by Tony Curtis
And Jack Lemmon, how much joy he still brings to people. Whenever that funny close-up of him in Some Like It Hot hits the screen. And that insane giggle. Jack and I were a team. Everything we did was to feed each other. Looking back on it now, I realize that we switched roles as the film progressed. First I was the straight man and he was the comic. In another scene, he’d be straight man and I’d be carrying on. Sometimes our roles would flip-flop during a scene. We had to be flexible and inventive. It wasn’t complicated particularly, but we had to be attuned to what it was.
And you know what we were doing? We were playing Billy Wilder and Izzy Diamond. Don’t ask me who was who. It doesn’t matter, because they switched characters while they were acting it out and writing it down, too. All I know is that Jack and I were in front of a camera playing versions of Billy and Izzy. You’ll probably ask why Billy and Izzy didn’t get in front of the camera and play it themselves, like Woody Allen or Mel Brooks. I have no idea. I never asked them. Maybe they were too shy. Who knows?
Years after our picture was finished, I looked at it and realized that it was bigger than all of us put together. Could they have done it with someone else in my part? Or Jack’s part? Or Marilyn’s part? No. Could someone remake it now? Of course not. Billy and Izzy tailored the characters to us as we were creating them. We had to adjust ourselves to that. It was demanding and trying and sometimes exhausting, but it was worth it. Because of that process, Some Like It Hot is truly our movie. It was tailored to our individual talents and to our collective talents. Brilliantly conceived and brilliantly tailored. I should know. My father was a tailor.
NOTES
Chapter 3
16 “Nothing less than” Diamond, “The Day Marilyn Needed 47 Takes,” p. 135.
17 “Iz” Ibid.
Chapter 5
25 “Do you believe” Sikov, On Sunset Boulevard, p. 28.
26 “I’m afraid” Ibid., p. 367.
27 “She had trouble” Ibid., p. 367.
27 “Marilyn wanted the” Crowe, Conversations with Wilder, p. 161.
27 “When you got her” Spoto, Marilyn Monroe, p. 287.
28 “As one Arthur” Letter, Billy Wilder to Marilyn Monroe, March 17, 1958, Billy Wilder Papers, Special Collections, the Fairbanks Center for Motion Picture Study, Beverly Hills.
Chapter 7
38 “If Marilyn wants to” Wood, The Bright Side of Billy Wilder, p. 158.
39 “Lee, I’ve got a real” Guiles, Norma Jean, p. 234.
40 “Should I do my” Rosten, Marilyn, p. 76.
40 “Dear Marilyn:” Telegram, Billy Wilder to Marilyn Monroe, April 25, 1958, BW-FCMPS.
41 “Mm hm. Okay. Now . . . let’s see” Auiler and Castle, Some Like It Hot, p. 238.
41 “Do me a favor” Ibid.
42 “I want this kid” Ibid.
44 “This is the guy” Ibid.
Chapter 8
48 “I’m working on” Hopper, “Marilyn Returning to Hollywood.”
49 “Marilyn Monroe gloriously” Smith, “Marilyn Returns.”
51 “Curtis looks” Sherman, “Cityside.”
51 “I’ve been working” Scheuer, “Billy Wilder Tells Plans for Marilyn.”
52 “She wore” Sherman, “Cityside.”
Chapter 12
75 “I want the world” Sikov, On Sunset Boulevard, p. 417.
75 “I am very” Crowe, Conversations with Wilder, p. 63.
76 “It’s like shooting” Wood, The Bright Side of Billy Wilder, p. 19.
Chapter 13
79 “My hair was” Scott, “Living Doll.”
79 “No other blonde” Crowe, Conversations with Wilder, p. 165.
79 “They changed it” Scott, “Living Doll.”
79 “Billy, you have to” Sikov, On Sunset Boulevard, p. 418.
80 “Neither my husband” “Marilyn Sips Champagne to Celebrate.”
Chapter 14
90 “I could watch Marilyn” Hyams, “Marilyn Is Back!” p. 11.
92 “You aren’t surprised” Guiles, Norma Jean, p. 238.
