Tony Curtis saying kissing Marilyn was like 'kissing Hitler?'
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PillowRock — 15 years ago(February 07, 2011 02:25 PM)
It is my firm belief that, had MM lived, she'd today be talked about with the greatest actors of all time
I think that there needs to be one more caveat in there. Beyond simply not dying, she would have had to have overcome / gotten past at least some of her self-doubt and insecurity, which seemed to be the root of most her more self destructive tendencies.
Even if she had survived, those self destructive habits seemed well on their way to wrecking her career. Once she had aged to the point where onscreen magic by itself no longer provided box office results (and it would have happened) her "hard to work with" habits would no longer have been tolerated. She would have needed to get that stuff under control in order to maintain her career.
And, yes, I agree that there was some serious acting talent in Marylin. -
cluvonj — 15 years ago(October 04, 2010 01:27 PM)
I just watched the commentary on Some LIke It Hot and Tony states there that he was told she was pregnant, that he did not know if she was or not. He never states anything about it being his child. I've never heard or read that myself. He even said he didn't know if she lost the baby or had an abortion. I'm not sure when the interview was recorded but I don't believe Tony would have said that.
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unapologetic_mocker — 14 years ago(June 02, 2011 09:24 PM)
I just watched the commentary on Some LIke It Hot and Tony states there that he was told she was pregnant, that he did not know if she was or not. He never states anything about it being his child. I've never heard or read that myself. He even said he didn't know if she lost the baby or had an abortion. I'm not sure when the interview was recorded but
I don't believe Tony would have said that
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by - cluvonj on Mon Oct 4 2010 13:27:58
He not only said it, he published it.
He talks about their relationship at length in his book
Some Like It Hot: Me, Marilyn and the Movie
. The truth in his account of events and the accuracy of his recollections can of course be questioned, but he did say it. -
cluvonj — 9 years ago(February 05, 2017 07:01 AM)
Yes I saw another interview with him and he stated he said it in gest and that it was taken seriously and blown out of proportion. It was on TCM I think I saw the interview where he speaks this. I had another comment later on in this thread on October 2, 2010 where I stated more on that.
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richimorton — 15 years ago(October 01, 2010 02:14 PM)
Classic case of screen star ego & rejection . He probably tried to shag her during filming - unsuccesfully - which led to this bitter comment . That's me reading between the lines anyway .
Oh God i'm so sorry Tony - R.I.P. - U.K. TV is playing this film right now as a tribute , a genuine star , as was Marilyn .
That which does not Kill me makes me Stranger
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huweyjenkins — 15 years ago(June 04, 2010 04:31 AM)
Poor Marilyn. She was absolutely incandescent and compelling to watch onscreen but I believe she may have been a huge pain to work with. Mostly not her fault - she was psychologically unwell. However Billy Wilder is on record as saying that he would go through all the trauma of working with her again as she was pure gold onscreen. This was said quite a while afterward though when distance held enchantment.
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rrb — 15 years ago(October 02, 2010 08:28 AM)
Not her fault? At what point does her behavior become her responsibility? If she found her work so distressful that she disrupted filming on a routine basis, she could have found another way to pay the bills.
That said, I don't deny her talent. For example, in The Prince & the Showgirl, she plainly outshines the legendary Olivier. He comes across as a ham, while Marilyn is a gemnatural, endearing, a brilliant comedienne, and on top of it all, absolutely ravishing.
Like Wilder, Olivier found the agony of working with her justified by the results. When co-star Sybil Thorndike complained about her, he said, "Just watch the rushes, darling." Thorndike had to admit that Marilyn was brilliant on screen, and if anything, Dame Sybil herself was an "old fogey." -
ilzamaria — 15 years ago(September 30, 2010 11:17 AM)
"After the scene some of the crew and I stood around to watch the rushes,
and they wanted to know what it was like to kiss her.
I figured a question that stupid deserved a stupid answer,
so I flippantly replied:
'Kissing Marilyn is like kissing Hitler.'
I was right it was a stupid answer.
What I should have said was: 'What do you think kissing her is like, birdbrain?'"
I'm in love with her now. I've loved her all these years." -
cluvonj — 15 years ago(October 04, 2010 01:31 PM)
I know that I have heard Tony in interviews say that he felt it was obvious that kissing her would be wonderful so he was being sarcastic when he said that quote. He also said you have to be careful what you say for the press will run with it and twist.
To me it would also be obvious that it was sarcastic and even if Jack Lemmon said he sounded serious still could mean he said it seriously yet still be sarcastic. I dont see a reason why he would even if she had been problematic on the set for him to have made that statement literally. He has been nothing but complimentary toward her in interviews in the 90s up to the present. -
scorseseholic — 15 years ago(December 17, 2010 12:03 PM)
Yes, he was being sarcastic. In an interview I saw with him on TCM or maybe even on the extra footage on the DVD, I can't remember, but it was pretty obvious that he thoroughly enjoyed kissing Marilyn. He called her "naughty" because she would kiss him passionately until he got aroused and would then abrubtly walk away.
"Dolores, I have five days to complete this picture. Don't get goofy on me." -
denis-38 — 13 years ago(May 20, 2012 07:29 AM)
Tony Curtis said a lot of things, most of which can be taken with a grain of salt. He did indeed say it, and had many unkind to say about MM for years after her death, until he decided he'd get more publicity by denying the remark and claiming her "loved" her, was her lover during the filming and to top it off, the baby she was so obviously pregnant with, was his!!
Monroe had known Tony since the early 1950's, and apparently liked him. Everybody looks comfortable and relaxed on all the location shots, on the beach, on the pier, in front of the hotel. She was shocked and hurt by the "Hitler" remark and even brought it up in her very last interview, referring to Tony as "some actor." She said, further: "If I have to do intimate love scenes with a person who really has these kind of negative feelings about me, then my fantasy can come into play. Out with him, in with my fantasy!"
By the way, Billy Wilder later said it was "quite obvious" that Tony was enjoying the scene. His tight white pants could not conceal that. -
denis-38 — 13 years ago(November 11, 2012 06:48 AM)
If he was "joking" why did he never say that during Monroe's lifetime, or for many years after? Why, indeed did he not assure MM that he was joking? She went to her grave with that remark hanging over her.