Some Like It Hot / Maker's 46

0:00 In 1959 director, Billy Wilder and star Marilyn Monroe gave the world. A farce of a comedy that has stood the test of time. In 2019 beam suntory gives us a 94 proof bourbon that tries to wax eloquently. The film is Some Like It Hot. The whiskey is Makers 46 and we'll review them both. This is the film and whiskey podcast. Welcome to the film and whiskey podcast, where each week, we review a classic movie and a glass of whiskey. I'm Bob Hook, I'm Brad G and this week we're looking at the 1959 film, Some Like It Hot now Bradley Roberts going to be a stretch, a shock to our listeners, but I've Been Told You had not seen this film before. Fuck this watch up.

1:04 Shut up. So here's the thing, as I was watching this movie, I was amazed that I'd never seen it because this is like, right up my dad's a lie. Yeah, he and it's like the textbook, like cross-dressing comedy, like, it's been, it's been at my supposed to have seen all of the cross-dressing of these every movie where someone has done, this has borrowed heavily from Some, Like, It Hot, ya know this. This movie. I'm going to tip my hand. It's brilliant. Yeah, it's funny. It's well, written it like, it truly has stood the test of time. Absolutely. So this movie came out in 1959 directed by Billy Wilder. Billy Wilder was already a super famous writer, and director. At this point, he had done stuff through the 40s and 50s been nominated for Oscars.

1:51 You know, the year after this, he made a movie called the apartment, that would win best picture. He's at the height of his powers right now, and he lands for the second time. Marilyn, Monroe to be in his movie. Who is one of the biggest stars in the world at this point then he goes and gets Tony. Curtis one of the, the heartthrob leading actors at the time. And fresh off an Academy Award win for best supporting actor. He gets Jack, Lemmon, who if I can tip my hand Jack Lemmon is one of my all-time favorite actors. I think really? Yeah, I think Jack Lemmon really likes set the bar and the blueprint for the comedic actor, who knew how to do drama as well in a really naturalistic like you, I can't watch Jim Carrey in Eternal Sunshine or the Majestic or any of those without thinking of Jack. Lemmon, I think he really liked late it down for people to follow after the fact.

2:38 And Here he's just given free reign to do whatever he wants and it is wonderful. Their performance is absolutely blow my mind with how much range they have and their expressions in the way they use their voice, obviously pretending to be women. Like the way that they move through their characters is what absolutely wonderful and just a pleasure to watch. I'll tell you how good Jack Clemons performance is, and this movie. He was nominated for best actor at the Academy Awards for this movie. For this, this is not the kind of movie that gets Oscar nominations and yet it's so good. It was nominated for six Oscars, it 11, Oscar for costume design. We really it was nominated for best director best actor, Jack Lemmon best screenplay cinematography and art Direction.

3:28 So it was a well-received movie even for the type of movie that it is. So you said that you had not seen this before I hadn't. Did you know anything about it before? Sitting down and Watching it. I knew it was about two men who were on the run and had to crossdress to escape the mob. Oh, so you knew pretty much the whole the whole plot. So if you want a summary of the movie, it's two men who are musicians and they witness the the st. Valentine's Day Massacre, and the mob wants to kill them and in order to escape, they going to drag and go on the run to dress as women. Yeah, I'm in Florida and in the process they join an all girl's band. The lead singer of which is Marilyn Monroe, none other than Marilyn Monroe.

4:13 Of course they both get the hots for Marilyn, Monroe, one of them Falls madly in love with her and the other Falls madly in love with Joey brat an elderly, man and elderly, men Shenanigans ensue. So going into this movie, you know, I've seen it a few times before. I think it's a great classic comedy farce, but Billy Wilder is really known for his dialogue and he's known for having really cynical sharp hard. Good character as he was really big in the film Noir movement. And so I'm expecting some really cynical dialogue in here and you get it a little bit. It's a lot of sarcasm that comes for, especially from Jack Clemons character. That just kind of like, you know, narrates the whole proceedings, a little bit of like, well, this is going to happen in this going to happen.

4:57 But I was surprised at how witty it was without being too cynical. Yeah. I think that one of the strengths of the movie was the way in which Joe and Jerry played by Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon the way that they kind of flow back and forth between the two positions of being kind of sleaze balls that bet on the races. And, you know, at the start of the movie, Tony Curtis is betting, all their money on things, and he's kind of the cynical like maybe not cynical but this sense of like, I just do my own thing in a bet. It all on the ponies or the horses of dogs. We're going to do all this and Jack Lemmon is the reasonable one. The end of the movie Jack Lemmon is the one who's taking risks and Joe is the one who becomes more responsible. Yeah, definitely.

5:46 And so they have this good movement from character and you even see that in the Simplicity of at the start of the movie, Tony Curtis has Jack, Lemmon saying trying to convince himself that he's a Girl by saying I'm a girl. I'm a girl I'm a girl. I'm a girl. Yeah. And at the end of the movie he has of saying in a brilliant reversal that line. I'm a boy I'm a boy boy. That just it's the writing. And again, this is one of the most revered screenplays in the history of Hollywood. It is a classic example of how to write a farce, you know, a farcical comedy, but the dialog you can pull Snippets of this dialogue out. And the banter is just so witty, it holds up so, well, even after 60 years and this, this movie is probably one of the most perfect examples of when you're talking about older movies.

