Kirk Douglas

Made films the shows talk about.

Counted as actor. The films the hosts said they acted in, which the two lists below run through too: Ace in the Hole (1951); The Bad and the Beautiful (1952); Ulysses (1954); Lust for Life (1956); Paths of Glory (1957); Spartacus (1960); Lonely Are the Brave (1962); Seven Days in May (1964); The Brotherhood (1968); One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975); Tough Guys (1986); Greedy (1994). Count them as producer (1 film) instead.

Draws on

What the speakers say they, or a film of theirs, drew on. Each is a speaker's account: “the maker said so” when they report the maker's own words, “the host's read” when the read is theirs.

Humphrey Cobb: 1 line

  1. lineage (lineage) · through Paths of Glory (1957), which they acted in: Humphrey Cobb ⇒ Paths of Glory (the host's read). Paths of Glory is based on Cobb's novel, which Kubrick read in high school and never forgot.
    “Humphrey Cobb's novel pads of glory.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Paths of Glory with Sarah Marshall (Ad-Free) · 0:33:38 · David Sims (0.70 sure it was them)

Steven Spielberg: 1 line

  1. unmapped (led to restoration) · through Spartacus (1960), which they acted in: Steven Spielberg ⇒ Spartacus (the host's read). Spielberg talked Kubrick into letting the film be restored and re-released.
    “and Spielberg knew him then. and was like, well, they're, you know, the American cinema tech or whoever wants to do this.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Spartacus with Richard Lawson (Ad-Free) · 2:01:51 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)

The Killing (1956): 1 line

  1. unmapped (led to) · through Paths of Glory (1957), which they acted in: The Killing ⇒ Paths of Glory (the host's read). Kirk Douglas saw The Killing and wanted that director for Paths of Glory.
    “And then didn't Kirk Douglas see this and went, oh, this is paths of glory.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · The Killing with Patton Oswalt (Ad-Free) · 1:05:46 · Patton Oswalt (0.35 sure it was them)

Drawn on by

What the speakers say drew on them or a film of theirs, marked the same way.

Gladiator (2000): 3 lines

  1. lineage (riff / imitation) · through Spartacus (1960), which they acted in: Spartacus ⇒ Gladiator (the host's read). Richard, seeing Spartacus for the first time, says it is the main thing Gladiator riffs on.
    “this is really the main thing the gladiators are riffing on.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Spartacus with Richard Lawson (Ad-Free) · 1:03:34 · Richard Lawson (0.60 sure it was them)
  2. people (casting approach) · through Spartacus (1960), which they acted in: Spartacus ⇒ Gladiator (the host's read). Gladiator, like Spartacus, is loaded with supporting actors who are thespian gems, which the speaker says Scott recognized.
    “as Ridley Scott recognized about this movie, is like loaded up with supporting actors who are like just thespian gems.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Spartacus with Richard Lawson (Ad-Free) · 1:33:49 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)
  3. unmapped (scene reused) · through Spartacus (1960), which they acted in: Spartacus ⇒ Gladiator (the host's read). The trident thrown into the stands in Spartacus is in Gladiator too, with Russell Crowe doing it.
    “that's literally in Gladiator.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Spartacus with Richard Lawson (Ad-Free) · 1:14:49 · unknown (0.35 sure it was them)

Airplane! (1980): 1 line

  1. unmapped (reference) · through Spartacus (1960), which they acted in: Spartacus ⇒ Airplane! (the host's read). The Spartacus bath-scene joke is the joke in Airplane and it still works.
    “there's a reason that it's it's the fucking joke in airplane and that the joke still works so well.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Spartacus with Richard Lawson (Ad-Free) · 1:44:12 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)

Clueless (1995): 1 line

  1. unmapped (reference) · through Spartacus (1960), which they acted in: Spartacus ⇒ Clueless (the host's read). Richard knew Spartacus mostly through the Clueless clip (and Community jokes) before watching it.
    “to have heard about this movie mostly through Clueless, but also just joked about in community for years”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Spartacus with Richard Lawson (Ad-Free) · 1:43:58 · Richard Lawson (0.60 sure it was them)

David Simon: 1 line

  1. lineage (lineage) · through Paths of Glory (1957), which they acted in: Paths of Glory ⇒ David Simon (the maker said so: David Simon cites it regularly). The speaker calls Paths of Glory a Rosetta Stone for Simon's stories of institutions versus the people below.
    “this is the sort of Rosetta Stone, if you will, for him.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Paths of Glory with Sarah Marshall (Ad-Free) · 0:25:22 · unknown (0.30 sure it was them)

Dell Comics: 1 line

  1. lineage (adaptation) · through Spartacus (1960), which they acted in: Spartacus ⇒ Dell Comics (the host's read). Spartacus got a Dell Comics color adaptation, like a tie-in of its era.
    “that this had a Dell comics color adaptation”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Spartacus with Richard Lawson (Ad-Free) · 1:59:30 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)

Eyes Wide Shut (1999): 1 line

  1. lineage (origin of the project) · them, directly: Kirk Douglas ⇒ Eyes Wide Shut (the maker said so). Kirk Douglas claims he handed Kubrick the novella during their Paths of Glory or Spartacus fights.
    “Kirk Douglas claims he gave it to him during one of their like shared therapy sessions”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Eyes Wide Shut with David Ehrlich (Ad-Free) · 0:33:04 · unknown (0.30 sure it was them)

Harrison Ford: 1 line

  1. career (career) · them, directly: Kirk Douglas ⇒ Harrison Ford (the host's read). Harrison Ford tried to continue Douglas's tradition of using star power to get tricky movies made.
    “Harrison Ford was kind of trying to keep the Douglas tradition going”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Paths of Glory with Sarah Marshall (Ad-Free) · 0:39:53 · David Sims (0.40 sure it was them)

