Mae West: A Midnight Belle

MAE WEST rang in her banner New York year, 1928, with a one-night stand, hosting a nightclub, a la Texas Guinan, at Club Deauville — — then located at Park Avenue and East 59th Street [the night of December 31, 1927 — January 1, 1928].
• • During the Prohibition Era, Mae West had bought a townhouse for herself — — at 266 West End Avenue — — shortly before she moved to Hollywood. She lived there with her sister Beverly, whose Russian husband had divorced her over a scandal related to the out-of-town premiere [Bridgeport, Connecticut] of Mae's gay play "The Drag." There was an arrest at the Arcade Hotel and Beverly West along with director Edward Elsner were charged with "disorderly conduct" [i.e., being drunk]. The police action made headlines. Uh-oh!
• • A happier topic would be Mae's old haunts — — the neighborhood known as the Upper West Side [stretching roughly from West 61st to West 76th Street]. This is the single-most-star-studded area in Manhattan, according to the "Star Sleuth" Larry "Wolfe" Horwitz. Within this neighborhood is an area that Larry Horwitz has labeled a Star Walk: a ten-block strip along Central Park West that contains "the greatest concentration of movie stars and other celebrities anywhere in the world," according to him.
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West
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Mae West: December 1919

On 28 December 1919, MAE WEST was very busy — — double-booked, in fact.
• • The 26-year-old "firefly of vaudeville" was appearing that night at the Lyric Theatre [on 42nd Street, west of Broadway]. Sharing the Lyric bill with her were these entertainers: Eugene and Willie, the Howard Brothers; Carl McCullough; the 4 Haley Sisters; and "8 other favorite acts."
• • On the same night, Mae West performed at the 44th Street Theatre [near Broadway]. On the program was the top-billed act — — Sophie Tucker and Her Kings of Syncopation — — along with Ames & Winthrop, Mae West, Riggs & Witchie, and "8 other favorite acts."
• • Sophie Tucker • •
• • Sophie Tucker [13 January 1884 — 9 February 1966] was one of the most popular entertainers in America during the first third of the 20th century. Almost ten years older than Mae and not as controversial when she launched her career, Sophie Tucker had an ethnic appeal which upped her forward momentum and she was, in fact, a much bigger draw in vaudeville than the Brooklyn bombshell.
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West: Dixie in 1934

It was on 28 December 1934 that the good folks in The Yellowhammer State were anticipating another visit from MAE WEST.
• • The announcement in the local paper The Star read: The glamorous Mae West returns to the Ritz Theater screen Monday night [Dec. 31, 1934] as the star of the featured attraction being shown at the New Year's Eva gala which begins at 11:30 p.m. Hats, horns, serpentine, and balloons will add to the enjoyment of the party. Serpentine, eh?
• • The Star is published in Anniston, Alabama — — the heart of Dixie.
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West: Seminole

A strolling impersonator — — made up to resemble MAE WEST — — will delight New Year's Eve celebrants in Coconut Creek, Florida.
• • A party-planner at the Seminole Casino had the idea of offering a Ziegfeld Follies-style show along with the usual sit-down supper and balloon-drop on 31 December 2009. The New Century Dance Company will perform onstage show. A live band will play music from the 1930s to today.
• • Topping off the retro entertainment in the butterfly capital of the world will be strolling impersonators of Mae West, WC Fields, and others.
• • WHERE: Seminole Casino Coconut Creek — — Entertainment Pavilion, 5550 NW 40th St., Coconut Creek, FL, 33073; T 954-977-6700.
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West: Lou's Big Night