6:34 One of the reasons I love older movies is because they literally could not Do visually what we can do today, you know? Like when you watch a Marvel movie, they are able to do things on screen that were completely unheard of in the 50s 60s, 70s, 80s, even into the 90s, sure with CGI and all this stuff. So the movies are able to compel you visually where these movies really? What did they have to draw you in with write the dialogue? Yeah, and I think this movie is a perfect example of why I love older films. Is because they don't have all the fancy tricks to draw you in. They have to be good compelling actors with well-written dialogue to draw you into these scenes that can be kind of long and drawn out and a lot of talking sure and this movie just does that perfectly.

7:25 So Wilder was an immigrant and I think being an immigrant and coming to America and learning some of the sort of witticisms and the turns of phrase that we have in America, it gave him that sort of European Cinema ISM. But it also he learned really easily how to make funny jokes out of these dumb things that we do as Americans and you see it all through this movie. But coming from Europe, he had this idea that he wanted to remake this German film, from the 1930s that was called Fanfare, dare leben with or fanfares of love. And it was about two guys who joined an all-girl Orchestra and dressed in drag. But that's about where the parallels end, because that movie, the two guys can kind of go in and out of drag, like, They dress down back into being, guys, they're just trying to infiltrate and like get women. Whereas, in this movie, Billy Wilder knew from the start that it needed to be two guys and they had to join the girls band as an absolute question of life and death. He said otherwise it would seem like at any point in the movie they could simply remove their wigs and tell Marilyn Monroe's character that they both love her. And so Wilder said we invented the fact that, you know, they should they should be witnessing some sort of execution or Gangland killing and they had to As themselves to protect their lives.

8:40 And so from there they actually wrote backwards, they said, okay. Well, when were gangs prevalent in Chicago? Well in the Roaring Twenties. Oh, and then it became well. How about we just put him at the st. Valentine's Day Massacre. Yeah, one of the most famous mob related events in history. Yeah. So while they're said, it wasn't that we just sat down and decided we're going to do some sort of send up on old timey, gangster pictures. That's just how it developed. And I think it's really interesting that they put it in that historical context because it it gives the movie and the premise as ridiculous as It is at least a little bit of credibility. Well, and it gives it a good sense of tension, right? To the movie, where like you said they can't just reveal themselves and Proclaim their love otherwise, they might die, right? And so, while this movie is a comedy and there's not much serious about it.

9:26 There is that element of seriousness that draws you in and keeps you attached to what's going to happen? Yeah. And it helps you take a break from the sort of Breakneck pace of the jokes too. Because Once in a while, there's a chase scene and there really are steaks that are you know, I didn't expect to see anybody get shot to death in this movie. Yeah. And not only are they getting shot to death? They're getting machine like tommy guns. Yeah. At a very early stage of the film. Alright, so, in addition to the development of the script, though, Wilder, if there's a really interesting history of how this movie got put together in casted to. So at from a very early stage, Billy Wilder wanted Edward G Robinson to be in the movie and to play the old gangster, was a name spats.

10:09 That's right. That's Colombo. I think, I think he actually wanted him to play. The guy that shows up at the hotel that's like the head of the five families that has like a DJ Walkman. But it turns out to be a hearing aids an I'm hearing it. Yeah, I love that. Yeah. So he was trying to get Edward G, Robinson, Robinson, kept saying, no, I don't want to do that. I don't want to go back to that point in my career. And so, what, while there it is, he actually cast, Edward, G Robinson, Son in like a really minor role thinking it would lure him in, and it did not. And so, he was just stuck with a regime odds and son in the movie. That's funny. But he knew that he needed to get Marilyn Monroe and they finally got Marilyn Monroe to sign and she was really excited to be in this movie, because she had hung out with Hey, Curtis. When they were both like super young and they came to Hollywood together, like she went on record saying, like they used to make out in the back of his car with when he first got there and he said he remembered her as being a really sweet kid, you know, from back in the day.

11:05 However, over the course of making this movie, as we will come to find out, Hollywood had taken its toll on Miss Marilyn, Monroe it did and they hated hated each other. But I just love this idea that they had that history coming into it too. Yeah, it actually affected the way that the movie. Filmed a little bit I guess when Marilyn Monroe met Tony Curtis she asked him, do you still have that Green Convertible? And I'm pretty sure Tony Curtis was married at this point to Janet Leigh. Okay. And they know they're about to have a baby Jamie Lee Curtis here in a couple of years. So wait, you didn't know this no idea learning Hollywood history. Now wow. Yeah, they're all related, they really are. All right.

11:47 So why don't we go ahead and talk a little bit about Marilyn Monroe. Tony Curtis Jack Lemmon Our favorite performances from this film. So the, my favorite performance is slightly colored by the fact that I had never seen. This person in a movie before. I love Marilyn, Monroe in this movie. Yeah, she's taken on this this like, are or this Aura of Legend now. Yeah. And you have to really go back and watch her in movies to understand, just how magnetic of a screen presence. She was, there is something about her. So everything I've ever read about me, Monroe, is that she created the blond bombshell stereotype, right?

