While Addison was an architect and Wilson a con man, among other things, Hollis Bessemer is fictitious. In early workshops his role was filled by Addison's real-life friend Paris Singer, but Singer was not a homosexual and was not Addison's lover. In the workshopped "Wise Guys", Addison's sexuality was only hinted at, but Sondheim and Weidman decided they had to address it more openly, and so the character of Hollis was created to give him a love interest. As Sondheim put it, "We wanted to take liberties with our characters, but not misrepresent them. Or be sued by Singer's descendants."