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Product Description Some Like It Hot occupies a unique place in American culture. This beloved classic showcases five comic geniuses: Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon, I. A. L. Diamond, Billy Wilder, and Marilyn Monroe. It has been honored by the American Film Institute as the "Funniest Film of All Time". It has contributed quotes, styles, and stories to film lore. Yet the full story of its making has never been toldâuntil now.
Amazon Exclusive: Interview with Tony Curtis
Acting legend and author of
The Making of Some Like It Hot, Tony Curtis, sits down for an exclusive interview with co-author Mark A. Vieira to talk about his book, his legacy, and of course, Marilyn.
Mark: Tony, both your fans and the potential readers of our book would like to know what prompted you to write
The Making of Some Like It Hot?
Tony: Well, Mark, while my last book,
American Prince, was going great guns a year ago, I was invited to
The Bonnie Hunt Show. My agent, that handsome Alan Nevins, was with me in the green room. And Alan says to me, âTony, you know the anniversary is coming up of your movie
Some Like It Hot. Why not do your own book about it?â
Mark: Did you like his idea?
Tony: Frankly, no. There was a lot of stuff, a lot of memories I hadnât dealt with. The business of my romance with Marilyn. I thought I should let it alone. And for years I did.
Mark: Well, what persuaded you to deal with it now?
Tony: I realized something. People love the picture
Some Like It Hot. They cherish it. Being an artist myself, a painter, I can see why they call the picture a work of art. It is. So I thought to myself, people want to know how we made it. Why not tell them the whole story? Itâs not just that Iâm the only actor left to tell it. Iâm the one that can tell it best.
Mark: When I was working with you, I sensed that some stories were easier for you to tell than others.
Tony: Oh, yeah. Yeah. You see, Mark, when you go back and look at yourself fifty years ago, how you were then, itâs tough. I donât mean that I would change a lot of things that I did, but Iâwell, let me put it this wayâitâs like trying to ride a roller coaster backwards. Itâs tough going back and sorting all that stuff out. You know Iâve had my health problems in the past few years. Luckily, my memory wasnât affected. But thinking about Marilyn and Billy Wilder and all that, well, it got to me. You saw that.
Mark: I did. But you managed to tell a tale that no one else can.
Tony: What can I say? I was there. I was me. Billy called me âthe best-looking kid in town.â Being that kid gave me a particular kind of access. Certain people question why Marilyn chose to get involved with me. Look at the pictures of us together. That should answer their questions. We were two beautiful young animals. Why shouldnât we get involved?
Mark: Do you think that helped the film?
Tony: Once again, I say: look at the picture. You can see the heat between Marilyn and me. Without that, what would you have? A funny picture with a hole in the center of it. Billy needed that, he needed that chemistry to make the thing work. He got it.
Mark: Any parting words about the book?
Tony: Yeah. Like the rest of the world, Iâve grown to love
Some Like It Hot. I mean, it did a lot for me. And Iâve always loved telling stories. So this storyâthe story of how we made itâis my bouquet to the picture. This is for you, Billy and Jack and Marilyn.