12:28 Yeah. The dumb blond that like, honestly, if you think about the movie Legally Blond, mmm, get like that. Is a direct Marilyn Monroe ancestor, if you will. And so, looking at that, I just always had this sense of, like, Marilyn Monroe, being just as domed. It's in the movie White Christmas, this this is played by like The show Girls that he's trying to hook up the girls with, you know, I'm talking about. Yeah. And so like that's what I was imagining Marilyn Monroe to be and what I got, was this performance where you have, this truly innocent fun. Like you said, Magnetic Personality that just draws you in with her sincerity with her.

13:11 Kindness her innocence, I, but here's was blown away. She is, she's portrayed as being not smart obviously like she can't recognize that these two clearly male figures are But neither, can anybody else in the movie for that matter? Yes. But Wilder gives her this amazing layer of just sadness and loneliness. And I think, because of what she was going through in her personal life at the time to, she conveys it so well, and actually. So this movie just got released on the Criterion Collection, a few months ago, and, and the essay that was written for this movie. The essay is said that Marilyn Monroe in this film, is the heart of the comedy, the only one that's not playing for laughs. And you realize that She is really, she's the straight man for the rest of them.

13:54 And he said, if you like me, think that she walks away with the picture, it's because Wilder hands it to her. Rarely do Jack, Lemmon or Tony Curtis had the screen to themselves, but Monroe, often does she gets close ups? That are a rare occurrence, in Billy Wilder's films and I think he, she's his Muse in this movie. And what she turns in performance wise is? It can't be underrated. It is a fantastic performance. She's perfect in this. Movie. Yeah. And like I said, like you said there's something about Marilyn Monroe that the legend of her life and her death and the JFK things. And honestly, like I've seen the video of her singing, happy birthday to JFK. And so you kind of have all that stuff in your brain and there's something about this movie that all that just kind of jumped out the window.

14:44 And I just saw her as an actress and this role and she was brilliant. Absolutely was yeah. Everyone in this film is working at like their best level though. I'm sure you can't you can't get away from lemon and Curtis and we I've already talked about how much I love Jack Lemmon in this movie, but he's so good. That you forget how good Tony Curtis it and Tony. Curtis is actually playing three parts in this movie. Yeah, instead of lemons to like he's playing his female self, he's playing himself and he's playing the Cary Grant impersonating billionaire shall oil, Junior? That is Transatlantic farcical accent. Oh it is so fun.

15:29 It's amazing. And he'll if you've seen Cary Grant like it's a bad Cary Grant a. Yeah, I guess at one point, Billy Wilder showed this movie to Cary Grant. And after the fact he was like, what do you think of Tony's accent? And he was like, he's like, well, he's trying to sound like you and Cary Grant's. I don't talk like that. Ha ha ha. What is it? Young lady. What are you staring at? This happens to me all the time in public situations. And would you mind moving along? Please? Yes. Pray, he's waiting for a signal from this yacht. Yes, yes. It sleeps 12. This is my friend Daphne. She's a very sick girl. I'm a, what how has it been more? I heard a very sad story about a girl who went to bring more, she squealed on a roommate and they found the strangled with her own busier.

16:23 Yes. We have to be very careful whom we picked her up. They but what are the cool stories that I pulled for this episode was Wilder really needed to. Coach Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis in the art of female impersonation. And so he better to do that than another man. He taught he hired a legendary drag queen from Europe, not known as Van Der Clyde, I'm sorry. Yeah, Vander Clyde a legendary drag queen from Europe who went by the name bar bet and after only a few days of working with them, barbet, quits and Wilders. Like what's going on and barbet, says, Tony Curtis is doing amazing.

17:05 I can't teach Jack Lemmon anything I quit. He's impossible and lemon actually came out and said afterwards. I always saw my character as, like, the more, you know, I don't want a predatory but he's like, he's only interested in one thing. He's definitely more of like a barbaric guy. And so, while Jack Tony Curtis is playing it kind of more demure and you know, sachet and things like that. Jack Lemmon spends the whole movie tripping over his high heels and not learning, you know, and it's He played for laughs but this drag queen was so upset that he wouldn't comply that she just walked out that sometimes you hear stories about movies made back before you know, pre 70s, and you just got.

17:50 Did that. Did that really happen? Yeah. Is that everything is a legend in Hollywood? Yeah, so, who knows, if any of this is actually true. Yeah, hi, yeah. That makes me a pile of Jack Clemons character, though, because he does feel more forced, Than Tony Curtis. I feel like he genuinely has this sense of like, even his voice sounds more put on the Tony Curtis is does Tony Curtis kind of sounds? Like you know, this kind of Alto Essure husky kind of woman and Jack Lemmon just that's for sure. And that goes back to to the casting is perfect in this movie.

18:31 And then you've got the wonderful wonderful character of Osgood played by. Comedian Joey Brown. He has the biggest mouth I've ever seen on a few. Hey, he's a very distinct looking man. And that's the thing I know for a fact, I don't know what it is. I know I've seen him in another movie. Yeah. Well, he's making movies in the, you know, in the 30s. He was a robber forever. So his face is so distinctive. And the way he moves his face, he is such a good physical comedian. I want to get into the last line of the movie because Joey Brown delivers, one of the best closing lines in the history of of film. And the funny thing about it is the backstory. So Billy Wilder said that he was working with his writing partner IL diamond.

