2006 05 06

Ever since I was a wee'un, and staying up far past my bedtime to watch old movies on the telly, I've always had a soft spot for Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.

If I'd been a male in the 50s this movie probably would have put more than my eyes out, that's for sure. Jane Russell and Marilyn Monroe in the same place? Heavens. As one character in the film says, "If this ship hits an iceberg, which one of them would you save?" "Those girls wouldn't drown."

I've always been amusedly charmed by some of the turns of phrase Marilyn uses in the film, but one thing she says has always creeped me out: referring to her male love interest as "daddy". Good gawd, that's creepy on more levels than I could name. The whole idea of women acting kittenish and weak in order to gain the interest of men is not new, but must they carry it that far? - especially in the case of Marilyn uttering it, considering there is some evidence to support her having been molested by her father/stepfather when she was a teenager.