A Billy Wilder Contract to Write and Direct The Seven Year Itch

A Billy Wilder Contract to Write and Direct The Seven Year Itch Twentieth Century-Fox, 1955. Typed Carbon Signed three times ('Billy Wilder'), 23 pp, legal folio, [Los Angeles], November 17, 1954, also signed three times by producer CHARLES FELDMAN, stapled at upper margin and housed in blue legal wrapper, minor thumbing and wear. In the midst of filming The Seven Year Itch, Billy Wilder signed this contract with Charles Feldman's company which details his screenwriting duties and the fact that everything written by him was wholly original and was protected by copyright, as well as details regarding his producing and directing credits. For auteurs such as Wilder, giving the studio final say on the cut of the film (as indicated in the contract) must have been a frustrating experience; indeed, Wilder once remarked that he wished he hadn't made the film because so much of the original play by George Axelrod was censored. Wilder was able to circumvent some of these changes with scenes such as Marilyn Monroe's skirt blowing over the subway grating. Also annoying to Wilder was Fox's obsession with the Cinemascope process with which this film was made; using it to advantage was the studio's main concern and this became a thorn in Wilder's side. Regardless, the film was a huge box office success, and though it may not have been Wilder's favorite, for many, The Seven Year Itch is one of the best in the Wilder canon of films. 9 x 13 in. For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com For further information about this lot please visit the lot listing