19:14 And he said we were in our room working together and we were waiting for the next line. We needed Joey Browns response the final line, the curtain line of the film to come to us and then I heard Diamond say nobody's perfect. I thought about it and I said well let's put in nobody's perfect for now but only for the time being we have a whole week to think about it. Well without a better idea, they shot the line and Ended up in the movie and they both still kind of hated it there. Like, well, I don't know what else could have gone there and then they tested out the movie and said that line, got one of the biggest laughs I've ever heard in a movie theater, it's so good. So context, right? The end of the film, there all, escaping from Euler's more, right. Spoiler alert, they're all escaping from the mob, on this little speedboat and Tony, Curtis and Marilyn Monroe are making up with each other, and he's admitting, you know, I'm not who I said, I was, I love you, I love you, making up and making out, right? And in the front of the speedboat, you've got Osgood this older gentleman, who's been pursuing Jack Clemons fake female, the whole film and jaglom is trying so hard to find reasons why she can't marry him.

20:18 I can't have children. Like I could never have children, which is true. Well, adopt was. Yeah, and he's coming back with all these comebacks, you know, it's going to be with, you will adopt kids and finally Jack, let me get so mad. He rips his wig off and says, hey, that's good. I'm a man. Nobody's perfect. Nobody's Perfect. It's just such a great wine. Yeah and there's so many, there's so many great moments throughout the movie. Great one-liners, great interactions between people that how could it end any differently than with one of the best lines of all time? That can get a laugh. Anytime you hear it? Anytime you see it? Absolutely one of my favorite lines from the movie is when the police officer, the very start of the movie sits down in the Speakeasy in the funeral home. And he says, I'll have Some bourbon or whiskey. He says, oh, we don't have bourbon. Here, we have coffee, we got Scotch coffee, and she didn't coffee.

21:12 And whiskey coffee, is coffee tray. It's just so clever all the way through and Wilder. He knew what he had to do to make this movie. The right, well, I guess when he went and shot movies, they didn't shoot a ton of coverage meaning like they didn't shoot extra footage from different angles. Just in case he knew exactly what he was going in to do, and they started testing out the movie and he was trying to figure out, how should I It and they did a color screen test with the guys in their makeup and it looks so bad that he said, even though the joke is that their makeup is terrible and no one can tell the audience, won't even buy this, we have to make the movie in black and white at this point. That's the reason why the movies in black and white, and I was actually wondering that, I was like, 1959.

21:56 That feels like, it could be in the color. Yeah, sure. Yeah, it was an intentional move to put it in black and white and I think that works really well. Yeah, definitely. Bob, I absolutely love this movie. We've already tipped our hand so hard. Yeah, it's a great movie. Yep. Let's try some bourbon here I say, let's yeah, let's get into trying this bourbon. We brought with us today, makers, 46. This is not your regular Maker's. Mark, this is 46. I don't know what tired 40 that your 45th makers, know, or your 47th. All I know is that it's more expensive than regular Makers, Mark. So let's pop the cork, let's give it a try bread. All right, so Brad time to drink some more with. This is the best part of every podcast for me hands down because I get to drink whiskey today. We're going back to an old standard bourbon, the good old bourbon, you love some Bourbon and we are drinking makers 46. Now Maker's Mark is one of the more popular bourbons and there are hardcore Makers, Mark aficionados, but I've been in places where some bars will use makers like as their, well, Urban.

23:05 Yeah, which is injured. I mean it's not a cheap bourbon know it. And I would say it's a good decent. Good quality bourbon. Yeah. Usually and that would just mean to me that. It's a very palatable bourbon. Yeah. It's not offensive to anybody. Yeah. So what makers is it's aged at least five years in order to make makers 46 what they do? Is they take the makers out of the barrel after it's been aged. They add in Oak, staves that have been like really heavily charred back into the barrel and then they put all the liquid back in it again, throw back up on the shelf for a couple more months, to get some more of that, Okie Char out of it, and then they release it. It is significantly pricier than Makers, Mark standard it. You're going to run at least $40 for a fifth this oh wow. Yeah, so it's a fairly high end bourbon. Brad.

23:55 What are you picking up on the nose of this one? As I smell it, there is a decent. Alcohol. Smell this smell. You know what? It smells like. It smells like acetone. Like it smells like nail-polish remover. So the funny thing is, we reviewed, you know, Scotch the other week. And I've always been told this scotch has a crazy, strong smell, but honestly the Bourbons that we've reviewed on average, I would say have a much stronger, just a heavy smell of pure out your alcohol. Yeah. And I can't tell if it's like, it's so alcoholic that it's Taking my scent, but I am, like, underneath all the alcohol.

24:42 I feel like I'm picking up some floral almost like a flowery note, yeah, yeah, something yeah, no rose or something on. I mean, like it really does there's some sort of floral to it and as it Mellows and we poured it just a little bit ago. You finally, get down to some of that caramel and vanilla and maple. I was just thinking, I actually can kind of get a strong maple flavor. Yeah, I don't know what it is. But I like I'm picking up a lot of floral like a rose petal kind of thing. Yeah. No, I could definitely see that. Let's give it a taste. All right. I got more floral on that. It is not. Yeah, it's not sweet at all. That it is extra Smoky.

