History Trivia / TheBigSleep

** A first version of the film adaptation was completed in 1945 but its release was postponed. Meanwhile Creator/LaurenBacall's performance in her first film after her debut in ''Film/ToHaveAndHaveNot'', ''Film/ConfidentialAgent'', stunk up the room. Noting similar issues with her performance in several key scenes in ''The Big Sleep'', Jack Warner authorized (under the suggestion of Bacall's agent) that several scenes be re-shot and others added to try and recapture more of the ''To Have and Have Not'' chemistry. And it worked.
** Censorship guidelines coupled with the need to make the film a romance of sorts and to provide a second billing for Lauren Bacall meant quite bit of the material had to be altered from the original novel. Chandler notes that many of Martha Vickers' scenes ended up on the cutting room floor - because she ended up outshining Lauren in their scenes together - and this resulted in Carmen abruptly disappearing at the end of the second act.
** Jack L. Warner got into a big argument with the agent of Sonia Darrin, who played Agnes. It got so heated that the agent and his clients were banned from the lot. He couldn't cut Agnes's scenes, because they were too important to the plot, so he ended up refusing to credit her instead.

* TrollingCreator: Lauren Bacall claimed that Jack L Warner sent them a memo saying "Word has reached me that you are having fun on the set. This must stop".
* UncreditedRole: Julius Epstein made uncredited contributions to the screenplay.

** Martha Vickers had just started acting and was appearing as a DistressedDamsel in Universal horror films. Howard Hawks bought her contract upon seeing a glamorous photo of her - and cast her as the FilleFatale Carmen.

* CreatorChosenCasting: Creator/RaymondChandler named Creator/HumphreyBogart as the best Philip Marlowe on film.

* NamesTheSame: Joe Brody shares his name with the character played by Creator/BryanCranston in ''Film/{{Godzilla 2014}}''.

* FollowTheLeader: This remake was made to capitalise on the growing revival of HardBoiledDetective movies with noir elements in TheSeventies - nicknamed 'Neo Noir'. Others included ''{{Film/Gumshoe}}'', ''{{Film/Chinatown}}'' and ''Film/TheBlackBird''. Four other Creator/RaymondChandler adaptations were made during this time too.

* DawsonCasting: Marlowe is 33 in the book, and Bogart was 45 when he shot the film, but the line establishing Marlowe's age is changed to 38 to put it more within the realm of credibility.

* EnforcedMethodActing: Dorothy Malone was making her film debut and was so nervous at sharing the scene with Humphrey Bogart that they had to weight the liquor glass to keep her hands from shaking.

* WrittenInInfirmity: Richard Boone had broken his foot before filming began, so that was incorporated into the story.

* WhatCouldHaveBeen: A planned ending would have Carmen trying to fake suicide with what she believes is an empty gun - only to discover it was loaded. Another would have her [[spoiler: confess her crimes]] and walk into an ambush by gangsters. The final ending was to have Marlowe decide on the basis of a coin toss, to walk out of the house and into an ambush. The resulting ending [[spoiler: where Eddie Mars gets shot by his own gangsters]] was suggested by the Production Code committee when they objected to the violence of the previous ending.

* UnintentionalPeriodPiece: It was this by the time it was released. It was shot during the Second World War, but delayed so that Warner Bros. could release a lot of war films hurriedly. Pictures of Franklin D Roosevelt are on display in various places, there's a female taxi driver (when most of the men were fighting in the war) and a lot of period dialogue. There's lots of references to wartime rationing too - the dead bodies are called "red points", which is what meat was referred to during rationing. Marlowe's car also has a B gasoline rationing sticker on the window, indicating he was essential to the war effort and would be allowed eight hours of gasoline a week.

* AFIS100Years100HeroesAndVillains: #32 Hero, Philip Marlowe

* {{Tuckerization}}: Mars's henchmen are named Sydney and Peter, after Sydney Greenstreet and Peter Lorre.

* CastingGag: Creator/JamesStewart played General Sternwood. He had played the son of Charles Waldron, the original General, in ''Navy Blue And Gold''.

** An even more extreme case than the original film. Robert Mitchum was sixty when he played Philip Marlowe.

* ProductionPosse: Creator/RobertMitchum, Sarah Miles and John Mills had all starred in ''Film/RyansDaughter'' together.

* NamesTheSame: Joe Brody shares his name with the character played by BryanCranston in ''Film/{{Godzilla 2014}}''.

* ActorAllusion:
** Marlowe drives a 1938 Plymouth Deluxe - the same car Humphrey Bogart drove in ''High Sierra''.
** Marlowe tells Carmen the next time he'll come with a tennis racket. This a reference to the legend that a young struggling Humphrey Bogart said on stage "tennis anyone?"

