Midge and Lenny (2024)

Midge Maisel and Lenny Bruce are a friendship in Amazon Prime's The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. They are portrayed by Rachel Brosnahan and Luke Kirby, respectively.

Background[]

The first time Midge sees Lenny, was whilst on a first date with Joel at the Gaiety strip club, back when she was in college. Joel, at the time, was a big fan of Lenny’s and wanted to take Midge to see his comedy hero, who was performing at the club.

Several years go by, and after Joel leaves Midge and their children for his secretary late one night, she drunkenly finds herself wandering onto the stage at The Gaslight in just her nightgown and performs a very rough but funny set. However, she ends it all by baring her breasts to the crowd, just as a pair of police officers walk into the room. They quickly arrest her, dragging her through the crowd and out to their police vehicle out front. They push her into the vehicle, where she ends up sitting beside Lenny, who had been arrested earlier himself. Midge is surprised at seeing him, recognizing him instantly. They exchange some very brief, unofficial greetings before they’re both driven to the police station.

Once morning comes around, Midge, having cleaned herself up after Susie pays her bail, goes back to the station to bail Lenny out of jail. It’s here that they officially meet. She asks him if he loves being a comedian and after mentioning many reasons why it’s a bad career to get into, his leaving look to Midge, as he walks out with his wife Honey, who had not long arrived at the station herself to bail him out, causes Midge to recognize that he loves it. She thinks that Lenny has gone but he soon backtracks and walks back into the station, hoping that Midge will help him with paying for his cab fare from Honey forgetting to tell the cab driver to turn the meter off, which Midge does for him.

Lenny tells Midge to put her money on his tab, hinting that he’d pay her back at some point, before offering help in finding a lawyer because she was arrested. This confuses and panics her, so she follows Lenny outside, where he tells her that she’ll need a lawyer, but Midge had it in her head, that because she got bailed out on the night she was arrested, it’s almost like her arrest didn’t happen and there would be no need for a lawyer. He corrects her and they briefly talk about Midge being unsure on what to do surrounding her arrest, so Lenny suggests she get breakfast since it’s morning, before he leaves in a cab with Honey. ("Pilot") ("Ya Shivu v Bolshom Dome Na Kholme")

The next evening, Midge gets arrested a second time. Having been performing down the street, Lenny hears about some cute uptown chick getting arrested doing a set, so he deduces that they were talking about Midge. So, he goes to the station and is the one who bails her out, since she had done so for him previously. He jokes that they’re now even, money-wise since they bailed one another out but Midge reminds him that she paid for cab fare, which causes him to smile. Together, Midge wearing Lenny's overcoat for warmth, they head on over to The City Spoon, where Midge had planned to meet Susie. The three of them sit together for a moment, talking about Midge’s arrest, with Susie shocked that they know each other. Lenny soon leaves them to it but not before he invites Midge to his gig of opening for some friends at The Vanguard the next day.

Midge takes up his offer and goes to The Vanguard to watch Lenny perform and introduce his friend’s combo, Lindsey Trent and the Hot Three. Later, she hangs out with Lenny and the band, including smoking some weed with them, before she impromptu performs a bit, including, briefly, mimicking one of Lenny’s jokes from the set she saw on her date all those years back, with Joel. At the end of the night, he offers her his waiting cab, which takes her back home. As she drives away, he shouts to her that wasn’t he meant to make a pass on her, which causes her to smile. ("Because You Left")

Three months go by and Midge finds herself blackballed because of offending fellow comedian Sophie Lennon and her manager Harry Drake, all under her stage name at the time, Amanda Gleason. Trying to help, Susie goes to see Lenny backstage at The Gaiety where he’s performing and asks if he could perform for free at The Gaslight, to help her client Amanda. Not realizing who Amanda is at first, he laughs at Susie’s suggestion, telling her he doesn’t perform at basket houses anymore and asks why he should help her, so Susie tells Lenny who Amanda really is. As soon as he knows Amanda is actually Midge, he immediately is up for helping out.

