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[0:00] Tim: Hot take, I don't think Carol Channing and Marilyn Monroe are that different from each other.

[0:07] Anna: Interesting. Because that's what we always talk about with GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES, right?

[0:12] Tim: Is that it was originally Carol Channing's role on Broadway, and then when it went to the film adaptation, they got Marilyn Monroe, and you couldn't think of two more different performers.

[0:22] Anna: And yet, the technique behind their personas, like creating those larger-than-life personas, very similar. Yeah, they do very much feel like they're sort of performing femininity in a similar way with different outcomes. That is something I was also thinking about a lot, because I think Marilyn has talked about how she never really felt comfortable being put into that sort of sexy role, and it was something that was sort of thrust upon her because of the way she looked.

[0:51] Tim: And you can definitely, I feel like that discomfort sort of comes across. It feels very performative. For sure. You have these close-ups of Marilyn, and she does that mouth thing where she doesn't let her gums be seen, and so she sings a lot with her teeth. It's kind of incredible. And then you look at Carol Channing, who meant for the stage, honestly, that face was meant for the stage, right? You walk out, and she makes a choice just by blinking her eyes or not blinking her eyes. Who can do that in a theater besides Carol Channing? So these are two blonde icons that have this role in common, and I don't think it's an accident.

[1:42] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Welcome, everybody, to a musical theater podcast where we discuss the cultural and emotional impact of some of our favorite shows in musical theater history. My name is Jeffrey Scott Parsons. You can call me Jeff. Today, we are talking GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES with Anna and Tim from My Little Tonys podcast. Welcome, you two.

[1:59] Tim: Thank you for having us.

[2:00] Anna: We're happy to be here.

[2:06] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: I have friends who rave about your podcast to me, and that's why I reached out to you. It was because one friend in particular, shout out Donny, messaged me and said, I don't know if you know these guys, but I feel like you totally vibe with them, and they've saved me during quarantine. So kudos to you.

[2:23] Anna: I mean, we love to hear that. It's a lot of work, so it's nice to have it validated.

[2:29] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: But to pay you a compliment, I know no one else can see this, but I listened to three episodes of your podcast while I installed these shelves behind my head. Look at your gorgeous shelves.

[2:39] Tim: Thank you. You are a reader. Tim can read, everyone.

[2:46] Anna: Tim definitely can read. I can confirm.

[2:53] Tim: How did you two get to know each other?

[2:53] Anna: Well, it's actually sort of funny because we met in college in a film theory class where we watched GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES.

[3:04] Tim: You're kidding. You watched that in a film class?

[3:04] Anna: It was a class called Gender and Genre. It was a great class.

[3:10] Tim: Wow. That sounds awesome.

[3:10] Anna: Yeah. We were sort of hovering around each other, but we didn't really become friends until years later. I guess probably about four or five years ago now, we reconnected and we're like, we have a ton in common. And we were just chatting all the time and we were trying to figure out some sort of project to do together. And then we were like, let's do a theater history podcast. And the rest is history.

[3:32] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Which is fantastic. I love that you take the Tony Awards as your launching point because for people like me, the Tony Awards was only second to Jesus's birthday in terms of calendar events. And I would record it without commercial interruption on my VCR. And then throughout the next year, just watch and rewatch all of the ceremony and analyze the speeches and the performances because it was my window into New York professional theater. What do you love about the Tony Awards?

[4:05] Anna: Where to start? I think the most interesting thing about the Tony Awards compared to other award shows is that I think for things like the Oscars and the Emmys, it ends up representing just a small portion of whatever movies and TV shows have actually come out that year. But for Broadway shows, unless there are some really notable snubs, it really is everything that's been going on in Broadway theater that year. It is very comprehensive. And it's also such a small community in comparison. So there's all this sort of infighting and drama and politics that go into it. It's just a very fascinating lens to look at each year.

[4:56] Tim: And I totally agree with that. And I think what adds another layer of interest to me is that it's all of that, and then it's now how they are choosing to face themselves outward to the rest of the world. And I think sometimes, in certain years, it presents itself in very odd and curious ways. And I'm like, is this really how you want the American public to think of you?

