“Well, I'm not gonna let this one get away. He's so cute.”
Why it's great
Determination and infatuation land in two short beats, and both are funny.
Register
Informal
Use it yourself
I'm not gonna let this flat get away.
00:00 / 04:12
00:00 / 04:12
Sugar Falls for Joe's Millionaire Act, Explained
Some Like It Hot · 1959
Chapter 13 of 19 · 4'12"
Sugar is thrilled: she has met a rich, bespectacled bachelor with a yacht, and "He's so cute." Daphne knows the man is really Joe in his millionaire disguise and tells him so. Then Osgood calls to invite Daphne onto his yacht, and Joe turns the invitation into a plan for himself and Sugar.
Key moments
Start here, then watch the full scene- 0:13–0:50
Sugar Gushes About Shell Oil Junior
37s - 1:28–2:06
Jerry Confronts Joe About the Act
37s - 2:39–3:22
❝ Monologue · 13 lines Osgood's phone invitation
He sweetens the invitation detail by detail until the politeness itself is the joke.
42s - 3:24–4:11
Joe Turns Osgood's Yacht Into His Own Plan
47s
Sugar Falls for Joe's Millionaire Act, explained
What happens
In the hotel room, Sugar gushes to Daphne about Shell Oil Junior, a young millionaire with glasses and a yacht: "He's so cute." Daphne knows this is Joe in disguise and calls it a low trick. When Osgood Fielding phones to invite Daphne to supper on his yacht, Joe sees his chance and plans to take Sugar out on the boat instead.
What's really going on
The scene runs on a joke about who is deceiving whom. Sugar thinks she has found a gentleman millionaire, and she is genuinely excited — "He's so cute" — but the audience knows the man is Joe, the same person she is telling the story to. Jerry, as Daphne, is outraged at the sheer cynicism of it, calling it a millionaire act and the meanest kind of trick. The comedy then doubles back when Osgood, who is pursuing Daphne, calls to invite her onto his yacht. Joe seizes the opening: he will take the yacht and Sugar, and leave Daphne ashore to keep Osgood busy. It is a scheme that solves Joe's romance and dumps the cost on his friend, which is why the closing "Not tonight, Josephine" lands.
Key lines & what they mean
- “Well, I'm not gonna let this one get away. He's so cute.”
- Sugar has decided on Shell Oil Junior: after a lifetime of losing men, she is determined not to lose this one, and her reason is simply that she likes him.
- “Now, Joe, you're gonna get hurt because when I'm aroused, I'm a tiger.”
- Jerry's mock threat to Joe; the joke is that Jerry, the reluctant partner, is now the fierce one defending Sugar's feelings.
- “Tell her I'd like her to have a little supper with me on my yacht, after the show tonight.”
- Osgood's invitation to Daphne, delivered over the phone; it sets up the yacht that Joe will end up using for his own date with Sugar.
- “Shell Oil Junior. He's got millions, he's got glasses, he's got a yacht.”
- Sugar's checklist for the perfect man, all three boxes ticked at once; the joke is that the ideal man is Joe wearing a fake accent.
- “No. I'm going to be on the boat with Sugar.”
- Joe's blunt correction to Daphne's assumption: he is not sending Daphne on the date, he is using the yacht to take Sugar himself.
Theme
- Deception — Sugar falls for a millionaire who is really Joe in disguise, and the scene lets the audience enjoy the double deception she cannot see.
- Romance — Sugar's excitement is genuine — she thinks she has finally found the man she was looking for — which makes Joe's scheme both funny and a little cruel.
What this chapter teaches
Teaching points
Review right after watchingMy level1/7
A1–C2 is the CEFR scale. Cards above the level you pick fade, and playback will not auto-pause on them.
Language points
Click a card to jump to its moment in the videoGolden lines
A great line in its own right — why and how to use it“Now, Joe, you're gonna get hurt because when I'm aroused, I'm a tiger.”
Why it's great
A flimsy threat dressed as a tiger pounce, all bluff and no bite.
Register
Informal
Use it yourself
Don't wake me before nine, or I'm a tiger.
“Tell her I'd like her to have a little supper with me on my yacht, after the show tonight.”
Why it's great
The invitation hides inside layers of politeness, which makes his intent clearer, not softer.
Register
Formal
Use it yourself
Tell her I'd like her to have lunch with me on Friday.
“Shell Oil Junior. He's got millions, he's got glasses, he's got a yacht.”
Why it's great
Three parallel clauses tick off a dream man like a shopping list.
Register
Informal
Use it yourself
It's got speed, it's got storage, it's got a great screen.
“No. I'm going to be on the boat with Sugar.”
Why it's great
The reply swaps in the real date, turning jealousy into a tidy twist.
Register
Informal
Use it yourself
No. I'm going to the concert with Mia.
Monologue
One character carrying the scene — shadow the whole passage❝ Osgood's phone invitation
Tell her I'd like her to have a little supper with me on my yacht, after the show tonight. Got it. Supper, yacht, after the show. I'll tell her. - Your yacht? - The New Caledonia. That's the name of it. The Old Caledonia went down during a wild party off Cape Hatteras. But tell her not to worry. This will be a quiet little midnight snack. Just the two of us. Just the two of you? What about the crew? Oh, that's all been taken care of. I'm giving them shore leave. We'll have a little cold pheasant and champagne. And I've checked with the Coast Guard. There's gonna be a full moon tonight. Oh, and tell her I've got a new batch of Rudy Vallee records.
He sweetens the invitation detail by detail until the politeness itself is the joke.
Up next · 14leave someone coldThe scene: Joe Invents a Mental BlockTakeaways
What you walk away with- Sugar's excitement sets up the evening's mix-up.
- Daphne seizes a date meant for someone else.
- A famous refusal line hides inside a joke.
People also search
Questions, then the linesWho is Shell Oil Junior?
He is really Joe in disguise. Joe invents the millionaire playboy — glasses, yacht, fake accent — to charm Sugar, and she has no idea the man she is describing to him is him.
Why is Jerry so angry with Joe?
Because the disguise has crossed a line. Jerry calls Joe's plan the meanest kind of trick, played on a girl who trusts him, and for a moment he threatens to fight him over it.
What does Joe plan to do with Osgood's yacht?
He takes Osgood up on the invitation but sends Sugar in Daphne's place, so he can spend the evening with Sugar on the boat while Daphne keeps Osgood ashore.
What does "fat chance" mean?
It means there is no chance at all — the opposite of what the words suggest. It is used here to reject the idea of Daphne going along with the plan.