Susie rings Midge and tells her to get down to The Gaslight but doesn’t tell her anything more, so when she arrives, she sees a long line of people queuing out the door and the premises full and is very confused on what’s going on. Susie tells Midge that she’s there to perform and it’s only when Midge is guided by Susie to stand behind the counter, that Midge learns what’s fully going on, as Lenny suddenly appears, surprising her and he jokingly calls Midge, Amanda Gleason. Midge asks Lenny what’s going on and he tells her that he’s doing something unheard of in the business and it’s called a very nice thing. He then tells her the plan and that he’ll go up on stage, do a little set before passing the mic to Midge, for her to do her own set. He then walks towards the stage, gesturing for Midge to join him at the side. He soon walks up, where he introduces Midge to the crowd as his friend and someone who’s going through a separation like he is, who he thinks will be very big and jokes that she’s a hell of a lot easier on the eyes than he is. Midge then walks up and does her set, where Lenny to the side of the stage, watches her and laughs along at her jokes. ("Thank You and Good Night")

After performing her set, she swiftly runs off stage and towards Lenny, jumping at him for a hug. High on adrenaline and incredibly pleased with how her set went, mentioning to both Lenny and herself that she was great, he jokes that he created a monster and that she’s Norman Mailer in a co*cktail dress. They playfully banter back and forth before Lenny is told by Jackie that he’s up to get back on stage, with which he dryly jokes towards Jackie that he’s not going to go up after seeing Midge’s set. Midge bats back, asking if he’s afraid to follow a girl and just before he gets on stage, he replies by telling her, “always and everywhere”. Midge watches Lenny perform but it’s cut short, when she learns Joel saw her set. ("Simone")

The next time that they see each other is several months later, when Midge takes Benjamin to see Lenny perform at Upstairs at the Downstairs. Benjamin temporarily leaves Midge at their table, as he’s on call, so seeing Lenny standing at the bar, as a way to get his attention, she dries off an olive from her drink and throws it at him, hitting him firmly. Noticing Midge, he walks on over to the table and sits down beside her. They soon begin their easy banter between one another, as they catch up on what’s been going on with the other since they last spoke. Soon enough, Benjamin is back, so Lenny leaves the fledgling couple to their date but not before telling them that their drinks are on him. He leaves by teasingly suggesting to Benjamin that he buy Midge a soda and have her back home by ten that night. Once Benjamin had his back turned, Lenny mouths to Midge from behind Benjamin that he’s gorgeous, which causes Midge to laugh and smile at Lenny as he finally leaves.

Later on in the date, Benjamin, having seen the flirtatious banter between Midge and Lenny, subtly asks if she had ever slept with him, with which Midge tells him that she had not. ("Midnight at the Concord")

After being dragged off stage because of her material, which included talking about pregnancy, Midge walks out of a venue to try to get a drink. As she’s running through the rain, she stops at the Dublin House Tap Room bar, where she spots Lenny buying some cigarettes from the machine, so she walks inside to join him, where he's now sitting at the bar. They catch up once more, both of them feeling down about their respective problems: Lenny has a warrant out for his arrest, whilst also having money troubles and is unable to gig in even less places and Midge is sulking because of getting kicked off stage mid-set for saying the word, ‘pregnant’.

Lenny tells Midge that he likes her and would do anything in his power to make her feel better but since he’s got his own issues, all of his sympathy is reserved for him. Midge offers to give Lenny a loan but he thanks her and declines the offer, she then tells him as a sign of support, that everything’s going to be okay. Towards the end of their conversion, Lenny tells Midge that he’s been given a spot on The Steve Allen Show, which she’s pleased for him to have. Seeing how he’s feeling, Midge tells Lenny a story about a time Ethan went to a play-date but was so nervous, that she promised to stand outside the whole time, even though it began to rain, before then offering to stand outside his play-date aka. the show. On hearing this kind gesture, Lenny tells Midge that she’s lovely before telling her that he’s feeling a little emasculated but doesn’t actually mind it. He then leaves but not before telling Midge when the gig is and jokingly ends it as he walks away, by telling her to bring an umbrella.

