William Wyler (66 page)

42
. Wyler to Freeman, May 3, 1954, Wyler Collection.

43
. Ibid.

44
. The Broadway producers would adopt Wyler's original notion and cast Paul Newman, in his first starring stage role, opposite Karl Malden.

45
. Anderegg,
William Wyler
, 180.

46
. Peter Biskind,
Seeing Is Believing
(New York: Pantheon, 1983), 162, 164.

47
. Joseph Hayes,
The Desperate Hours
(New York: Random House, 1954), 245.

48
. Bernard Kantor, irwin R. Blacker, and Anne Kramer, eds.,
Directors at Work
(New York: Funk and Wagnalls, 1970), 428.

49
. Wyler, “Production Notes,” Wyler Collection.

50
. Anderegg,
William Wyler
, 182.

51
.
Film Daily
, March 16, 1960.

52
. Hanson, “William Wyler,” 31.

53
. Higham, “William Wyler,” 18.

54
. Gene D. Phillips, “William Wyler,”
Focus on Film
24 (Spring 1976): 7, reprinted in Miller,
William Wyler: Interviews
.

55
.
Variety
, March 8, 1961.

56
. Hellman to Wyler, April 1961, Wyler Collection.

57
. Herman,
A Talent for Trouble
, 417.

1
. Herman,
A Talent for Trouble
, 367.

2
. Michael Wilson, script, February 14, 1947, p. 17, Wyler Papers.

3
. Jessamyn West,
To See the Dream
(New York: Harcourt, Brace, 1957), 8.

4
. Ibid., 92–93.

5
. Ibid., 94.

6
. Ibid.

7
. Kael,
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
, 238.

8
. West,
To See the Dream
, 101.

9
. Ibid., 265–66.

10
. Madsen,
William Wyler
, 318.

11
. In the final script by West and Robert Wyler, there is more participation by the Quakers. A farmer reads from a letter his daughter received from Abraham Lincoln: “Your people—the Friends—are having a very great trial. On principle and faith opposed to both war and oppression, they can only practically oppose oppression by war. In this hard dilemma, some have chosen one horn and some the other. For your sons and friends appealing to me on conscientious grounds, I have done and shall do the best I could and can, in my own conscience, under my own oath to the law.” These sentiments are voiced by Major Harvey in Wilson's script but do not appear in the finished film. Perhaps Wyler felt this presidential tolerance lent more credence to the Quaker position than he wanted to show. The script also has a businessman recommending that instead of giving all they earn “to the meeting,” they give that money to the families of those wounded and killed in the war. Jessamyn West and Robert Wyler, “Final Script,” August 18, 1955, Museum of Modern Art.

12
. West,
To See the Dream
, 286. Interestingly, in the final script, this comic sequence takes a serious turn when, during the Birdwells' visit, the Hudspeths arm themselves and hide in the barn when they hear Confederate raiders near their farm. The raiders eventually leave, but not before taking Red Rover, the horse Jess has just traded to Mrs. Hudspeth. Jess is willing to return Lady, the horse he received in the exchange, but the widow insists that the trade is final.

13
. West and R. Wyler, “Final Script,” 153A.

14
. Jessamyn West to Wyler, July 1955, Wyler Collection.

15
. West and R. Wyler, “Final Script.”

16
. Wilson's script also had a more thematically satisfying ending than that used in the film, since it deals with the consequences of war. Eliza announces that Josh will return with Gard to the battlefront, where the war is obviously still raging. Josh, who admits that he has “no stomach for killing,” wants to contribute to the war effort as a stretcher-bearer. Michael Wilson, script, February 13, 1947, Wyler Papers.

17
. Herman, A
Talent for Trouble
, 376.

18
. Madsen,
William Wyler
, 326.

19
. Wyler affidavit, March 1957, Wyler Papers.

20
. Stuart Millar affidavit, March 1957, Wyler Papers.

21
. Michael Wilson, versions of
Friendly Persuasion
script, September 20, 1946, and February 13, 1947, Wyler Papers.

22
. Memo from Wyler to Freeman, April 8, 1954, Wyler Papers.

23
. Letter from Wyler to
Los Angeles Times
, April 16, 1978.

24
. “Some Summit Lore from Silver Screen,”
New York Times
, May 31, 1988.

25
. Herman,
A Talent for Trouble
, 379.

26
. Ibid., 382.

27
. Charlton Heston,
In the Arena: An Autobiography
(New York: Boulevard Books, 1997), 164.

28
. Warshow,
The Immediate Experience
, 147.

29
. Wyler to Robert Swink, May 16, 1958, Wyler Collection.

30
. Heston,
In the Arena
, 169.

31
. Madsen,
William Wyler
, 338.

