‘Sextette’: The 1978 erotic comedy that brought ‘Sgt Pepper’ full circle thanks to Ringo
Assuming each of The Beatles had a little black phone book in their pockets, there’s not a famous name they couldn’t call come the mid-1960s.
The world was witnessing a 50-year cultural storm, and The Fab Four were at the very heart of it. Even having retreated from the world, becoming an exclusively studio-only outfit, they were undoubtedly the biggest band on the entire globe and in 1967, they were on the cusp of eternal greatness.
Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band would be the record that flipped them from pop sensations to immortal rock gods, unifying generations of music fans while spearheading the art form into an entirely bold new era. It would be the most talked-about record (perhaps until Abbey Road), by the most talked-about band, and so these once humble Liverpudlians were perfectly placed to leverage their little black book of contacts and get some of the most famous faces to be involved.
Aptly, the cover portrayed the band in colourful military regalia, fearlessly leading a tribe of culture’s most recognisable faces into new territory. Standing proudly behind them was Fred Astaire, Edgar Allan Poe, Bob Dylan, Marilyn Monroe, Laurel and Hardy, Marlon Brando and a catalogue of other celebrities, artists and philosophers.
Every living person involved on the cover happily gave their permission, knowing that their hypothetical place in the Lonely Hearts Club Band was nothing remotely close to a PR disaster. Well, every living person except Mae West, who reportedly scoffed at the concept and asked, “What would I be doing in a Lonely Hearts Club?”
The band sent a personal letter to West, expressing their fandom for her work, which got the deal over the line. But, there was very much an air of reciprocity in her acceptance, subtly hinting that in order for her to give something to the boys, she would need something back. So in stepped the happy-go-lucky Ringo Starr.
Eleven years after Sgt Pepper, Ringo returned the long-awaited favour by starring in West’s erotic comedy Sextette. He played the role of Laslo Karolny, an esoteric Hungarian film director who makes up one of the amorous males pursuing West’s character in the film.
“I only agreed to the thing in Sextette because I thought it would be interesting not just to meet Mae West, but to work with her,” he once said. Yeah right Ringo, we all know the subtext of the agreement, you scratch my back, and I’ll scratch yours. The denial at the real reason he was there has a faint whiff of frustration that his fellow band members weren’t there to take their medicine with him.
As he not-so-subtly continued, “I can’t claim it as a career highlight, but I can say Mae West was not a disappointment,” he added. Nevertheless, while he might have admired the raunchy Ms Mae, the entire experience was anxiety-inducing for the drummer. He said, “On the very first day of shooting, I got uptight. I felt completely left out of things.”
He no doubt was out of his depth. Not only was Ringo last in the pecking order when it came to The Beatles’ creative briefs, but he was the first one the chopping block when they needed to cough up the fines for being so brazen with their records.
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