MAE WEST and George Raft knew the address well — — well before Louis Bromfield was drinking there one afternoon with his newsman buddy Lucius Beebe, a Herald-Times columnist. Club Napoleon, a speakeasy on the grand scale, was located at 33 West 56th Street, then a fancy block of Beaux Arts mansions. Years before it became an illegal ginmill, 33 West 56th had been the childhood home of Woolworth heiress Barbara Hutton. The gracious townhouse next door had been designed by Bruce Price for a prominent physician.
• • Both Mae West and her character Maudie Triplett were used to standing in the shouting place and breathing in a strong dose of masculinity — — booze, beer, cigars, sweat, and spit — — as evening comes down in the shape of a boxing arena or a speakeasy, a zone a man wants to own. A mob-controlled place only the tough girls are seen in.
• • Though he made his name writing about rural life, Louis Bromfield was intrigued by the downward mobility of West 56th Street, once the preserve of bluebloods but now in the hands of gangsters who ran the speakeasy Mona Lisa [36 West 56th] or Larry Fay, who opened his parlor floors to drinkers.
• • December 27th — — a good beginning at the end of the year
• • Born Lewis Brumfield in Ohio in the month of December — — on 27 December 1896 — — the 6' 2" inch journalist won the Pulitzer Prize for his novel Early Autumn [1926], and then turned to writing fulltime. His short story "Single Night" became the backbone of the Paramount film "Night After Night" [released on 30 October 1932]. Two months after the film was distributed to moviehouses across the country, bootlegger Larry Fay met a spectacularly crimson-soaked death inside 33 West 56th Street on 1 January 1933.
• • Author and farmer Louis Bromfield had a more serene death, at age 60, on 18 March 1956.
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West: Clothes Fall

MAE WEST — — surely deserving of a sonnet and the dignity of iambic pentameter — — turned up in a line of free verse penned by Ann Carter.
• • The reigning poetess of Carroll County, Arkansas has a slim new anthology out: Sweetness: Collected Poems 1974-2009. Here's a brief excerpt with a moonstruck metaphor:
• • • • Since I swore off romance, the full moon rise
• • • • Is tonight's big event, a celestial floor show
• • • • Where a Mae West moon shoulders out
• • • • In iridescent orange and then lets those clothes
• • • • Fall for the moon white skin she's in.
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
• • In England, today is "Boxing Day" — — no relation to the boxers Mae dated. However, we think pro boxers deserve their own commemorative date.
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West: Potawatomi

Imagine having MAE WEST pose with you on New Year's Eve?
• • Guests at the Potawatomi Bingo Casino in downtown Milwaukee will be able to stop by one of two photo booths — — in Wild Earth and the Grand Lobby — — between 7 p.m. and 1 a.m. to get a complimentary picture on 31 December 2009.
• • "At each booth, there will be dashing men and glamorous women to get in the picture with you," a spokesman said.
• • Throughout the evening, guests will have a chance to mix and mingle with celebrity impersonators including Mae West, Marilyn Monroe, Charlie Chaplin, Groucho Marx and W.C. Fields.
• • Guests will receive a top hat and horn to ring in 2010.
• • WHERE: Potawatomi Bingo Casino: 1721 West Canal Street, Milwaukee, WI 53233-2662; T 414-645-6888. Tell them the MAE WEST Blog tipped you off.
• • Have a very Merry Christmas!
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West
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Mae West: The Big D

MAE WEST and diamonds were almost synonymous even before the creation of her most memorable character: Diamond Lil. ''I hadn't started out to collect diamonds, '' she said, ''but somehow they piled up on me.'' The onstage Diamond Lil was a singer in a Bowery saloon of the 1890's — — a bad girl with a good heart, who murdered her girlfriend, wrecked a Salvation Army hall, and sang ''Frankie and Johnny,'' wrote The New York Times [on 23 November 1980].
• • Jewelry and Christmas go together as nicely as red goes with green on holiday decorations. If you are hoping that Santa scatters some glitter around your tree, filling your New Year with sparkle plenty, then here are some precious gem quotes to meditate on.
• • "Diamonds is my career!" — — from "Diamond Lil" by Mae West
• • "What shall I wear? ... God! But he's swell. What about my diamonds? Yes, I'll wear them, too. What will he say about the diamonds? But, no, he won't ask. He'll just think and that's what I want him to do — — think!" — — from "The Constant Sinner" by Mae West
• • I never worry about diets. The only carrots that interest me are the number of carats in a diamond. — — Mae West
• • No gold-digging for me; I take diamonds! We may be off the gold standard someday. — — Mae West
• • "She has more ice than a case of champagne. You can signal ships when you're hauling that kind of jewelry!" — — from "Courting Mae West"
• • Jewelry takes people’s minds off your wrinkles. — — Sonja Henie
• • Perhaps time’s definition of coal is the diamond. — — Kahlil Gibran
• • This diamond has so many carats it’s almost a turnip. — — Richard Burton
• • I really think that American gentlemen are the best after all, because kissing your hand may make you feel very very good but a diamond and a sapphire bracelet lasts forever. — — Anita Loo
• • "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend" — — a song written by Jule Styne and Leo Robin
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West: Wolverhampton

