Word: pimp
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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...uncle, who all live under the same roof. Ruth is enigmatically cool but she crosses and recrosses her legs, and her role as the sexual aggressor is established in one line of dialogue over a glass of water. "If you take the glass," she says to Teddy's pimp brother, "I'll take you." When the pimp suggests that she become a part-time professional prostitute and "mother" the family, she strikes a crafty financial bargain and accedes. Only the father is struck by a final spasm of dread: "She'll use us, she'll make...
...Frank Sinatra, who was widely believed to be the model for Puzo's character of Johnny Fontane, the singer who is backed by the Mob. Sinatra, writes Puzo, never even looked up from his plate, but "started to shout abuse . . . The worst thing he called me was a pimp, which rather flattered me. But what hurt was that there he was, a northern Italian, threatening me, a southern Italian, with physical violence. That was roughly equivalent to Einstein pulling a knife on Al Capone...
...After one puzzlingly suggestive remark by Ruth, Lenny wails--almost as if he spoke for the audience: "Is that a proposition? Damn it, was that a proposition or wasn't it?" We demand that everyone fit in a well-known category: The whore, the kindly old man, the pimp, the vain and stupid boxer (Joey)--and Pinter shoots it all out from under us as soon as we think we know...
...fantasy?" The absurdity of the situation grows stronger with each new turn of events; Lenny coolly makes his proposition, Ruth Coolly accepts it, and Teddy remains absolutely unconcerned. The family even asks Teddy if he wants to act as Ruth's "representative in the States", a kind of international pimp. Max laughs: "Why, Pan Am ought to give us a discount!" And to the absurdity is added the dream-like quality of Ruth's speech and action. The rhythms of the actors' speech become incantations, and feed the suggestion of fantasy and dreams...
...McDonald's Lenny, while lacking in the sleekness one expects from the suggestion that he is a big-time pimp, is still quite good. There is one particularly fine interplay between Lenny, Ruth, their dialogue, and a pair of inanimate objects (a glass and an ashtray) which illustrates Pinter's capacity to utilize all the elements of production at his disposal. Lenny suddenly, and inexplicably, becomes insistent upon removing a glass he had given Ruth. "I'll take it," he demands, and she replies: "If you take it...I'll take you." The effect of this first sensual suggestion...