The Goodbye Girl

March 30, 2015September 21, 2023 LizLocke2 Comments

My Arthur post a few weeks ago got me thinking about another New York movie with a fantastic theme song. Alas it was David Gates, and not Christopher Cross who sang the Goodbye Girl theme, but it’s definitely in the Yacht Rock vein. The Goodbye Girl (DVD/Download) is one of my favorite films, and I’ve seen it so many times I could probably recite it line for line. In fact, it was the first movie I turned to while recovering from eye surgery a few years ago- the snappy dialogue is so brilliant that I didn’t even need to see the screen to enjoy it.

In The Goodbye Girl, Richard Dreyfus plays struggling actor Elliott Garfield, who sublets a New York City apartment from another actor acquaintance. Marsha Mason plays that actor’s recently-dumped girlfriend Paula McFadden, who is shocked to find a soaking wet Elliott at her doorstep with a signed lease. Broke and desperate, she agrees to let him move in even though he’s, as she puts it: “another goddamn actor”. Luckily, Richard Dreyfus is incredibly charming, and his performance as Richard III off-off-off Broadway is side-splittingly funny (keep an eye out for Waiting for Guffman’s Paul Benedict as the director!). Paula and Elliott butt heads at first but then of course he wears her down. Paula’s daughter Lucy is played by Quinn Cummings, who was one of the youngest Oscar nominees in history for her performance. My mother always laughs when Paula says of her daughter, “you were never four-and-a-half, you were born twenty-six.” Apparently, so was I.

My drink references one of my favorite scenes (there are so many!) when Elliott and Paula decide to make amends and go dutch on a home-cooked spaghetti dinner. He stops to buy Chianti, she gets mugged, and in the ensuing chaos spills all of her groceries in the middle of the street. Of course she blames Elliott, and the Chianti. While watching The Goodbye Girl, I recommend drinking a New York Sour.

New York Sour

2 oz Bourbon

1 oz simple syrup

1 oz lemon juice

1 oz Chianti red wine

Mix together bourbon, simple syrup, and lemon juice in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake until chilled, then pour into a rocks-filled tumbler. Slowly pour chianti over the back of a spoon so it floats on top.

It’s hard to imagine exactly what Elliott sees in Paula. She’s needy, she’s whiny, she’s “animal crackers”, and wants nothing more than to spend his money decorating their apartment (notice I said his money, not hers- Paula seems content to let a man take care of her, as soon as she can hook one). As a feminist narrative it’s a bit lacking, but I can overlook it all for ’70s-era Richard Dreyfus. Mr. Garfield, you definitely “charis” me. Cheers!

Classic Films

Roman Holiday

March 16, 2015March 16, 2015 LizLocke2 Comments

For those lucky enough to be on spring break this week, I have one thing to say- I’m jealous! Although I do not have the week off, I am choosing to live vicariously through Audrey Hepburn by watching the movie Roman Holiday (DVD/Download). For anybody that wishes they had just one day off to do whatever they want, this is your movie.

Roman Holiday stars Gregory Peck as reporter Joe Bradley, who stumbles upon Princess Ann (played by Audrey Hepburn) after her escape from a rigid palace life. Upon meeting her, he thinks she’s just a drunk on the streets of Rome, but chivalrous, upstanding man that he is (this is Gregory Peck after all), he takes her back to his apartment and lets her sleep on his couch. The next day, he discovers her true identity, but in order to get a juicy newspaper scoop, he pretends he doesn’t know the truth. He and his photographer friend (played wonderfully by Eddie Albert) spend the day taking the Princess around Rome. They ride a Vespa, drink champagne and espresso, eat gelato on the Spanish Steps, and stick their hands in the Mouth of Truth. Watching the princess and Joe fall in love with each other and with Rome is pure fun, and Audrey Hepburn is absolutely radiant in her Oscar-winning role.