Several days later, Midge goes to support an anxious Lenny behind the scenes at The Steve Allen Show, She’s not allowed backstage at first, as she is told by an organizer called Perry, who’s following Midge, that she’s not allowed because her name isn't on the sheet of people allowed to be there. However, she charges through, telling him that Lenny knows she’s coming and on seeing her arrive, he tries to joke and tell Perry that Midge is his mother. Once Perry accepts Midge was invited and leaves them, Midge checks on Lenny’s outfit that everything is okay and neat. Soon enough, he heads onstage but not before they share a little smile between them. It’s from seeing Lenny’s performance, whilst standing to the side, that causes her to evaluate certain aspects of her life. ("All Alone")

As a thank you for being there when he needed it, Lenny sends Midge flowers to her apartment, which Abe and Rose see before she did. This causes issues, as they think the reason Midge broke things off with Benjamin was because of Lenny. This leads to Abe and Midge arguing and Midge telling her father that Lenny is someone who’s getting arrested in the name of free speech, something that Abe is passionate about himself, and is talking about things that no one has the balls to talk about. She stands up for Lenny against her parents’ comments. This pushes Abe to watch Lenny perform, which in turn gets him arrested and still thinking that the two of them are dating. ("Strike up the Band")

Having begun opening for Shy Baldwin on his tour around the country, Midge with the tour ends up in Miami, where they stay at The Fontainebleau Hotel. Whilst there, one evening as she’s having a drink in the hotel bar, Lenny suddenly appears which surprises her by his impromptu appearance. They greet each other warmly, joking a little about how every Jew must live in Florida, since that’s where he’s living before Lenny helps Midge get rid of an annoying man who won’t stop chatting her up. He tells her that he heard Shy Baldwin was in town and knowing she was opening for him, just stopped by to say hello. Midge then offers for Lenny to sit with her, which he accepts. He soon asks her how long she’s in Florida, which she answers, before telling her that he's going to be out of town for a few days but offers that they should have a drink once he is back, to which Midge tells him that she’d love that. He ends their conversation by telling her that he’ll give her a ring.

A few days go past and Lenny keeps his word. After performing her set, she watches to the side, as Shy sings his music, whilst there, a staff member comes up to her and hands her a written note from Lenny, which causes her to smile. She walks away and back to the bar, where a waiting Lenny sits, nursing a drink. She sits down beside him. Very smoothly, Lenny asks what she’s doing that night, which causes Midge to joke that she’s waiting for him to critique her act which he had secretly seen that night. He then invites her to what he called a work thing, a recording of an episode of Miami After Dark.

Lenny is soon guided to the couch on the set, whilst Midge is guided to a seat behind the scenes, which she’s very happy with, as there are some iced donuts to eat nearby that she finds. They raise the glass and donut to one another, with Lenny telling Midge that it’ll spoil her dinner but she just raises another donut, so he lets go of the minor issue with a shoo of his hand. He’s then joined by two attractive blonde women, so he turns to Midge and points at them both with a naughty look in his eyes. Midge, keeping up with him, holds out a third donut in his direction, which causes him to laugh. The episode taping then begins and Lenny is making jokes with fellow guests like Zsa Zsa Gabor and the host, Brye Adler, whilst Midge is watching and laughing as she sees it all on a monitor backstage.

Soon enough, Lenny decides to rope Midge into appearing on camera, by introducing her as someone he’s with that night who’s special and that he loves dearly, almost as much as he loves himself. He heads on off towards backstage, confusing everyone including Midge in what he’s doing. Lenny then drags Midge back with him on the couch where he introduces her as his wife or possibly his sister before they very easily perform an impromptu, off-the-cuff bit on air. It’s only ended by Midge pretending she wanted to have some onion dip before Betty Bacall because she’s a double-dipper and then an awkward but humorous bit from the both of them in what her name is. She watches the rest of the show behind the scenes once more, before hearing Lenny tell Brye Adler that the show’s great and shouting in agreement that is caught on air, that it sure as hell is great.

Afterwards, we see them together at a Cuban Club, sitting opposite each other and staring at one another. The air is palpable with their chemistry and unspoken words, as they exchange some sentences between them, their individual gazes never leaving the other. It’s only broken, though the chemistry is still surging, when Lenny offers his hand for Midge to take and leads her to the dance-floor. She accepts and they walk hand in hand together, where they end up dancing. Midge eventually places her head on Lenny’s chest, so he moves her hand that’s in his and places it gently at the nape of his neck. They sway to their own rhythm to the music.