25:24 Yes. It tastes kind of like nothing. And then it's Smokey going down, but not the same way that Scotch was Smoky. No, it's definitely a different kind of smell and taste. Like they charred a barrel and through water or through alcohol on top of it. Yeah. I don't know if I'm a fan Brad. Thus far I'm not picking up the hints of vanilla and maple that ice melt which is yeah, what I would call disappointing. Here's the thing like I saw the mash bill for this online you know which is like the ingredient list. It said, 70% corn, which we know bourbon has to be at least 51% corn 16% wheat which usually these ways they use wheat to like temper down some of the really sweet corn and I get that but it cancels out the corn in this.

26:15 And I'm really shocked at how harsh The Taste is on this. Yeah, it's it's been a solid 30, 40 seconds since I took a sip and it's still burning in the back of my throat. Yeah. Would you agree? And yeah, real spicy. But there's no, right. There's no Ryan it though, which you would expect with a really spicy Burger. I guess I would never would have expected a charred Oak. Stave to bring in this much. Yeah, spice. And this much smokiness to it. Well, talking about 40 seconds after you've swallowed it. Let's talk about the finish. I don't think it has a pleasant one. I will say the the flavor doesn't sit on you strong, which is fine.

26:56 Yeah, but the, the kind of burning alcohol. A flavor definitely sits on you. Yeah, which isn't good. No, in my opinion. Not not a good thing. Yeah, I'm not I'm not huge on this. I'm not gonna lie and I like regular makers. Yeah, regular Maker's. Mark is a good bourbon. All right, so let's Let's finish this out here. Balance overall balance. Brad is struggle every it's only 94 proof to. That's the thing. I'm I wasn't expecting. I feel like I'm breathing fire after I drink this bourbon. Yeah so I would say that Bob and I aren't maybe amateurs when it comes to whiskies and and such but we're not professionals by any standard.

27:37 I think the biggest surprise to me as we've tasted more Whiskey's and expanded. Our selection is how proof does not determine Ermine anything anything at all. Like in my brain going into this, I was like, oh yeah. 120 proof is gonna burn like crazy and in 80 proof won't. Yeah, but we've had an 80 to 86 proof that. Yep. Burp. Pretty well and you could feel it going down. This is a, what was it? A 94, 94, it's fireproof but it's not. I mean, it's not over 100, it's not over 100. We've had hundreds that burnt much less than you do now. And like the alcohol is so forward in this that even as I'm talking, I My tongue isn't getting numb. Yeah.

28:20 So this does not bode well for our scores rad. What would you offer up on this for nose? 33, I would give it a for taste. Five. Yeah, I gave it a 6, The Taste isn't awful it just doesn't have much going on for it. Finish to that. Gave it a 3. Yep. And overall balance I mean it's pretty balanced all around. So six give it a 6 I gave it a 5 which puts me at an 18, it puts Brad at a 16 which means overall makers. 46 is only coming out to a 17 out of 40 which is below average.

29:03 About where we put benchmarks. But number we put benchmark and again, you have to take price into this 100%. We will always say we are not professional film critics. We are not professional. Whiskey, drinkers were not kind of sores. Drink the whiskey you like to drink and as a guy who is limited in my funds as two gentlemen, who are living is who are paying off grad school. I'm not gonna go out and buy a 40 dollar bottle of this. When I can buy a 20 dollar bottle of something that is just way better tasting. Yeah, it's not. Complex enough for me. The alcohol is too forward. I don't like the mouth feel that it gives me honestly. If you for me if you wanted a strong mixer, this would be it.

29:43 But I'm not paying not from the price. Yeah. Imagine. How much it would cost to have a drink mixed with this in our? I would never want that. Yeah, so would you recommend for now? I would not recommend either. Save your $40, spend it on something better, will throw people back to Very Old Barton again, very good man, Very Old Barton, it's holding up with its 12 dollar price point or whatever it was. That was only twelve dollars. Something like that. It's like 12 to 15. Yeah. Go buy it right now. Goodbye very low. Parton do not buy makers. 46 Brad. What do you say? We get back into Some Like It. Hot Alright Brad. So let's talk some more about Some Like It Hot. Now this movie for as wonderful and as fun as it is has a very storied history of being. One of the most troubled movies of all time to make and it has to do with the sort of mental health of Marilyn Monroe at the time right now.

30:35 We all know that she really struggled from depression. She had suicidal thoughts and tendencies and she was addicted to alcohol and pills at this point, which is funny because she literally says in the movie that she drinks, way too much alcohol. Great. Except in the movies, she says, she can stop whenever she wants to and the real-life Marilyn Monroe. Unfortunately could not write for one thing. She had a miscarriage, while they were shooting the film and eventually she and her husband the playwright Arthur Miller blamed her miscarriage on, how much Billy Wilder was over working her, whether or not that's true or accurate is Up For Debate, but it became a point of contention after the movie was finished shooting, but during the shoot, she had been seeing a psychiatrist. Diet wrist in New York and she apparently was really dependent on this psychiatrist and she needed to go back to New York on weekends to see her psychiatrist because they're shooting in LA and so it basically shut down production like every weekend sometimes wouldn't come back when she was supposed to come back.