* AwesomeDearBoy: Oliver Reed agreed to play Eddie Mars just so he could work with Robert Mitchum.
* CastingGag: James Stewart played General Sternwood. He had played the son of Charles Waldron, the original General, in ''Navy Blue And Gold''.

* FollowTheLeader: This remake was made to capitalise on the growing revival of HardBoiledDetective movies with noir elements in TheSeventies - nicknamed 'Neo Noir'. Others included ''{{Film/Gumshoe}}'', ''{{Film/Chinatown}}'' and ''Film/TheBlackBird''. Four other Raymond Chandler adaptations were made during this time too.
* ProductionPosse: Robert Mitchum, Sarah Miles and John Mills had all starred in ''Film/RyansDaughter'' together.
* RealLifeWritesThePlot: Richard Boone had broken his foot before filming began, so that was incorporated into the story.
* RomanceOnTheSet: Robert Mitchum had a fling with Lindy Benton, who was one of the models for the pornography book Marlowe finds.

* AFIS100Years100HeroesAndVillains:
** #32 Hero, Philip Marlowe

* DawsonCasting: Partial aversion. Marlowe was thirty-three in the book and aged up to thirty eight for the film - but Humphrey Bogart was still forty-five.

* ScullyBox: Creator/HumphreyBogart had to wear platform shoes to appear taller than his two leading ladies, Creator/LaurenBacall and Martha Vickers. That may be the reason both women taunt him about his lack of height.

* CreatorBreakdown: Due to Creator/HumphreyBogart's affair with Creator/LaurenBacall, his marital problems escalated during filming, and his drinking often resulted in his being unable to work. They got married three months after filming wrapped.

** Jack L Warner got into a big argument with the agent of Sonia Darrin, who played Agnes. It got so heated that the agent and his clients were banned from the lot. He couldn't cut Agnes's scenes, because they were too important to the plot, so he ended up refusing to credit her instead.

* CompletelyDifferentTitle: In Sweden, the film was called ''Utpressning'', meaning "Blackmail". So is, of course, Creator/AlfredHitchcock's ''Film/{{Blackmail}}'', causing some confusion.

* FollowTheLeader: This remake was made to capitalise on the growing revival of HardBoiledDetective movies with noir elements - nicknamed 'Neo Noir'. Others included ''{{Film/Gumshoe}}'', ''{{Film/Chinatown}}'' and ''Film/TheBlackBird''. Four other Raymond Chandler adaptations were made during this time too.

* NonSingingVoice: Averted. Despite rumours that Andy Williams dubbed Lauren Bacall's singing, both Howard Hawks and the actress herself insisted she did her own singing. The same rumours dogged Lauren for ''Film/ToHaveAndToHaveNot'' too.

* CreatorBreakdown: Due to Creator/HumphreyBogart's affair with Creator/Lauren Bacall, his marital problems escalated during filming, and his drinking often resulted in his being unable to work. Three months after the film was finished, Bacall and Bogart were married.

** A first version of the film adaptation was completed in 1945 but its release was postponed. Meanwhile Creator/LaurenBacall's performance in her first film after her debut in ''Film/ToHaveAndHaveNot'', ''Film/ConfidentialAgent'', stunk up the room. Noting similar issues with her performance in several key scenes in ''The Big Sleep'', Jack Warner authorized (under the suggestion of Bacall's agent) that several scenes be reshot and others added to try and recapture more of the ''To Have and Have Not'' chemistry. And it worked.
** Censorship guidelines coupled with the need to make the film a romance of sorts and to provide a second billing for Bacall meant quite bit of the material had to be altered from the original novel. Chandler notes that many of Martha Vickers' scenes ended up on the cutting room floor in order to better promote Bacall, even though in the book Vickers' character is much more central to, and prominent in, the plot than Bacall's. Eddie Mars' wife also loses several key developments to Bacall's character expansion.
** Creator/RaymondChandler said Martha Vickers overshadowed Bacall in their scenes together, which led the producers to delete much of Vickers' performance to enhance Bacall's.
* RealLifeRelative: Creator/HumphreyBogart and Creator/LaurenBacall got married during the filming of the movie; they had been working together for some time, but ''The Big Sleep'' was their first film as a married couple.

** A first version of the film adaptation was completed in 1945 but its release was postponed. Meanwhile Bacall's performance in her first film after her debut in ''To Have and Have Not'', ''Confidential Agent'', stunk up the room. Noting similar issues with her performance in several key scenes in ''The Big Sleep'', Jack Warner authorized (under the suggestion of Bacall's agent) that several scenes be reshot and others added to try and recapture more of the ''To Have and Have Not'' chemistry. And it worked.

* RealLifeRelative: Bogart and Bacall got married during the filming of the movie; they had been working together for some time, but ''The Big Sleep'' was their first film as a married couple.