The artist who helped create the cover for the Beatles’ Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band — — which featured MAE WEST — — is having an exhibition of additional works inspired by The Empress of Sex.
• • Once based in London (while married to the painter Peter Blake), and now a resident of Sundance, Utah, Jann Haworth has a show currently at Wolverhampton Art Gallery — — her first in the UK since 1972. On display are her creations from back in the 1960s as well as more recent work.
• • According to British-based Terry Grimley, her father’s work in Hollywood must have been a direct influence on Haworth, as was the 1960s taste for old-fashioned glamour, often characterised as kitsch. These threads (literally) come together in pieces like Mae West Dressing Table (1965) and the triple portrait relief of Mae West, Shirley Temple and W C Fields (1967). ...
• • Grimley writes: Actually there is not always a great deal that immediately distinguishes the early work from the latest. Jann Haworth’s figures and objects are stitched together from a range of materials including canvas, kapok, and vinyl, and the introduction to the exhibition makes much of the feminine character of her materials and techniques. Her Cowboy from 1963-64 — — a life-size figure in white, leaning against the wall with his hat pulled down over his eyes — — is about as realistic and life-like as her figures get. When the sculptor Eduardo Paolozzi saw it he suggested she cast it in bronze, but she preferred to stick to “a female language to which the male students didn’t have access.” Haworth has described the domestic media adopted by some female artists as having a “B-movie” relationship to the traditional media of fine art. ...
• • The full title of Grimley's art review is below to help you find out more about the exhibit in England at Wolverhampton Art Gallery until 10 April 2010.
— — Excerpt: — —
• • Article: "Birmingham Art: Jann Hawarth's unique view of the world at Wolverhampton Art Gallery"
• • BY: Terry Grimley | Life & Leisure columnist
• • Published by: The Birmingham Post — — www.birminghampost.net
• • Published on: 24 December 2009
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West: NSW

MAE WEST entertained down under this week.
• • According to Fergus Shiel in the Brisbane Times: The connecting of comedians across generations according to a theme — tonight [i.e., on Monday, 21 December 2009] it's funny folk from Mae West to Richard Pryor and Peter Griffin, the Family Guy, smashing social boundaries — feels forced to me. Still, how could you not enjoy a reprise of their best moments and best lines, including this gem from Mae West: "I used to be Snow White but I drifted."
• • "Make 'Em Laugh" — — ABC1, 9.35pm [Australia].
• • Michael Kantor is the director, producer, and co-writer of "Make 'Em Laugh," which was broadcast awhile back in the United States.
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West: December Dollars

It was December 1935, the height of the Great Depression, and newspapers began posting the annual earnings of Americans — — such as MAE WEST — — who had earned over $15,000. Only about 18,000 Americans had a salary that topped $15,000 during the mid-1930s. Publishing mogul William Randolph Hearst received half-a-million that year. Mae was right behind her nemesis with salary checks totaling $339,166.65 during the same period.
• • Obviously, Hollywood's talented and unstoppable doll was bringing in top dollars at a time when breadlines and soup kitchens were a common sight across this nation. However, "Hundreds of corporation officials were revealed as making as much salary in one year as most men dream of accumulating in a lifetime of work," noted The New York Times, quoting figures furnished by the U.S. Treasury Department. "Salaries of $100,000 and more were not rare."
• • Financially speaking, Mae West outpaced her movieland peers. Dozens of salaries are memorialized in this lengthy year-end report. Here are a few.
• • Bing Crosby, actor — — $104,449 — — in addition to $88,499 he earned as a crooner from Crosby Productions, Inc.
• • W.C. Fields, actor — — $155,083.
• • Marlene Dietrich, actress — — $145,000.
• • Charlie Chaplin, actor — — $143,000.
• • William LeBaron, producer — — $114,711.
• • Adolph Zukor, Paramount Pictures Distributing Co. — — $52,193.
• • Walt Disney, creator of Mickey Mouse — — $51,500.
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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• • Photo: • • Mae West • • 1933 • •
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Mae West: King of the Bowery

