Gloriously campy Tallulah Bankhead in Hitchcock's "Lifeboat"!

I was having a duvet day yesterday as I was feeling a little 'delicate' from the New Year's Eve celebrations from the night before. I had a recording of Alfred Hitchcock's splendid war film Lifeboat on my PVR so I treated myself to an afternoon of some Tallulah and chocolate.

Tallulah Bankhead was a wonderfully flamboyant American actress who found fame on the English stage back in the 1920s before attempting Hollywood and returning the the Broadway stage in the 1930s and 40s. She made few films so it's a treat to see her in rare leading role with her trademark throaty laugh and campy delivery. I've told this story about the making of the film before but it's worth repeating:

Tallulah wore no underpants during shooting. As she had to mount a little ladder each day to board the boat, she ensured that her sans culottes state was public knowledge. Not everyone was charmed. The unit manager reported some churlish complaints on the set. Hitchcock told him to ask Darryl Zanuck, the production chief, what to do. The man returned to report that Zanuck had told him to tell Tallulah to wear undies.

“Oh, I wouldn’t if I were you,” said Hitchcock gravely, “It’s not your department.”

“Whose department is it?”

“Wardrobe,” said Hitchcock thoughtfully. “Or perhaps hairdressing.”

The film is full of snappy dialogue and wit. My favourite campy line from Tallulah come towards the end when Tallulah donates her diamond bracelet to be taken apart and used as fish bait: "I can recommend the bait. I ought to know, I've bitten on it myself!"

Priceless.