Mae West: Sump'in Silly

In 1942, when MAE WEST was feeling her Hollywood halo slipping, she decided to reinvent herself. The place to tell the entertainment world her intentions was the famous "Harrison in Hollywood" column, started by Paul Harrison, and now penned by Erskine Johnson [14 December 1910 — 14 June  1984]. This popular feature was syndicated by N.E.A. (Newspaper Enterprise Association). This is Part 1 of 5.
• • Erskine Johnson wrote: Mae West, the gal who parlayed a sex drama, a free-wheeling walk, and an invitation to "come up and see me some time" into a million bucks, wants to forget the whole thing. Everything, that is, except the million-dollar bank account, and maybe just a little bit of Sex.
• • Erskine Johnson wrote: But no more hip swinging, no more invitations to “come up,” and no more Diamond Lil characters.
• • Erskine Johnson wrote: Mae West told me, "I've led the way ever since I started in show business. The others always followed me. They have run this Diamond Lil sump'in silly. I'll never go hack to it. I'm going to do the leading again. And I'm the gal who can do it."
• • Mae West: Two nude statues • • . . .    
• • To be continued until the fifth segment.
• • Source: Harrison in Hollywood column written by Erskine Johnson, Syndicated Columnist;  published on Thursday, 5 November 1942.
• • On Friday, 30 April 1926 • •
• • Mae's hometown paper, New York Daily Mirror, printed a diatribe about her Broadway play "Sex" on Friday, 30 April 1926 under the headline "SEX: an Offensive Play. Monstrosity Plucked From Garbage Can, Destined to Sewer."
• • Clearly all riled up, the New York based critic explained: "This production is not for the police. It comes rather in the province of our Health Department. It is a sore spot in the midst of our fair city that needs disinfecting."  . . .
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • What'll the club-women do about this lady who wrote and acted in the decade's naughtiest plays? When her jewels were stolen the other week Mae West said it could never have happened in N'Yawk. Mae knows all the boys there!
• • Strangely enough, Mae seems old-fashioned in today's Hollywood. It's glamour, not sex, that's the rage at the moment.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "As to the hippies, we've always had 'em. We used to call them hoboes.”
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • The United Press mentioned Mae West.
• • "Frank Wallace Tells of Mae West Marriage" • •

• • New York, April 24 [United Press] — Frank Wallace, a bald, middle-aged “hoofer,” admitted today that he was the original husband of Mae West. He married her in Milwaukee back in 1911.
• • “Mae wasn’t a blonde in those days,” he said. “The Mae I married in Milwaukee was a classy brunette, and as for those curves, she was more on the lean style.” ...
• • Note: In 1911, variety artists Mae and Frank were touring together on the Columbia burlesque circuit in a show, "A Florida Enchantment." The New York Clipper wrote: "Mae West and Fred Wallace [sic] sang several coon songs, with Miss West making several changes down to full tights, with good effect. ..."
• • Source: Page 1 Item by United Press (syndicated); published on Wednesday, 24 April 1935
• • 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 16th 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 4,700 blog posts. Wow! 
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started fifteen years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 4,724th 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: https://maewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml  
• • Be sure to bookmark or follow The Mae West Blog
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • Frank Wallace in 1935 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest

Mae West: French Farce

MAE WEST, who thought of herself as a serious writer, would be enjoying all these revivals of plays she wrote in her younger days. One farcical play, however, has vanished. Let's hear about its last production and see if you can guess which Mae West film synopsis resembles this stage play.
• • Mae West's 1940'S Farce Due on Kennedy Stage • •
• • Come On Up, Ring Twice • •
• • Irvin Molotsky wrote: A woman, bored by wartime Washington, has her maid release balloons out her window, each bearing a message asking the recipient to come on up and ring twice. Many men do, among them a senator, an ambassador, a reporter, a sailor, a gangster, a Nazi spy and a Communist.
• • Irvin Molotsky wrote: Although this may sound like the makings of a typical Washington party, it is not one, and all these people have to be hidden in closets to prevent discovery. There is tumult.