MAE WEST may not have assigned a birthdate to her character Gus Jordan — — but she certainly knew the life story of the cunning ward heeler she based him on: Big Tim Sullivan [1862 — 1913].
• • In "Diamond Lil" the bejeweled chanteuse and brash entertainer Lil (Mae West) works in the 1890s Bowery barroom of her boss and benefactor Gus Jordan who has bestowed many diamonds on her.
• • Unbeknownst to Lil, the slick and sleazy saloon keeper trafficks in white slavery (prostitution) and runs a counterfeiting ring (to help finance Lou's expensive rock collection).
• • Better known for cultivating voters by doling out jobs on the city payroll and dispensing free Christmas suppers than filling his dance-card with mistresses, Timothy D. Sullivan, known as "Big Tim," was one of New York City's better connected political animals from 1886 until 1913.
• • His fast-track life has been explored in a book, “King of the Bowery: Big Tim Sullivan, Tammany Hall, and New York City From the Gilded Age to the Progressive Era,” by Richard F. Welch, a historian and professor from Long Island.
• • “Sullivan was a master of mass politics in an age when personal contact was everything,” writes Welch. “The loyalty he engendered in the multi-ethnic population below 14th Street was based on his bighearted solicitude for his constituents.” Welch also highlights Sullivan’s links to the criminal underworld of prostitution and gambling.
• • To find out how much of Big Tim's shady side made it into "Diamond Lil," breeze through "King of the Bowery" published by Fairleigh Dickinson University Press.
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West: Diamond Thrill

See the diamonds fingered by Diamond Lil herself — — and other fine jewelry that once adorned MAE WEST — — during an extraordinary all-day event planned and led by McHenry County College. Their energetic Trips and Tours office has just announced their "Nature of Diamonds Tour," which will take place from 7:45AM to 5:00PM on 11 February 2010 at the Field Museum in Chicago.
• • According to MCC's press release, reprinted by The Northwest Herald: The exhibit features more than 500 objects drawn from private collections and major museums from around the world. Lenders include Cartier, Tiffany, Van Cleef and Arpels, and De Beers Canada.
• • Highlights include pieces owned by Mae West, Catherine the Great of Russia, Joan Crawford, Elton John and many more renowned individuals. In addition, the 128.45-carat Tiffany Diamond, one of the world’s largest and elaborate yellow diamonds, will be on display.
• • Trip participants will visit a local diamond expert in Chicago’s jewelry district for an exclusive program on diamonds. They will view the contemporary jewelry designs and eat lunch at Cellars Market, located at the Chicago Board of Trade.
• • The cost of the tour will include both lunch and motorcoach transportation.
• • Phone: McHenry County College [Crystal Lake, Illinois] — — MCC Registration office at 815-455-8588. For further details: call Claudia Terrones at 815-455-8782.
— — Source: — —
• • Article: "MCC offers Nature of Diamonds tour"
• • BY: News Desk
• • Published by: The Northwest Herald — — www.nwherald.com
• • Published on: Friday, 18 December 2009
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West: Oral