31:30 She chronically showed up to the set late, and she couldn't remember her lines, because she was strung out on pills so often. So by the end of the shoot, like everyone on set hated working with her, but they didn't understand what was going on behind the scenes. So at Point while they're shooting the film. She starts writing a letter to a friend back home in New York. And she said in the letter that she felt like she was on a ship sinking in a rough and choppy sea. And then the next night, she swallowed an overdose of sleeping pills and tried to kill herself while shooting this movie. Oh my God. Yeah. So she was found obviously found in time. They rescued her, they put her in hospital, but the studio covered it up, obviously. And so details, like this didn't get out, they just said she was, you know, suffering from exhaustion or whatever they say.

32:15 When a star tries to kill herself but that's where she was mentally during the making of this picture and as it affected her work, her co-stars grew to hate her more and more. Tony Curtis would have to do lines with her. Sometimes, I do 50 takes of a scene and whenever Marilyn would finally get it right. Billy Wilder would say cut and print. That's the scene we're using and Tony Curtis would be like well that wasn't my best scene. Billy Wilder said to Tony Curtis. Well, it doesn't matter because when she's on screen, everyone's eyes are on her anyway. Which set Tony Curtis off. And then I guess one day they're like reviewing all the dailies, the rushes from the day and they're sitting in the screening room and talking and someone asked, hey Tony.

32:56 What's it like to kiss, Marilyn Monroe and he said, it's like kissing Hitler. That's how mad he was with her. And apparently, I like Jack, Lemmon has gone on record and said that he only made that statement to the cast and crew, but it's become an Infamous line in Hollywood history, it leaked to the press, and it became the big story kissing, Marilyn Monroe is like kissing him. Adler. And so that's the level that were functioning at during the making of this movie and how much these people hate each other. And that just, yeah, that just blows my mind that you can have so much hatred and animosity off-screen, right and put forth, such a beautiful product on screen. Absolutely like, well and then you read about like the history of filming, some of the scenes, I guess, as they were trying to wrap up the movie, Marilyn Monroe, had become so dependent on drinking and he was actually drinking whiskey ironically for this podcast.

33:44 After she finishes, She call out for her assistant and say, bring me coffee and her assistant would bring her whiskey whiskey coffee in a coffee mug and she drink it after every single take and apparently the scene where she comes into Tony Curtis and Jack Clemons room after she's met Shell Oil, Junior and eventually he breaks up with her. And she comes in all sad. And says, you know, where's that bourbon? She's looking through all the drawers for it. They had to film that scene. Like 50 times and Billy Wilder was trying to deal with a person who onset was drunk and under the influence of pills. And so he's pulling her aside and he's saying like now listen, here's your motivation, its prohibition.

34:28 You really want alcohol, it took Marilyn Monroe. 47 takes just to say the line. Where's that bottle? And they had, they had like, outtakes of her. And it's like, you know, I'm not trying to make light of it, but like she was saying things like where's that Bonbon, and things like that, because she could like physically couldn't make the words I could. Was so high eventually. They had to tape the line on a piece of paper inside the drawer, so that when she opened the drawer looking for the whiskey, she could see the words. Where's that bottle? She's falling apart on the set of this movie. And then, you know, it gets capped off by the fact that she has a miscarriage, which is obviously fueled by her alcohol. Consumption, her pill consumption and her overworked. Yeah, it's a, it's amazing hearing all that because I did find this.

35:15 The story about her husband, Arthur Miller. That after the film had opened and been in theaters, Billy Wilder did an interview with a correspondent for the New York Times. And he kind of final is the first time he publicly announced like, hey, things really sucked on set and it was Marilyn Monroe's faults or at least so he said it that way. And so the corresponding called Billy Wilder and said, hey, you need to come see this telegram that I just got and it was something that Arthur Miller Marilyn Monroe's, husband had written to him. And, and we have this letter, that was written that, I kind of want to read because it's just like out of this world. Yeah. So Miller is writing a telegram to Billy Wilder because Wilder find, he finds out that Wilder had basically trashed her in the Press, after the movie came out, right? Yeah.

36:04 And so, he writes this letter, he says Dear Billy, I cannot let your vicious attack on Maryland. Go unchallenged. You were officially informed by Maryland's physician that due to her pregnancy, she was not able to work a full day. You choose to ignore this fact during the making of the picture and worse yet, assiduously avoided mentioning it in your attack. On her fact is she went on to pick with the picture. Out of a pure sense of responsibility, not only to herself, but to you and the cast and the producer 12 hours after the last shooting day, her miscarriage began. Now that the hit for which she is. So largely responsible for is in your hands and it's Come to you assured.

36:48 The attack on her is contemptible. I will add only that she began this picture with a throat infection. So serious, that a specialist forbade her to work at all until it was cured. She went on, nevertheless, your jokes Billy are not quote hilarious enough to conceal. That fact you are an unjust man and a cruel one. My only Solace is that despite you, her beauty, and her Humanity shine, And through as they always have. Wow. Well, it's harsh, man. That is so harsh apparently, Billy Wilder actually responded to that and made light of it and disarmed Arthur Miller and they eventually made up or something. But this is, I mean, Billy Wilder was known for being kind of a jerk. He's one of my favorite directors, but I don't doubt that in some way his overworked contributed to what happened to Maryland.

