Virginia Woolf

I only know Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf as Elizabeth Burton and Richard Taylor, a bonnie couple to be sure, but nothing at all like George and Martha. Kathleen Turner slips into Martha like a pair of well-worn shoes. She drinks and smokes and struts and swears like that was her normal life. Who knows? I did think her outfits were a little schlampig, though.

I missed only the Bette Davis imitation. Martha steps into the living room and says “What a dump!” Elizabeth gave her finest Bette Davis imitation in reading this line, but Kathleen knows she can’t do one. From the internet (don’t we love the internet, those of us who can’t remember a thing):

Bette Davis
"What a dump!" ("What's it from, George?") The film Chicago (1946), of course, unfortunately long out of print.

In case you were wondering.

Bill Irwin plays George, and he makes a very convincing college professor.

[Schlampig. German for sloppily dressed. It doesn't precisely translate.]