After Princess Ann is given some sleeping medication, she sneaks out of the palace by hopping in a Cinzano truck. Of course I have to use this brand of vermouth in my drink, along with Princess Ann’s favorite beverage- champagne (or Prosecco in this case). I plan to sip this drink and pretend I’m sitting at a sidewalk café in Rome, smoking a cigarette and genuinely enjoying life (I don’t really smoke, but she makes even this look adorable). While watching Roman Holiday, I recommend drinking a Sant’Angelo Sunset.

Sant’Angelo Sunset

½ cup blackberries

3 oz Cinzano sweet red vermouth

1 tablespoons sugar

6 oz Prosecco

Stir together blackberries, vermouth, and sugar. Let stand 1 hour until juices are released and sugar dissolves.

Spoon 2 tbsp. blackberry juice and 2-3 blackberries into a champagne flute or coupe. Top with Prosecco.

This drink gets its name from the wonderful scene in the film where Audrey Hepburn visits a barge party along the banks of the Castel Sant’Angelo. I was lucky enough to walk these same banks on my honeymoon to Rome, and stumbled on an old film poster for Roman Holiday from a street vendor. Of course I had to buy it. This movie brings back memories of sweet gelato, soaking in the sun on the Spanish Steps, quietly traversing the Colesseum, and listening to the lovely sounds of the Italian language. Like Princess Ann, I will cherish my visit in memory as long as I live. Cheers!

Arthur

March 2, 2015February 28, 2015 LizLocke1 Comment

I recently discovered a great web series on YouTube called Yacht Rock, a fictional account of 70’s and 80’s-era easy listening titans (yes it came out 10 years ago, and yes I am severely behind the times). If you haven’t seen it yet, check it out- I died laughing. One of the soft-rockers featured is Christopher Cross, who had a major hit singing “Arthur’s Theme” from the Dudley Moore classic film Arthur (DVD/Download). I’ve featured this movie once before on my Top 5 Drunken Movie Performances list, but I think it deserves a mention again, along with a cocktail pairing.

Arthur is the story of millionaire playboy Arthur Bach, who spends most of his days and nights intoxicated, verbally sparring with his deliciously sarcastic butler Hobson. He is pressured by his family to propose to the beautiful but boring Susan, however just before he does, he meets a firecracker from the wrong side of the tracks, played by a very young Liza Minnelli. Even setting aside my excitement at seeing “Lucille 2”, this movie delights me to no end with its witty script, and superb drunk acting by Dudley Moore. He’s just the right amounts of happy and pathetic, and I find myself rooting for him to continue living his carefree, liquor-tinged life, only with the right girl by his side. And by “right girl”, I do not mean the hooker with the Olivia Newton John spandex pants.

Now, when you get caught between the moon and New York City, the best that you can do (in my opinion) is pour a drink! This week I’m adding a new bottle to my liquor cabinet in the form of moonshine. Specifically Texas Moonshine, as a nod to the cowboy hat that Liza Minnelli inexplicably sports on the streets of Manhattan. While watching Arthur, I recommend drinking a White Manhattan.

White Manhattan

2 ½ oz Moonshine

½ oz Dry Vermouth

½ oz Cointreau

Orange twist

Add liquid ingredients to a cocktail shaker over ice and shake until chilled. Strain into a martini glass and garnish with an orange twist.

If I met Arthur in real life, I’d probably be annoyed-slash-jealous at his life situation. But as a movie character, he’s my hero. Someone who can drink that much and still come up with hilarious, brilliant one-liners deserves to be applauded. And as for the Christopher Cross song- well, good luck getting that out of your head for the next week. Cheers!

Classic Films

Harold and Maude

February 4, 2015February 1, 2015 LizLocke15 Comments

One of my favorite things about February is the excuse it provides me to watch romantic movies. To start things off, I’m featuring one of my all-time favorite films, Harold and Maude (DVD/Download). It’s so quirky and beautiful, and I am beyond excited that my local drive-in movie theatre is showing it this weekend. Of course I love seeing movies at the drive-in because I can bring my own drinks, and I’m not at the mercy of overpriced chemical sludge at the snack bar.