Chapter 16
97 “Everything is in such” Sikov, On Sunset Boulevard, p. 418.
106 “Billy made a closeup” Widener, Lemmon, p. 173.
106 “He was a great” Crowe, Conversations with Wilder, p. 129.
Chapter 17
109 “I’ve asked Marilyn” Guiles, Norma Jean, p. 238
Chapter 19
123 “Don’t give up” Spoto, Marilyn Monroe, p. 402.
124 “It took me” Freedland, Jack Lemmon, p. 60.
Chapter 20
131 “She was having” Auiler and Castle, Some Like It Hot, p. 272.
132 “Billy handed me” Ibid., p. 421.
Chapter 21
139 “There were days” Spoto, Marilyn Monroe, p. 405.
143 “There are very few” Hyams, “Marilyn Is Back!” p. 11.
Chapter 22
146 “Now listen, guys” Auiler and Castle, Some Like It Hot, p. 277.
146 “She’d pick up” Spoto, Marilyn Monroe, p. 405.
146 “Maybe it’s a” Wood, The Bright Side of Billy Wilder, p. 155.
150 “Marilyn was trained” Ibid., p. 153.
150 “When I drove” Auiler and Castle, Some Like It Hot, p. 272.
151 “Marilyn was an excellent” Crowe, Conversations with Wilder, p. 36.
151 “Marilyn was very” Scott, “Living Doll.”
Chapter 23
155 “Everybody connected” Whitcomb, “The New Monroe,” p. 71.
157 “She was very” Crowe, Conversations with Wilder, p. 36.
Chapter 24
159 “I have never watched” Whitcomb, “The New Monroe,” p. 69.
159 “Billy had to have” Auiler and Castle, Some Like It Hot, p. 280.
159 “I never knew” Leaming, Marilyn Monroe, p. 312.
160 “We were in mid-flight” Guiles, Norma Jean, p. 239.
161 “Do you have” Whitcomb, “The New Monroe,” p. 70.
Chapter 25
162 “Marilyn Monroe’s closest” Hopper, “Mitzi Gaynor and Niven Will Costar.”
163 “Paula sympathized” Guiles, Norma Jean, p. 238.
163 “Here you have” Leaming, Marilyn Monroe, p. 313.
164 “We could hear Marilyn” Cerf, “The Late, Late Show-ups.”
166 “What do you think” Auiler and Castle, Some Like It Hot, p. 277.
166 “Billy, how many” Leaming, Marilyn Monroe, p. 315.
167 “I swallowed” Crowe, Conversations with Wilder, p. 164.
Chapter 26
167 “I’ve been having” Auiler and Castle, Some Like It Hot, p. 277.
168 “The whole idea” Sikov, On Sunset Boulevard, p. 417.
168 “Monroe demanded” Spoto, Marilyn Monroe, p. 399.
168 “My wife is” Wood, The Bright Side of Billy Wilder, p. 155.
168 “You’re trying” Guiles, Norma Jean, p. 239.
173 “Everyone else was” Scott, “Living Doll.”
174 “Thank you for” Rosten, Marilyn, p. 77.
Chapter 27
175 “I woke up” Crowe, Conversations with Wilder, p. 37.
176 “Sugar Kane will” Chierichetti, Hollywood Costume Design, p. 101.
181 “Gee! Marilyn” “Cast of Characters.”
Chapter 28
183 “Marilyn had a kind” Widener, Lemmon, p. 170.
Chapter 30
188 “And Jerry” Sikov, On Sunset Boulevard, p. 423.
190 “That’s what Billy” Auiler and Castle, Some Like It Hot, p. 249.
Chapter 31
193 “Is Marilyn really” Shearer, “How Much Time,” p. 21.
194 “Hello?” Wood, The Bright Side of Billy Wilder, p. 153.
Chapter 32
196 “She had to run” Sikov, On Sunset Boulevard, p. 425.
197 “If it gets laughs” Diamond, “The Day Marilyn Needed 47 Takes,” p. 136.
198 “I may be” Johnson, “M
arilyn Rivaled by ‘Dolls’.”
198 “Other than the” Auiler and Castle, Some Like It Hot, p. 293.