The Wire (2002): 1 line

  1. lineage (lineage) · through Paths of Glory (1957), which they acted in: Paths of Glory ⇒ The Wire (the maker said so: David Simon cites it regularly). David Simon reportedly cites Paths of Glory as the number one influence on The Wire: institutions chewing up the people on the ground.
    “David Simon cites this regularly as the number one influence on the wire?”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Paths of Glory with Sarah Marshall (Ad-Free) · 0:25:11 · unknown (0.30 sure it was them)

What the speakers said they did

Producing (1) everyone in producing

Acting (20) everyone in acting

Other (4) everyone in other

What was said about them, by kind

career (3)

  1. career (career): Kirk Douglas → The Bad and the Beautiful. Douglas in this era is a harder-edged man out of time, as in The Bad and the Beautiful or Ace in the Hole.
    “Like when you see him in things like this or the bad and the beautiful or ace in the hole or whatever, you're like, this is, there's no one like this in the 50s, right?”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Paths of Glory with Sarah Marshall (Ad-Free) · 0:37:41 · David Sims (0.50 sure it was them)
  2. career (career): Kirk Douglas → Harrison Ford. Harrison Ford tried to continue Douglas's tradition of using star power to get tricky movies made.
    “Harrison Ford was kind of trying to keep the Douglas tradition going”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Paths of Glory with Sarah Marshall (Ad-Free) · 0:39:53 · David Sims (0.40 sure it was them)
  3. career (career): Kirk Douglas → Stanley Kubrick. Kubrick assumed what a Kirk Douglas movie should be; Douglas wanted to use his stardom to make other kinds of movies.
    “And Kirk Douglas was like, I don't want to make Kirk Douglas movies.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Paths of Glory with Sarah Marshall (Ad-Free) · 0:42:27 · David Sims (0.40 sure it was them)

contrast (2)

  1. contrast (contrast): Kirk Douglas → Gregory Peck. Peck was an alternative to Douglas but reads as selfless, where Douglas carries an edge of histrionics.
    “Whereas Gregory Peck always felt kind of selfless, you know?”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Paths of Glory with Sarah Marshall (Ad-Free) · 0:36:28 · unknown (0.30 sure it was them)
  2. contrast (contrast): Gregory Peck → Kirk Douglas. On a lifeboat Peck is the safe-daddy type; Douglas would level with you and drink seagull blood.
    “if you're on a lifeboat with Kirk Douglas, like, you're going to be drinking seagull blood and singing sea shanties and like he's going to level with you.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Paths of Glory with Sarah Marshall (Ad-Free) · 0:36:50 · Sarah Marshall (0.85 sure it was them)

industry (1)

  1. industry (business deal): Stanley Kubrick → Kirk Douglas. Kubrick had a five-picture deal with Kirk Douglas; only two got made before Douglas released him, largely because Douglas wanted nothing to do with Lolita.
    “He's also got this 5 picture deal with Kirk Douglas, 2 movies, end up getting done before Kirk Douglas releases him.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Lolita with Fran Hoepfner (Ad-Free) · 0:39:26 · unknown (0.30 sure it was them)

lineage (1)

  1. lineage (origin of the project): Kirk Douglas → Eyes Wide Shut. Kirk Douglas claims he handed Kubrick the novella during their Paths of Glory or Spartacus fights.
    “Kirk Douglas claims he gave it to him during one of their like shared therapy sessions”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Eyes Wide Shut with David Ehrlich (Ad-Free) · 0:33:04 · unknown (0.30 sure it was them)

theme (1)

  1. theme (comparison): Kirk Douglas → Charlton Heston. Douglas could easily have just been Heston.
    “He so easily could have just been Heston.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Spartacus with Richard Lawson (Ad-Free) · 0:19:31 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)

unmapped (2)

  1. unmapped (father and son): Michael Douglas → Kirk Douglas. Michael basically fired his own father from Cuckoo's Nest.
    “He basically fires his own dad from being in.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · The Game with Brendan Hines (Ad-Free) · 0:17:47 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)
  2. unmapped (runner-up): Kirk Douglas → Ben-Hur. Douglas was the runner-up for the lead of Ben-Hur.
    “Like Douglas was the runner-up for Ben Hur.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Spartacus with Richard Lawson (Ad-Free) · 0:21:36 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)

Fun items about them

  1. fun, about Kirk Douglas: Douglas griped that Kubrick left their five-picture deal and made only six films after.
    “half of his remaining filmography would have been under my contract.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Spartacus with Richard Lawson (Ad-Free) · 0:30:22 · Griffin Newman (0.50 sure it was them)
  2. fun, about Kirk Douglas: Douglas on Kubrick: it is not necessary to be nice to be talented.
    “Stanley Kubrick is a talented shit.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Spartacus with Richard Lawson (Ad-Free) · 1:35:24 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)
  3. fun, about Kirk Douglas: In the 4K special features a 98-year-old Douglas says only ten of his ninety films will be remembered.
    “And he says this thing about like, I made 90 movies in my life.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Spartacus with Richard Lawson (Ad-Free) · 2:04:57 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)
  4. fun, about Kirk Douglas: In Munich the rewritten script had a happy ending; Douglas threatened to walk. Kubrick calmly said he wanted a commercial hit.
    “he said, I did it to make a commercial.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Paths of Glory with Sarah Marshall (Ad-Free) · 0:42:03 · David Sims (0.60 sure it was them)