Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis & the Hitler Quote

In 1959, Marilyn Monroe and Tony Curtis shared a kissing scene in Billy Wilder's comedy Some Like It Hot and afterwards Curtis made his infamous remark about Marilyn, that kissing her was "like kissing Hitler". Throughout the years, when interviewed about the subject, Curtis kept denying he had made the remark. His constant denial seems strange, given the fact that there were multiple witnesses who heard him say it. 

The now notorious line was uttered by Curtis when he and others were watching the rushes of the kissing scene in the screening room. Co-star Jack Lemmon and still photographer Richard Miller were among those present and describe the incident in the 2001 documentary Nobody's perfect: The Making of Some Like It Hot (watch in full here). After the rushes had ended, Curtis stood up and made the Hitler comment, causing everybody in the room to fall silent. While shocked when he heard it, in the docu Lemmon 'defends' Curtis, saying "he didn't really mean it, of course", and that if he (Lemmon) had said it he'd probably deny it too. At that point Marilyn was impossible to work with, unable to remember even the simplest of lines, requiring numerous retakes, and always showing up late or not showing up at all. Curtis was clearly fed up with her (as was the rest of the cast and crew) and, according to Richard Miller, he was also mad at Marilyn for having refused to kiss him during rehearsal. (Billy Wilder wanted to rehearse the kiss so the cameraman could check the lighting etc., but Marilyn wouldn't kiss Curtis until they were shooting the actual scene.)

Towards the end of his life, Curtis finally admitted to making the vicious remark. In his 2009 memoir The Making of Some Like It Hot: My Memories of Marilyn Monroe and the Classic American Movie, co-written by Mark Vieira and published a year before Curtis' death, the actor implied it wasn't serious but meant sarcastically: "The lights came up. I had to leave. On my way out, some guy whom I didn’t recognize called out to me. "Tony," he said. "That was terrific. Hey. Tell me. What was it like kissing Marilyn?" I didn’t stop to acknowledge him. I kept walking. "What do you think it was like, buddy?" I got to the door. "Like kissing Hitler?" I went through the door and slammed it after me". 

Film critic Mick LaSalle argued in this interesting article (and I think his argument makes a lot of sense) that if Curtis had really meant to be sarcastic, he wouldn't have chosen Hitler but someone else, like Milton Berle for example. LaSalle said that "Hitler may be a reference point, but not for ugliness or physical revulsion. He's a reference point for moral horror, for someone you really, really hate".

Below: Marilyn and Curtis talking on the set of Some Like It Hot, with Paula Strasberg behind Marilyn looking on.

Marilyn herself was not in the screening room to hear Curtis say it but her drama coach and confidante Paula Strasberg was. Whether Marilyn heard it from Strasberg or from someone else, the remark got back to her and she would later comment on it in a 1962 interview.

.... You’ve read there was some actor that once said about me that kissing me was like kissing Hitler. Well, I think that’s, you know, his problem. And if I really have to do intimate love scenes with an individual who really has these kind of feelings towards me, then my fantasy can come into play. In other words, out with him, in with somebody else. There was somebody else there, not him. He was never there. [To hear Marilyn say the words, go here.]

It is believed that the following note from Marilyn was also a reaction to Curtis' Hitler remark. Moreover, the note contradicts the claims that Curtis would make decades after Marilyn's death of having been romantically involved with her. In his 2008 memoir American Prince, Curtis said they had an affair before Marilyn became famous. And in his 2009 book he went even further, claiming they rekindled the affair during Some Like It Hot and that she got pregnant with hís child, not Arthur Miller's (i.e. the child she later miscarried). While Marilyn wasn't alive anymore to deny what sounds like a fantastical story, this one-line note, handwritten by Marilyn, seems to refute Curtis' claims. As said, the note was reportedly written in response to the "kissing Hitler" remark.

Source: Julien's Auctions

Transcript:

There is only one way he could comment on my sexuality and I'm afraid he has never had the opportunity.

Credit: gif made by my twin sister who runs this great classic Hollywood blog.

It is a completely enjoyable film, full of fun and YOU

While Billy Wilder's Some Like It Hot (1959) is now regarded as one of the greatest comedies ever made, at the time its leading lady Marilyn Monroe was less enthusiastic about the film. Marilyn had shared her disappointment over the finished film with her close friend, poet/ playwright Norman Rosten, and in response Rosten wrote her a brief letter in an attempt to cheer her up (seen below). Despite Marilyn's own feelings regarding Some Like It Hot and her role in it, the film became a huge critical and commercial success, with Marilyn's comedic performance now considered one of the best of her career (for which she even won a Golden Globe).

Incidentally, Some Like It Hot is a recommended comfort film to watch or re-watch during these difficult times. Stay safe!

Source: Julien's Live

Transcript: 

Marilyn dear -

About the movie - don't jump!

Look at it this way: it is a completely enjoyable film, full of fun and YOU.

