Influences
When writing the screenplay Edwards drew upon several of his own experiences. The character of Felix Farmer is a person not unlike Edwards, while actress Sally Miles bears certain similarities to Julie Andrews (who plays her), Edwards' wife in real life.
The story of S.O.B. parallels the experiences of Edwards and Andrews in their infamous, but Academy Award-nominated failure, Darling Lili. Intended to reveal Andrews' heretofore unseen wicked and sexy side, that film had a troubled shoot, went significantly over budget, and was subjected to post-production studio interference. The rest of the early 1970s saw more bad news for Edwards: he made two more movies, Wild Rovers, which starred William Holden, and The Carey Treatment with James Coburn. Once again, studio interference occurred and both films were edited and changed without Edwards being approached: upon theatrical release, they opened to negative reviews and poor business. With Edwards hit hard by these events, he went to Europe to work on his later films and shake off studio interference. The plan worked, leading to other films, including three 'Pink Panther' sequels starring Peter Sellers.
In S.O.B., Andrews's character agrees (with some pharmaceutical persuasion) to "show her boobies" in a scene in the film-within-the-film. For this scene, comedian Johnny Carson thanked Andrews on his The Tonight Show for "showing us that the hills were still alive," alluding to a famous line from The Sound of Music opening sequence.
Read more about this topic: S.O.B. (film)
Famous quotes containing the word influences:
“I am fooling only myself when I say my mother exists now only in the photograph on my bulletin board or in the outline of my hand or in the armful of memories I still hold tight. She lives on in everything I do. Her presence influenced who I was, and her absence influences who I am. Our lives are shaped as much by those who leave us as they are by those who stay. Loss is our legacy. Insight is our gift. Memory is our guide.”
—Hope Edelman (20th century)
“Nothing changes more constantly than the past; for the past that influences our lives does not consist of what actually happened, but of what men believe happened.”
—Gerald W. Johnson (1890–1980)
“Professors of literature, who for the most part are genteel but mediocre men, can make but a poor defense of their profession, and the professors of science, who are frequently men of great intelligence but of limited interests and education, feel a politely disguised contempt for it; and thus the study of one of the most pervasive and powerful influences on human life is traduced and neglected.”
—Yvor Winters (1900–1968)