• • Irvin Molotsky wrote: The situation is French farce and it occurs in a play that Mae West wrote in the 1940's in collaboration with Miles Mander, Fred Schiller and Thomas Dumphy. It played in various cities around the country from 1946 to 1952 but, to Miss West's disappointment, never made it to Broadway.
• • Mae West's Play Opens in June • •
• • Irvin Molotsky wrote: Miss West, who died in 1980, considered herself a serious writer, a viewed shared by Peter Sellars, head of the American National Theater at the Kennedy Center, and his colleagues. They have scheduled her play in a run to begin June 29 in a season that is also to include Shakespeare, a juxtaposition Miss West would have liked.
• • Source: N.Y. Times; published on Wednesday, 30 January 1985
• • On Sunday, 29 April 1928 • •
• • Percy Hammond wrote an article about Mae West. The title was “The Rewards of Virtue” and it was published in the New York Tribune on Sunday, 29 April 1928.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • George Raft is sticking with Paramount (his next is "The Trumpet Blows"), and so is Claudette Colbert (who is about to do "Cleopatra" for De Mille). And Mae West is signed up for four years more, and Marlene Dietrich for two.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "Frank Wallace? Never heard of the guy!!"
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • The Daily Illini mentioned Mae West.
• • "Hutchins Says He Is No Mae West Spouse" • •
• • Chicago, April 26 [AP] — — Dr. Robert Maynard Hutchins described himself today as neither a communist nor any one of Mae West's husbands. The University of Chicago president, addressed a law school assembly, lapsed into a bit of levity in replying to charges that radical influences obtained at his school. He asserted: Just as I am not any one of Mae West's husbands, neither am I helping the Russian communist government.  . . .
• • Source: Associated Press, rpt in Daily Illini; published on Saturday, 27 April 1935
• • 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 16th 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 4,700 blog posts. Wow! 
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started fifteen years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 4,723rd 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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• • Be sure to bookmark or follow The Mae West Blog
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • at the BBC in 1946 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest

Mae West: Built-Up Shoes

MAE WEST had a stand-in, an Irish-American hopeful with similar coloring and a strong resemblance to the Paramount star. This is excerpted from a longer article by Gladys Hall that ran in Modern Screen.
• • Pity the Poor Stand-In Girl! • •
• • Lillian Kilgannon, a stand-in, discussed how Mae West moves in her "built-up shoes" and tight corsets • •
• • Gladys Hall wrote: Lillian explained how observing Mae West work was a driving inspiration.

• • Mae West wore "built-up shoes" onscreen and onstage • •
• • Gladys Hall wrote: Lillian added, “Mae West is the most humane and considerate star I've ever watched. Several times, when I was about to stand-in for her on that picture, she'd come over and say, 'They're nearly ready for me. You sit down awhile. I'll do it.' And that, in spite of the fact that she was wearing those tiring built-up shoes and tight corsets.”

• • Lillian Kilgannon, a stand-in • •
• • Gladys Hall wrote: Lillian said, "It's nervous work, too, of course. Not only the exhausting part of standing in for long stretches of time, but the feeling, all the while, that it is all for nothing, getting you nowhere. Then there is nothing to do with our spare time. Unlike Miss Dietrich, I have no lines to learn. No one comes to interview me. I haven't any dressing-room nor place to rest or lie down when I'm tired. I can't have visitors on the set as the star can if she wants to.”
• • Gladys Hall wrote: Lillian continued, "I work stand-in instead of extra because I think I have a better chance of getting a break this way. At least I am not one of a mob. I work steadily all through a production. I get $20 a week and overtime. Miss Dietrich, I believe, gets four to five thousand. That doesn't bother me. It isn't her money I envy her, nor her beautiful clothes and cars and houses. I don't believe Miss Dietrich is so very happy. But I do envy her her chance to be someone. I envy that so much that, honestly, if I could, I'd gladly do what she does for my salary and let her have my job at her salary. That's how little the money end of it figures with me.”
• • We will end the snippets right there. Check out the full article in Modern Screen.
• • Source: Modern Screen; published in the issue dated for October 1933.
• • On Thursday, 28 April 1927 • •
• • On Thursday, 28 April 1927 The New York Times ran this article: “Mae West Departs from Workhouse.”
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • By the way, Mae is now working on her new contract by the terms of which she gets $100,000 a picture.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "I enjoyed the courtroom as any other stage."  
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • An article  about being in jail was written by Mae West.
• • "How I Was Jailed for Sex" • •
 • • Mae West wrote: The court attendant leaned toward me and said, "Are you feeling all right, Miss West?" I replied, "Quite all right."
• • Mae West explained: He then escorted me to the side of the courtroom, through a cage effect, then out a door, where there were a few steps leading down to another door. That door was opened and two gentlemen who stood there said, "Right this way, Miss West."
• • Mae West continued: They were most courteous; they didn't want anything to happen to me before I got to Welfare Island, I guess. I was ushered into a waiting-room. There was a colored woman, with a gold badge, in charge.  . . .
• • Source: Liberty Magazine; published on Saturday, 20 August 1927 
• • 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 16th 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 4,700 blog posts. Wow! 
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started fifteen years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 4,722nd 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: https://maewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml  
• • Be sure to bookmark or follow The Mae West Blog
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • Lillian Kilgannon, Mae's stand-in, 1935 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest

Mae West: Kidding on the Set

MAE WEST had a stand-in, an Irish-American hopeful with similar coloring and a strong resemblance to the Paramount star. This is excerpted from a longer article by Gladys Hall that ran in Modern Screen.
• • Pity the Poor Stand-In Girl! • •
• • Lillian discusses what Mae West is like on the set • •
• • Gladys Hall wrote: "We are only the shadows," Lillian Kilgannon said. "We stand in while the set is being lighted, sometimes for an hour or more, so that all may be in readiness for the star who may then do the scene in five minutes. Everything is set up, you see, cameras focussed, sound okay, the big scene that means more fame for the star, ready to be shot and then — we just step out. We are the shadows."

