Jack Lemmon with Maracas

Jack Lemmon with maracas Some Like It Hot 1959 Screenplay Wilder & Diamond after a story by Lomax and Thereon

Last night we shared Some Like it Hot with Rissa for the first time.  As soon as she saw the B&W hit the screen – she rolled her eyes.

“Is the whole movie like this?”

“Yes.  Give it a chance.”

Eye roll with accompanying sigh – subtext: “Why, oh why, do my parents keep showing me stuff that just isn’t cool?”

She yawns her way through the first act, but then we’re in to Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis in drag – and this line from Jack Lemmon’s Jerry as he watches Marilyn Monroe:

“Will you look at that! Look how she moves! It’s like Jell-O on springs.
Must have some sort of built-in motor or something. I tell you, it’s a
whole different sex.”

And that gave us our first of many true snorts of laughter from our oh-so-disaffected 12 year old.  Lemmon is irresisible as Daphne – watching him do the tango and then relive his romantic night with accompanying maracas is priceless.   David and I barked laughter over Wilder and Diamond’s dialogue – yes some is a little dated (remember this was 1959, and same-sex marriage was NOWHERE on the radar), but when Daphne/Jerry is trying to explain Josephine/Joe about her/his great night, Lemmon is PERFECTION!!

Jerry: Have I got things to tell you!

Joe: What happened?

Jerry: I’m engaged.

Joe: Congratulations. Who’s the lucky girl?

Jerry: I am!

Joe: WHAT?!

Jerry: Osgood proposed to me! We’re planning a June wedding.

Joe: What are you talking about? You can’t marry Osgood.

Jerry: Why, you think he’s too old for me?

Joe: Jerry, you can’t be serious.

Jerry: Why not? He keeps marrying girls all the time.

Joe: But, you’re not a girl! You’re a guy, and, why would a guy wanna marry a guy?

Jerry: For security! Look, I know there’s a problem, Joe.

Joe: I’ll say there is.

Jerry: His mother – we need her approval, but I’m not worried because I don’t smoke.

Joe: Jerry. There’s another problem, like what are you gonna do on your honeymoon?

Jerry: We’ve been discussing that. He wants to go to the Riviera but I’m kinda leaning toward Niagra Falls.

Joe: My God.

Jerry: I don’t expect it to last Joe. I’ll tell him when the time’s right.

Joe: Like when?

Jerry: Like right after the ceremony. Then we get a quick
annulment, he makes a nice little settlement on me and I keep getting
those alimony checks every month.

Joe: Jerry listen to me there are laws, conventions. It’s just not been done.

Jerry: Joe this may be my last chance to marry a millionaire.

Joe: Oh, Jerry — Jerry, will you take my advice? Forget about
the whole thing, will ya? Just keep telling yourself: you’re a boy,
you’re a boy.

Jerry: I’m a boy.

Joe: That’s the boy.

Jerry: I’m a boy. I’m a boy. I wish I were dead. I’m a boy.
Boy, oh boy, am I a boy. Now, what am I gonna do about my engagement
present?

Joe: What engagement present?

Jerry: Osgood gave me a bracelet.

Joe: [examining it] Hey, these are real diamonds!

Jerry: Of course they’re real! What do you think? My fiance is a bum?

Rumour has it that the maracas were added after a test screening because the audience was laughing so hard the rest of the dialogue was getting lost. 

The best part?  At bedtime Rissa said to David “I could see why you’d want to show me that.  It was awesome.”