[5:23] Anna: That's so true. I didn't really think about that. But the Tonys is largely responsible for how we as a musical theater culture brand ourselves to the rest of the population, which I think with my podcast is something that I've wanted to tackle head on. Because so often, Broadway is glitz and costumes, sets, blah, blah, blah. And I actually really think that musical theater is legit as a storytelling art form. And that by looking at it and studying it and internalizing it, we actually learn a lot about who we are as a country, as a culture, and even just as humans. So I think that hopefully there's room for both. And that by delving into these types of historical podcasts, people can kind of catch wind of that as well.

[6:14] Tim: Totally. I think the Tonys are sort of like the ultimate representation of the fight between art and commerce that sort of represents Broadway. This is the advertisement for the once a year, like big ad for musical theater, and sort of, you know, whatever that means each year. So there's a lot of, you know, interesting tension there.

[6:32] Anna: One of our favorite things is that in the late 90s and early 2000s, like they would split up the Tonys where they would have all the craft sort of awards in their own. On PBS. They would make like these little documentaries about it. And like, I think that that, for me, I'm like, this is like what it should all be about. Like have the glitz and glamour, but also like, you know, teach people about how much craft and artistic vision goes into all of this.

[7:06] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Absolutely. Speaking of commerce and theater, it seems that every time we take, and by we, I mean the collective artistic community, takes a musical and transfers it to the film industry, they always botch it.

[7:22] Tim: Right? In general. GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES, however, I think is an example of the film actually improving in some ways on the original property. The film of GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES, which I watched again last night, just to reacquaint myself with it, holds up really well.

[7:42] Anna: It does. And I mean, it's in some ways it's hard to compare because they are so different. Like they really, they changed a lot. And actually, what I was surprised about sort of getting into it for this podcast was that there were the response was kind of harsh, like people, there were a lot of negative reviews where they were like, Howard Hawks was the totally wrong person to do this. Like the direction is so awkward. And they like really dumbed down the script and added all these like, you know, dumb gags where like Marilyn, you know, can't fit out of the porthole or whatever.

[8:10] Tim: Yeah. So which like, I mean, and I think like, I think now it's obviously considered a classic. And I, you know, think it's very funny and great and fun. But it is interesting to see like, and I think that happens a lot where you sort of look at these films that are classics now. And at the time, people were like, look at what society has come to that this garbage is like passing as entertainment. Like there was definitely a little bit of that sentiment kind of running through the reviews.

[8:36] Anna: It's also just interesting, because like, GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES, like something I guess I didn't realize was that like, it started out as a novel then became a straight stage play then was like a popular silent film that is now lost to history. It was a comic strip. Apparently, there's even a wallpaper print based off of it. Like, it was this like thing.

[9:00] Tim: Sign me up. That is every millennial's dream.

[9:01] Anna: I know.

[9:01] Tim: Eat their avocado toast while staring at their GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES wallpaper.

[9:05] Anna: Yeah, but I guess like with that, it's like, I didn't really realize that it was such a popular sort of American, you know, obviously, like, you look at all these tropes that like are so ingrained in our culture now. But, you know, I think that GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES had like a big hand in that.

[9:22] Tim: Well, let's talk about the history of GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES. It was, like you said, a novel written by one Miss Anita Loos, who, I mean, that's a drag name. I'm sorry.

[9:34] Anna: Anything with like the first name Anita, like it seems like the last name has got to be some kind of joke.

[9:40] Tim: Amen. So Anita Loos, who I hadn't discovered until researching this episode, a fascinating writer, witty and clever as can be from Southern California, kind of born and raised in San Diego. And her father ran a theater company there that she would perform in. And then at the end of performances, they would present these one reel films at the end of the show. So like the audience could stay and watch a film, but it was just one reel. So it was kind of short and she would sneak in the back and watch. And it really kind of developed this love in her of writing and particularly writing for film. She became a really smart subtitle writer for silent films, particularly with Douglas Fairbanks. Wasn't he like the swashbuckling sort of silent film star?

[10:37] Anna: And then Anita has this, Anita, because we're pals, has this really interesting experience in going on a cruise line in which she as a brunette was like struggling with her luggage and she saw a blonde doing the same. And all of the men rushed over to the blonde to help her with their luggage. Meanwhile, she's like, thanks, guys. What gives? And on top of it, she's like four foot nine or something. Just like the most petite little thing, just like Kristen Chenoweth with a dark bob. And that gave birth to this character known as Lorelei Lee, who was a blonde and was constantly receiving the attention of the opposite sex.

