GEORGE CHAKIRIS: There were Hispanic people in the cast.
Jay Norman [Pepe] was Hispanic.
My friend Yvonne Wilder [Consuelo] was.
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But there were different considerations and always have been over the years.
One of my favorite movies of all time is a movie calledZorba the Greek.
Zorba is played by Mexican actor Anthony Quinn.
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He’s perfect casting.
Who could play Zorba better than Anthony Quinn?
There has to be leeway.
You have to be creative in your in your work.
All I could see was George, this beautiful young man with this glorious, noble-looking head.
I was just amazed that I got the part when you think of it.
CHAKIRIS:It makes sense in today’s world [to look for diverse actors].
There are so many more young people in the business to pick from.
MORENO:I remember my makeup being so dark.
It was so dark that it would sometimes streak on us because our complexions were much fairer.
Some Puerto Ricans are as white as milk and some have copper skin.
We are all colors because we were a melting pot for so many countries.
I mean, the Dutch were there, the French were there, the Spaniards were there.
I will never forget something that the makeup man said to me one time.
I came in and he was trying to layer this stuff on me.
I said, “I don’t understand this.
Puerto Ricans are so many colors.
Why can’t I be my color?
I am Puerto Rican.”
And he actually said to me, “What, are you racist?”
It also shows he didn’t do his homework.
Nowadays makeup people really, really do their homework.
I was so stunned by what he said.
But that’s what Jerome Robbins wanted.
He wanted a real contrast.
He was really pale and has very fair skin.
I remember one shot where he looked like he had been dipped into a bucket of mud.
CHAKIRIS:I do think it’s kind of a Pandora’s box of endless discussion.
We can learn something from it.
If you banned all of those things for political reasons, we wouldn’t have much history.
CHAKIRIS:I don’t remember anyone ever saying a [win] could happen.
It never occurred to me I could get it.
The nominees were Montgomery Clift, George C. Scott, Jackie Gleason, and Peter Falk.
MORENO:As far as I could see, we were dark horses.
CHAKIRIS: Rita and I attended together.
The car picked me up first.
MORENO: We both were.
We were like brother and sister, laughing constantly.
I think I smelled of pee all the time.
I was always laughing so hard with him, I would stain myself.
CHAKIRIS:I think Rita and I probably gave the two shortest acceptance speeches ever.
[The speech went: “I don’t think I’ll try and talk too much.
I just want to say thank you very, very much."]
Nobody thought to thank the world and God and everything.
MORENO: I couldn’t think of anything to say.
[Actually, she thought of 11 words: “I can’t believe it!
I leave you with that."]
I was so sure Judy Garland was going to get it forJudgment at Nuremberg.
CHAKIRISAs a dancer, I was always looking for work.
AfterWest Side Story it sounds presumptuous to say I never had to look for work.
It always came to me.West Side Storyhad such an extraordinary impact.
MORENOJust think: If the remake gets nominated for an Oscar, I’ll be 90.
