Mae West: Elusive Illusions

“In real life, I’m very boring, so I made up the walk and the talk,” said MAE WEST.
• • British freelancer Dr. Sabina Stent, whose area of study included “Women artists, Surrealism, and unconventional females,” penned a fascinating essay on Mae’s customized double-decker footwear. This is Part 15 of 27 parts.
• • “Get the Idea, Boys? Mae West’s Shoes” • •
• • Don’t shatter the illusion! • •
• • Sabina Stent wrote: Nothing is made of Mae West’s footwear in movies because that would shatter the illusion.

• • Sabina Stent wrote: In I’m No Angel, we are treated to her Travis Banton costumes shimmying and glittering with every movement she makes. When she appears on stage, we note her dress is accentuated with corset detail, and our eyes focus on the detail on her bust. She is fully clothed and completely covered, but the outfit provocatively reveals and alludes to something far more risqué. It is a garment with the same personality as its wearer. As Schiaparelli believed, what you don’t reveal is far more enticing that what is on display.
• • Hollywood’s influence on fashion • • …  
• • This long essay by Sabina Stent will be continued on the next post.
• • Source: Majuscule, Issue 2; posted in December 2019.
• • On Monday, 8 January 1940 in Hollywood • •
• • "My Little Chickadee" had wrapped. Universal was hard at work, courting Mae West and hoping to have her do another film for them.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • Washington, DC — According to a statement tabled in Congress, Mr. William Randolph Hearst, the newspaper proprietor, received the largest sum in salary, bonuses, and commissions in 1935, excluding income from investments. Mae West, the film actress, was a close second.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: “No guy was gonna get the best of me. That’s what I wrote all my scripts about.”  
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • The Yellow Advertiser (U.K.) mentioned Mae West.
• • It happened today — — this day in history — — December 27 • •
• • Mick Ferris wrote: 1937: Mae West performs an Adam and Eve skit that gets her banned from NBC radio. …
• • Source: The Yellow Advertiser (U.K.); published on Friday, 27 December 2019
• • The evolution of 2 Mae West plays that keep her memory alive • •
• • A discussion with Mae West playwright LindaAnn LoSchiavo — —
• • http://lideamagazine.com/renaissance-woman-new-york-city-interview-lindaann-loschiavo/
• • The Mae West Blog celebrates its 15th anniversary • • 
• • Thank you for reading, sending questions, and posting comments during these past fifteen years. Not long ago, we entertained 3,497 visitors. And we reached a milestone recently when we completed 4,300 blog posts. Wow! 
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started fifteen years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 4,383rd 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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• • Photo: • • Mae West • • a platform shoe worn by Mae West onscreen • •
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