The night is ended by the two of them walking back to Lenny’s hotel room, Midge wearing Lenny’s jacket draped over her shoulders, talking and joking the whole way there. It looks like Midge may stay the night, as Lenny mentions the evening has gone swimmingly so far and also, Midge hasn’t anywhere to sleep since her parents arrived unexpectedly in Miami. Whilst they share heated looks between one another, Midge asks him what he thought of her act earlier that night and Lenny finally tells her by saying that it was sensational. It’s only when they both look into Lenny’s open hotel room door, that Midge tells him that she’s going to leave and get a cab. Lenny offers to get her one but declines. As she’s walking away, she throws his jacket back to him and he begins to put it on. He looks troubled and unsure on whether to ask a question that’s flying around his head but decides to ask it, which causes him to shout over to her that maybe someday, before he’s dead, they’d sleep together, with which Midge shouts back that it’s a date. She leaves him there, standing alone outside his room, looking sad and wistful towards the sky. ("It's Comedy or Cabbage")

After hearing about the Shy Baldwin debacle, Lenny goes and surprises Midge backstage at The Wolford, a strip-club, where she’s working as the MC. She tells him that he has to leave because she’s about to go onstage and he jokes that because she told him she’s working there, that she’s a stripper after being dumped by the Shy Baldwin tour and that there are nicer places to work at as a stripper. She explains that she’s the comic there before then telling him to go away. Lenny asks her if Midge wanting him to leave is because he’d make her nervous and she admits without thinking that that’s the case, since she’s honing and experimenting with her material. She soon realizes what she’s admitted to, as this causes him to smile naughtily, which she tells him to stop doing, since it’s a bad smile.

As a way to help with her nerves, Lenny tells Midge a personal story of his about how in high school, he was debating a topic in his speech class and whilst doing so, his teacher began to throw various things at him, like a crumpled piece of paper, an eraser and a half-eaten apple. He asks his teacher why they were doing this, and they tell him that they were training him to block out distractions and that it’s his job to stay focused despite whatever’s coming at him and that he did good at the task at hand. Lenny tells Midge that it taught him a valuable lesson, with which he informs her that the coming gig of hers, he’s going to be her own version of this story of his. She tells him that this isn’t like his time at school, but he tells her that everything is like it. It’s then that Midge is told that she needs to start the show, so Lenny leaves, with Midge asking him to not sit anywhere where she can see him but he quickly tells her that he definitely will be there for her to see him.

As Midge performs her material, Lenny playfully heckles her by throwing things, such as money and straws at her onstage, whilst he sits at a front table with some of his friends, who he ropes into heckling her too. She gets through it fine and with ease as she makes people laugh, with Lenny turning to his friends at one point, saying with a big smile ‘I told you’, hinting that he’s talked about what he thinks of Midge with his friends previously. Once Midge finishes her set, she picks up a cigarette box that Lenny had thrown at her earlier and throws it back, which he catches in his hand. They both exchange smiles and a look between one another, before Midge walks off stage, leaving Lenny sitting in the audience. ("Everything Is Bellmore")

Whilst in a taxi one night after performing a set at The Wolford, Midge is travelling along Eighth Avenue, when she looks out the window and spots a collapsed Lenny on the ground. She immediately asks the driver to stop before she runs out to help him. When he sees her, he compliments her, so she decides to bring him back to her apartment to sleep his inebriation off. ("How To Chew Quietly And Influence People")

The next day, when he wakes up, he’s disoriented and unsure of where he is, having woken up in Ethan’s bedroom. He wanders out into the hallway, where he ends up being warmly greeted by Abe and Rose, who are having breakfast in the kitchen. They offer him some breakfast but confusion is written on his face, as he’s unsure still of where he is, not recognizing either of them from their brief previous meeting earlier that year.

Soon enough, Midge appears, having been toilet-training Esther and still confused, Lenny’s obviously relieved to recognize a familiar face. She offers him some coffee, which he does take but places down almost immediately, as he wants to talk to Midge on their own. He drags her to the hallway before getting interrupted by a running Ethan, so he moves them to the dining room. Lenny asks Midge how he got to her apartment, so Midge fills him in, telling him that she asked him where he was staying and he replied that she had ‘nice hair’, which was the cleaner version of whatever he had said, which she didn’t want to say for the sake of their friendship. That’s when she brought him back to hers. Lenny then wonders where his things are, so Midge goes and gets them. Unfortunately, when he’s handed his things, he quickly runs out the apartment, telling Midge that next time she sees him like that, to not help him and to keep on walking. This obviously annoys and confuses Midge, so she goes after him, following him all the way to outside the apartment building. Lenny loses a shoe outside, so Midge shouts after him, causing him to stop. Things just go from bad to worse, as they end up arguing, the beginning of a fallout on the horizon. It’s at this moment, where Lenny admits to Midge that he has a daughter, which surprises her immensely. Lenny angers Midge so much, he even tries to hand her some money as a thank you but it’s too late, so she walks back inside, leaving Lenny outside to catch a cab. ("Maisel vs. Lennon: The Cut Contest")