37:40 Obviously her own actions need to be taken into account to but all around what happened with Rho is a tragedy and you see the seeds of it? Starting in this movie. Yeah. And this and this movie came out three years before her death, right? Like this is not long before. No, you can't. You guys see the spiral starting to happen. And yet, what's captured on film is is so brilliant and you don't know it when you're just sitting down to watch it, you can't really see you know, Tony Curtis and Marilyn Monroe. Still have a chemistry in that movie and obviously I think it goes back a ways. And it's sad to me to think about the fact that they had a history and that it got thrown away like this, but it actually it to lighten the mood a little bit. There's a story that Tony Curtis was telling and maybe this is for are more mature.

38:28 Listeners turn this off if you didn't already when we were drinking whiskey for your kids, but apparently the scene where Marilyn Monroe and Tony Curtis are making out on the couch on the yacht. When he's pretending to be Cary Grant. Yes. When he's pretending to be Cary Grant, apparently they did that. Take a number of Times and Tony Curtis said, she noticed that I was starting to get a little excited as one might and she you know, she reminded him of what it used to be like when they would make out in the back of the convertible. And so they decided they should do something to indicate that the character was getting kind of turned on. And so if you look in that scene, they're kind of filming it from behind his head and and he came up with this idea of lifting, his foot up behind And her to sort of indicate that he's you know, he's ready to go, you know really interesting racy choices that are being made here in 59 and this movie is actually credited for helping to kind of abolish.

39:28 The censorship board which is interesting, having watched The Aviator. Yeah. When we think about Howard Hughes and how he went before the review board and had a quote-unquote doctor, measuring the size of you know, women's breasts and all these things. And so, to think about that leading to the point where Marilyn Monroe and Tony Curtis are making out, excuse me, on the couch. Yeah, it's interesting to think about definitely. So when this movie premiered, they decided to do test screenings. And this is a common thing that happens in Hollywood. They want to, before they make a final edit, they want to see how the movie is going over. They did a test screening with an audience that they found out later.

40:09 They had been to see a movie, what they would do in those days is a paying audience would be like held in the theater and they would say, hey anyone Who wants to stay stay after and watch this movie, that we're testing today, they'd gone to see the Tennessee Williams play Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. That had just been adapted and it's a, it's a very dramatic movie that's so funny. My dad literally last night said to me. Oh, you and Bob should do Cat on a Hot Tin. It's my favorite Tennessee will do it at some point, it's on my list but they just got done watching this. Very moving very dramatic movie and they threw on Some Like It Hot and they said nobody laughed at all. Nobody in the theater was laughing. Jack Lemmon said that he was watching people, leave the theater in droves, walking down the aisle. Saying what the hell is this?

40:52 Billy Wilder said he was devastated and he had a director buddy. Joseph mankiewicz super famous director there with him. And I guess mankiewicz put his arm around Billy Wilder and said, it's okay, Billy. It happens to all of us. They all thought this movie was going to be a dud and Wilder said, you know what, let's try it again. They had a preview screening, a couple nights later and he held it in like a really affluent suburb of La thinking that maybe rich people will think it's funnier and they did it went over great. They said the laughter was like uproarious, but the thing that made them laugh was that they told them ahead of time. This is a comedy because the people at Tennessee Williams, they thought they were watching. Another melodrama, they didn't understand why, you know, why are they behaving like this?

41:35 So, all I had to do, was tell them, hey, this is a comedy and then everyone started laughing. Yeah, it is funny how, like, your expectations for a movie, really? Do Define. How do you feel about? Yeah, for sure. How you feel about the the acting and the writing and all of that. Yeah, definitely so Brad, why don't we move into talking about sort of the bigger themes that are presented by this movie? You know, I think that if we really wanted to dig deeply, we could try to find something about gender about, you know, what it means to have an identity. But are those teams really present in this movie Man. It's so hard to say because comedies, in general, aren't trying to take themselves seriously, which isn't always true. Some comedies are meant to be pointed towards a certain, social ale.

42:25 Or other thing, I wouldn't say that this movie is, though, I genuinely think that this movie is funny for being funny sake. Yeah, you know, it's that it's that comedic, humor of mixed identity of thinking that somebody is something that they're not. Yep, the, the movie, Is there to make you laugh? Yep. And I think it does. It absolutely successfully. Yeah. The essayist from the Criterion Collection essay, he also talked about this and he said over the years, some very smart. People have praised, Some Like It Hot For its gender and sexual politics. And he said, while I see what they mean. I don't really think while there was out to make that point, he said he thought cross-dressing was funny, he thought Americans who were dizzy in the rat race were funny and he quotes the lines, you're A guy. Why would a guy want to marry another guy? And the answer was security.

43:19 He said that's Wilders, capitalism speaking, not love or lust or even, man, or woman. Some Like, It Hot is not the same movie as Tootsie, he says, it's not interested in how the experience of being a woman can make men better men. This is a billy Wilder movie. It is about the Machiavelli and lengths to, which people will go to get what they want, which is never much nobler than money sex or self-preservation, and that's kind of what I mean. Those are the things that I'm looking. That's what everyone's looking. I mean, the gangsters are looking for money and revenge, You Know, Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis when the movie starts out there looking for sex, they money. Well, money to obviously they're poor. But on the train, You Know, Jack Lemmon has to keep reminding himself. I'm a girl.

