​​​​​​60 years of Mercedes-Benz SL in Hollywood

The history of the automobile is inseparable from the history of film. Both technologies are in fact children of the same era. In 1886 Carl Benz patented the first motor driven “horseless carriage”. Not long after that the Lumiére brothers invented the cinématographe in 1895, a film camera, copier and projector in one – this laid the foundation for the dream factory that would later be built around Hollywood.   

The Mercedes-Benz SL has long enjoyed a love affair with Hollywood, there is virtually no other car that can claim a similar status. The following images are from the displays created by Mercedes-Benz for an SL exhibit specifically for journalists. 

Selected Highlights From 60 Years of SL History in Hollywood 

The 190 SL celebrated its first notable role in the movie High Society (1956) starring Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby and Grace Kelly. This was Grace Kelly’s last film before marrying Prince Rainier III of Monaco. The sheer elegance of Grace Kelly behind the wheel of the 190 SL, with the wind teasing at her scarf and Frank Sinatra in the passenger’s seat, this is the association with glamor that continues to influence the SL’s image to this day. 

In the 1960s the 230 SL made quite an impression in the film Arabesque (1966) starring alongside Sophia Loren and Gregory Peck. The director Stanley Donen liked the car so much that he purchased the vehicle and used it, with exactly the same license plate, in the film Two for the Road (1967) with Audrey Hepburn and Albert Finney. Donen used innovative techniques while filming the movie – at one point he even made the actors film themsevles while driving in the SL.

Richard Gere’s performance in American Gigolo (1980) remains unforgettable. While he set a trend with his well-tailored Armani suits, Gere also notably drove a 450 SL, making a statement about the exclusive tastes of his character, a high-end male escort. 

In the film Death Becomes Her (1990), Merly Streep’s narcissistic diva character clung fast not only to her beauty, but also to her favorite car – a white 500 SL. Goldie Hawn, her rival in the movie, evens plans to get rid of Streep by sending her off a cliff in her beloved vehicle. It is questionable whether that plan would have worked. Those who have seen the climatic action-scene from the film The Rookie (1990) witnessed Clint Eastwood drive a top-down 500 SL through the window of an exploding building. He landed unscathed on the ground floor of the neighboring building.

The movie Jumper (2008) portrays the R230 series SL in a way true to its race car roots, proving that it has not only refined elegance, but that is also made for speed. The two main characters, played by Hayden Christensen and Jamie Bell, possess the ability to teleport, bringing objects of their choice with them on journeys through time and space. In a high-speed tour of Tokio while behind the wheel of an SL 65 AMG, they “jump” from gap to gap within heavy traffic. The ability to jump through traffic would be a serious asset in major cities known for their chronic traffic problems.

Given this rich history of “star appearances” in film, it should be no surprise when the R231 series SL continues a Hollywood tradition as the vehicle chosen by directors looking for a stylishs sports car for the blockbusters and classic films of tomorrow.

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Photos: © 2012 Daimler AG. All rights reserved.