Video: 'Sunset Boulevard' trailer

(Thursday, August 10, 1950, 10:45 a.m. EDT) — Sunset Boulevard, an American film noir about a failed screenwriter who falls into a mercenary romance with a faded silent-film star, opened this morning at Radio City Music Hall in New York City.

Video: 'Sunset Blvd. (1950) - Movie' (8 clips)

Directed by Billy Wilder, the film starred William Holden, Gloria Swanson, Erich von Stroheim, Nancy Olson, Fred Clark, Lloyd Gough and Jack Webb.

Praised by many critics when first released, Sunset Boulevard was nominated for 11 Academy Awards (including nominations in all four acting categories) and won three. It is often ranked among the greatest movies ever made.