Still have fallen out, later one night, Midge is watching TV and sees Lenny on The Gordon Ford Show, there to promote his gig at Carnegie Hall that’s just been announced. Midge watches, a particular look washing over her face, a multitude of thoughts crossing her mind. ("Ethan… Ester… Chaim")

Having just performed an emotional set at The Wolford, talking about Moishe’s sudden heart attack and turning it towards questioning if women are more important than God, Midge walks backstage where, waiting for her, is Lenny, alongside some of his friends. At first, she’s mad at how he behaved the last time they saw one another but Lenny quickly and heartfully apologizes for his actions, with which she does accept. He also gives Midge the chance to open for singer, Tony Bennett, a gig that he organized for her. Lenny tells her of his chance to perform at Carnegie Hall, which she’s very happy for him about. However, as they’re talking, the club gets raided by police, so as to not get arrested, they flee hand in hand out of the club, leaving his friends who were in the midst of the raid.

As there’s a big raging snow storm outside and neither are wanting to get stuck in it, Midge and Lenny head to his hotel for shelter, where they warm themselves up in his room. She jokes that the whole scenario was planned by Lenny to get her back to his, with their conversation full of their usual easy banter and flirting but sparked brightly by their unspoken want for one another. Lenny even uses Midge’s own material, to tell her that she’s very important to him, by telling her that ‘she’s more important than God’. This surprises Midge and she tells him that he pays attention, with which he replies back with a gentle ‘To you? Always’. The conversation then turns to Lenny asking to see Midge’s show corset, which was mentioned earlier between them as to why she was sitting precariously on the chair arm opposite Lenny. Midge gently exclaims his name at his suggestion but eventually his seduction skills begin to work on her. The air palpable with their wants, and with Midge making sure that Lenny will always see her as more than just a girl, an equal, they both succumb to their mutual attraction for one another and they end up having sex.

As they’re laying down in bed afterwards, Midge tries to get out of bed but Lenny, his arm wrapped around Midge, pulls her back to him but she promises that she’ll be back, so he lets go and she gets up and wraps herself in Lenny’s fallen shirt. She then heads to the bathroom to freshen up. There, she spots a small inconspicuous bag by the sink and looks inside, where she sees various drug paraphernalia. Lenny soon walks in, having been woken up by the phone and he plays down his drug habit to Midge. He invites her to go with him to bail out the stragglers of the raid, which was why the phone rang before going to get some ‘bad Chinese’. ("How Do You Get to Carnegie Hall?")

Whilst at the Chinese, after they have eaten, we first see Lenny trying to teach Midge how to write an indecipherable autograph signature, something he mentioned you need to know how to do if you’re famous. They soon begin to chat and flirt and joke with one another, Midge thanking Lenny for a great night, which leads to her asking him why he’s so sure she’s going to be really famous. He tells her that he’s seen her act and has watched her escape a police raid but she downplays it as ‘running and talking’. Hearing this, Lenny tells her she has many skills but Midge jokingly says that she thinks her show corset turned his head but in a moment of honesty, he tells her that his head turned a long time ago.

Picking up a fortune cookie from a plate on their table, Midge mentions that she hopes Lenny’s right, since she hasn’t got a plan B. Seeing Midge about to open the cookie, Lenny takes it from her hands and opens it, before seemingly reading out what is written inside:

“A spotlight waits for you center stage. All you have to do is step up and claim it. Once you do, everyone will know who you are. They will know your wit, your intellect, your smile. Your great, expressive eyes. They will be helpless to your charms. They will fall at your feet and worship at the altar of you and your show corset.”

Part way through, Midge realizes Lenny made it up, so once he’s finished, she asks him if she can see the fortune but he doesn’t immediately hand it over, as he jokes that if people can see she can read, they’ll never let her be famous.

When Midge sees what’s written instead, she reads it out:

“Your lucky numbers are 46, 24, 11, six and five.”