[11:22] Tim: But tell me what you think on it. But I think this character is incredibly intelligent and in no way falls into the stereotype of dumb blonde.

[11:27] Anna: Yeah, I mean, I think she has her own kind of intelligence. She knows what her advantages are in a society that reduces a woman's power to what she looks like. And she's like, I'm going to use that to secure my future. And I think I've saw some reviews of revivals being like, oh, the book is sort of dated and sexist. But I don't think there's anything sexist about acknowledging that. And I think there's almost a kind of empowerment in her attitude to be realistic and be like, you know, I'm not going to look this way forever. So I have to

[12:08] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Welcome back to A Musical Theatre Podcast! Today, we’re diving into the zany world of GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES, and I’m thrilled to have Tim and Anna from My Little Tonys Podcast with me.

[12:37] Tim: Thanks for having us, Jeff! We’re excited to be here to talk about this iconic musical.

[13:07] Anna: Absolutely! GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES has such a fascinating cultural impact, especially with the song "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend."

[13:37] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: It really does! That song has become synonymous with so many legendary performers, like Carol Channing and Marilyn Monroe.

[13:59] Tim: And let’s not forget about Anita Loos, the brilliant mind behind the book. Her work has had a lasting influence on musical theatre.

[14:37] Anna: Yes! Loos’ writing style and wit really brought the characters to life, making them memorable and relatable.

[15:11] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: It’s interesting how the themes in GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES still resonate today, especially regarding gender and societal expectations.

[15:37] Tim: Exactly! The musical challenges the norms of its time while still being entertaining and fun.

[16:27] Anna: And the music! The score is filled with catchy tunes that have stood the test of time.

[16:57] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: For sure! It’s a perfect blend of humor and heart, which is what makes musical theatre so special.

[17:17] Tim: I think that’s why we keep coming back to these classics. They offer both nostalgia and a fresh perspective on contemporary issues.

[17:57] Anna: And discussing them with friends, like we do on our podcast, makes it even more enjoyable!

[18:17] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: I love that! It’s all about sharing the joy of musical theatre and keeping these conversations alive.

[18:57] Tim: Absolutely! And we encourage everyone to check out My Little Tonys Podcast for more discussions like this.

[19:17] Anna: Yes! We dive deep into various musicals and their cultural significance, just like we’re doing today.

[19:57] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: It’s a great way to celebrate the art form and learn more about its history.

[20:17] Tim: And we’re always looking for new perspectives, so we appreciate being here with you, Jeff.

[20:57] Anna: Thanks for having us! We’re excited to explore more about GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES with you.

[21:17] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Let’s get into it! What do you think makes "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend" such an enduring classic?

[21:57] Tim: I think it’s the way it captures the essence of the characters and their desires, all while being incredibly catchy.

[22:17] Anna: Plus, the visuals associated with the song, especially in the film adaptation, have made it iconic.

[22:57] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Definitely! The combination of performance and storytelling in that number is just brilliant.

[23:17] Tim: It really showcases the power of musical theatre to convey complex ideas through entertainment.

[23:37] Anna: And that’s what we love to celebrate on our podcast!

[24:16] Tim: The lyrics were by Leo Robin, who, in addition to writing these iconic lyrics, is also known for writing "Thanks for the Memories" that Bob Hope made famous, for which he won an Academy Award. So he's a great lyricist, probably known more so for his contribution to film than musical theater, and yet these great songs started out in the musical theater. Now, in "A Little Girl from Little Rock," she basically talks about how there's a guy who done her wrong, and that she's gonna go back one day and thank him because it made her leave and find somebody better and richer. Now, here's the plot problem with this, is that, spoiler alert, the big reveal at the end of the show is that her deep secret is that she killed the man from Little Rock because he tried to rape her.

Super dark twist in the musical. Not indicated by those lyrics. Right? So does that mean, like, Lorelei Lee is going to go to Little Rock to, like, the grave? Because that dude's dead. Maybe she means just a metaphorical, uh, you know, gonna go and thumb my nose at him. But she's already done all the nose thumbing she really can do. Yeah, right? I think that one's been laid to rest. Literally. But still, it's a great song. It also comes at this really hilarious point in musical theater where if you have a great earworm or a great song, you have two more encores of said song. Not necessarily in a reprise situation, like "Some Enchanted Evening" in "South Pacific," but literally the song gets finished, the audience goes crazy, the person comes back out, the character comes back out and basically says, well, now that I have your attention, let's do it again. And does it two more times. I always think it's kind of hilarious and fun. But I guess back then people's attention spans were much better than mine is in 2020.