199 “I made the cut” Ibid., p. 295.
Chapter 33
202 “Monroe and Miller” Author interview with Warren G. Harris, May 10, 2009.
202 “Some Like It Hot, directed” “Some Like It Hot,” Variety, February 6, 1959.
203 “I don’t want to be” Leaming, Marilyn Monroe, p. 313.
203 “I am eating” Wood, The Bright Side of Billy Wilder, p. 155.
204 “Who says stars” Ibid.
204 “I cannot let your” Ibid., p. 158.
205 “The question is” Sikov, On Sunset Boulevard, p. 425.
205 “That others would” Wood, The Bright Side of Billy Wilder, p. 160.
Chapter 34
207 “Some Like It Hot, though it” Thomas Little, letter to Geoffrey Shurlock, March 5, 1959, Some Like It Hot file, in the Production Code Administration papers, MPAA Collection, Margaret Herrick Library, Fairbanks Center for Motion Picture Study (hereinafter PCA).
207 “So far” Geoffrey Shurlock, letter to Thomas Little, March 18, 1959, Some Like It Hot file, PCA.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Books
Auiler, Dan, and Alison Castle. Some Like It Hot. Berlin: Taschen, 2005. Chierichetti, David. Hollywood Costume Design. New York: Harmony Books, 1976.
Crowe, Cameron. Conversations with Wilder. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1999.
Curtis, Tony, and Barry Paris. Tony Curtis: The Autobiography. New York: William Morrow and Company, 1993.
Curtis, Tony, and Peter Golenbeck. Tony Curtis: American Prince. New York: Harmony Books, 2008.
Freedland, Michael. Jack Lemmon. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1985.
Greenberg, Joel, and Charles Higham. The Celluloid Muse: Hollywood Directors Speak. New York: Signet Books, 1972.
Guiles, Fred Lawrence. Norma Jean: The Life of Marilyn Monroe. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1969.
Leaming, Barbara. Marilyn Monroe. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1998.
Rosten, Norman. Marilyn: An Untold Story. New York: Signet Press, 1973.
Sikov, Ed. On Sunset Boulevard: The Life and Times of Billy Wilder. New York: Hyperion Press, 1998.
Spoto, Donald. Marilyn Monroe: The Biography. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1993.
Widener, Don. Lemmon: A Biography. New York: MacMillan Publishing Company, 1975.
Wood, Tom. The Bright Side of Billy Wilder, Primarily. Garden City, NY: Doubleday and Co., 1968.
Signed Articles
Cerf, Bennett. “The Late, Late Show-ups.” Los Angeles Times, September 20, 1959, p. J17.
Diamond, I. A. L. “The Day Marilyn Needed 47 Takes to Remember to Say ‘Where’s the Bourbon?’ ” California, December 1985, pp. 132, 135-36.
Hopper, Hedda. “Marilyn Returning to Hollywood.” Los Angeles Times, June 22, 1958, p. E3.
———. “Mitzi Gaynor and Niven Will Costar.” Los Angeles Times, October 20, 1958, p. C10.
Hyams, Joe. “Marilyn Is Back!” This Week Magazine, October 5, 1958, pp. 10-11.
———. “Uproar in an Upper Berth.” Los Angeles Times, January 4, 1959, p. 110.
Johnson, Erskine. “Marilyn Rivaled by ‘Dolls’.” Los Angeles Mirror-News, September 18, 1958, p. 13.
Scheuer, Philip K. “Billy Wilder Tells Plans for Marilyn.” Los Angeles Times, July 10, 1958, p. B9.
Scott, Vernon. “Living Doll: Marilyn Monroe’s Dawdling Makes Money for Cast.” New York Daily News, December 20, 1958.
Shearer, Lloyd. “How Much Time and Trouble Is Marilyn Monroe Worth?” Parade, December 7, 1958, pp. 20-21.
Sherman, Gene. “Cityside.” Los Angeles Times, July 10, 1958, p. 2.
Smith, Jack. “Marilyn Returns.” Los Angeles Times, July 9, 1958, p. 3.
Whitcomb, Jon. “The New Monroe.” Cosmopolitan, March 1959, pp. 68-71.
