Sextette

Sextette (1978)

She won't be satisfied until she's loved by all mankind, one man at a time.

On the day of her wedding to her sixth husband, glamorous silver screen sex symbol Marlo Manners is sought to intervene in a political dispute between nations, which leads to chaos.

Date of release
1978-03-03
TMDB
4.0 / 10 (20)
Runtime
1h 25m
Genres
Comedy, Music, Romance
Director
Ken Hughes

Casting

Interesting facts

Sextette is a 1978 American musical comedy film directed by Ken Hughes, and starring Mae West in her final film, alongside an ensemble cast including Timothy Dalton, Dom DeLuise, Tony Curtis, Ringo Starr, Keith Moon, George Hamilton, Alice Cooper, and Walter Pidgeon.

Production

The film was based on a play by West, which she was talking about having written in 1954. The play debuted in 1961. Alan Marshall and Jack La Rue played her leading men. Marshall died during the run of the show after suffering a heart attack on stage during a performance of the play.

In 1969, James Aubrey of MGM commissioned Leonard Spigelgass to write a script. In August 1969, West was filming Myra Breckinridge. She said she wanted Christopher Plummer to play one of her husbands in Sextette. However, filming did not proceed. Funds were eventually raised by Danile Briggs, daughter of a Stauffer Chemicals heiress.

In March 1976, Sextette reportedly would be produced for $4.8 million, with West receiving $1 million. Four months later, in July 1976, the film was reported in fact to be made for $1.5 million, with West getting $250,000 and 20% of the profits. Irving Rapper was to direct and Universal had first right of refusal as distributor.

West said Baker worked as the screenwriter "An' puttin' in the camera shots. I can do that myself, but it's tedious work. He's not writin' my lines, though. Nobody can do that." AJ Palmerio said he wrote the script that got the film financed, but he is not credited on the movie.

West was reportedly in search of a leading man along the lines of Cary Grant, with whom she had co-starred in She Done Him Wrong. Filming was to start in August. About 150 unknowns auditioned on one day. Over a thousand men ended up auditioning. In August, Timothy Dalton was cast after West saw him in Wuthering Heights; 18 smaller roles went to the auditionees. "I do the role I always do," said West. "I do Mae West... You see me.

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