Almost no one it seems can accurately recall the line that MAE WEST first wrote in 1926 for one of her drag queens in her controversial play "The Drag." And even a veteran publicist quails before the word chickadee. Please stumble over the careless errors in order to savor this teeny tidbit about the Brooklyn bombshell's booking in Miami Beach decades ago.
• • Stuart of Newman PR writes: The passing this week of renowned evangelist Oral Rogers brought to mind the extreme variety of clients represented by the agency in its earlier years, before we settled into our current niche of leisure travel, destination, and maritime clientele.
• • Mae West — — Famous for her 1939 movie “My Little Chicadee” [sic], one-liner “Come on up and see me sometime [sic],” Mae West gained fame as an uninhibited “red hot momma” in her many film roles. The agency provided her South Florida publicity in a 1960s supper club booking in Miami Beach.
• • An even more unlikely client was evangelist Oral Roberts’ revival in the late 1950s ....
— — Excerpt: — —
• • Blog Post: "FROM RED HOT MOMMA TO EVANGELICAL PREACHER"
• • BY: Stuart | Newman PR
• • Published by: Newman Public Relations — — www.newmanpr.com
• • Published on: 17 December 2009
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West: Accuracy, Anyone?

An article in a Missouri newspaper, reminiscing about innovations and important events during 1909, flashed upon MAE WEST and Guido Deiro — — but the fact-checkers were away on maternity leave maybe.
• • As many Mae mavens know, the Brooklyn bombshell and the Italian accordionist Guido Deiro made beautiful music together for several years in variety. Her marriage to the Mediterranean keyboard king was one of the few secrets Mae kept from her mother Matilda.
• • On the 14th of July 1920, Mae West filed for a divorce from Guido Deiro, charging him with abandonment. Having moved back to her parents' house in Queens County, Mae filed her petition at the courthouse in Jamaica, Queens.
• • When their divorce became final in November 1920, Guido quickly wed his third (and much younger) wife, with whom he would have a son.
• • Kathy Fairchild, columnist for The Marshall Democrat-News, knows none of this; she does not even bother to check the spelling of Guido's surname. Despite her deficiencies, she courageously forges ahead, scribbling this sloppiness:
• • On June 1, 1909 Guido Diero [sic] introduced the musical instrument known today as the accordion. Diero, it's been said, was once married to Mae West, who, in 1933's "She Done Him Wrong," asked a very young Cary Grant, playing the part of a Salvation Army officer, "I always did like a man in uniform. Why don't you come up sometime and see me?" West split with Diero in 1916, but probably wasn't married to him; she was already married to someone else. ...
• • Well, now you know where NOT to go if you're a stickler for accuracy, eh?
— — Excerpt: — —
• • Article: "MDN at 130: Movers and shakers of 20th century arrive on the scene in 1909"
• • BY: Kathy Fairchild
• • Published by: The Marshall Democrat-News [Marshall, Missouri; T. (660) 886-2233] — — www.marshallnews.com
• • Published on: 16 December 2009
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West: A Terrific Explosion

An article in a British newspaper dispensed fashion advice according to the personalities and figure-types of four well-known Hollywood actresses — — such as MAE WEST.
• • Following tips from author Caroline Cox, a British reporter wrote this section (below).
• • • • The Mae West • • • •
• • Big, beautiful and glamorous, ubiquitous siren Mae West was rarely seen out of a corset to show off her form-fitting bejewelled gowns.
• • "Go tight, why not?" Caroline Cox says. "There are some fabulous deluxe labels for the big and beautiful. Look for Ischiko, Oska, and Shirin Guild for clothes designed for curves." [Caroline Cox is the author of How to be Adored: A Girl's Guide to Hollywood Glamour.]
• • Do: Work with the impact of your physical presence. One Hollywood critic described Mae's entrance in a movie as a 'terrific explosion.' ...
— — Excerpt: — —
• • Article: "Strut like a star on the red carpet with our guide to glamour."
• • BY: Chester Chronicle
• • Published by: The Flintshire Chronicle — — www.bhamweekly.com
• • Published on: 14 December 2009
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West: The Olde Bell