[26:28] Anna: Yeah, that was also very much like a Cole Porter signature where it's like, once you got the formula, you just plug in the new specifics and you got like five more verses.

[26:36] Tim: Brush up your Shakespeare.

[26:37] Anna: Yeah, turned it into an 11-minute number.

[26:41] Tim: Yeah. Well, it is also interesting because when Carol talks about it, I have her memoir, "Just Lucky, I Guess."

[26:48] Anna: Have you read the quote on the back about being a prostitute?

[26:53] Tim: Yes.

[26:54] Anna: Iconic.

[26:55] Tim: Yeah, the name of my book is "Just Lucky, I Guess," referring to the old joke, client to prostitute. What's a nice girl like you doing in a place like this? Prostitute. Just lucky, I guess. I have a right to repeat this old joke because I have been prostituting myself all my life. I've been making love to an audience since the fourth grade. It's kind of interesting to me that what I do on stage is legal, whereas what's done in bed is not.

[27:20] Anna: Carol Channing said sex workers rights.

[27:22] Tim: Yeah. And just the dust jacket design is very like old Navy, like 2002. I love. But anyway, Dan, I guess that is actually a good segue to what I was going to say, because she was like seeing people do this song as kind of like a sexy number and not as like a standup routine, like is really like mind boggling to me, because the reason I had so much success with them is because it was like my type five.

[27:54] Anna: Wow. It was her Netflix special.

[27:56] Tim: Yeah, that's really cool. OK, so we've met Lorelai now and we have already talked about how she's interested in love by means of money. Her companion for this trip, kind of her chaperone to keep watch on her, is her BFF, Dorothy. And Dorothy, being a brunette, is constantly in awe of Lorelai's gentleman admirers. She, however, couldn't be less interested in money. She's interested in a hot dude to make the whoopee with. Like, talk about women's lib this this one. She's on the prowl. And it just so happens that on this cruise trip that they're about to go on is an entire Olympic team of—are they rowers? What are they? They're just Olympians.

[28:41] Anna: I feel like Jane Russell, especially in the movie, is very much like the blueprint for Samantha Jones in "Sex and the City."

[28:55] Tim: Oh my gosh, that's so true. Like so much of her line deliveries are very like, I'll be over there.

[29:02] Anna: Right. It's very, very deadpan. Very zinger.

[29:05] Tim: Yeah, she really is phenomenal and does not disappear into the background. Like you said, Lorelai does have a boyfriend and his name is Gus Esmond. And I believe he's from money because his family invented buttons. I mean, this is like so 1930s madcap musical theater. And she has to say goodbye to him because she's going on the ship to go to France to perform at, you know, this cabaret club. And Gus is really worried because he's very well aware that men really love Lorelai. She's saying don't worry, baby. Don't worry, Daddy. She calls him Daddy. Don't worry, Daddy. Right. All gay men. You owe it to Lorelai Lee. So Gus sings "Bye Bye Baby," which is like you said, one of the great earworms as well.

He also gives her a telegram. And this is what I've even done the show and I don't remember why someone would behave in this manner. But he gives her a telegram and she's terrified to open it because she's afraid that he's going to break up with her even though he just said Bye Bye Baby, you're my love. I'm really worried about all these guys being around you. And so she doesn't open it and yet assumes that they are going to break up. So she needs to go look for another man.

[30:29] Anna: I actually so I read some of the—I sort of skimmed through the libretto for this. She gets the telegram after they're already on the boat and she sees that it's from Arkansas. So she's like he and his dad are in Arkansas to dig up this dirt about me and he's gonna break up with me.

[30:43] Tim: Oh, the secret. Of course.

[30:44] Anna: Yeah, because I think it's kind of framed that he needs to like go stand in for his dad at a button convention. And like, there's even like a very funny joke about zippers in there someplace. But then I think like Anna said, it's like reveal that you know, his dad's trying to dig up some dirt. Because the dad doesn't approve of them being together.