Unsigned Articles
“Cast of Characters.” Time, November 17, 1958, p. 74.
“Marilyn Sips Champagne to Celebrate.” Los Angeles Times, August 8, 1958, pp. 2, 16.
INDEX
Page references in italics refer to illustrations.
Academy Awards
Actors Studio. See also Strasberg, Lee; Strasberg, Paula
Allen, Gracie
Allen, Hervey
Allen, Steve
Allied Artists
American Film Institute
Anthony Adverse
anti-Semitism
Arnold, Eve
Ashton Productions
Avedon, Richard
Bacon, James
Bagley, Sam
Barbette
Bay Theatre
Beachhead
Beinstock, Mr. (character)
Bel Air Hotel
Benjamin, Robert S.
Bentley, Barbara. See Diamond, Barbara
Beverly Carlton
Beverly Hills Hotel
Blair, Nicky
Bogart, Humphrey
Boyle, Edward G.
Brackett, Charles
Brando, Marlon
Brown, Joe E. as Osgood character reviews of
Capone, Al
Chaplin, Charles
Cherry Lane Theatre
Chevalier, Maurice
Chulay, John
City Across the River
Clift, Montgomery
Cole, Jack
Columbia Pictures
Columbo, Spats (character)
Comiskey, Pat
Congregation B’nai Jehuda
Cooper, Gary
Cornell, Joseph
Cosmo
Criss Cross
Crucible, The (Miller)
Curtis, Jamie Lee (daughter) Curtis, Jill (wife)
Curtis, Kelly (daughter)
Curtis, Tony
on acting and stardom
biographical information
career following Some Like It Hot
cars of
casting of
children of
compensation of
confrontation with Miller
depression suffered by
drawing by
early career of
final scenes filmed with
Jewish identity of
as Joe character
as Josephine character
with Kelly Curtis
Lemmon and
on marriage to Leigh
on marriage to Leigh, and extramarital affairs
Monroe and, Hopper interview
Monroe and, personal relationship
Monroe and, scenes filmed together
at Moscow International Film Festival
as Mr. Shell Oil Jr. character
reviews of
stage name of
type casting of
Wilder and
See also Some Like It Hot
Curtleigh Productions
Daphne (character). See Lemmon, Jack
Davis, Sammy, Jr.
De Carlo, Yvonne
Destination Tokyo
Deutsch, Adolph
Diamond, Barbara
Diamond, I. A. L. “Izzy”
Academy Award nomination
compensation of
on film’s success
musical score and
screenplay and
Writers Guild award
Dietrich, Marlene
DiMaggio, Joe
Double Indemnity
Dramatic Workshop, New School of Social Research
Duff, Howard
Fairbanks, Douglas
Fanfaren der Liebe
Fanfares of Love
Farr, Felicia
Formosa Café
Frees, Paul
Gable, Clark
Garbo, Greta
Gaynor, Mitzi
Globe Photos
Golden Boy
Goldwyn, Samuel. See also Samuel Goldwyn studio
Grant, Cary
&nbs
p; Grauman’s Chinese Theatre
Greene, Milton
Guilaroff, Sydney
Harris, Warren G.
Harrison, Doane
Hawks, Athole
Hawks, Howard
Haworth, Ted
Hepburn, Audrey
Hollywood
actors’ contracts
parties
See also individual names of actors; individual names of films; individual names of studios
Hope, Bob
Hopper, Hedda
Hotel del Coronado
Houdini
House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC)
Hyams, Joe
Hyde, Johnny
“I’m Through with Love” (Some Like It Hot)
“I Wanna Be Loved by You” (Some Like It Hot)
Jacobs, Arthur P.
jazz
Jerry (character). See Lemmon, Jack
Joani Presents
Joe (character). See Curtis, Tony
Josephine (character). See Curtis, Tony
Kansas Censor Board
Kansas Raiders
Karger, Fred
Kaye, Danny
Kelley, Tom
Kertiz, Janush
Kings Go Forth
Kowalczyk, Sugar (Sugar Kane) . See also Monroe, Marilyn
Krim, Arthur B.
