Editing Some Like It Hot (section)

== Production ==
===Pre-production===
[[Billy Wilder]] wrote the script for the film with writer [[I. A. L. Diamond]].<ref name="Rolston, Lorraine">Rolston, Lorraine, Some like it Hot (York Film Notes). Longman; 1 edition, 2000 pp. 7–57</ref> The plot was based on a screenplay by [[Robert Thoeren]] and Michael Logan for the 1935 French film ''[[Fanfare of Love]]''.<ref name="Curtis, T 2009 p.13">Curtis, T. and Vieira, M. (2009). ''Some Like It Hot''. London: Virgin Books, p.13</ref> The original script for ''Fanfare of Love'' was untraceable, so Walter Mirisch found a copy of the 1951 German remake, ''[[Fanfares of Love]]''. He bought the rights to that script, and Wilder worked with this to produce a new story.<ref name="Curtis, T 2009 p.13"/> Both films follow the story of two musicians in search of work,<ref name="Rolston, Lorraine"/> but Wilder created the gangster subplot.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/16637/some-like-it-hot#articles-reviews |title=Some Like It Hot (1959) |publisher=Turner Classic Movies, Inc. |access-date=March 11, 2017 |archive-date=February 15, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215154322/http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/16637/Some-Like-It-Hot/articles.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

The studio hired female impersonator [[Barbette (performer)|Barbette]] to coach Lemmon and Curtis.<ref name="Curtis, T 2009 p.13"/> Monroe worked for 10 percent of the gross in excess of $4 million, Curtis for 5 percent of the gross over $2 million, and Wilder for 17.5 percent of the first million after break-even and 20 percent thereafter.<ref name="tino">{{cite book| last=Balio| first=Tino| title=United Artists: The Company That Changed the Film Industry| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9EeK5s3aw44C&q=Wilder| publisher=University of Wisconsin Press| year= 2009| page=170| isbn=978-0299230135}}</ref>

===Casting===
Tony Curtis was spotted by Billy Wilder while he was making the film ''[[Houdini (1953 film)|Houdini]]'' (1953),<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0045886/ |title=Houdini (1953) |author=rich-826 |date=2 July 1953 |publisher=IMDb |access-date=14 March 2016 |archive-date=September 20, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170920051316/http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0045886/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and he thought Curtis would be perfect for the role of Joe. "I was sure Tony was right for it", said Wilder, "because he was quite handsome, and when he tells Marilyn that he is one of the [[Shell plc|Shell Oil]] family, she has to be able to believe it".<ref>Golenbock, Peter, ''American Prince: A Memoir'', 2008, Publishing Group</ref> Wilder's first idea for the role of Jerry was [[Frank Sinatra]], but he later thought he would be too difficult.<ref>Alison Castle (Hrsg.): ''Billy Wilder's Some Like It Hot''. [[Taschen]], 2001, p. 24.</ref><ref>{{cite magazine | url=https://ew.com/article/2001/05/23/tony-curtis-recalls-some-it-hot/ | title=Tony Curtis recalls 'Some Like It Hot' | magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]] }}</ref> [[Jerry Lewis]] and [[Danny Kaye]] were also considered for the role of Jerry. Lewis was offered the role, but declined as he didn't want to do drag, a decision he would later regret. Finally, Wilder saw Lemmon in the comedy ''[[Operation Mad Ball]]''<ref>Alison Castle (Hrsg.): ''Billy Wilder's Some Like It Hot''. Taschen, 2001, S. 238.</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/jack-lemmons-son-says-actor-almost-missed-out-on-some-like-it-hot-put-troubled-marilyn-monroe-at-ease | title=Jack Lemmon's son says actor almost missed out on 'Some Like it Hot,' put 'troubled' Marilyn Monroe at ease | website=[[Fox News]] | date=March 28, 2019 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://pagesix.com/2015/10/07/jerry-lewis-regrets-turning-down-some-like-it-hot-role/ | title=Jerry Lewis regrets turning down 'Some Like It Hot' role &#124; Page Six | date=October 7, 2015 }}</ref> and selected him for the part. Wilder and Lemmon would go on to make numerous films together, including ''[[The Apartment]]'' and several films which also included [[Walter Matthau]].