[31:04] Tim: Right? What makes matters even stickier is that on board the cruise is this guy named Josephus. And he is to zippers what her actual boyfriend is to buttons. So she's like, great, I'm upgrading from buttons to zippers. Here's my new love interest. But because she's a giving and gracious person, she's also on the lookout for her BFF. She finds somebody by the name of Henry Spofford, the third, which in the film version, is like a six-year-old.

[31:38] Anna: I love that. That's such a fun change. That kid is really intense. He follows direction, he can really deliver those lines.

[31:47] Tim: Dorothy is instead more interested in the Olympic sportsmen. And so she does the—she sings this great song called "I Love What I'm Doing When I'm Doing It for Love," which did not make it into the film, and I think is too bad. And that's actually too risque. I mean, that's what I would guess. And the fun thing is that song title is a direct loose quote, either from—is it either from the actual text of the novel or just something that she said. But in the Julie Stein biography, it's attributed to her.

[32:15] Anna: Yes, reading the Julie Stein biography.

[32:22] Tim: It's a fantastic song. And I actually like it better than the one that they put in the film. However, we have to talk about the one in the film.

[32:27] Anna: Oh, yeah.

[32:28] Tim: Yeah. And just to give the preface, when Ana and I watched this in our film theory class, it was during the unit on queer film theory. And I think that this number makes a very good case for that. Because they're very homoerotic.

[32:46] Anna: Yeah, put them in those little like nude speedos.

[32:49] Tim: It's one thing that it's like, this big, like the bathing suit is so tiny. It's a completely other thing that it is the same color as their flesh. It feels like one thing would be too much. And yet they're both there. And not only that, they're doing this amazing jack Cole choreography that involves full spread eagle, number 17.

[33:11] Anna: And speaking of jack Cole, he had his assistant Gwen Verdon on the scene, coaching the ladies on how to, you know, because you can tell that Marilyn really can't dance, you know, not to deflect from this number, which is amazing, but like, sort of and even just like, the way they kind of walk in sync, like they're always on the same leg kind of like, you know, shimmying in the same way. That's, that's all Gwen.

[33:40] Tim: I am obsessed with jack Cole. I love jack Cole choreography so much, because he, he's somebody that we don't talk about a lot, because the work of his that we've seen isn't incredibly present, with the exception of this film. But like you look at "All That Jazz," and how bump bump, a group of people doing kind of isolations on accents of music. That's all jack Cole, this whole theatrical jazz, choreographic style is really attributed to him. And I love it. It's so intricate, so musical.

[34:06] Anna: Have you seen the "Kismet" movie?

[34:12] Tim: Yes, "Kismet 2." We just watched that for an episode, and I was totally blown away by the choreography in that movie. It's so good. He understood the frame in ways that I think had only really been capitalized upon by tappers, if that makes sense.

[34:31] Anna: Interesting, I didn't see that.

[34:32] Tim: We figured out how to film tap dance really dynamically, kind of early in the film industry, but we hadn't really figured out how to do ballet jazz. And he figured out how to fit all of these people in the frame, and to make it look really interesting and dynamic. My favorite performance of his, or my favorite of his choreography is this Chita Rivera performance of "Beale Street Blues." That was, I think it was for...

[35:01] Anna: I think I've seen that.

[35:02] Tim: Yeah, it's on YouTube, but it's like the most amazing thing, and I like watch it so much.

[35:06] Anna: That's so cool. I'll have to check that out.

[35:08] Tim: Now, the other interesting thing about the film version in this number is that Jane Russell gets pushed into the pool, and it looks like an accident, and it was an accident.

[35:21] Anna: Oh, really?

[35:22] Tim: And she carries it off, though. And Howard Hawk saw it in the dailies and was like, we gotta keep it. It's too perfect. So they orchestrated the music to have this like of her falling into the pool. But you watch it, and some dude is jumping over her, and his foot just catches her and pushes her into the pool. And so then they re-choreographed the ending of that number to deal with pulling her out of the pool. She's like blinded by the mascara running in her eyes, and she smiles and makes this whole pose. But that was completely accidental, and it's iconic now.

[36:03] Anna: Yeah, it totally makes the number.

[36:04] Tim: It makes the number because it's like an exclamation point at this like end of a sentence that's like, these men don't care about me. Fair enough. That reminds me, just a quick aside.

