During the 1930s, reporters on the staff of fan magazines pursued MAE WEST. Hollywood-obsessed readers loved any headline with the word "real." To fill this need, Mae often got her own series. Here is one of those excerpts.
• • "The Real Mae West" • •
• • As a member of the stock company, when there were no child parts in the plays, Mae West was called upon to take part in what are known in old-fashioned stage plays as "olios," or vaudeville acts in between the scenes of the plays. She sang popular songs and gave her imitations, being what was known on the billboards as a "coon shouter." It was at this stage of the game, she avers, that she learned to roll her eyes, a propensity, however, that had to be curbed when she became, for the sake of drama, "Little Eva" or "Little Red Riding Hood." . . .
• • Source: Article from The New Movie Magazine; published in the issue dated for June 1934.
• • Note: Olio Acts were short between-the-acts variety artist bits that would punctuate a full-length show. In the early days of vaudeville, specialty material — — i.e., a novelty song or an eccentric dance — — would be performed directly in front of an oilcloth curtain while the stage was being set for the next part of the show. Often the curtain bore the messages of advertisers.
• • On Sunday, 30 June 1935 • •
• • Frank Wallace was quite a talker when a news man was present. He told the New York American that Jim Timony began living with Mae West and one day he pulled over in a "fine, big automobile" with Mae inside, happily wrapped up in a fur coat. "He said I ought to realize my marriage to Mae was a fizzle and that she could not afford to be married because there was a future waiting for her in show business."
• • The newspaper ran a long interview with the washed-up vaudevillian in their issue dated for Sunday, 30 June 1935.
• • On Wednesday, 30 June 1937 • •
• • The Straits Times in Singapore was up to date with Mae West, in their own fashion. On Wednesday, 30 June 1937, this was the headline on page 12: "Mae West Comes East to Singapore."
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • A 'Mae West' was an airman's yellow life-jacket, so named because of its obvious pneumatic properties.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "Keep outta my room! I've got to have some place that's all my own — — where I can go and shut the door and be by m'self!"
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • Texas Monthly mentioned Mae West.
• • Classic Film Festival (Zilker Park, Hillside Theatre) on June 26: an evening of W. C. Fields and Mae West. At 8:45. Free.
• • Source: Item on page 26 in Texas Monthly; published in June 1983
• • • What's Ahead • • •
• • • JULY: As we start our 11th year with the Mae West Blog, we are preparing to offer our Mae-velous readers some rare content, to wit: (1) an exclusive interview with a handsome gentleman who knew Mae very well and whose remarks might startle you, and (2) an insightful remembrance by a nurse who tended Mae in the hospital and who has fascinating (often poignant) things to say about the star. Stay tuned.
• • • AUGUST: Celebrations of Mae's birthday will be posted. Got an event? A tribute to the Brooklyn bombshell? A revival of one of her plays? Let us know.
• • The Mae West Blog celebrates its 10th anniversary • •
• • Thank
you for reading, sending questions, and posting comments during this
past decade. The other day we entertained 3,497 visitors. And we reached a
milestone recently when we completed 3,200 blog posts. Wow!
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started ten years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 3211th blog post.
Unlike many blogs, which draw
upon
reprinted
content
from
a
newspaper
or
a
magazine
and/
or
summaries,
links,
or
photos,
the
mainstay
of
this
blog
is
its
fresh
material
focused
on
the
life
and
career
of
Mae
West,
herself
an
American
original.
•
•
Come
up
and
see
Mae
every
day
online:
http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
________
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Mae West
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • in 1932 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest
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MAE WEST made several appearances in the daily diary of Carl Van Vechten, who attended all of her stage plays and often had good things to say. Van Vechten wed the Russian actress Fania Marinoff in 1914; he refers to her by her surname in this note for June 29th.
• • This excerpt is from Carl Van Vechten's journal entry for Tuesday, 29 June 1926.
