My
Interview with Gaby Rogers
Wes
Clark - 7/15/02
"Whatever happened to Gaby Rodgers (Lily Carver in "Kiss Me,
Deadly")?
I just got off the phone with Gaby
Rodgers. Yes, this is the same Gaby Rodgers who opened Robert Aldrich's
mysterious atomic box in "Kiss Me, Deadly."
She was at first naturally guarded, and wanted to know who I was
and why I wanted to ask her questions. I tried to put her at ease; we talked for
about ten or fifteen minutes. She does not seem to be well-acquainted with the
phrase "film noir."
From my conversation with Gaby Rodgers:
- Robert Aldrich described the contents of his famous box in only
the most vague terms; Gaby didn't know - and doesn't know - what exactly was in
it. At the time of the filming she understood it to be "atomic," and
that was it.
- She was offered a ten year contract by Selznick, but turned it
down. One reason was that she had a problem with the cheesecake photos she was
required to do. Anyway, she enjoyed the early days of television, and went on
to do theater directing and criticism, which she still occasionally does.
- She asked Aldrich how she was supposed to portray Lily Carver;
he told her that he wanted her to play a lesbian! So she had her hair cut short
and wore (as she described it), a "tuxedo." (That's that surprisingly
modern-looking black suit with the white lapels.) She naturally asked if she
had any scenes with other women, and Aldrich said no. So the short hair and the
tux are all that indicate Aldrich intended for her to be a lesbian for this
part.
- She indicated that, reading the novel by Mickey Spillane, she
was attempting to portray a drug addict - which accounts for the somewhat
dreamy behavior of her character - but that the production codes wouldn't
really allow a more explicit portrayal. (Same problem with a more descriptive
portrayal as a lesbian.)
- According to Rodgers, Robert Aldrich was, "...a lovely man,
jolly, easy-going. A Catholic." So she was surprised, viewing the finished
product, that the film was so sadistic.
- Kiss Me Deadly was described by her as being "a quickie
movie, a one-take kind of thing." She had no idea that it would be as
highly regarded by critics as it has become. She mentions that everyone was
rather lightly directed in it, and filming didn't take very long at all.
- At one point she talked to Mickey Spillane about her character,
but it didn't help.
- She confirmed that she had an influence on her husband (famous
songwriter Jerry Lieber) in writing the song "Jackson," a hit for
Johnny Cash, but wouldn't elaborate due to legal reasons. (My assuring her that
I had no interest in songwriting legality didn't help...)
- She also mentioned that she once got her husband to read a work
by the German author Thomas Mann that contained an evocative passage about
disappointment. He wrote "Is That All There Is?" (a hit for Peggy
Lee) as a result. The song was intended to be in the style of German cabaret.
(Gaby Rodgers is a German who grew up in Holland.)
- She confirmed the story that she played with Anne Frank as a
girl.
- She prefers films that are not explicit, and agreed with me that
suggesting something is usually better than depicting it outright. I got the
distinct impression that she's not a great fan of modern filmmaking.
Gaby Rodgers does not have e-mail.
Click here for an exhaustive synopsis of Kiss Me,
Deadly.