According to York Film Notes, Wilder and Diamond did not expect a star as big as [[Marilyn Monroe]] to take the part of Sugar.<ref name="Rolston, Lorraine"/> "[[Mitzi Gaynor]] was who we had in mind", Wilder said. "The word came that Marilyn wanted the part and then we {{em|had}} to have Marilyn."<ref>{{cite book |last=Crowe |first=Cameron |title=Conversations with Wilder |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eYRZAAAAMAAJ&q=monroe+some+like+hot |publisher=Alfred A. Knopf |edition= Reprint |year=1999 |page=161 |isbn=9780375406607 |url-access=subscription }}</ref> Monroe considered the role of Sugar Kane another "dumb blonde", but accepted it due to her husband [[Arthur Miller]]'s encouragement and the offer of 10% of the film's profits on top of her standard pay.{{sfn|Banner|2012|p=325}} Curtis stated that everyone told Wilder not to cast Monroe as she was too difficult to work with.<ref>{{cite magazine | url=https://ew.com/article/2001/05/23/tony-curtis-recalls-some-it-hot/ | title=Tony Curtis recalls 'Some Like It Hot' | magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]] }}</ref> Wilder and Monroe had previously worked together on ''[[The Seven Year Itch]]'' in 1955.

It was [[George Raft]]'s first "A" picture in a number of years.<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=Filmink|url=https://www.filmink.com.au/stars-stop-stars-george-raft/|first=Stephen|last=Vagg|title=Why Stars Stop Being Stars: George Raft|date=February 9, 2020}}</ref>

===Filming===
[[File:Hotel Del Coronado Drone Picture Turf Lawn.jpg|thumb|[[Hotel del Coronado]] (2016)]]
[[File:Photo Director Billy Wilder and actress Marilyn Monroe during the filming of the 1959 movie Some Like It Hot 1959 - Touring Club Italiano 04 0906.jpg|thumb|Billy Wilder gives directions to Marilyn Monroe during the filming of a scene which took 47 takes]]
The film was made in [[California]] during the summer and autumn of 1958.<ref>Castle, Alison (Hrsg.): ''Billy Wilder's Some Like It Hot''. Taschen, 2001, p. 24.</ref> [[American Film Institute|AFI]] reported the production dates between early August and November 12, 1958, at [[Samuel Goldwyn Studios]].<ref name="AFI"/> Many scenes were shot at the [[Hotel del Coronado]] in [[Coronado, California]], which appeared as the "Seminole Ritz Hotel" in Miami in the film, as it fit into the era of the 1920s and was near Hollywood. The Mirisch Company was the film's presenter, and producer [[Walter Mirisch]] employed several crew members from his home base, the [[Monogram Pictures Corporation|Allied Artists]] studio.{{citation needed|date=October 2023}}

The film's difficult production has since become "legendary".{{sfn|Churchwell|2004|p=626}} Monroe demanded dozens of retakes, and did not remember her lines or act as directed—Curtis famously said that kissing her was "like kissing [[Hitler]]" due to the number of retakes.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=399–407|2a1=Churchwell|2y=2004|2p=262}} The line "It's me, Sugar" took 47 takes to get correct because Monroe kept getting the word order wrong, saying either "Sugar, it's me" or "It's Sugar, me". Curtis and Lemmon made bets during the filming on how many takes she would need to get it right.<ref>Jack Lemmon in: ''Billy Wilder's Some Like It Hot''. Taschen, 2001, {{ISBN|3-8228-6056-5}}. p. 277</ref> Monroe privately likened the production to a sinking ship and commented on her co-stars and director saying {{nowrap|"[but]}} why should I worry, I have no phallic symbol to lose."{{sfnm|1a1=Banner|1y=2012|1p=327 on "sinking ship" and "phallic symbol"|2a1=Rose|2y=2014|2p=100 for full quote}} Many of the problems stemmed from her and Wilder—who also had a reputation for being difficult—disagreeing on how she should play the role.{{sfnm|1a1=Churchwell|1y=2004|1pp=262–266|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=325–327}} She angered him by asking to alter many of her scenes, which in turn made her stage fright worse, and it is suggested that she deliberately ruined several scenes to act them her way.{{sfnm|1a1=Churchwell|1y=2004|1pp=262–266|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=325–327}} Three days were scheduled for shooting the scene with Shell Jr. and Sugar at the beach, as Monroe had many complicated lines, but the scene was finished in only 20 minutes.<ref>[[Volker Schlöndorff|Schlöndorff, Volker]]: Billy Wilder in ''Billy Wilder speaks''. ''Some Like It Hot''. DVD, October 2006.</ref> Monroe's acting coach [[Paula Strasberg]] and Monroe's husband [[Arthur Miller]] both tried to influence the production, which Wilder and other crew members found annoying.<ref>Walter Mirisch in: ''Billy Wilder's Some Like It Hot''. Taschen, 2001, {{ISBN|3-8228-6056-5}}</ref><ref>Tony Curtis in: ''Billy Wilder's Some Like It Hot'', Taschen 2001 (2010), S. 286</ref>