Harold and Maude is often ranked as one of the greatest love stories in cinema history, and it’s easy to see why. Harold (played by Bud Cort) is a lonely, depressed young man who enjoys going to funerals and faking his own death. Then he meets Maude (played by Ruth Gordon), a fire-cracker senior citizen who has an amazing zest for life. She shows him how to have fun and above all L-I-V-E! (sorry Matthew McConaughey- you totally stole your mantra from Maude). Harold falls madly in love with Maude, and together they have wild, zany adventures liberating sad little trees from city sidewalks, picnicking in the junkyard, and tooling around in Harold’s Jaguar-hearse. The 70’s décor and costumes in this film are pretty great, and the Cat Stevens soundtrack is phenomenal. What Simon & Garfunkel did for The Graduate, and Aimee Mann did for Magnolia, Cat Stevens does for Harold & Maude. It’s the perfect music for this unlikely, wonderful couple.

Because I’m seeing this film at the drive-in, I have to make sure my drink is easily portable. This is actually a good lesson to learn in case you ever want to bring cocktails to a friend or date’s house. I would suggest investing in some portable barware (nothing glass or breakable!) and pre-mix your liquid ingredients before you go, storing them in a sealed container. Then pack a small cooler with a ziplock bag of ice, and any garnishes, and you should be all set for mixing on the go. For Harold and Maude, I’m using some ingredients that I wouldn’t typically put together, but like the characters in this movie, sometimes the unexpected pairing results in something great. While watching Harold and Maude, I recommend drinking a Maude Taylor (in reference to the classic Mamie Taylor cocktail).

Maude Taylor

1.5 oz scotch

.75 oz lime juice

Ginger Beer

Build drink in a highball glass over ice. Garnish with lime peel.

I would never think to use scotch and ginger beer together, but the resulting taste is sweet and spicy, just like Maude herself. Of course I’m using an aged scotch because, well, things get better with age. Now the only thing missing from my perfect night is that Jaguar hearse- imagine heading to the drive-in in that! Cheers!

Classic Films · Holiday Films

The Thin Man

December 29, 2014December 31, 2014 LizLocke2 Comments

This year for New Year’s Eve, I’m taking the advice of one Cinema Sips reader and watching a classic holiday film, The Thin Man (DVD/Download). By enjoying this movie on one of the most celebratory nights of the year, I can feel like I’m attending a fabulous party, instead of sitting at home in my pajamas, trying desperately to make it to midnight.

The Thin Man is based on the Dashiell Hammett novel of the same name, and it follows former detective Nick Charles and his wealthy wife Nora as they get pulled into a murder mystery involving old acquaintances. Myrna Loy plays the lovely, entertaining Nora Charles, always with a highball or martini glass in her hand. Her banter with William Powell as Nick Charles makes you wish that all marriages were like this one. Of course it’s easy to be carefree and relaxed when you have oodles of family money in your bank account, but what makes this couple so unique is that they are incredibly funny, smart, and down-to-earth. Plus, they have the most ADORABLE dog named Asta, and I’m a sucker for a smart, well-trained movie pet.

I know New Year’s is traditionally a champagne holiday (and I’ll of course have a cheap bottle from Trader Joe’s chilling in the fridge) but honestly, you can’t watch The Thin Man without a dry gin martini in your hand. It just can’t be done. I have to think that martinis were served in smaller portions when this movie was made. How else to account for Nora Charles asking a waiter to bring her 6 of them? If I have more than 2 I’m a mess. At any rate, while watching The Thin Man, I recommend drinking a Dry Gin Martini. However many you have is totally up to you.

Dry Gin Martini

2 ½ oz Gin

½ oz Dry Vermouth

Olive

Shake gin and vermouth (to the tune of your favorite waltz) in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Strain into a martini glass and garnish with an olive.

There’s really nothing I like more than staying home with an old movie and a classic cocktail. So this New Year’s Eve, while other people are paying way too much for their prix-fixe meals and grappling with Uber surcharges, I’ll be sitting at home, warm and cozy, laughing as William Powell delivers pun after delicious pun, and wishing I had Myrna Loy’s fashion sense, wit, and adorable hangover ice pack. I’ll certainly need it Jan 1^st. Cheers!