An article in a British newspaper [published on 14 December 2009] described a charming lodge, whose famous guest list includes MAE WEST.
• • According to British reporter Chris Sullivan, The Olde Bell is the oldest inn in the country (built in 1163).
• • Situated about an hour away from London in the Berkshire hamlet of Hurley, The Olde Bell has attracted a cross-section of individuals for centuries. "It wowed the great and the good of America including Mae West, Clark Gable, Bob Hope, and Liz Taylor," notes Chris Sullivan. "Winston Churchill also stopped here during the war to make an urgent phone call from the now empty phone booth."
• • The Olde Bell is located on High Street, Hurley, Berkshire, SL6 5LX. The London Times posted lovely photos. To see where Mae slept, go to www.timesonline.co.uk.
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West: Goin' to Noun

Perhaps no other radio segment of The Chase and Sanborn Hour has sparked more commentary than the December 12th, 1937 broadcast starring MAE WEST.
• • Mae West rarely appeared on radio. When she did, the sole purpose was to promote one of her films. West had guest-starred on The Shell Chateau with Al Jolson in 1936 and also Louella Parsons’ blackmailing program Hollywood Hotel on 26 April 1935, with featured guest Paul Cavanagh in an adaptation of her screen gem: Goin’ to Town.
• • Additionally, on 21 February 1934, the famed Mae West Jewel Robbery was dramatized on Calling All Cars over CBS Radio [without her personal participation in this traumatic drama].
• • When the producers of The Chase and Sanborn Hour offered the sex goddess the opportunity to appear on the weekly show — — then currently the highest-rated program of the year — — she accepted the invitation to help promote her latest film, Every Day's a Holiday.
• • Mae West often wrote her own scripts and even produced her own movies, so she offered NBC the option of a sneak peek at some of the scenes from her movie.
• • Interesting, but rarely commented on, is the fact that Mae wore a spectacular black gown framed by expensive furs and jewelry when she showed up at NBC's Hollywood headquarters on Sunday 12 December 1937 — — an eyeful that could only be appreciated by the live studio audience.
• • As if to be extra-cautious, Mae donned eyeglasses and also wore a fancy lornette on a chain around her neck, not unlike the extra-careful gentleman who wears suspenders and a belt. Then she stepped up to the microphone and threw caution to the fates.
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West: Forbidden Fruit

It was 12 December 1937 and MAE WEST was featured on the popular radio program "The Chase & Sanborn Hour," and introduced by emcee Don Ameche.
• • Here's a section of the controversial Adam and Eve sketch. Mae West played Eve.
• • Snake: That's the forbidden tree.
• • Eve (Mae West): Oh, don't be technical. Answer me this — — my palpitatin' python — — would you like to have this whole Paradise to yourself?
• • Snake: Certainly.
• • Eve: OK, then pick me a handful of fruit — — Adam and I'll eat it and the Garden of Eden is all yours. What do ya say?
• • Snake: Sssounds all right . . . but it's forbidden fruit.
• • Eve: Listen, what are you — — my friend in the grass or a snake in the grass?
• • Snake: But, forbidden fruit.
• • Eve: Are you a snake or are you a mouse?
• • Snake: I'll — — I'll do it [hissing laugh].
• • Eve: Now you're talking. Here — — right in between those pickets.
• • Snake: I'm, I'm stuck.
• • Eve: Oh — — shake your hips. There, there now, you're through.
• • Snake: I shouldn't be doing this.
• • Eve: Yeah, but you're doing all right now. Get me a big one. I feel like doin' a big apple.
• • Snake: Here you are, Missus Eve.
• • Eve: Mm — — oh, I see — — huh — — nice goin', swivel hips.
• • Snake: Wait a minute. It won't work. Adam'll never eat that forbidden apple.
• • Eve: Oh, yes, he will — — when I'm through with it.
• • Snake: Nonsense. He won't.
• • Eve: He will if I feed it to him like women are gonna feed men for the rest of time.
• • Snake: What's that?
• • Eve: Applesauce!
• • The skit was written by Arch Obler and reinvigorated by Mae West.
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West: Remembering Gene

