3 Fun Facts about The Big Sleep
Released on August 31, 1946, The Big Sleep stars Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall in one of classic Hollywood’s most famous film noirs.
Murder, mystery — and one famously complicated plot! Here are three fun facts about The Big Sleep…
1. Even Raymond Chandler Couldn’t Solve the Mystery!
Did You Know? According to director Howard Hawks, he and Humphrey Bogart couldn’t figure out who killed chauffeur Owen Taylor — so they asked author Raymond Chandler. Chandler reportedly admitted that he didn’t know either!
2. The Film Was Finished — Then Changed a Year Later
Did You Know? The Big Sleep was originally completed in early 1945, but additional scenes and retakes were filmed nearly a year later. The changes gave Bogart and Bacall more screen time together, and the revised version became the film released in 1946.
3. That Famous Horse-Racing Scene Wasn’t in the Original Version!
Did You Know? Bogart and Bacall’s famously suggestive horse-racing conversation wasn’t in the original 1945 version of The Big Sleep. The scene was added during the 1946 changes to give the pair more of the flirtatious chemistry audiences had loved in To Have and Have Not.
Which fact surprised you most?
–Annmarie Gatti for Classic Movie Hub