Classic Films

Sunset Boulevard

November 10, 2014November 10, 2014 LizLockeLeave a comment

Long before Orange is the New Black, there was the original Crazy Eyes- Norma Desmond. As depicted in this week’s Cinema Sips film Sunset Boulevard (DVD/Download), she really was the benchmark against which crazy should be measured. It wasn’t only her eyes; this lady dressed up like Charlie Chaplin, played poker with Buster Keaton, hired silent film director Erich Von Stroheim to be her butler, and held a funeral for her pet monkey. I know Halloween has been over for weeks, but I couldn’t resist one more ghoulish picture. This is a Hollywood horror story for the ages, and absolutely one of the greatest films ever made.

Released in 1959, Sunset Boulevard was written and directed by Billy Wilder. In a deliciously meta twist, it stars former silent movie star Gloria Swanson as former silent movie star Norma Desmond, an actress who was wildly popular during the 1920’s, but could never quite make the leap to talking pictures. This was the unfortunate case with many silent-era stars (ie. Mary Pickford and Clara Bow), and it’s been said that the character of Norma is an amalgam of many real-life actresses from the time. Struggling screenwriter Joe Gillis (played by William Holden) stumbles into her time capsule of a mansion (which bears striking resemblance to Disney World’s Tower of Terror), and because he’s flat broke, he agrees to move in and help her with a terrible screenplay that she thinks will be the start of her career renaissance. Eventually, improbably, they form a romantic relationship, and things pretty much unravel from there.

For my cocktail this week, I’m paying homage to one of the great cinematic funeral scenes. No, I’m not talking about (SPOILER ALERT) Joe Gillis facedown in the pool with a few bullet holes. I’m of course referencing Norma Desmond’s other poor dead companion. Like Michael Jackson, this looney woman has an unhealthy relationship with her pet monkey and upon his death, decides to give him a proper wake in her bedroom. When Joe Gillis stumbles into her mansion in the middle of the afternoon, I’m sure a dead monkey was the last thing he expected to see. Thus this week, my cocktail has to be that old Hemingway favorite, Death in the Afternoon.

Death in the Afternoon

1.5 oz Absinthe

5 oz chilled champagne

Pour absinthe into the bottom of a champagne flute, then slowly pour the champagne over it. The mixture will emulsify, forming a cloudy liquid.

(Note: Be prepared to giggle helplessly for the rest of the night after you drink this. I did.)*

*(Side Note: Is this why Absinthe was illegal in the US for so many years? Too much giggling?)

There are so many wonderful, quote-able lines in this film, but I think my favorite has to be “I am big. It’s the pictures that got small.” This really is an unfortunate truth about Hollywood these days. I’m hard-pressed to think of a movie star that is as big as say Mary Pickford once was, and I could name about ten films just in 2014 alone that to me signal the apocalypse of the film industry (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, anyone?). Sure there are still great films being made, but every year it seems like they are fewer and farther between. Particularly when you hold up a blockbuster, or even Oscar contender from today’s era next to this genius script by Wilder, they seem so, so small. So follow my lead and enjoy a truly classic film noir with your Death in the Afternoon, and get ready for that close-up. Cheers!

(For an extra treat, visit the Cinema Sips Facebook page for a great clip of Kristen Wiig as Norma Desmond, posted on Halloween. I died laughing).

Classic Films

Goodbye, Columbus

July 28, 2014July 27, 2022 LizLocke2 Comments

For many years, I’ve been slightly obsessed with photography and paintings depicting beautiful people in swimming pools (Slim Aarons and his society poolside photos are definite favorites of mine). Thus it was thrilling to discover a film that captured this beauty on celluloid, the classic Goodbye, Columbus (DVD/Download). Based on the novella by Philip Roth, it stars Ali MacGraw as Brenda, who begins dating Richard Benjamin’s character Neil, a lower class librarian from the Bronx. Class differences and parental interference create conflict in their relationship, but nevertheless they spend a glorious summer playing tennis, lounging poolside, and attending parties.