• • Carl Van Vechten wrote: Dinner in with [Fania] Marinoff and then to see Mae West in "Sex" at 63rd Street Theatre. After we came home, we made 8 quarts of raspberry brandy. In bed about 1 . . .
• • Source: entry in "The Splendid Drunken Twenties: Selections from the Daybooks, 1922 — 1930" written by Carl Van Vechten.
• • Note: An actress from the time she was a child in Odessa, Fania Marinoff [1890 — 1971] spent much of her life in the shadow of her husband, Carl Van Vechten and, despite all of her stage credits, Marinoff was known to many mainly as “Carlo’s wife.” In spite of this, Marinoff was a woman who had achieved in her own right. Marinoff enjoyed considerable success during the 1910s and the 1920s, performing in New York City and on national tours. She appeared in a variety of shows, from classical plays to theatrical experiments. She also appeared in a few films during the silent era.
• • Carl Van Vechten was married to Fania 1914 — 1964 (his death). He died on 21 December 1964 in New York City. He was 84.
• • Fania Marinoff died in 1971 in Englewood, New Jersey from pneumonia. She was 81.
• • On Friday, 29 June 1934 • •
• • Mae heard more than enough objections about "It's No Sin" from Joe Breen, Catholic priests, and the censors in New York State. "If they think it's too warm, I'll cool it off," Mae told a Newsweek reporter. On Friday, 29 June 1934 an article appeared in The Los Angeles Herald. Mae assured the paper that she wanted to satisfy the censors. "You can never say," emphasized Mae, "that I refused to meet somebody half way."
• • On Saturday, 29 June 1935 • •
• • Paramount liaison John Hammell wrote diplomatic letters to Will Hays but his skills were sorely tested by the "Klondike Annie" project. One of Hammell's soothing missives (dated for 29 June 1935) explained: "The ending of our story will be a romance between Mae West and one of the characters in our picture, and it will indicate for the future a normal life and nothing that will bring condemnation from the most scrupulous."
• • On Tuesday, 29 June 1937 • •
• • Mae West was doing her part in Singapore to keep an English-speaking audience entertained on Tuesday, 29 June 1937.
• • Singapore-based readers of The Straits Times on Tuesday, 29 June 1937, saw this announcement on page 5: "Don't come up and see me sometime! Come up and see me TONIGHT!"
• • Mae West stars in "Go West Young Man" — — with Warren William and Lyle Talbot at the Pavilion Theatre — — 2 showtimes at 6:15 pm and 9:15 pm. Snappy and saucy and crammed with laughs.
• • And a seductive headshot of Mae West, printed with the text, was quite fetching. This isn't the same image — — but we love it.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • In past years, Steel Pier showcased some of the biggest names in show business, including Mae West, Guy Lombardo, and Benny Goodman.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "You learn to get along in life by studying life."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • Billboard mentioned Mae West.
• • "Come On Up, Ring Twice," with Mae West at the Cass Theatre, Detroit.
• • Source: Item in Billboard; published on Saturday, 29 June 1946
• • The Mae West Blog celebrates its 10th anniversary • •
• • Thank
you for reading, sending questions, and posting comments during this
past decade. The other day we entertained 3,497 visitors. And we reached a
milestone recently when we completed 3,200 blog posts. Wow!
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started ten years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 3210th blog post.
Unlike many blogs, which draw
upon
reprinted
content
from
a
newspaper
or
a
magazine
and/
or
summaries,
links,
or
photos,
the
mainstay
of
this
blog
is
its
fresh
material
focused
on
the
life
and
career
of
Mae
West,
herself
an
American
original.
•
•
Come
up
and
see
Mae
every
day
online:
http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
________
Source:http://maewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml
Mae West
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • in 1936 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest
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The long arm of coincidence affected the movie career of MAE WEST. An article in the June 1935 issue of Screenland gave readers some insight about a heavily beaded gown that altered a certain iconic scene in "Night After Night."
