Character Analysis
When Norma Desmond makes her return to Paramount—to triumphantly agree to make a movie with Cecil B. DeMille, she believes—she immediately confronts the gap between old Hollywood and new Hollywood (or what would've been new Hollywood in 1950). The younger gate guard, Mac (John Cortay), refuses to let her into the studio, pointing out that she doesn't have an appointment. But an older gate guard, Jonesy (Robert Emmett O'Connor), who recalls Norma Desmond's halcyon years, pays her due reverence—or maybe takes pity on her—and lets her through.
When she actually gets onto DeMille's set, she ends up being surrounded by movie people who remember and admire her. Hog-Eye (John "Skins" Miller) turns the spotlight toward her for a second, and we (and Norma) briefly get a sense of the glory that once was. But when her negotiations with DeMille start and she acts like she's still a diva, we remember—yeah, she's pretty deluded. And everyone's awkward reactions are proof.