Liza & Fosse No. 8 - I Gotcha

Lauryn Johnson
20 hours ago
2 min read

Photo by Berry Berenson. Title in Bob Fosse's handwriting. Collage by Lauryn Johnson.

Liza wrote: “At moments like this you keep your focus on the show and shut everything else out. Unfortunately, we had one headache that threatened to unravel the whole shebang. Halston had designed stunning costumes, and one stood out. I'd be singing the Joe Tex pop song 'I Gotcha,' and while you might love the performance, you couldn't take your eyes off my bright red, sequined, oh-so-very-short minidress. Hot stuff, baby. Send the kids to bed early!

“Before we could go on the air, we had to get costumes and musical numbers approved by our sponsor, Singer Sewing Machines, and NBC's Standards and Practices executives. Fosse knew we'd have a big fight over the little red dress and came up with an ingenious solution. He let Singer reps visit the set just not when anything was being performed. When they arrived, he quickly called for a break. We were safe, yet only up to a point.

“The NBC people and Singer had the right to see the final dress rehearsal a few days later. When they saw me bumping and grinding in the red dress, they blew up. Lose the dress, they said. Now. It was X-rated, totally unacceptable for TV. Fosse came to the rescue, taking the NBC execs and sponsors to a meeting behind closed doors. To this day I don't know what he said. When the meeting ended, I asked one of them if it was okay to wear the dress. I'll never forget her answer: ‘Yes, it's okay,’ she said, in a semi-daze. ‘It's fashion.’ We were finally cleared for takeoff.”

—Kids, Wait Till You Hear This! by Liza Minnelli, 2026