Wilder spoke in 1959 about making another film with Monroe: "I have discussed this with my doctor and my psychiatrist and they tell me I'm too old and too rich to go through this again."<ref>{{cite book| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5WVDRyRvy_4C&q=The+Making+of+Some+Like+It+Hot:+My+Memories+of+Marilyn+Monroe+and+the+Classic+American+Movie| title=The Making of Some Like It Hot:My Memories of Marilyn Monroe and the Classic American Movie| last=Curtis| first=Tony| date=September 17, 2009|publisher=Wiley| isbn=978-0470561195| access-date=24 February 2019|url-access=subscription }}</ref> But Wilder also admitted: "My Aunt Minnie would always be punctual and never hold up production, but who would pay to see my Aunt Minnie?"<ref>{{cite book| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2rL9yP-6UwYC&q=Aunt+Minnie| title=Great Funny Quotes: Sweeten Your Life with Laughter| last=Young| first=David| publisher=Wind Runner Press| location=Round Rock, Texas| year= 2011| access-date=24 February 2019| page=194| isbn=978-1936179015}}</ref> He also stated that Monroe played her part wonderfully.<ref>Alison Castle (Hrsg.): ''Billy Wilder's Some Like It Hot''. Taschen, 2001, S. 287.</ref> Years later, Wilder noted "I think there are more books on Marilyn Monroe than there are on World War 2, and there's a great similarity."<ref>Basinger, Jeanine & Wasson, Sam, ''Hollywood: The Oral History'', Harper, 2022, p. 393</ref>

The film's closing line, "Well, nobody's perfect", is ranked 78th on ''The Hollywood Reporter'' list of Hollywood's 100 Favorite Movie Lines, but it was never supposed to be in the final cut.  Diamond and Wilder put it in the script as a "placeholder" until they could come up with something better, but they never did.<ref>{{cite news| title=Hollywood's 100 Favorite Movie Quotes| url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/best-movie-quotes-hollywoods-top-867142| newspaper=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]| date=24 February 2016| access-date=24 February 2019| archive-date=February 25, 2019| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190225161913/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/best-movie-quotes-hollywoods-top-867142| url-status=live}}</ref> Wilder's tombstone pays homage to the line by reading, "I'm a writer, but then, nobody's perfect". In 2000, ''[[The Guardian]]'' ranked the closing scene at No. 10 on their list of "The top 100 film moments".<ref name="Grdn2000">{{cite news |title=The top 10 film moments: The top 10 film moments as voted for by Observer readers |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2000/feb/06/top-10-film-moments-usual-suspects-psycho |access-date=7 March 2023 |work=The Guardian |date=6 February 2000 |archive-date=June 16, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180616013515/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2000/feb/06/top-10-film-moments-usual-suspects-psycho |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Style===
With regard to sound design, there is a "strong musical element"<ref name="Rolston, Lorraine"/> in the film, with the soundtrack created by [[Adolph Deutsch]]. It has an authentic 1920s jazz feel using sharp, brassy strings to create tension in certain moments, for example whenever Spats's gangsters appear. In terms of cinematography and aesthetics, Wilder chose to shoot the film in black and white as Lemmon and Curtis in full drag costume and make-up looked "unacceptably grotesque" in early color tests.<ref name="Rolston, Lorraine"/> Despite Monroe's contract requiring the film to be in color, she agreed to it being filmed in black and white after seeing that Curtis and Lemmon's makeup gave them a "ghoulish" appearance on color film.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/71636 |title=Behind the Camera on Some Like It Hot |first=Rob |last=Nixon |access-date=23 Jan 2018 |archive-date=January 25, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180125020049/http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/71636%7C0/Some-Like-It-Hot.html |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Orry-Kelly]] created the costumes for Monroe<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1314751|title=Some Like it Hot {{!}} Orry-Kelly {{!}} V&A Search the Collections|date=2019-08-07|website=V and A Collections|language=en|access-date=2019-08-07|archive-date=June 19, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210619004951/https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1314751|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://2015.acmi.net.au/acmi-channel/2016/orry-kelly-on-costume-celebrity-and-stars/|title=Orry-Kelly on costume, celebrity and stars {{!}} ACMI|website=2015.acmi.net.au|language=en|access-date=2019-08-07|archive-date=April 1, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401124535/https://2015.acmi.net.au/acmi-channel/2016/orry-kelly-on-costume-celebrity-and-stars/|url-status=live}}</ref> as well as Lemmon and Curtis,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://2015.acmi.net.au/film/past-film-programs/2015/some-like-it-hot/|title=Some Like it Hot {{!}} ACMI|website=2015.acmi.net.au|language=en|access-date=2019-08-07|archive-date=May 15, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180515233045/https://2015.acmi.net.au/film/past-film-programs/2015/some-like-it-hot/|url-status=live}}</ref> after the stock costumes the studio provided for the male leads fit poorly.