42,432 --> 01:18:45,485
with not being the person
that he was on the screen.
1598
01:18:46,612 --> 01:18:48,642
It was an amazing moment
1599
01:18:48,642 --> 01:18:51,872
to confront his career as it really was.
1600
01:18:51,872 --> 01:18:54,219
'Cause we couldn't lie
about it at that point.
1601
01:18:54,982 --> 01:18:56,682
I had to just say, well it's over.
1602
01:18:59,172 --> 01:19:02,762
- As his financial situation
continued to decline,
1603
01:19:02,762 --> 01:19:05,092
the status of the places
where he was living
1604
01:19:05,092 --> 01:19:07,275
declined in like measure.
1605
01:19:08,452 --> 01:19:12,562
He was living in a fairly rundown motel
1606
01:19:12,562 --> 01:19:15,505
on a very bad street in Palm Springs.
1607
01:19:17,132 --> 01:19:18,982
He has no money,
1608
01:19:18,982 --> 01:19:23,172
he's threatened with eviction
almost on a daily basis,
1609
01:19:23,172 --> 01:19:27,060
and essentially begging for
anyone to give him sustenance.
1610
01:19:27,652 --> 01:19:31,892
And he was growing wildly
despondent by the end.
1611
01:19:31,892 --> 01:19:33,452
- Yesterday was a very difficult day,
1612
01:19:33,452 --> 01:19:37,428
and let me know how can
I start out of this?
1613
01:19:37,882 --> 01:19:39,892
- He also was not feeling well,
1614
01:19:39,892 --> 01:19:42,735
and I think he knew that he had cancer.
1615
01:19:43,972 --> 01:19:45,972
And I think he did not want to admit it,
1616
01:19:46,892 --> 01:19:49,872
and so the last few months of his life,
1617
01:19:49,872 --> 01:19:51,972
he spent all his days writing
1618
01:19:51,972 --> 01:19:54,032
because he had things in his head
1619
01:19:54,032 --> 01:19:55,448
and he wanted to get them out.
1620
01:19:57,022 --> 01:19:58,925
And so he was writing constantly,
1621
01:19:59,832 --> 01:20:02,745
until he simply could not go on anymore,
1622
01:20:03,762 --> 01:20:06,262
and the unwellness just
became overwhelming
1623
01:20:06,262 --> 01:20:09,262
and he had to go to the hospital
and ultimately passed away.
1624
01:20:10,942 --> 01:20:14,525
- I went there about
two weeks after he died,
1625
01:20:15,382 --> 01:20:20,382
and one of the nurses told me
that he was sitting in bed,
1626
01:20:20,702 --> 01:20:23,932
and ''Sunset Boulevard'' was on television,
1627
01:20:23,932 --> 01:20:26,066
two nights before he died.
1628
01:20:26,512 --> 01:20:27,462
And he was looking up there,
1629
01:20:27,462 --> 01:20:30,115
and the nurse comes in to take his vitals,
1630
01:20:31,062 --> 01:20:34,206
and he says, ''You see that
woman, Gloria Swanson?
1631
01:20:34,659 --> 01:20:38,644
''She was so in love with
me, you couldn't imagine.
1632
01:20:39,029 --> 01:20:40,869
''I was the love of her life.''
1633
01:20:45,091 --> 01:20:47,253
So if I hadn't
come along and contacted you,
1634
01:20:47,402 --> 01:20:49,325
what would've happened to this story?
1635
01:20:50,322 --> 01:20:52,365
- You know, maybe nothing.
1636
01:20:53,352 --> 01:20:57,462
Somebody had to come and knock
on the door and say, hey,
1637
01:20:57,462 --> 01:20:58,462
this is interesting.
1638
01:20:59,772 --> 01:21:02,482
But if you hadn't done it,
and if nobody else would've,
1639
01:21:02,482 --> 01:21:04,652
then it would all sit in a box,
1640
01:21:04,652 --> 01:21:07,475
and to get left behind, that's sad.
1641
01:21:09,312 --> 01:21:11,742
Richard would be very
pleased with this film
1642
01:21:11,742 --> 01:21:13,568
that he's being remembered.
1643
01:21:14,252 --> 01:21:16,752
And I think Dickson would be very pleased
1644
01:21:16,752 --> 01:21:18,562
that his story's being remembered,
1645
01:21:18,562 --> 01:21:21,012
that his music is being remembered.
1646
01:21:21,012 --> 01:21:24,092
And I'm sure Gloria
would be pleased to know
1647
01:21:24,092 --> 01:21:25,835
that her legend lives on.
1648
01:21:26,762 --> 01:21:29,392
At the end of the day, I
think that's all we want
1649
01:21:29,392 --> 01:21:30,642
is just to be remembered.
1650
01:21:33,105 --> 01:21:35,021
- At the age of 80,
1651
01:21:35,402 --> 01:21:38,419
Gloria Swanson wrote ''Swanson on Swanson.''
