The Prince, the Showgirl, and Me: Six Months on the Set With Marilyn and Olivier

The cover photo shows Marilyn leaning against Laurence Olivier, she all softness, he all stiff reserve. She holds a finger between their lips. Is she stopping him or teaching him? Either way, it appears she is in control. Perhaps this isn't want Olivier envisaged when he agreed to casting Monroe in his film. The inside story of the making of this film is told by Colin Clark who was the 3rd assistant director, or "gofer". He thankfully shows a dislike for the Terrence Rattigan play which is to be directed by Olivier, who is a family friend, and married to Vivien Leigh, who had played the role in London. Olivier refers to him as "dear boy". Rattigan is "queer, of course" he tells us and Olivier and Leigh "love to have queer courtiers", though later Clark receives a blow job without resistance. His strategum for solidifying his position in the company is tiresome, but as preproduction begins he peppers his notes to cover himself in hindsight. Everyone's concern is MM. Her reputation for lateness and her reliance upon Paula Strasberg precedes her. While Clark thinks her demands make her spoiled and silly, he also is aware that Larry may not be the ideal choice of director. Clark wishes he could pass on confidances but doesn't. I guess that's the beauty of keeping a diary. Her makeup man gives a warning - Whitey Snyder says he loves Marilyn, but doesn't want to responsible for her behaviour, strange for a man who would later claim to have briefly married her. The makeup tests are a revelation. On film she is luminous, no matter how difficult in person. There is a clue that the British haven't been exposed to such a person before, in a comment about Vivien Leigh - that in spite of her fame being greater than Olivier's, that she always deferred to him. And an acknowledgement that at the time, Monroe is the biggest movie star in the world, just coming off Bus Stop. It is hoped that Marilyn will be more agreeable since she has brought her new husband, Arthur Miller with her, as also A View from the Bridge is due to open in London. As filming begins, Clark defines MM as a mimophant - as fragile as a mimosa about her own feelings, but as tough as an elephant about other people's. She is as self-centred and sensitive as a child and it appears that she needs Strasberg's sycophantic babblings to boost her confidence, which it is feared Olivier is draining. Olivier doesn't understand her fragility. He thinks actors should be to control their nerves. There is also a battle for control over MM going between Milton Greene, Strasberg and Arthur Miller, all whom Clark thinks wants to benefit from their "pot of gold". If Olivier gives MM a direction which contradicts something Strasberg thinks, there is a delay as Lee Strasberg must be consulted in New York. Understandably, Olivier is in a constant state of rage. Clark actually wonders if MM's dumb act is an act, perpetrated to make herself look better and others foolish. He has his epiphany with a shared laugh at