It is not a starring vehicle for you because the story is simply not set up that way - which is either a shame or a crime, depending on how you feel. I feel it's a shame you didn't get more to do, and better lines for what you did do.

BUT (that necessary word) nothing could really destroy your wonderful quality that gives the film the one touch of "seriousness" (humanity) it needs for any sort of balance.

It will not hurt you one little bit, and let everyone be more watchful the next time. That is all and when are you wearing that dress again?

Philosopher Claude

(signed "N")

handwritten (Did you get my red rose?)

Nothing but praise for it as a hilariously funny movie

Billy Wilder's Some Like it Hot (1959) was released at a time when the Production Code was slowly dying. In 1954, PCA's director Joseph Breen (a strict censor for two decades) had been replaced by his deputy director Geoffrey Shurlock who was far less strict than Breen, giving filmmakers room to be more creative. The Catholic Legion of Decency, however, strongly objected to Some Like it Hot, because of its subject matter of transvestism, hints at homosexuality and lesbianism, and double-entendre dialogue.

On 5 March 1959, Reverend Thomas F. Little of the Legion of Decency, wrote a letter to Geoffrey Shurlock, listing his objections to Some Like it Hot, which he felt "bordered on condemnation". Shurlock replied a few days later, apparently not agreeing with the Reverend, while referring to trade paper reviews which called the film "hilariously funny". Incidentally, both letters contradict some of the things I've read on the internet regarding Some Like it Hot. According to several sources, the Legion of Decency condemned the film giving it a C-rating, but Father Little's letter clearly shows that his rating was B (morally objectionable in part). Also, many sources say that Some Like it Hot was released without the approval of the PCA. However, Shurlock's letter (written before the film's actual release date) gives the impression that he didn't object to the film at all. 

The letters will be shown in transcript only; click here for the original images.

Source: oscars.org

Dressed in drag, Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon in a publicity still for Some Like it Hot.

March 5, 1959

Mr. Geoffrey Shurlock,

Motion Picture Association of America

8480 Beverly Boulevard,

Hollywood 48, California.

Dear Geoff:

For your information and, I am sure, interested reaction the Legion on March 12 rated the United Artists film SOME LIKE IT HOT, starring Marilyn Monroe, as B (Morally Objectionable in Part for All), with the following objection noted:

¨This film, though it purports to be a comedy, contains screen material elements that are judged to be seriously offensive to Christian and traditional standards of morality and decency. Furthermore, its treatment dwells almost without relief on gross suggestiveness in costuming, dialogue and  situations. ¨

Since the initiation of the triple A method of classifying films in December 1957, this film has given the Legion the greatest cause for concern in its evaluation of Code Seal pictures. As you can well imagine, it bordered on condemnation. The subject matter of ¨transvestism¨ naturally leads to complications; in this film there seemed to us to be clear inferences of homosexuality and lesbianism. The dialogue was not only ¨double entendre¨ but outright smut. The offense in costuming was obvious. 

In the present atmosphere of our society, which seems to be calling for censorship and controls, this picture will only add fuel to the fire. 

I thought that you would be sincerely interested in our observations. Perhaps they might act as a stop gap in future decisions with which you are faced. 

With best personal wishes to yourself and the staff, I remain

Cordially Yours,

(signed)

Very Rev. Msgr. Thomas F. Little

Executive Secretary

__________

March 18, 1959 

Very Rev. Msgr. T. F. Little

National Legion of Decency

453 Madison Avenue

New York 22, N.Y.

Geoffrey Shurlock

Dear Father Little,

In reply to yours of March 5th, we have been scanning very carefully the trade paper reviews of SOME LIKE IT HOT. To date we have received eight such reports, including two from Martin Quigley´s publications. 

Not a single reviewer has been in the slightest way critical of this film, or questioned either its morality or its taste. So far there is simply no adverse reaction at all; nothing but praise for it as a hilariously funny movie. 

I am not suggesting, of course, that there are not dangers connected with a story of this type. But girls dressed as men, and occasionally men dressed as women for proper plot purposes, has been standard theatrical fare as far back as AS YOU LIKE IT and TWELFTH NIGHT, and perhaps further. The classic example of a man masquerading in woman´s clothes without offense is CHARLEY´S AUNT, which has been a hilarious hit for three-quarters of a century.

It seems to boil down to the fact that if this material is handled properly it can and will be accepted. Of course, if it is handled improperly it could be enormously objectionable. But as indicated, eight reviewers to date have seen this film and their consensus without reservation is that it has been treated acceptably.

We can only trust that the general public will be of the same mind, and that the alarm the Legion very understandably expressed may prove in the long run to be no worry at all. At any rate, that is the hope we are nourishing. 

We are of course not defending the two exaggerated costumes worn by the leading lady; but we gathered these were not your major concern.

