“Alright, Mr. DeMille, I’m ready for my close-up.”
Fading movie star Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson) utters those words in the final scene of “Sunset Boulevard,” Billy Wilder’s 1950 film noir that exposes the dark reality that lies behind Hollywood’s glamorous image. Desmond mistakes the newsreel cameras that will record her arrest for those of a studio that will capture her starring role in a new movie.
Her delusion comes to mind while contemplating how California will fare if, as now seems almost certain...