32
. In making
Ben-Hur
, Wyler became embroiled in yet another writing credit controversy, albeit without the political implications involved in
Friendly Persuasion
. Wyler wanted both Christopher Fry and Karl Tunberg to get credit for the screenplay, and according to Wyler, Tunberg initially agreed but changed his mind when the matter came before the Writers' Guild. Gore Vidal claims that Wyler wanted Fry to receive sole credit, but Fry thought Vidal should get co-credit. As with
Friendly Persuasion
, the guild ruled in favor of the original writer (Tunberg) and denied credit to the two other writers who had substantially revised the script. Because Wyler had campaigned against Tunberg's sole credit, the guild eventually blamed him for ruining the writer's chances at the Oscars—of the film's twelve nominations, it won everything except the award for Best Screenplay. While accepting his Best Actor award, Charlton Heston inflamed matters further by thanking Christopher Fry, which prompted the Writers' Guild to send an angry letter to Heston.

33
. “Ben-Hur: The Making of an Epic,”
Ben-Hur
, directed by William Wyler (1959; Santa Monica, Calif.: MCM/UA Home Video, 1993), VHS.

34
. In the novel, Messala is merely wounded in the race, not killed. But he is also bankrupted as a result of his wager with Sheik ilderim.

35
. Madsen,
William Wyler
, 339.

1
. Herman,
A Talent for Trouble
, 420.

2
. Madsen,
William Wyler
, 366.

3
. Ibid., 367.

4
. “Movies: Wyler's Wiles,”
Time
, June 18, 1965.

5
.
Directed by William Wyler
.

6
. The novel establishes that she is a virgin, despite her relationship with an older man.

7
. The screenwriters eliminate Miranda's relationship with G.P. (George Paston), an artist who mistreats women. He tells Miranda that he has seduced many women like her and even married two of them. G.P. collects conquests and, in this regard, is similar to Freddie. The fact that Miranda worships him and admires his values is disquieting. Miranda's politics and class prejudices are also cut from the film's characterization. The screenwriters omit particulars from Freddie's past as well, including the death of his father when he was a child, the abandonment by his mother, and his subsequent rearing by an aunt who disparages his interest in butterfly collecting.

8
.
Village Voice
, June 24, 1965.

9
.
Saturday Review
, December 25, 1965.

10
. Quoted in Herman, A
Talent for Trouble
, 436.

11
. Laurents would later write one of Streisand's most famous film roles—Katie Morosky in
The Way We Were
.

12
. Barbra Streisand, e-mail message to author, May 10, 2013.

13
. Ibid.

14
. The opening sequence is a total reimagining of the play, which opens in Fanny's dressing room. She enters the room and says, “Hello, Gorgeous,” followed by the stage manager's announcement, “Half hour, Miss Brice.”

15
. The earlier script versions, which were written for Sidney Lumet by Sidney Buchman, eliminate the framing device: the first opens with Fanny asking Eddie Ryan, “You think beautiful girls are going to stay in style forever?” and ends with her singing “Nicky Arnstein, Nicky Arnstein—I'll never see him again”; the second opens with Mrs. Strakosh singing “if a Girl isn't Pretty.” Sidney Buchman, scripts for
Funny Girl
, September 23 and November 7, 1966, Wyler Papers.

16
. Barbra Streisand, e-mail message to author, May 10, 2013. Herman, A
Talent for Trouble
, 447. During the shoot, Streisand and Sharif had a passionate affair, which ended when filming was over. Wyler channeled this emotion in Streisand for the final song.

17
. Pauline Kael,
Going Steady
(New York: Bantam, 1971), 165.

18
. The film added three songs not written for the show. In addition to “My Man,” the writers included “Second Hand Rose” and “I'd Rather Be Blue.” Seven songs from the original show were cut.

19
. Quoted in Keith Garebian,
The Making of
Gypsy (Oakville, Ont.: Mosaic Press, 1998), 120.

20
. Madsen,
William Wyler
, 390, 391.

21
. Randall Riese,
Her Name Is Barbra
(New York: St. Martin's Paperbacks, 1994), 282.

22
. Barbra Streisand, e-mail message to author, May 10, 2013.

23
. Miller,
William Wyler: Interviews
, 34.

24
. Telegram from Wyler to Darryl Zanuck, September 19, 1967, Wyler Collection.

25
. Madsen,
William Wyler
, 397–98.

26
.
Entertainment World
, April 10, 1970.

27
. Herman,
A Talent for Trouble
, 452.

28
. Jesse Hill Ford,
The Liberation of Lord Byron Jones
(Boston: Atlantic-Little Brown, 1965), 346.

29
. Charles Champlin,
Los Angeles Times
, May 15, 1970.

30
. Mark Harris,
Pictures at a Revolution
(New York: Penguin, 2008), 335.

31
.
Time
, August 11, 1967.

32
. Andrew Sarris, “Director of the Month,”
Show
1, no. 6 (June 1970): 14–15.

33
.
Entertainment World
, April 10, 1970.

34
. Madsen,
William Wyler
, 403.

35
. Herman,
A Talent for Trouble
, 455.

36
. Ibid., 467.

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