Lenny, with a smile, tells Midge that it’s all in how you read it, what the cookie says. He then ends the conversation by telling her that, mark his words, in the not so distant future,she will be paying for the chinese food, hinting that she will make it big. Midge can’t help but just look at Lenny and nod. ("Four Minutes")

Two days pass and Midge watches proudly from amongst the audience, Lenny performing in Carnegie Hall. She laughs along with the crowd, smiling at certain times at knowing that he was basing some of his material solely on her. Afterwards, she finds him celebrating with his friends and as soon as he sees her, he takes her hand before wrapping an arm around her, as they talk with his friends briefly. However, their chatting is soon ended, as Lenny takes her hand once more and guides her away and to the now empty stage he had just performed on. It’s here that Lenny emotionally lets Midge know that he wants better for her, he doesn’t want her to follow in his footsteps of being arrested and not being able to perform in a variety of places. He also tells her that he knows about her turning down the Tony Bennett gig he got her because she didn’t want to open for anyone. It’s knowing all this, that causes Lenny to tear up and begin to walk away but before he leaves, he turns to Midge and tells her that if she blows her chance as a successful comedian, like he can see her being, that it’ll break his heart. ("How Do You Get to Carnegie Hall?")

Having taken Alfie to JFK airport, Midge finds herself wondering down a quiet corridor, where she is surprised to find herself walking towards Lenny, who is battling with the sudden opening of his suitcase. Lenny soon spots her as he let's out a soft chuckle, also surprised to see her. They greet one another, before Midge offers to help Lenny with collecting back up, some court documents that had fallen out of his suitcase and spread out on the ground.

Once done, Midge asks Lenny if he's going on a trip, which he tells her that he's going to California, which surprises her. Lenny then asks if she's okay and Midge replies that she is. He then questions if she's going anywhere, which causes them to joke a little between them about magicians.

Lenny then tells Midge that he's going to be renting a house, which causes Midge to get emotional, as she mentions that he now has a lease, something they joked about back in Miami. He then soon tells her, opening up compared to the last time he mentioned his daughter, that she's going to be staying with him in LA. Midge, hinting at more, tells Lenny that his daughter is a lucky girl, which causes them to gaze at one another for a brief moment, before he tells her he should go.

Before he leaves, he apologizes to Midge that he didn't call to tell her he was leaving but Midge quickly replies that they don't do that. Lenny tells Midge to take care before walking away but Midge stops him before he's gone. She tells him that she's not going to blow it, meaning her career, hinting at Lenny's emotional statement at Carnegie Hall. Lenny walks back to Midge and tells her that he's going to hold her to that, before one last lingering look between them and he turns and walks away, leaving Midge to leave the corridor alone once more. ("Go Forward")

Midge is sitting behind the scenes at The Gordon Ford Show in the greenroom, working on practicing her material, ready for the show, when she opens her joke book and out flutters the fortune from the cookie from Midge and Lenny’s meal six months prior. So with a smile, she tucks it into her dress, close to her heart.

Years go by, it’s 1965 and Midge and Susie fly out to San Francisco to help Lenny out of his legal troubles. However, Midge doesn’t want to see him at his lowest point, thinking he wouldn’t want that, so she sends Susie to talk to him behind the scenes. She does so, telling Lenny that she has connections to help him but it doesn’t work and he tells her to use them on someone worthy. As he’s about to leave the room, he turns back and asks if Midge is with her but she lies and says she isn’t, so knowing this, he shrugs and heads on out of the room.

Outside, away from the opportunity to bump into Lenny, Midge is waiting to hear what Susie’s got to say about him, as she smokes a cigarette anxiously. Susie tells Midge honestly, that he’s a mess, before offering the chance for Midge to see Lenny again but she declines. It’s here that they walk away and back to their lives, with a plan to help Lenny again when Susie’s back in LA a month later. ("Four Minutes")

Timeline[]

• August 1953
  • Midge sees Lenny perform for the first time, whilst on a date with Joel.

• September 23, 1958
  • In the early hours of the morning, whilst together in the back of a police car, they meet unofficially for the first time, having both been arrested at different places, for different crimes.
  • Midge bails out Lenny and pays for his cab fare. They officially meet and talk.

