John Barrymore is probably known more for being Drew Barrymore’s grandfather today than anything else. Which is unfortunate because he was considered the greatest actor of the early twentieth century in theater and on the silver screen. His performance as Hamlet on Broadway and in London is considered the best ever. He was the lead in Don Juan in 1926, the first film to use sync sound. He was also the lead in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde in 1920 and Sherlock Holmes in 1922.
He didn’t love acting in movies and preferred the stage once saying,
“On a movie lot, you’re nothing but a bloody stooge, a victim of some inept director who doesn’t know his ass from a Klieg.”
Klieg’s are stage lights by the way.
Acting abilities aside, ‘The Great Profile’ was also a great drinker. John Barrymore was like the MacGyver of drunks; someway, somehow the dude was getting sloshed. When his second wife broke every bottle of booze in the house he drank all of her perfume (I don’t know if he got buzzed, he must have had a ridiculous tolerance). In 1935 he was on a boat with his daughter and once out at sea, to his horror he discovered the ship was dry. He then siphoned and drank a pint of the boat’s engine coolant, probably doing a number on his already destroyed liver.
Anyway, here’s a great summer drink that he enjoyed the Pimm’s Cup. It’s hot as hell outside and this is a refreshing antidote to the heat. It also tastes a hell of a lot better than engine coolant.
Ingredients:
- 2 oz. Pimm’s Number 1
- 3 oz. lemonade
- 1 lemon lime soda (Sprite or 7up OR English style Lemonade which is fizzy and then just omit the 3 oz lemonade)
- 2 cucumber slices
- Mint sprig
- Various Fruits (orange, strawberries, etc)
Directions:
Pour the Pimms and lemonade in a chilled highball glass filled with ice.
Top off with the soda.
Stir and garnish with fruit.
Notes:
This is a dangerous drink because you can knock them back all day. It’s a staple drink at Wimbledon and all the other British summer events like Henley and the Glyndebourne Festival Opera. I personally didn’t love it with the mint and I don’t put a ton of fruit in mine, this ain’t sangria. Just a cucumber and slice of lemon or orange or lime, whatever citrus you’ve got lying around will do.