With kindest regards from the staff,

I am,

Very sincerely yours, 

GEOFFREY M. SHURLOCK 

Now that we have made up...

One of my earlier posts (here) showed an angry telegram from playwright Arthur Miller to Billy Wilder. Wilder had publicly criticised Marilyn Monroe for her behaviour during the shooting of Some Like it Hot (1959), and in the telegram -dated 11 February 1959- Miller basically accused him of having contributed to Marilyn's miscarriage (which occurred shortly after production). That same day Wilder sent Miller a lengthy telegram back, saying (in part): 

"Of course I am deeply sorry that she lost her baby, but I must reject the implication that overwork or inconsiderate treatment by me or anyone else associated with the production was in any way responsible for it. The fact is that the company pampered her, coddled her and acceded to all her whims. The only one who showed any lack of consideration was Marilyn, in her treatment of her co-stars and her co-workers right from the first day, before there was any hint of pregnancy... Her chronic tardiness and unpreparedness cost us eighteen shooting days, hundreds of thousands of dollars, and countless heartaches. I recall one typical morning when she showed up two and a half hours late, carrying a copy of Thomas Paine's The rights of man, and when a second assistant director knocked on her dressing room door and humbly asked her if she was ready, her humanity shone through and she replied quote drop dead unquote. This having been my second picture with Marilyn, I understand her problems. Her biggest problem is that she doesn't understand anyone else's problems. If you took a quick poll among the cast and crew on the subject of Marilyn [you] would find a positively overwhelming lack of popularity." [source: "Arthur Miller" by Christopher Bigsby (2008)]  

Tony Curtis. Billy Wilder and Marilyn Monroe at a party for "Some Like it Hot". Curtis was also more than annoyed with Marilyn during production of the film. And his remark "Kissing her is like kissing Hitler" didn't really help matters between the two of them.

I don't know what happened after Wilder sent his telegram, but the two men apparently reconciled judging from Wilder's note to Miller several months later.

Source: heritage auctions/ image reproduced with permission

Transcript:

April 20, 1959

Mr. Arthur Miller

444 East 57 Street

New York, New York

Dear Arthur:

Now that we have made up (I hope!), I want you to read this stunning review of our picture. In case you don't read Hebrew, I suggest you have Elizabeth Taylor translate it for you.

My best to Marilyn.

Fond regards,

BW: RS

Enc.

*Note: Billy Wilder and Arthur Miller were both Jewish, and Elizabeth Taylor had just converted to Judaism earlier that month--hence Wilder's remark. 

On the set of "Some Like it Hot" with Billy Wilder, Arthur Miller and Marilyn Monroe

"You are an unjust man and a cruel one."

Production of Billy Wilder's "Some Like it Hot" (1959) started in August 1958. With a cast led by Jack Lemmon, Tony Curtis and Marilyn Monroe, the film would become Marilyn's biggest success. During filming, however, Marilyn was a disaster to work with. Wilder had already experienced problems with Marilyn while filming "The Seven Year Itch" (1955), but things were even worse during "Some Like it Hot". Production was held up for days, due to Marilyn's tardiness, absences, her inability to remember the simplest of lines (the line "Where is that bourbon?" needed forty takes), and fights between Wilder and Marilyn over creative issues. During this period, Marilyn's health had already begun to deteriorate, and she was also pregnant. In December 1958, Marilyn would suffer her second miscarriage.

Playwright Arthur Miller and Marilyn Monroe were married from 1956 until 1961. On 11 February 1959, Miller sent the following telegram to Billy Wilder, expressing his anger over Wilder's public attack on Marilyn after production of "Some Like it Hot". 

Photo: Billy Wilder and Marilyn Monroe on the set of "Some like it hot".

Via: mostly marilyn monroe

Transcript:

BILLY WILDER

10372 WILSHIRE BLVD LOSA=

DEAR BILLIE I CANNOT LET YOUR VICIOUS ATTACK ON MARILYN GO UNCHALLENGED. YOU WERE OFFICIALLY INFORMED BY MARILYN'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 WITH THE PICTURE OUT OF A SENSE OF RESPONSIBILITY NOT ONLY TO HERSELF BUT TO YOU AND THE CAST AND PRODUCER. 12 HOURS AFTER THE LAST SHOOTING DAY HER MISCARRIAGE BEGAN. NOW THAT THE HIT FOR WHICH SHE IS SO LARGELY RESPONSIBLE IS IN YOUR HANDS AND ITS INCOME TO YOU ASSURED, THIS ATTACK UPON HER IN [sic] 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, BILLIE, ARE NOT QUOTE HILARIOUS ENOUGH TO CONCEAL THE FACT. YOU ARE AN UNJUST MAN AND A CRUEL ONE. MY ONLY SOLACE IS THAT DESPITE YOU HER BEAUTY AND HER HUMANITY SHINE THROUGH AS THEY ALWAYS HAVE=

ARTHUR MILLER=