1652
01:21:39,592 --> 01:21:41,772
It truly is one of the best,
1653
01:21:41,772 --> 01:21:45,632
most candid autobiographies ever written.
1654
01:21:45,632 --> 01:21:50,632
But, she did not write about
the ''Sunset Boulevard'' musical.
1655
01:21:52,202 --> 01:21:56,029
Gloria was always keen to
talk about her triumphs,
1656
01:21:56,552 --> 01:21:58,762
but this was a failure,
1657
01:21:58,762 --> 01:22:01,875
and Gloria never acknowledged failures.
1658
01:22:02,942 --> 01:22:05,705
- I'm wondering why that
was sort of left out.
1659
01:22:07,092 --> 01:22:08,592
I think she put it behind her.
1660
01:22:09,442 --> 01:22:12,742
She never seemed to live in any regret.
1661
01:22:12,742 --> 01:22:15,022
She did not live in the past.
1662
01:22:15,022 --> 01:22:17,882
She just kept living
her life the way it was.
1663
01:22:17,882 --> 01:22:19,622
The opposite of Norma Desmond.
1664
01:22:19,622 --> 01:22:22,252
- The opposite of Norma Desmond, yes.
1665
01:22:23,100 --> 01:22:26,641
♪ However they flatter ♪
1666
01:22:26,641 --> 01:22:30,299
BOULEVARD A NEW MUSICAL PLAY
♪ I'll still be where ♪
1667
01:22:30,299 --> 01:22:34,119
♪ The people who matter ♪
1668
01:22:34,119 --> 01:22:37,719
♪ The people who care ♪
1669
01:22:37,719 --> 01:22:42,719
♪ Are the ones who silently give me ♪
1670
01:22:43,521 --> 01:22:48,521
♪ That magical spark ♪
1671
01:22:49,180 --> 01:22:54,180
♪ Those wonderful people ♪
1672
01:22:54,519 --> 01:22:57,297
♪ Out there ♪
1673
01:22:57,297 --> 01:22:59,797
♪ In the dark ♪
1674
01:23:26,824 --> 01:23:30,664
♪ The lovely things that fate invents ♪
1675
01:23:30,664 --> 01:23:34,344
♪ Have puzzled me before ♪
1676
01:23:34,344 --> 01:23:37,842
♪ I've had my share of incidents ♪
1677
01:23:37,842 --> 01:23:41,203
♪ I just want something more ♪
1678
01:23:41,203 --> 01:23:45,006
♪ He walked in here without a warning ♪
1679
01:23:45,006 --> 01:23:48,862
♪ Flashing his charming boyish grin ♪
1680
01:23:48,862 --> 01:23:53,422
♪ And suddenly the twilight
seems bright as morning ♪
1681
01:23:53,422 --> 01:23:57,864
♪ How did this all begin ♪
1682
01:23:57,864 --> 01:24:00,766
♪ What's the answer ♪
1683
01:24:00,766 --> 01:24:04,158
♪ When love comes calling ♪
1684
01:24:04,158 --> 01:24:09,158
♪ Should count or might
point out the play ♪
1685
01:24:10,606 --> 01:24:13,966
♪ My heart's a dancer ♪
1686
01:24:13,966 --> 01:24:17,326
♪ And changeable it's true ♪
1687
01:24:17,326 --> 01:24:22,326
♪ And oh, the things it's led me to ♪
1688
01:24:24,381 --> 01:24:26,761
♪ What's the answer ♪
1689
01:24:26,761 --> 01:24:29,923
♪ I feel like falling ♪
1690
01:24:29,923 --> 01:24:33,100
♪ And then my mind tells me ♪
1691
01:24:33,100 --> 01:24:36,622
♪ I'll have to pay ♪
1692
01:24:36,622 --> 01:24:39,338
♪ But how can I resist ♪
1693
01:24:39,338 --> 01:24:43,502
♪ What my heart's been dreaming of ♪
1694
01:24:43,502 --> 01:24:46,862
♪ So what's the answer ♪
1695
01:24:46,862 --> 01:24:50,206
♪ It's love ♪
1696
01:24:50,206 --> 01:24:53,166
♪ What's the answer ♪
1697
01:24:53,166 --> 01:24:56,446
♪ I feel like falling ♪
1698
01:24:56,446 --> 01:24:59,702
♪ And then my mind tells me ♪
1699
01:24:59,702 --> 01:25:03,044
♪ I'll have to pay ♪
1700
01:25:03,044 --> 01:25:05,763
♪ But how can I resist ♪
1701
01:25:05,763 --> 01:25:10,061
♪ What my heart's been dreaming of ♪
1702
01:25:10,061 --> 01:25:14,904
♪ So what's the answer ♪
1703
01:25:14,904 --> 01:25:17,237
♪ It's love ♪