Desmond was once a giant of the silver screen's silent era, but the proliferation of talking pictures marked the end of her career as a big time Hollywood star. She lives a reclusive existence in her lavish Beverly Hills mansion on Sunset Boulevard with her servant, and former film director, Max von Mayerling (portrayed by Erich von Stroheim) and pet monkey. It is the death of her monkey that serves as a source of confusion between the main characters at the onset of the film. A struggling screenwriter named Joe Gillis (portrayed by William Holden) arrives at Desmond's home after his car gets a flat tire and he pulls into her garage. Desmond thinks that Gillis is an undertaker, who has come to make funeral arrangements for her recently deceased pet. When the matter is cleared up, Desmond's