« We know God made trees, and the birds and the bees, and seas for the fishes to swim in. We are also aware that he had quite a flair for creating exceptional women. When Eve said to Adam, ‘Stop calling me Madam,’ the world became far more exciting. Which turns to confusion the modern delusion that sex is a question of lighting. … This glamor it seems is a substance of dreams for the most imperceptive perceiver. The serpent of Nile could achieve with a smile far quicker results than Geneva. Now we all might enjoy seeing Helen of Troy as a gay caberet entertainer, but I doubt that she could be one quarter as good as our legendary, lovely Marlene. »
— Noël Coward, introducing Marlene Dietrich at London’s Café de Paris in 1954.