Two showgirls on the hunt for fame, money, and love take a steam ship to Paris.
Howard Hawks is one of the most accomplished Hollywood directors, having made influential, stand-out films in a number of genres including screwball comedy (Bringing Up Baby, His Girl Friday), westerns (Red River, Rio Bravo), thrillers (The Big Sleep, To Have And Have Not), gangster films (Scarface), and sci-fi/horror (The Thing From Another World).
In 1953, an adaptation of the successful Broadway show Gentlemen Prefer Blondes made its way to Hawks. Despite his versatility, Hawks' previous explorations of masculinity would seem to make him an odd fit with a musical comedy featuring two women. However, one need only look at the strong, resourceful female roles in his previous comedies to see the throughline.
The studio declined to have Broadway actress Carol Channing recreate her stage role, instead offering it to up-and-comer Marilyn Monroe, and pairing her sweet naivete with the deadpan cynicism of sex symbol Jane Russell. Co-starring in the film is veteran actor Charles Coburn
The snappy, innuendo-filled script was penned by regular Hawks collaborator Charles Lederer. Dance choreographer Jack Cole staged Monroe's iconic "Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend" number, and began a professional relationship with Monroe that would continue through five more films.
The film was hugely successful with critics and audiences, and the one-two punch with How To Marry A Millionaire (also released in 1953) propelled Monroe to superstardom. Monroe and Russell were honored by putting their hand and footprints in the cement outside Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood.
Running time is 1 hr, 30 min.
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