43:59 I'm a girl. I'm a girl is sex-obsessed, right? Yeah. And while there is poking at these, these tendencies in American Life, shall we listen to me? Listen to me. Sir, almost conventions. It's just not being done. Joe. So this may be my last chance to Marry a Millionaire. Jerry, Jerry, will you take my advice? Forget about the whole thing. We just keep telling yourself. You're a boy. You're a boy. I'm a boy. That's the boy go. I'm a boy. I'm a boy. I wish I were dead. Oh boy, oh boy. Oh boy, am I a boy. Now, what am I gonna do about my engagement present, what engagement for ask? What gave me a bracelet? Hey, these are real diamonds.

44:45 Of course, they're real. What you think? My fianc�� is a bum. And I think there's parts of the movie that you could say, oh, they're getting to see what it's like to be a woman and be harassed and things like that. Sure. And that might be an element of it but that's not the point of the movie, right? Well yeah, you get Tony Curtis having that sort of role reversal of understanding that I don't have to be this and I also don't have to be a billionaire. I can I can be myself with someone. He really has a great character archive Like I was just about to say, one of the reasons I do love this movie is because it's not completely sold on just being silly. Right there is a character Arc especially for Tony Curtis and he does get drawn into being a different person. And I think there's something cool about that. Yeah.

45:26 Absolutely. But it walks that line and it keeps that balance so well, because if it was a more like dramatic comedy, a dramedy, I guess, you know, it would end with Tony Curtis having this Revelation and falling in love with Marilyn Monroe. Row and it would, it would Fade Out of them kissing. But while there's not content to let us end there, he's like, we need one last Zinger and that see, Joey, brownie, Joey Brown. And so, I love that. It's not just a farce and it's not just a dramatic Arc, it's both of those things. And what Wilder does so beautifully is, he makes sure to not pigeonhole, this movie. It's not just a drag comedy. It's a mob movie, and, but it's also a little bit of an action movie.

46:06 Oh, yeah. I mean, there's the time. I remember I was watching it and the, the scene with the cops. In the mobsters and the car flips around when the guy gets thrown off, like for the time that had to be a scary scene to shoot that opening scene sets the tone so well because you've got the cops shooting into this, hearse that's being driven and then Wilder pulls the rug out from under you and you see whole shot in it and thing's leaking out and it's this really morbid. Like it was that like a corpse leak. Yeah. They open it. And it's bottles of liquor rights prohibition, and it's this great gotcha, sort of reversal. And that's the whole Theme of the movie, is everyone's going to be you know switching their identities and reversing those identities. And nothing is what it seems and I think that he sets the tone with his writing and with this direction so perfectly with that first scene.

46:55 And I think that that's something that's so great about this movie, is that a common human desire is to not be stuck in who they are sure. I think there's always this kind of this ideal of being able to change who you are to become a better person that you don't have. Be pigeonholed as a janitor or as an electrician, or as ass musician, that that you can change who you are, that you can accomplish new things. And, and these types of movies, really put that on full display of nothing is what it seems. You can be whoever you need to be to survive to get through to get on with your life. Yep. And and so on a deeper level the movie really does work with communicating to the human soul of like these are common human desires. Well it might not be everybody's Desire to crossdress to escape the mob.

47:44 I think that there's something cool about the idea of doing what it takes to move forward. Absolutely. Well Brad. I think it's time we wind down for the day. What do you think of this film overall? If you had to score it, what kind of score would you give it? The funny thing is, you say, if you had to score it, but I do feel like, I literally required to do that, just for this machinery. 10/10 10/10. I love this movie so much. Is it a perfect movie? Yes. Oh oh, okay. I was making sure you're consistent because last month you got on me for saying there are no perfect movies and I kind of tense. Maybe it's just because the movies were watching. We're not tens out of ten. Yeah like Goodfellas so Brad gives this one a 10.

48:24 I'd probably give it a 9. That's not to say that. I find like huge flaws in it. I just think I think Billy Wilder's made better movies than this. I'm really excited for you to see the apartment when we watch that. When is like a top 10 all-time for me, I think it holds up really well, considering that it's 60 years old, considering the political climate we're in now like this movie would not get made today under any circumstances and yet what makes it hold up is that it doesn't just rely on the gag of a man in a dress. It's about so much more than that. And the dialogue is so witty. It continues to be dialogue that we teach film students today. Yeah, I'd give it a nine. Yeah and I think that's for me. The reason I give it a 10 That's because for me it works on every level.

49:07 Sure the cinematography works perfectly. The script is brilliant. Yeah absolutely witty and funny and charming and it pulls you through the movie the acting is over-the-top wonderful Jack like as much as I think Marilyn Monroe's, my favorite performance, I don't know if I can really say that because Jack Lemmon was so witty and so quick and and just sharp with his jokes and with his delivery and Tony. Curtis was so Whether he was a woman or a man or a millionaire like he just was so smooth and Suave and I every part of this movie worked for me so let us know what you think of Some Like It Hot.

49:48 Do you agree. Do you disagree? Hit us up on Twitter at film whiskey that's whiskey with an e or give us a call and leave a voicemail. The number is two one six eight hundred five, nine two, three that's two one. Six eight hundred five nine two three. We will be back next week. Weak rad. I cannot wait to talk about this one, our first art film. We're going to be looking at Terrence Malick's, 2011 film The Tree of Life. Make sure to tune in next week for the film and whiskey podcast. I'm Bob book, I'm Reggie will see you next time.