StatsBirth Name: Samuel Wilder Born: 22 June 1906 Died: 27 March 2002 Country of origin:  Austria Height: 5' 11" Ethnicity: White / Caucasian Relationship Status: Married Partner: Audrey Young
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Originally planning to become a lawyer, Billy Wilder abandoned that career in favor of working as a reporter for a Viennese newspaper, using this experience to move to Berlin, where he worked for the city's largest tabloid. He broke into films as a screenwriter in 1929, and wrote scripts for many German films until Adolf Hitler came to power in 1933. Wilder immediately realized his Jewish ancestry would cause problems, so he emigrated to Paris, then the US. Although he spoke no English when he a
Originally planning to become a lawyer, Billy Wilder abandoned that career in favor of working as a reporter for a Viennese newspaper, using this experience to move to Berlin, where he worked for the city's largest tabloid. He broke into films as a screenwriter in 1929, and wrote scripts for many German films until Adolf Hitler came to power in 1933. Wilder immediately realized his Jewish ancestry would cause problems, so he emigrated to Paris, then the US. Although he spoke no English when he arrived in Hollywood, Wilder was a fast learner, and thanks to contacts such as Peter Lorre (with whom he shared an apartment), he was able to break into American films. His partnership with Charles Brackett started in 1938 and the team was responsible for writing some of Hollywood's classic comedies, including Ninotchka (1939) and Ball of Fire (1941). The partnership expanded into a producer-director one in 1942, with Brackett producing, and the two turned out such classics as Five Graves to Cairo (1943), The Lost Weekend (1945) (Oscars for Best Picture, Director and Screenplay) and Sunset Blvd. (1950) (Oscars for Best Screenplay), after which the partnership dissolved. (Wilder had already made one film, Double Indemnity (1944) without Brackett, as the latter had refused to work on a film he felt dealt with such disreputable characters.) Wilder's subsequent self-produced films would become more caustic and cynical, notably Ace in the Hole (1951), though he also produced such sublime comedies as Some Like It Hot (1959) and The Apartment (1960) (which won him Best Picture and Director Oscars). He retired in 1981.
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 The Idiot's Guide To Famous (Classic) Filmmakers (85 person items)"
Trademarks:
-Scathing wit and cynicism.
-Emotional honesty and intelligence.
-Narration.
-Humorous overtones.
-Jack Lemmon!
"I'm terribly fond of Jack. We understand each other very well and it's a pleasure to work with him. He is a thinking actor, but not an argumentative one. By that way I mean if we start shooting at nine o'clock, he would be there at 8:15 and would come to my office and say, "Hey, I've got a great idea! Look, why don't we do this? Blah, blah, blah, blah." A"
Ultimo posted a image 2 months, 2 weeks ago
 Favourite Oscar Acceptance Speeches (10 person items)"Thank you so much, you lovely, discerning people. Thank you.
Like his films, Billy Wilder's 'Best Director' Oscar speech just proves what a great writer he was. Despite consisting of only ten words, it has more character and wit than many longer ones ever did.
It's his use of the word 'discerning' that makes the speech impress, in a statement that pretty much amounts to saying: "Thanks for showing you have good taste by voting for me!""
Moon River added this to a list 3 months, 3 weeks ago
Fimc14 added this to a list 4 months, 1 week ago
 Tribute to Audrey Hepburn (51 person items)""This girl single-handedly could make bosoms a thing of the past!"
"What is needed to become a real star is an extra element that God can give you or not. You are already born with it. You can't learn it. God kissed the face of Audrey Hepburn, and there she was."
"Sabrina" (1954)
"Love in the Afternoon" (1957)
Billy Wilder, american filmmaker, screenwriter, producer and journalist. "
Fimc14 added this to a list 4 months, 3 weeks ago
 Favourite Directors (10 person items)"
"If you're going to tell people the truth, be funny or they'll kill you."
- Billy Wilder
Personal favourites: "Sabrina", "Witness For the Prosecution", "The Lost Weekend", "Sunset Blvd.", "Stalag 17"."
 Directors on Directors (33 person items)"Lubitsch
Lubitsch could do more with a closed door than another director could do with an open fly.
"
Moon River added this to a list 5 months, 2 weeks ago
Moon River added this to a list 6 months, 3 weeks ago
 Stanley Kubrick: Quotes (35 person items)""Kubrick was a wonderful director. I love all his movies. These are pictures any director would be proud to be associated with, much less to make."
"
Moon River added this to a list 7 months, 2 weeks ago
 "I've just won an Oscar!" (118 person items)"The Lost Weekend - Director and Writing, Sunset Blvd. - Writing, The Apartment - Writing, Director and Picture
"
Moon River added this to a list 7 months, 3 weeks ago
 Collaborating again and again (19 person items)"-Jack Lemmon
-Some Like It Hot
-The Apartment
-Irma la Douce
-The Fortune Cookie
-Avanti!
-The Front Page
-Buddy Buddy
-Marilyn Monroe
-The Seven Year Itch
-Some Like It Hot
Also:
-William Holden
-Joe Gray
-Walter Matthau"
Liaison added this to a list 8 months, 4 weeks ago
 Favorite Directors' Quotes (27 person items)""An audience is never wrong. An individual member of it may be an imbecile, but a thousand imbeciles together in the dark - that is critical genius.""
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