Released in 1969, Goodbye, Columbus was an early film in Ali MacGraw’s frustratingly short career, made even before she did Love Story. It’s sometimes difficult for me to watch her in this, just because she’s SO beautiful. Truly, she has that kind of naturally perfect skin and hair that makes you think she must just wake up looking camera-ready. Her clothes in this film are also stunning. Cute 60’s bikinis, tennis whites, and later, pleated skirts and pea coats after the summer ends- they’re all completely fabulous. The film is a frank look at relationships between college-aged young adults, and in many ways reminds me of The Graduate. Richard Benjamin’s character is searching for something, and he stupidly thinks he’s found it in a smart, beautiful girl whose affections run hot and cold like tap water.

My drink this week was inspired by one of my favorite scenes in the book. It was given short shrift in the film adaptation, but I still think about it every time I see cherries suddenly appear in my grocery store’s produce section. In the novel, Roth describes the sheer opulence of a wealthy family’s refrigerator. Filled with a bounty of delicious fresh fruit, it’s a sight that the main character would never have experienced in his own home. He takes a cherry from a bowl, but is then immediately caught by his girlfriend’s annoying little sister. It’s ridiculous, of course the cherries are there for all to enjoy, but it’s such a foreign concept to him that he becomes embarrassed. Therefore, I’m urging my readers to go crazy this week- buy cherries and actually eat them with abandon! This week, I’m serving up a Cherry Gin Sling.

Cherry Gin Sling

1 oz gin

1/2 oz Cointreau

1/2 oz fresh lime juice

3 oz light cherry soda (I used Simply Balanced Cran-cherry soda)

Fresh, whole sweet cherries

Lime wheels, for garnish

In an empty highball glass, muddle one cherry. Fill the glass with ice. Then, in an ice-filled cocktail shaker, add gin, Cointreau, and lime juice. Shake to chill. Pour into ice filled glasses, then top with cherry soda, to taste. Garnish with cherries and lime wheels.

This is a great summertime drink that can be served up at backyard parties. Cherries are my absolute favorite fruit, and if I had been confronted with a giant bowl of gleaming cherries like this character, I would have dove in head first. Plus, I love using seasonal ingredients in my cocktails whenever I can. So mix up your gin sling, and get ready to enjoy watching Ali MacGraw frolic through summer while poor Richard Benjamin just tries to keep up. Cheers!

Classic Films

A Summer Place

July 14, 2014December 8, 2018 LizLocke1 Comment

True confession: I’m a sucker for any movie with Sandra Dee in an A-line dress. I’m also a sucker for melodramatic movies of the 1950’s, the type that would have been playing at a drive-in movie theater. This week’s Cinema Sips pick, A Summer Place (DVD) fulfills both criteria. I must have caught this movie on AMC back in high school (when they actually showed classic films) and from the moment I laid eyes on Sandra Dee and Troy Donahue as two star-crossed teenage lovers, I was hooked. Throw in cardigan sweaters and preppy boat shoes, and well, we may as well just call this a perfect movie.

A Summer Place is about two teens who find themselves together on an exclusive New England resort called Pine Island for the summer. Troy Donahue plays the son of the innkeeper, and Sandra Dee is the daughter of a family that comes to stay. As it turns out, Sandra Dee’s father (played by Richard Egan) used to be involved with Troy Donahue’s mother (played by Dorothy McGuire) when he was the lifeguard there as a teenager, and even though each married other people, they never forgot each other. As you can guess, romance rekindles between the parents as it blossoms among their children. The writers of this film’s script make the ensuing adultery pretty convenient, since she’s married to an alcoholic and he’s married to a racist. OF COURSE they’d have affairs. Admittedly, it’s a soap opera, complete with wonderfully melodramatic music, kooky supporting characters, and hysterical overacting. But the scenes of ocean waves crashing against craggily rocks, afternoon sailing, and a cocktail hour where everyone dresses up make me swoon. It’s what summer should be.

