'' Some Like It Hot '' is a 1959 American black and white romantic comedy film set in 1929 , directed and produced by Billy Wilder , starring Marilyn Monroe , Tony Curtis , and Jack Lemmon . The supporting cast includes George Raft , Pat O'Brien , Joe E. Brown , Joan Shawlee , and Nehemiah Persoff . The screenplay by Billy Wilder and I. A. L. Diamond is based on a screenplay by Robert Thoeren and Michael Logan from the French film '' Fanfare of Love '' . The film is about two musicians who dress in drag in order to escape from mafia gangsters whom they witnessed commit a crime inspired by the Saint Valentine 's Day Massacre
Saint Valentine 's Day Massacre
Saint Valentine's Day Massacre
Some Like It Hot