Broderick Crawford, Judy Holiday, and William Holden in “Born Yesterday”

Born Yesterday (1950) is an American comedy directed by George Cukor and starring Broderick Crawford, Judy Holiday, and William Holden. Holiday recreated her role as Billie Dawn which she played on Broadway. Crawford replaced Paul Douglas who played opposite Holiday as Harry Brock and Holden replaced Gary Merrill who played Paul Verrall, both of whom created their respective roles on Broadway.

The film concerns Billie Dawn (Holiday), an uneducated woman involved with an older business tycoon Harry Brock (Crawford) who is in Washington to try and “buy” a congressman. Because Billie is uneducated, Harry hires Paul Verrall (Holden), a journalist, to educate her. During her “education,” she realized that Harry was a corrupt businessman. Due to Paul opening her eyes to a whole new world, Billie falls in love with him.

Judy Holiday, Broderick Crawford, and William Holden

George Cukor (1899 – 1983) was an American director. He was famous for directing comedies and literary adaptations of classics like Little Women (1933) and David Copperfield (1935). He was famously fired from directing Gone with the Wind (1939), but that incident didn’t mar an impressive directorial career that included The Philadelphia Story (1940), Gaslight (1944), and Born Yesterday (1950). Cukor won an Academy Award as Best Director for My Fair Lady (1964).

Broderick Crawford (1911 – 1986) was an American stage, film, radio, and television actor. Born in Philadelphia to a show business family, Crawford acted with his parents on stage and then established himself as a talent on his own by winning acclaim as Lenny in the original Broadway production of Of Mice and Men in 1937. He later moved to Hollywood and began acting in small roles and bit parts throughout the 1940s. He finally got his chance at stardom in All the King’s Men (1949), the film version of Robert Penn Warren’s award-winning novel. The film was a big hit and Crawford won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance as Willie Stark. Now a star, Crawford starred in more prestigious productions including Born Yesterday (1950) receiving top-billing over co-stars Judy Holiday and William Holden. Crawford became a television icon as Dan Matthews in the police dram Highway Patrol (1955 – 1959.) 

Judy Holiday (1921 – 1965) was an American actress, comedian, and singer. She started out in show business playing nightclubs before making her way to Broadway. Her role as Billie Dawn in Born Yesterday in 1946 made her an “overnight” sensation. When she recreated the role for the film version, she won the Academy Award for Best Actress of the Year. Other films include The Marrying Kind  (1952), It Should Happen to You (1954), Phffft (1954), The Solid Gold Cadillac (1956), Full of Life (1956), and Bells Are Ringing (1960), recreating her Tony Award-winning performance. Holiday died of breast cancer in 1965 at the age of 43.

William Holden (1918 - 1981) was an American actor and major movie star. He was one of the most bankable stars of the 1950s. Holden starred in some of the most popular and beloved films of all time including Sunset Boulevard, Sabrina, Picnic (1955), The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), and Stalag 17 for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor. Holden became a star with his very first role in Golden Boy (1939). He had lead roles in other popular films like Our Town (1940), and  I Wanted Wings (1941). World War II interrupted his career. Holden was a first lieutenant in the United States Army Air Force. After the war, he made some popular but forgettable films. It wasn’t after he collaborated with director Wilder on Sunset Boulevard that Holden’s popularity and stature in Hollywood grew to superstar status.

 

Crawford who got top billing on the screen is listed last on this lobby card.

Born Yesterday trivia

• Judy Holiday’s role in Adam’s Rib (1948) was an audition to convince Columbia Pictures studio chief Harry Cohn that Holiday was up to the task of playing Billie Dawn on the screen.
• Judy Holiday and Broderick Crawford played gin-rummy on the train to Washington, D.C. for location shooting. Holiday won $600 from Crawford. This cemented their friendship and they remained lifelong friends.
• Marilyn Monroe screen-tested for the role but Harry Cohn never watched it.
• Holiday’s wardrobe became more sophisticated as her character grew.
• William Holden originally turned down the role fearing that he would be overshadowed by Crawford and Holiday. Because of this, Holden’s role was built up for the screen.
• Director George Cukor had Crawford, Holiday, and Holden perform their roles in front of a live audience so that he could time the laughs between the dialogue.