This film was an easy choice for Cinema Sips because it features some great drunk scene-stealing by actor Arthur Kennedy. He tells it like it is, even when “it” happens to be that his wife is sleeping with her former lover again. He’s an alcoholic for sure, but a dignified alcoholic. None of those bar fights or crying meltdowns that movie alcoholics are traditionally known for. So in his honor, I’m mixing up a great standby WASPy summer drink- a Pine Island Gin & Tonic.

Pine Island Gin & Tonic

1.5 oz Bombay Sapphire Gin

3 oz Fever Tree tonic water

Lime wedge

Sprig of Rosemary for garnish

Build ingredients in a tumbler full of ice. Squeeze a bit of the lime juice into the glass, stir, and garnish with rosemary and lime wedge.

I’m adding a sprig of rosemary to this because it mirrors the pine trees surrounding the inn. And it fancies up a drink that, admittedly, is pretty simple. But in summertime, when it’s hot out, this is the drink that I make more often than anything else. It’s easy, delicious, and really hits the spot. Be sure to use the best ingredients though, because when you’ve got a simple drink, it’s abundantly clear when you’ve skimped on quality. I like to fix one of these and imagine I’m sitting at Richard Egan’s Frank Lloyd Wright-designed home bar, as I listen to the ocean waves crashing and watch Troy Donahue stroll down the beach in his short shorts and cardigan sweater. Très jolie, as the French would say. Très, très jolie. Cheers!

Classic Films

Splendor in the Grass

May 19, 2014July 26, 2020 LizLocke1 Comment

I’m switching gears a bit on my high school movie binge this May to revisit a classic high school film, and by classic I mean pre-John Hughes. Splendor in the Grass (DVD/Download) was released in 1961 and stars Natalie Wood and Warren Beatty (in his first feature film role) as two star-crossed Kansas teenage lovers. Though I’m of course a big fan of classic cinema, this film has always felt timeless to me. It captures teen angst in such a pure way- ie. that feeling of every little problem being a life or death situation, the intensity of emotions, and inability to wait for the future to happen. On the surface it’s a high school movie about “going all the way”, but really it’s about the passion of youth and the remembrance of things past.

Splendor in the Grass tells the tale of Bud Stamper and Deanie Loomis, two teenagers in rural Kansas. He’s a rich boy who wants to shirk the family oil business in favor of becoming a farmer, and she’s the daughter of a humble shopkeeper. When the movie begins, it’s clear that Bud and Deanie are the most popular couple in school, and genuinely in love. However, soon teenage lust rears its ugly head, and Bud can’t reconcile his passionate yearnings with the “good girl” on his arm. There is a betrayal, and Deanie is driven mad with grief. The film is set against the background of the Roaring ‘20s, and it’s fun to see Bud’s flapper sister come to town to shake up the family. Deanie’s clueless mother also deserves special mention, since her cure-all for mental illness seems to be a big plate of mystery meat and gravy. As the Fresh Prince so wisely said, “Parents just don’t understand.” The beautiful Natalie Wood does an amazing job of becoming unhinged, and it’s easy to see why Warren Beatty was a heartthrob in his day- Yowza! Sorry, but he puts pretty much any teen idol of recent years to shame.

My drink this week is inspired by the Wordsworth poem that is recited during the film- “Though nothing can bring back the hour of splendor in the grass, glory in the flower, we will grieve not; rather find strength in what remains behind.” This drink references floral notes and farm life in Kansas, and I’m using a limited edition gin from Hendrick’s, Midsummer Solstice. When watching Splendor in the Grass, I recommend drinking a glass of Mabel’s Merriment.

Mabel’s Merriment

1 1/2 oz Hendrick’s Midsummer Solstice

1 oz St. Germain elderflower liqueur

6 oz Cucumber Tonic

Fresh Key Limes

Build ingredients over ice in a tall Collins glass. Garnish with fresh key lime slices.

