Charles Vidor (July 27, 1900 – June 4, 1959) was a film director. Born Károly Vidor to a Jewish family in Budapest, Hungary, he served in the Hungarian Army during World War I. He first came to prominence during the final years of the silent film era. Among his film successes are The Bridge (1929), Cover Girl (1944), A Song to Remember (1945), Gilda (1946), The Loves of Carmen (1948), Love Me or Leave Me (1955), The Swan (1956), The Joker Is Wild (1957), and A Farewell to Arms (1957). He was married four times, to Frances Varone (1927–1931), actress Karen Morley (1932–1943), actress Evelyn Key...
The Joker Is Wild
In 1929 Joe E. Lewis is a successful night-club singer in Chicago while working for the Mob during the Prohibition era. His decision to work elsewhere displeases his mob employer who has his thugs assault him by slashing his face and throat, preventing him from continuing his career as a singer. After many years he eventually recovers and turns his acerbic and witty sense of humor into an act when given a break as a stand-up comedian from singer Sophie Tucker (playing herself). Soon, Lewis makes a career for himself as a comic, but heavy drinking and a self-destructive behavior leads him to question what his life has become and how he has hurt the people around him including his wife Martha and his best friend Austin.