 

Click HERE to watch the room on YouTube.

 

Click HERE to join the discussion on February 26, 2024, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time. Once you RSVP, you will receive an invitation with a link to join the discussion on Zoom.

 

Discussion questions

1. Born Yesterday was released in the mid-20^th century. Do you think it holds up today?
2. Judy Holiday is so identified with the role of Billie Dawn. Can you see anyone else as successful in the role?
3. Was Broderick Crawford believable in the role of Harry Brock?
4. Holiday beat out Gloria Swanson (Sunset Blvd), Bette Davis and Anne Baxter (All About Eve), and Eleanor Parker (Cage). Do you think she deserved to win?
5. Holden was afraid that he would be overshadowed by Crawford and Holiday. Do you think this was the case or did he hold his own in the less showy role as Paul Verrall?

William Holden and Gloria Swanson are prisoners of Sunset Boulevard

Sunset Boulevard (1950) is an American film noir directed by Billy Wilder and starring William Holden, Gloria Swanson, and Eric von Stroheim. The screenplay was written by Charles Brackett, Wilder, and D. M. Marshman Jr. The supporting cast includes Nancy Olson, Fred Clark, and Jack Webb. The cinematography was by John F. Seitz and the music was by Franz Waxman.

Holden stars as Joe Gillis, a down-on-his-luck screenwriter who by a set of strange circumstances is drawn into the orbit of Norma Desmond (Swanson) a retired silent film star set on a return (don’t you dare say comeback) to the screen.

Norma hires Joe to work on her screenplay of Salome, the picture she believes will put her back on top. For the money, Joe takes the work on but knows it’s not going to go anywhere. Norma is convinced that the picture is sure to be a hit and that Cecil B. DeMille will direct it. DeMille worked with Norma during her reign as the queen of the silent screen.

Joe still dreams of getting his screenplay ideas sold and finds himself involved with Betty Schaefer (Olson), a script reader working at the Paramount Studio. Joe keeps his relationship with Norma a secret and finds himself falling in love with Betty, who just so happens to be engaged to Artie Green (Webb), an assistant director who is working on location. All the while, Norma has fallen in love with Joe and becomes more and more dependent on him.

How will this all end? Will Norma make a successful return to the screen? Will Joe and Betty find happiness together? Or will Norma’s hold on Joe destroy everything?

Billy Wilder (1906 - 2002) was an Austrian-born American film director, screenwriter, and producer. He won six Academy Awards for his writing and direction and was nominated twenty-one times over a career that spanned five decades. Wilder started his career as a writer, penning the screenplays for Ninotchka (1939), Ball of Fire (1942), Double Indemnity (1945), The Lost Weekend (1946), Sunset Boulevard (1951)  Boulevard (1951), Sabrina (1955), Some Like it Hot (1960), and The Apartment (1961). As a director, he won Academy Awards for directing The Lost Weekend (1946) and The Apartment (1961). Wilder directed fourteen different actors in Oscar-nominated roles. He is considered one of the most versatile directors from Hollywood’s Classical period.

William Holden (1918 - 1981) was an American actor and major movie star. He was one of the most bankable stars of the 1950s. Holden starred in some of the most popular and beloved films of all time including Sunset Boulevard, Sabrina, Picnic (1955), The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), and Stalag 17 for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor. Holden became a star with his very first role in Golden Boy (1939). He had lead roles in other popular films like Our Town (1940), and  I Wanted Wings (1941). World War II interrupted his career. Holden was a first lieutenant in the United States Army Air Force. After the war, he made some popular but forgettable films. It wasn’t after he collaborated with director Wilder on Sunset Boulevard that Holden’s popularity and stature in Hollywood grew to superstar status.