[36:17] Anna: Please. So, you know, Anita Loos wrote the sequel, "The Gentleman Mary Brunettes." And then like, you know, a couple decades later, she was like being interviewed.

[36:53] Tim: The first one is called "It's Delightful Down In Chile," and it is Lorelai trying to persuade this other rich man on the ship by the name of Sir Francis to buy a tiara because Lorelai's obsessed with jewelry. So she's basically using her womanly wiles to get Sir Francis to lend her the money for that. Why is she singing about Chile? Anyone's guess. Very interesting though. So this was the last musical, the last book musical that premiered of the 40s. But through the decade, out of the 262 shows that opened, 50 of them offered a South of the Border or Spanish song and dance. So it's just part of the deal. Guys and Dolls has it.

[37:44] Anna: Yeah, it was just like a very popular trope, I guess. The Three Caballeros, that Disney cartoon, isn't it from the same period? Which was all about South America.

[38:03] Tim: Yeah, and also the conga sequence in Wonderful Town.

[38:09] Anna: Where's my Wonderful Town episode? I'm officially very disappointed.

[38:13] Tim: Wonderful Town and this, I feel like we're probably close. They're neck and neck for us.

[38:18] Anna: Yeah, I mean, I think that's one of the other few like female buddy comedy type musicals, although I think they're separated for a lot of it. They're kind of like doing their own thing.

[38:27] Tim: Living their own story.

[38:29] Anna: Yeah. Speaking of which, they get to Paris. And even though Dorothy didn't have success with the Olympians, she's having a lot of success with the guy that Lorelai picked out for her. And they're like in a park and they're singing. It's a song called "Sunshine." There's a lot of French in this, a lot of France in this musical too. We romanticized France and South America.

[38:49] Tim: That's when you get a Can-Can a few years later, the French Guys and Dolls.

[38:53] Anna: Oh my gosh, I never thought of that. That's so true, though. Good point.

[38:57] Tim: And I do think that this is like a very classic kind of 20s trope is like Americans in Europe and, you know, the Beatmans in the play are like kind of played a little more like posh like British traveling class. And I think that like so much of why the original novel was so well received was that like seeing these like two wacky American broads like in Europe got everyone chuckling.

[39:17] Anna: Yeah.

[39:18] Tim: Because it doesn't really have a plot. The book, it's just sort of like a travelogue of these like little vignettes. On Lorelai's side of romance, she's with Mr. Zipper Man. And they go to cocktails, but little does she know that he doesn't drink, he instead eats vegetables. And he has this amazing, and I can't this is like an unknown gem. Everybody out there. It's called "I'm a Tingle, I'm a Glow." It's like Mark Kudish written all over him, right? Where he's like boasting and how healthy he is because he eats vegetables. It's such a fantastic song. I can't recommend it high enough, five stars.

[40:06] Anna: Again, ahead of its time, you know, the like raw vegan juicing like, you know, like all the trends come back.

[40:12] Tim: Everything old is new again. And it's prohibition too. I think that that's like a big part of it that I also didn't really think about until like, that's like something that like, you know, it's lost in the movies that like there's this jazz age, like everyone like can't wait till they get out on the sea because you can drink again.

[40:27] Anna: So the first act ends with Gus, the actual boyfriend of Lorelai coming to France to see. By the way, he wasn't trying to break up with her like she thought, but he sees that she's dating Mr. Zippers. Now he's upset. And so he starts dating a dancer named Gloria and vows to make her famous, which enrages Lorelai. Meanwhile, Dorothy and Henry have fallen in love. Henry proposes. She turns him down because she says he's too good for her. And that's the end of the first act.

[41:01] Tim: Okay, at intermission, I want to play a game with you guys because gentlemen prefer blondes and because there are so many famous blondes attached to not only the show, but the song "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend." We're going to play a game called Carol, Marilyn or Madonna. I will read a quote and you guys need to tell me if it's Carol Channing, Marilyn Monroe, or Madonna.

[41:25] Anna: Ooh, this is so fun. We never play games on our show.

[41:30] Tim: Okay, quote number one. I am terribly shy, but of course no one believes me. Come to think of it, neither would I.

[41:41] Anna: That sounds like, yeah, I think that's Marilyn.

