MovieChat Forums > Designing Woman (1957) Discussion > A scene supportive of gay men?

A scene supportive of gay men?

posted 14 years ago by robert48-1
11 replies | jump to latest

Saw this on TV as a kid and always remembered the brawl at the end. Caught a few minutes of the finale this morning and viewed it in a somewhat different light as an adult. Greg, Dolores, and Lauren are struggling with a band of thugs when a character emerges from the back door (I think he is a choreographer named Jack Cole in real life) who I believe Peck disparages early in the movie as not being very masculine. Well, this "light in the loafers" guy starts dancing all over the set effortlessly kicking the thugs as he pirouettes from car top to trash can like the hero in some French parkour epic. When it's over it seems like he casually vanquishes a dozen hoods and then offers Greg a cigarette as he wobbles over before passing out again. It was great and I assume it was Hollywoods effort (in a quiet way) to stand up for the gay artists who were probably just as prominent in Hollywood as they are now. Anyone else take note of this scene?

[–] zuzupetal_99 14 years ago

Well, when Peck's character does make fun of him, the dancer guy walks in & proceeds to tell Peck that he's married, has 3 sons and they all play football; as if to show him that he was anything but gay. So when he comes in at the end & out-fights all these macho guys, I just took it as saying that a "real man" isn't just the stereo-typical macho types. It could've also included gays, but the character himself wasn't gay - I think it would've been cooler had they cut the bit about him being married w/ 3 boys so the audience could make its own assumptions about him and the ending would've been that much better imo ;)

"Are you going to your grave with unlived lives in your veins?" ~ The Good Girl

[–] 14 years ago

[deleted]

[–] Merrida 8 years ago

I agree and thought it was rather gratuitous. There was no need for, nor acceptable context, for Jack to come in and feel compelled to show just how gosh darn hetero he is by defensively having to prove so by showing pictures of his wife and three kids who of course, are all big athletic boys. To prove a point.

They would have done just as well without that, but with the less 'in your face' explanation and let things just play out as they did in the end.

I found it a little rude and unnecessary. But then again, I don't know if, for the time period, there was a 'need' to press this?

Jack Cole is a phenomenal dancer, though I've only seen him in 2 or 3 movies. Brilliant!

______________________________________
Sic vis pacem para bellum.

[–] gribfritz2 8 years ago

Not gratuitous at all in 1957. Do you honestly think that an effeminate dancer, who by all appearances was gay, would be able to kick butt at the end and save the manly Gregory Peck? No way on earth. The scene where he announces his heterosexuality was needed so that he COULD be a hero and save the day.

Take it as a small homosexual victory at the time. They couldn't let a homosexual be a hero, but they could make an effeminate dancer played by a homosexual non-actor a hero.

[–] Merrida 8 years ago

I stand corrected...

______________________________________
Sic vis pacem para bellum.

[–] Merrida 8 years ago

[–] singjohn 12 years ago

LOL! I love that scene. That little shaky hand movement he does just cracks me up. Did you notice in that scene, there is a poster for "Yellow Gold"? That's the play in the movie The Opposite Sex (1956) filmed just the year prior to Designing Woman.

[–] nycruise-1 12 years ago

Yes - that's Jack Cole - who was a VERY gay dancer.

Let's not forget Vincent Minnelli was also directing, so I'm sure there was a lot of camaraderie between Vince and Jack.

I think the scene as set up counters the notion that guys who are effete dancers can't also be "tough." Cole's character swiftly polishes off several of the gangsters with his high kicks.

Of course, the underlying message here - to those "in the know" - is that gay men can be just as "masculine" as str8 men.

I think the conversation between Peck and Cole about Cole being married was probably insisted upon by the producers as a way of "non-gaying" Cole's character.

"Don't call me 'honey', mac."
"Don't call me 'mac'... HONEY!"

[–] 12 years ago

[deleted]

[–] Jamal-Nazreddin 9 years ago

Minnelli made this Unfunny, cringe-worthy "gay" comedy immediately after he made that cringe-worthy "gay" soapy called Tea & Sympathy.

😒

[–] PussyCrusher_Principal 7 years ago

Don't forget that there is a similar scene in Woman Of The Year - which Designing Woman follows more than a bit, plot and character-wise - in which Katherine Hepburn's female athlete defends SpencerTracy's macho sportswriter from a bunch of leg-breakers sent to rough him up.

Ha ha, nope, it just occurred to me that was Pat And Mike. Oh well, maybe they were taking inspiration from Tracy & Hepburn generally.