I met a hustler at a dinner party. He had been invited because I was looking for an adviser to help me with the street scenes. So we put him on the film.

The book and TV series The Glittering Prizes written by Frederic Raphael who won the Best Screenwriting Oscar for his work on Schlesinger's film Darling feature a character believed to be based on Schlesinger. John was so aware of his sexuality that he managed to detect a corresponding awareness in the unlikeliest of places. Rosalinda!! and British television productions such as BBC Sunday Night Theatre The Adventures of Robin Hood and The Vise.

John Richard Schlesinger CBE (16 February 1926 – 25 July 2003) was an English film and stage director and actor.