[41:44] Tim: Carol Channing.

[41:46] Anna: Right?

[41:47] Tim: I'm trying to read them in a way that doesn't give it away because come to think of it.

[41:51] Anna: They have very distinctive, you know.

[41:54] Tim: Well, the worst thing about the audiobook is that someone reads it in like a breathy Marilyn Monroe voice and I'm like, no, no, no, no, no, no.

[42:02] Anna: Next quote. I laugh at myself. I don't take myself completely seriously. I think that's another quality that people have to hold on to. You have to laugh at yourself.

[42:13] Tim: I bet that's Marilyn because I don't think Madonna laughs at herself.

[42:17] Anna: Yeah, I think that that checks out.

[42:19] Tim: Madonna.

[42:20] Anna: Wow.

[42:21] Tim: Really?

[42:22] Anna: Wow.

[42:23] Tim: Well, good for her.

[42:24] Anna: Yeah, but I agree with the sentence. It's in private that she laughs at herself.

[42:29] Tim: Yeah, I mean, I feel like she takes herself so seriously. Imperfection is beauty. Madness is genius. And it's better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring.

[42:40] Anna: That feels like Carol, but I feel like we've just guessed Marilyn.

[42:44] Tim: I know we're just going to keep guessing Marilyn until we get one. You know, I think there's like this, you know, the sickness where like every single quote gets attributed to Marilyn. Like, you know, sort of the social media thing where it's like, I'm a little bit reckless. And, you know, I'm crazy, but you have to love me.

[43:05] Anna: I'm actually surprised. I was expecting this game to be a lot easier than it actually is.

[43:09] Tim: Yeah, this is hard.

[43:11] Anna: That was Marilyn.

[43:12] Tim: Okay, we got one. Regret leads to negativity and negativity kills creativity.

[43:17] Anna: I bet that's Carol.

[43:18] Tim: Yeah, that feels very Christian Scientist.

[43:22] Anna: Oh my gosh. Call it like it is.

[43:24] Tim: You're so right. That's Carol Channing.

[43:26] Anna: All right. I wouldn't have turned out the way I was if I didn't have all those old fashioned values to rebel against.

[43:32] Tim: Madonna?

[43:33] Anna: Yeah, that feels like Madonna.

[43:34] Tim: Because she was raised Catholic, right?

[43:36] Anna: Yes.

[43:37] Tim: Yeah, she has a lot of quotes about Catholicism.

[43:39] Anna: Okay. I never understood the use of vulgar language, but the definition of risque is open to interpretation.

[43:45] Tim: That feels like Marilyn to me.

[43:47] Anna: Yeah.

[43:48] Tim: Carol.

[43:49] Anna: Carol.

[43:50] Tim: Which is kind of true. That book, every page has something sexual on it. And it's kind of fascinating.

[43:56] Anna: Yeah. It's also like you can just tell it's very organized in like only a way that probably makes sense to her.

[44:02] Tim: Yeah, there was no editor in that.

[44:05] Anna: Dogs never bite me, just humans.

[44:09] Tim: I think that's Marilyn.

[44:10] Anna: Yeah.

[44:11] Tim: Poor Marilyn. Interesting stuff, though. Once again, I know I'm probably proving my own point. But there's so much overlap between these women and kind of the wisdom that they found and the approach that they had to their careers as different as they were. And yet, they all have "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend" in common.

[44:35] Anna: Yeah.

[44:37] Tim: Okay, act two. Everyone's at a Paris club. There are these two detectives that are trying to track down Lady Beekman's tiara, which we all know Sir Francis gave to Lorelai. The floor show at this club begins and the first big performance is Gloria, the girl that Gus has started dating to make Lorelai mad. And she has this number called "Mamie is Mamie." And then there's this song called "Coquette," which is insanely high. The highest song, like Billy Porter high. Like, I don't know why anyone is singing the song in the stratosphere.

[45:12] Anna: That gives way to Lorelai singing "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend." Here's the big number. We've already talked about it. But let's really delve into it. Why is "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend" one of the true landmarks in our culture? Because it is and it gets redone over and over again, whether it's in Birds of Prey or Moulin Rouge, or Madonna's "Material Girl," it doesn't go away.

