Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (musical) a film of the same name in 1953, starring Jane Russell and Marilyn Monroe. The popular songs "Bye Bye Baby" and "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend" were introduced in this musical. In the 1920s, Lorelei Lee, a blonde from Little Rock, Arkansas, and her friend Dorothy Shaw board the ocean liner "Ile de France", to embark for France ("It's High Time"). Lorelei and her boyfriend (who is her "sugar daddy"), Gus Esmond, are parting for a while ("Bye, Bye Baby"); Gus is going to Little Rock, and Dorothy is Lorelei's chaperone. On the ship, Lorelei has many admirers, including
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953 film) and Adamson were written especially for the film. Depsite the film's title, Monroe was paid her usual contract salary of $500 a week, while Russell, the more known and experienced actress of the two, earned $200,000. While Russell's down-to-earth, sharp wit has been noted by most critics, it was Monroe's turn as the gold-digging Lorelei Lee for which the film is often remembered. Monroe's rendition of the song "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend" and her pink dress are considered iconic, and the performance has inspired homages by Beyonce , Madonna, Geri Halliwell, Kylie Minogue, Nicole Kidman, Anna Nicole Smith,