• September 24, 1958
  • Midge gets arrested for the second time and is bailed out by Lenny. They head over to The City Spoon, where they meet Susie.
  • Lenny invites Midge to his performance the day later at The Vanguard.

• September 25, 1958
  • Midge goes to the Vanguard to watch Lenny perform and introduce his friend’s combo, Lindsey Trent and the Hot Three, where she hangs out with them backstage.
  • She impromptu performs a bit, including, briefly mimicking one of his performances.

• December 1958
  • Lenny helps Midge after she gets blackballed by Sophie Lennon, by performing and introducing Midge down at The Gaslight, thanks to Susie asking for his help. After performing her set, she swiftly runs off stage and towards Lenny, jumping at him for a hug.

• Summer 1959
  • Midge takes Benjamin to see Lenny at Upstairs at the Downstairs and when Benjamin has to leave for a moment as he’s on call, Midge and Lenny catch up and joke with one another, which Benjamin sees the tail end and leads him to wondering later, if they ever hooked up.

• Autumn 1959
  • They bump into each other at the Dublin House Tap Room bar, where they catch up once on what’s been going on in each other’s lives. Lenny invites Midge whilst at the bar, to support him behind the scenes at The Steve Allen Show a few days later.
  • Midge keeps her word and stays backstage as support for Lenny in the show, which he is thankful for.

• April/May 1960
  • They bump into each other whilst they're both in Florida, where Lenny invites Midge to a recording of an episode of Miami After Dark.
  • At the recording, they perform an impromptu, off-the-cuff bit on air which goes smoothly.
  • After the show, they spend the night dancing at a Cuban Club before walking back to his hotel room, though Midge doesn’t stay.

• June/July 1960
  • They bump into each other once more, backstage at The Wolford, the strip club Midge is working at, as the MC. He stays to watch but playfully heckles her, to teach her about working through distractions whilst on stage.

• September 1960
  • Midge spots him collapsed on the street, inebriated, so she takes him back to her apartment to sleep it off.
  • Lenny tells Midge the next morning, after he wakes up, that the next time she sees him collapsed, she should just keep walking. This makes her annoyed, so she follows him outside where they argue. She learns that he has a daughter.

• October 1960
  • Midge sees Lenny being interviewed on The Gordon Ford Show, talking about his latest gig at Carnegie Hall, that he’ll be performing at.
  • Having just performed an emotional set at The Wolford, Midge walks backstage where, waiting for her, is Lenny. Midge is still mad from their argument before, so he quickly and heartfully apologizes for his actions, which she accepts.
  • He tells Midge that he organized the chance for her to open for singer, Tony Bennett, whilst they are backstage at The Wolford.
  • The club gets raided, so they flee hand in hand out of the club and since there’s a storm outside, they seek shelter at Lenny’s hotel room, where they both succumb to their mutual sexual attraction for one another and they end up having sex.
  • Midge finds Lenny’s drug paraphernalia in his hotel bathroom.
  • They bail out Lenny’s friends after they get caught in the raid, before getting some ‘bad Chinese’.
  • Lenny gives Midge a pep-talk at the Chinese, informing her that he thinks she’ll make it big in the not so distant future.
  • Lenny hints by telling Midge, that he’s had feelings for her for a while, telling her that his head turned her way a long time ago.
  • Midge watches proudly from amongst the audience, Lenny performing in Carnegie Hall.
  • Midge goes and finds Lenny after the show, where he eventually guides her to the empty stage and emotionally lets her know that he doesn’t want her to follow in his footsteps of being arrested etc. and also having a word about her turning down the Tony Bennett gig. Lenny tears up afterwards and tells Midge that, if she blows her chance as a successful comedian, like he can see her being, that it’ll break his heart.

• November 1960
  • Midge and Lenny bump into each other at JFK airport, where they briefly talk about things, including Lenny moving to California to live with his daughter, before Lenny leaves to get his plane.

• April 1961
  • The fortune from the cookie, falls out of Midge’s joke book whilst she’s in the greenroom of the Gordon Ford show, so with a smile, she tucks it into her dress, close to her heart.

• 1965
  • Midge and Susie fly over to San Francisco and go to help Lenny with his legal issues, with Susie talking to him behind the scenes of his gig. Midge, unbeknown to Lenny, is waiting out of sight, not wanting to see him, hoping Susie can help. He tells her he's not worthy of her help, which is recited back to Midge a moment later.

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