[45:38] Tim: I mean, I think just like the staging and the choreography and the way that it's shot in the film version is just so amazing. I think it just really demands attention. Nobody should ever worry about wearing pink and red together. Ever. Look at this movie. It's so stellar. It looks so, so cool. You got that red background. You got Marilyn in pink. It's awesome.

[46:05] Anna: One thing I forgot about are like the women who are like chandeliers.

[46:09] Tim: Yeah, it's amazing. I mean, it is interesting. Like, I feel like it is one of the most think of how many songs from the 1940s like are still in the public consciousness the way that this is like you can probably count them on one hand, especially songs from musicals. It's like pretty amazing.

[46:27] Anna: It has like the perfect tinge of like irony, but like also kind of being true. Like, I think that it's like a really palatable, like commentary on like material, like American material culture. And it is very earwormy, as we mentioned, but it's also like sort of thinking about, you know, the history of like diamonds. This was like something I learned recently was that in the 1800s, diamonds were super rare. And then in the late 1800s, they discovered like all of these diamond mines in South Africa and were and so all of a sudden there were like tons of diamonds and they weren't rare anymore. So basically every like diamond producer like formed this conglomerate to sort of create the illusion of scarcity to drive up their value.

[48:31] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Welcome back to A Musical Theatre Podcast. Today, we’re diving into the zany world of GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES, and I’m thrilled to have Tim and Anna from My Little Tonys Podcast with me.

[49:01] Tim: Thanks for having us, Jeff! We’re excited to talk about this iconic musical.

[49:31] Anna: Absolutely! The cultural impact of "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend" is just fascinating.

[50:01] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: It really is. That song has transcended generations. What do you think makes it so timeless?

[50:11] Tim: I think it’s the way it captures the essence of ambition and desire. The lyrics are playful yet poignant.

[50:21] Anna: Plus, the performances by Carol Channing and Marilyn Monroe brought it to life in such memorable ways.

[50:31] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Speaking of performances, how do you think the staging of that number contributes to its legacy?

[50:41] Tim: The choreography is so vibrant and fun! It really enhances the message of the song.

[50:51] Anna: And the costumes! Those iconic pink dresses are unforgettable.

[51:01] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: They definitely are. Anita Loos, the writer, had such a unique voice. How do you think her background influenced the musical?

[51:11] Tim: Loos had a keen understanding of women’s roles in society, and that perspective shines through in the characters.

[51:21] Anna: Yes! She was ahead of her time, and her wit adds a layer of depth to the humor.

[51:31] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: It’s interesting how the show reflects both the era it was created in and still resonates today.

[51:41] Tim: Exactly! The themes of love and materialism are still relevant.

[51:51] Anna: And the way it portrays female friendships is something we still see in musicals today.

[52:01] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: That’s a great point. The dynamic between the characters is so engaging.

[52:11] Tim: It really is. Lorelei and Dorothy have such a fun chemistry.

[52:21] Anna: Their banter is one of the highlights of the show.

[52:31] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: What do you think about the adaptation into film? Did it do justice to the original material?

[52:41] Tim: The film definitely brought a new audience to the story, but some of the musical's nuances were lost.

[52:51] Anna: I agree. While the film is iconic, the stage version has a certain charm that’s hard to replicate.

[53:01] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: It’s always a challenge to adapt stage to screen. What do you think the future holds for GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES?

[53:11] Tim: I hope it continues to be revived! It’s a classic that deserves to be celebrated.

[53:21] Anna: Yes! There’s so much potential for new interpretations.

[53:31] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Absolutely. It’s a testament to the show’s enduring appeal.

[53:41] Tim: And the music! The score is just delightful.

[53:51] Anna: It really is. Each song adds to the overall experience.

[54:01] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Thank you both for sharing your insights today. It’s been a pleasure discussing this musical with you.

[54:11] Tim: Thanks for having us, Jeff!

[54:21] Anna: Yes, thank you! We had a blast.

[54:31] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Be sure to check out My Little Tonys Podcast for more great discussions on musical theatre.

[54:41] Tim: And follow us on Instagram @mylittletonys!

[54:51] Anna: Don’t forget to subscribe to A Musical Theatre Podcast and share it with your friends!

[55:01] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Thank you for being part of this wonderful podcasting community.

[55:11] Tim: We appreciate it!

[55:21] Anna: Until next time!

[55:31] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Bye for now!