The Boys in the Back Room (song)
song
"The Boys in the Back Room" is a song written by Frank Loesser, set to music by Frederick Hollaender and performed by Marlene Dietrich in the film Destry Rides Again (1939). It is often referred to as "See What the Boys in the Back Room Will Have". Her winking performance was a parody of her vampish roles in earlier films such as The Blue Angel (1930) and Blonde Venus (1932). The song became a standard part of her repertoire, second only to "Lili Marlene". She also sang a German version called "Gib doch den Männern am Stammtisch ihr Gift".
Film and TV appearances
In addition to Destry Rides Again, the song has been featured in several other movies and TV shows.
- Featured in the Audie Murphy Western Gunsmoke (1953), sung in the town saloon by Cora Dufrayne, played by Mary Castle.
- In Rainer Werner Fassbinder's film World on a Wire (1973), Ingrid Caven performs the song.
- It is often sung by Lieutenant Gruber in 'Allo 'Allo!.
- Parodied on a Christmas episode of the comedy show The Two Ronnies.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “The Boys in the Back Room (song)” as song. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the arts & letters register because the source frames it as song. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Attribution, date and provenance are strongest when supported by the original work, a catalogue record and documented transmission. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 12, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q7445542. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1939, 1930, 1932 and 1953.
Titles can refer to several editions, objects or performances, making precise identification essential before interpretation. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Separate the work, its editions or performances, and its later reception. Catalogue records, publication histories and object files often preserve different parts of that story.
- Identifying works and editions
- Tracing reception history
- Finding collection records
The original object or edition, catalogue raisonné, performance record, rights file and holding institution.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “The Boys in the Back Room (song)”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow The Boys in the Back Room (song) primary sources, The Boys in the Back Room (song) archive and Boys research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “The Boys in the Back Room (song)”?
- Where is authorship, date or provenance documented?
- Which edition, object, performance or recording is being described?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “The Boys in the Back Room (song)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.