Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)

Directed by
Howard Hawks

Writing credits
Anita Loos (novel)
Joseph Fields (play)

Tagline
The Two M-M-Marvels Of Our Age In The Wonder Musical Of The World!

Cast
Jane Russell ... Dorothy Shaw
Marilyn Monroe ... Lorelei Lee
Charles Coburn ... Sir Francis 'Piggy' Beekman
Elliott Reid ... Ernie Malone
Tommy Noonan ... Gus Esmond
George Winslow ... Henry Spofford III
Marcel Dalio ... Magistrate
Taylor Holmes ... Mr. Esmond Sr.
Norma Varden ... Lady Beekman
Howard Wendell ... Watson
Steven Geray ... Hotel Manager
Henri Letondal ... Grotier, the Prosecutor
Leo Mostovoy ... Ship's Captain
Alex Frazer ... Pritchard
George Davis ... Cab Driver Pierre

Plot
Lorelei and Dorothy are just "Two Little Girls from Little Rock", lounge singers on a transatlantic cruise, working their way to Paris, and enjoying the company of any eligible men they might meet along the way, even though "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend." Based on the Broadway musical based on the novel.

Trivia
Originally bought by Fox as a vehicle for Betty Grable. After the success of Niagara (1953) (which featured Marilyn Monroe), however, the studio believed they had a more potent and far less expensive sex symbol than Grable (who was earning around $150,000 per picture vs. Monroe's $18,000).

Marilyn Monroe kept insisting on retakes despite approval of takes by the director. When Fox asked director Howard Hawks how production could be sped up he retorted: "three wonderful ideas: Replace Marilyn, rewrite the script and make it shorter, and get a new director."

Monroe wears a gold lame evening dress previously worn by Ginger Rogers in Dreamboat (1952).

At least one other number was shot, then cut. In the original theatrical trailer, Jane and Marilyn were shown among dancers, climbing the steps of a slide in a children's playground. The song was a French version of "Two Little Girls from Little Rock". Marilyn and Jane wear the costumes when Tommy Noonan corners them backstage in the French nightclub.

A song written for Marilyn Monroe to sing in this picture, "Down Boy", was rejected, but later sung by Betty Grable in "Three For the Show".

The high notes in "Diamonds Are A Girls Best Friend" are sung by Marni Nixon.

The ship model shown is the one used previously in Titanic (1953) and was refurbished to resemble the Queen Mary. Some of the ocean liner sets used were also left over from "Titanic".

According to Marni Nixon, the studio initially wanted Marilyn Monroe's entire voice dubbed, as they thought her voice was silly. Nixon thought that was "awful", as she felt Monroe's voice suited her persona so beautifully.

The "Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend" number was later re-shot in Cinemascope, to be used as part of a Cinemascope demonstration held on the Fox lot in March of 1953. Producer Darryl F. Zanuck told "Daily Variety" that it only took 3-1/2 hours to shoot the number in Cinemascope versus four days for the original film version. The film-going public finally saw the CinemaScope version ten years later when it closed Fox's documentary tribute to MM, "Marilyn".

This was 'Jane Russell' 's only film with Marilyn Monroe. They got along well. Russell called Monroe "Blondie" and was often the only person on the set who could coax Monroe out of her trailer to begin the day's filming.

Marilyn Monroe reportedly suggested the line "I can be smart when it's important, but most men don't like it."