Gloria Swanson (1899 – 1983) was an American actress who was a major star during the silent era. Swanson, a Chicago native, got her start in film at Essanay Studios where silent film star Francis X Bushman was under contract. Also employed by Essanay were Charlie Chaplin and Wallace Beery. Swanson married Beery in 1916. He was the first of here six husbands. Swanson, Chaplin, and Beery eventually moved to Hollywood where their careers flourished. Swanson was nominated for three Best Actress Oscars. The first two were for silent films and the third was for Sunset Boulevard. Swanson made the transition to sound, but her career stalled and her star power faded.

Sunset Boulevard trivia

• Norma Desmond was based on the several stars from the silent era including Mary Pickford, Mae Murray, and Clara Bow.
• Montgomery Clift was originally cast as Joe Gillis but left the broke his contract two weeks before production.
• Gloria Swanson was asked to do a screen test which she didn’t want to do. Her friend the director George Cukor told her to do ten screen tests if necessary.
• After a private screening of the film, Barbara Stanwyck knelt in front of Swanson and kissed the hem of her dress.
• Willian Holden and Billy Wilder became close friends during the production of Sunset Boulevard.
• Nancy Olson wore her own clothes in the film because Wilder wanted her to be herself on film.

 

To watch the film on YouTube click here.

 

To join the discussion on November 13, 2023, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time, click here. Once you RSVP, you will receive an invitation with a link to join the discussion on Zoom.

 

Discussion question

1. Sunset Boulevard is considered one of the greatest films of all time. Do you think its reputation as such is well deserved?
2. The film lost the Best Picture Academy Award to All About Eve. Sunset Boulevard is about the film industry and All About Eve is about the theater. Which film holds up the best in 2023?
3. William Holden wasn’t even in Billy Wilder’s top five choices for the role of Joe Gillis. What do you think of his performance?
4. Gloria Swanson had hoped her performance and Oscar nomination would revive her movie career but it didn’t. What did you think of her performance?
5. Do you have a favorite scene or line of dialogue (the film is filled with great lines)?
6. Can you see any other actress from Swanson’s era in the role of Norma Desmond?
7. Is Hollywood the same today as it was in 1950? Does Hollywood treat women better today?
8. Bill Wilder was a director working in Hollywood. Was he exempting himself from the criticism? Was he any different than Cecil B. DeMille?

Chicago and Movie History

Gloria Swanson, Charlie Chaplin and Marion Davies

Hollywood in the Midwest?

Before anyone heard of a place called Hollywood, Chicago played an important role in the history of film in America.

Charlie Chaplin and Gloria Swanson Slept (and worked) Here

Before the sound era, Chicago housed Midwest corporate offices for Paramount, Warner Bros., Universal, and the Samuel Goldwyn studios. Most of the offices were in Chicago's South Loop along Wabash Ave. Other film offices were located one block east on Michigan Ave. During this period, major silent movie productions starring screen legends Charlie Chaplin and Gloria Swanson were made in Chicago.

Distribution Hub

Some evidence of this history still exists. The Film Exchange Lofts at 1307 S. Wabash Ave. was once owned by the Warner Bros. studio. They had corporate offices at that location, but its most important use was for storing film for distribution. With Chicago's location and access to train travel, it was the ideal distribution point for Chicago and Illinois theatres.

Ruins From Past Glories

The Universal International logo
can be seen at 1234 S. Michigan Ave.*

The famous terra cotta archway entrance to the Jesse Lasky Famous-Players (a forerunner of Paramount) building on Wabash near 13th Street was rescued from destruction by Columbia College. It now stands in their Media Production Center at 1600 S. State St.

*Ming Hin South Loop removed the Universal International logo when they opened at 1234 S. Michigan Ave. Why they felt this was necessary no one knows.