• • "The Long Arm of Coincidence" written by Winifred Aydelotte • •
• • Winifred Aydelotte wrote: Coincidence encircles the waist of the world, and it has a strangle hold on Hollywood. There is scarcely a player on the screen today whose emotional or artistic career has not been vitally affected by a coincidence. Ask yourself: "Would I be a star if that had happened to me?"
• • The long arm of coincidence and Mae West • •
• • Winifred Aydelotte continued: Slipping stealthily over to Paramount, I surprised another coincidence. Remember Mae West's famous first line? The first thing she ever said on the screen [sic] was in answer to the check girl's exclamation, "Goodness! Where did you get those diamonds?" And Miss West's line was: "Goodness had nothin' to do with it, dearie."
• • Well, just because it happened that the script called for Mae to wear a heavy beaded gown; that the director wanted her to come in on a trot and break into a good fast canter toward George Raft; that the gown was so heavy she couldn't even get up a momentum; and that Mae West happens to be able to write lines like nobody's business, the immortal remark was born.
• • "I'm going to walk," she told the director. "Nobody can romp around in orchids, ermine, and diamonds. I want to come in slowly, throw my wrap off and say something to cover up the snail's pace Raft-ward. How about my saying — — ?"
• • And that is how it came to pass that America went around for so long, slurring, "Goodness had nothin' to do with it, dearie." . . .
• • Source: Article written by Winifred Aydelotte for Screenland; published in the issue dated for June 1935.
• • On Wednesday, 26 June 1935 • •
• • The 8-minute cartoon "Who Killed Cock Robin?" was released on Wednesday, 26 June 1935 in the USA. Loverboy Robin is crooning to a Mae West-like Jenny Wren when he is shot with an arrow.
• • Actress Martha Wentworth [2 June 1889 — 8 March 1974] was the voice of Jenny Wren. Wentworth also did Mae's voice in "The Mae West Jewel Robbery," which made its radio debut on 21 February 1934.
• • On Thursday, 26 June 2003 • •
• • Newspapers announced this headline on Thursday, 26 June 2003: "Dolly Parton Thrilled With Mae West Role."
• • "Country icon Dolly Parton has signed up to play feisty silver screen goddess Mae West in an upcoming TV movie, and she admits it's a part she's been longing to play," reported news outlets. Despite her enthusiasm, the project was not filmed.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • The New York Times reports that Mae West and Raquel Welch are being greeted by two thousand fans at the Criterion Theater after the premiere of "Myra Breckinridge."
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: “Let 'em talk. It’s good for business.”
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • Time Magazine discussed Mae West and an author (who died in June) who applauded her.
• • Time wrote: F. Scott Fitzgerald found Mae West the only Hollywood actress with "an ironic edge, a comic spark."
• • Time wrote: The British author Sir Hugh Walpole [13 March 1884 — 1 June 1941] applauded her mockery of the "fraying morals and manners of a dreary world." . . .
• • Source: Article in Time Magazine; published on Monday, 28 September 1959
• • Note: "Goodness Had Nothing to Do with It"
was Mae West's letter to the world. Released in hardcover more than
fifty years ago by the Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey imprint Prentice
Hall, this meaty memoir was reprinted as a paperback by Avon Books
[December 1959]. Many articles about Mae's new book appeared in 1959. An essential item for your bookshelf.
• • The Mae West Blog celebrates its 10th anniversary • •
• • Thank
you for reading, sending questions, and posting comments during this
past decade. The other day we entertained 3,497 visitors. And we reached a
milestone recently when we completed 3,200 blog posts. Wow!
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started ten years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 3209th blog post.
Unlike many blogs, which draw
upon
reprinted
content
from
a
newspaper
or
a
magazine
and/
or
summaries,
links,
or
photos,
the
mainstay
of
this
blog
is
its
fresh
material
focused
on
the
life
and
career
of
Mae
West,
herself
an
American
original.
•
•
Come
up
and
see
Mae
every
day
online:
http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
________
Source:http://maewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml
Mae West
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • in 1959 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest
NYC Mae West