I think everyone can relate to the feeling that what is happening in high school is so tragically important at the time, and this film shows the bonds formed during that period are never really forgotten. Perhaps this is why I love high school movies so much, for they are the films I watched over and over again as a teenager, as I was just beginning to shape my identity. In many ways I feel a closer bond with the characters in these films than I do to my actual classmates from that time. Watching this movie again (still on the VHS tape I bought in high school!) certainly makes me feel like I attended a reunion of sorts. It’s no secret I hated high school, but I absolutely loved that time in my life when I was discovering cinema, and watching anything and everything I could get my hands on. I miss those days, when every script and style and actor was new to me, but I will grieve not- rather find strength in the great films that remain behind. Cheers!

Classic Films

Pretty in Pink

May 5, 2014 LizLocke1 Comment

This May on Cinema Sips, I’m excited to highlight a few of my favorite high school movies. I figured, what better time to do so, what with prom season coming up, graduation, etc. As we all know, the reigning king of high school movies is of course John Hughes. It’s difficult to pick my favorite among his 80’s teen classics, but if pressed, I have to choose Pretty in Pink (DVD/Download). It’s the perfect blend of romance, social commentary, humor, and New Wave music, and I never get tired of watching it.

Pretty in Pink is the story of Andie (played by Molly Ringwald), the creative, pretty girl from the wrong side of the tracks, who falls for rich, sweet, and spineless Blane (played by Andrew McCarthy). Duckie (played by Jon Cryer, in a fantastic role that thankfully makes me forget about ‘Two and a Half Men’) is Andie’s best friend, who is also in love with her. Rounding out the cast are the brilliant Harry Dean Stanton as Andie’s kinda pathetic but well-meaning father, and Annie Potts as the hilarious and hip owner of the record store where Andie works. James Spader also has a great role as preppy sleaze Steff (seriously- Blane? Steff? What country club directory did Hughes consult for these names??), and his feathered hair is truly a masterpiece. Of course, anybody that’s seen this movie also knows that it features maybe the ugliest prom dress in the history of prom dresses. What makes it particularly bad is that all the characters say how beautiful and stunning Molly Ringwald looks in it. Are they blind? Drunk? We’ll never know. Yes, it was the 80’s, but still, there is no excuse for someone making this dress happen.

My cocktail tonight is obviously pink, and obviously kinda girly. I’m using gin as the base because Steff and Blane seem like the kind of guys to get loaded on gin & tonics at the country club pool. It’s also a bit on the sweet side, just like Duckie. Generations of women have argued over whether Andie should have chosen Blane or Duckie in the end, so I’m happy to feature a cocktail that celebrates both of them. I stumbled upon a great recipe on The Kitchn blog last week, and with a little tweaking, I’m serving up a Cats Club Cocktail.

2 oz dry Gin

1 oz lemon juice

1 oz raspberry syrup (see note)

1 egg white

Fresh raspberries

Combine the gin, lemon juice, raspberry syrup, and egg white in a cocktail shaker without ice. Shake vigorously for 10-20 seconds. Then add ice, and continue shaking for another 10-20 seconds. Strain into a coupe glass and garnish with raspberries.

Recipe Note: To make raspberry syrup, heat ½ cup sugar, ¼ cup water, and ¼ cup fresh raspberries on the stove until the berries break down and the mixture thickens (about 5 minutes). Strain out the solids and chill before using.

Full disclosure- I never actually went to my prom in high school. Frankly, I’d seen so many proms in movies that I knew the real thing would never measure up. Without a cute guy in a bolo tie and alligator shoes calling me stunning, what’s the point? I’d much rather experience high school vicariously through Molly Ringwald, as I’m sure many girls out there would. So what if most of her classmates appear to be in their early 30’s? That just means they have no problem getting carded at the liquor store. While I have zero desire to relive my high school days, I always look forward to watching Pretty in Pink. And I always look forward to drinking while I do so- beer, scotch, juice box, cocktail, whatever. Cheers!

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