Runnin' Wild

The making of the classic, gender-bending Hollywood sex comedy that Roger Ebert called “one of the enduring treasures of the movies.”

Widely considered the funniest American comedy ever made, Billy Wilder’s 1959 smash hit Some Like It Hot was so far ahead of its time that it’s become ever more relevant and beloved in our own. Best-selling film historian Noah Isenberg delves into the untold drama behind the movie’s zany tale, in which two down-and-out Chicago musicians (Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon) elude the mob by disguising themselves as members of an all-girl band fronted by an unsuspecting ukelele player named Sugar (Marilyn Monroe). Runnin’ Wild tells the incredible story of the film’s origins in Wilder’s experiences of Jazz Age Berlin, the racy lessons imparted by a drag coach named Barbette, the colorful ensemble cast, Wilder’s charmed collaboration with cowriter I.A.L. Diamond, and epic on-set battles between the director and Monroe. As infectiously fun as the film itself, Runnin’ Wild offers the definitive account of an all-time-favorite movie.