Brooklyn native Gene Barry [birthname: Eugene Klass], who was featured on Broadway with MAE WEST in 1944, died on Wednesday 9 December 2009 in Woodland Hills, California at the age of 90. Before he moved to an assisted-living facility there, he had been a longtime resident of Beverly Hills.
• • The handsome graduate of New Utrecht High School was born on 14 June 1919.
• • Gene Barry began his acting career in stock.
• • He liked to reminisce about his early show business days when he appeared in a Mae West play on Broadway, Catherine Was Great. He recalled the famous curtain speech Mae West gave: “I’m glad you like my Catherine. I like her, too. She ruled 30 million people and had 3,000 lovers. I do the best I can in two hours.”
• • It was the impresario Mike Todd (husband of Elizabeth Taylor) who hired him to play Lt. Bunin opposite Mae West's Empress Catherine. Mr. Barry met his wife, Betty, who acted under the name Julie Carson, during rehearsals.
• • Written by Mae West, the play premiered at the Shubert Theatre on 2 August 1944 and ran until 30 September 1944. On 2 October 1944, the show transferred to Mae's lucky spot,: the Royale Theatre, where it remained until after the Christmas holidays [closed 13 January 1945].
• • The versatile entertainer made his nightclub debut in the Latin Quarter in 1962, the same venue where "The Mae West Revue" had two long engagements during the mid-1950s.
• • After honing his craft onstage before a live audience, Gene Barry headed to Hollywood and worked in films and on TV. In 1984, he earned a Tony nomination. In 1999, the debonair song-and-dance man expanded his appeal when he mixed musical comedy and show-business memories in a show at the Oak Room at the Algonquin Hotel.
• • Gene Barry [1919 — 2009] will always retain a cherished spot in our hearts. Hail and farewell to a distinguished Brooklynite!
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West: Heart of Dixie

Preservationists, theatre historians, and big-hearted culture mavens in the heart of Dixie are bravely trying to rescue a formerly superb (but now neglected) vaudeville house where MAE WEST once electrified the audience.
• • According to Jesse Chambers, a fundraising effort is afoot this weekend. It's a cause worthy of your time and contributions, so please read on.
• • From Birmingham, reporter Jesse Chambers writes: All the greats played the Lyric — — including Mae West, Bob Hope, Will Rogers, Buster Keaton, George Burns, Billie Burke, and the Marx Brothers. ...
• • The Lyric Theatre, the magnificent old vaudeville palace at Third Avenue and 18th Street North downtown, was built by theatrical impresario Jake Wells in 1913 when Birmingham was a raucous boomtown with a thriving entertainment district. Wells gave the Lyric 1,200 great seats, pin-drop acoustics, and elegant decor, and it quickly became the premier venue in Birmingham. ...
• • However, the good times for the Lyric, and for vaudeville, ended with the stock market crash of 1929. Jake Wells lost his theatres, including the Lyric, to the mortgage company. The theatre was sold to the Waters family of Birmingham in the mid-1930s and became a second-run movie house. It closed in 1958 and, since then, has been all but forgotten, in urgent need of renovation and rediscovery. ...
• • However, Birmingham Landmarks has so far been unable to achieve a critical mass of support for the renovation. One problem is that few people in Birmingham are old enough to remember the Lyric or have any nostalgia for it. “It’s easy to raise money for the Alabama, but people who had positive Lyric memories — — who saw Mae West and Will Rogers — — they’re all dead,” Liles says. “In my generation it was B-movies, C-movies. It’s been Birmingham’s best-kept secret.”
• • Open House on Sunday 13 December 2009 • •
• • This weekend, the people of Birmingham will have a rare opportunity to get in on the secret of the Lyric and, perhaps, develop their own sense of enthusiasm about the venue’s exciting possibilities. The 2009 Holiday Open House at the Alabama Theatre, the Lyric Theatre, and the Hill Arts Center is scheduled for Sunday, 13 December 2009, beginning at 2:00 in the afternoon. Phone: (205) 252-2262.
• • • • Tell them the MAE WEST BLOG told you to come up and see 'em.
— — Excerpt: — —
• • Article: "Open house takes you inside Alabama and Lyric theatres"
• • BY: Jesse Chambers
• • Published by: The Birmingham Weekly — — www.bhamweekly.com
• • Published on: 9 December 2009
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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