• • Lillian Kilgannon with Mae, 1935 • •
• • Gladys Hall wrote: The stand-in girls are, in a sense, ranked lower by the studio than extras. Because extras, at least, can see themselves in flashes on the screen. However, the camera has no eyes for the stand-in. The mike has no ears.
• • Gladys Hall wrote: Stand-in girls have to be the same height as the star. They must be the same build. They must have, or acquire, the same shade of hair. They wear the same make-up on set. They wear the same color and cut of gown, although their gowns will be of inferior material and workmanship.
• • Gladys Hall wrote: Stand-in girls are, nine cases out of ten, as pretty as the stars they stand-in for. Nearly as lovely as Mae West, Dietrich, Connie Bennett, Janet Gaynor. Yet unknown!
• • In this 1933 article, Gladys Hall wrote: Lillian told me she once stood in for Mae West. According to Lillian, it was on 'She Done Him Wrong.' In contrast to the way Lillian described Marlene Dietrich while filming, she said, "Mae West is the grandest sport in the world. She's always singing funny songs between scenes, and kidding with the cast. And when she works she works with a concentrated fury that is like a driving inspiration." 
• • Lillian discusses how Mae West moves in her built-up shoes and tight corsets • • . . .
• • This will be continued tomorrow.
• • Source: Modern Screen; published in the issue dated for October 1933.
• • On Saturday, 27 April 1935 • •
• • Columnist Louella Parsons mused in the weekend edition of the Los Angeles Examiner on Saturday, 27 April 1935, that maybe this long-lost husband story was a publicity gimmick dreamed up by Paramount Pictures as they released "Goin' to Town" starring Mae West.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • Mae West has written a new play, and it looks as if it will bring her Hollywood career to an end — — at least for the time being. Her film contracts in Hollywood terminate shortly, and she is thinking of appearing in her play on Broadway where she was a famous star in the 'Diamond Lil' days.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "Anything worth doing is worth doing slowly."   
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • An article on surrealism and art mentioned Mae West.
• • Charles MacArthur is having a replica made of the Mae West surrealism chair on view recently in a Fifth Avenue department store.  ...
• • Source: Variety; published on Wednesday, 23 November 1938
• • 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 16th 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 4,700 blog posts. Wow! 
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started fifteen years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 4,721st 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: https://maewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml  
• • Be sure to bookmark or follow The Mae West Blog
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • with her stand-in, 10 March 1935 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest

Mae West: Lillian Stand-In as Lil

MAE WEST had a stand-in, an Irish-American hopeful with similar coloring and a strong resemblance to the Paramount star. This is excerpted from a longer article by Gladys Hall that ran in Modern Screen.
• • New York native Gladys Hall [26 April 1891 — 18 September  1977] was an American journalist. Hall wrote a syndicated column, "The Diary of a Professional Movie Fan," during the 1920s, and interviewed movie stars for such fan magazines as Photoplay, Modern Screen, and Screenland.
• • Pity the Poor Stand-In Girl! • •

• • Gladys Hall wrote: Lillian Kilgannon is the regular stand-in for Marlene Dietrich. And she was stand-in once for Mae West in "She Done Him Wrong."
• • Gladys Hall wrote: She is outfitted with a copy of the gown or the ensemble (for example, Lillian has a duplicate of Marlene's costume for "Song of Songs" — though it is of cheaper material and shoddy workmanship). All of Lillian's costumes are never seen — like its wearer — except on the set.
• • Gladys Hall wrote: These stand-in girls have always fascinated me.
• • Gladys Hall wrote: Time and time again I have watched them standing-in for Mae West, Marlene Dietrich, Connie Bennett and many others. Standing-in and then — just stepping out again. And always I have wondered what must be going on in their minds, in their hearts.
• • Gladys Hall wrote: I have often wondered what resentments must scorch these stand-ins, what jealousies might sicken them, what hopes that some day, they, too. . . .
• • Gladys Hall wrote: "We are shadows," Lillian Kilgannon, stand-in for Mae West and Marlene Dietrich, told me.
• • Lillian discusses what Mae West is like on the set • • ...
• • This will be continued tomorrow.
• • Source: Modern Screen; published in the issue dated for October 1933.
 • • On Monday, 26 April 1926 on Broadway • •
• • Written by "Jane Mast" and starring Mae West as Margy LaMont, "Sex" opened in April — — on Monday, 26 April 1926. The Broadway debut occurred a few blocks north of Columbus Circle at Daly’s 63rd Street Theatre, the only playhouse available at the time. "Mae played a Canadian woman," noted Playbill, "with no time for those Mounties."
• • The N.Y. Daily News sent a reviewer who wrote: "Most of the 'Sex' appeal falls to the talents of Mae West, a vaudeville actress who somewhat resembles Texas Guinan."
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • Louella O. Parsons wrote "Eva Tanguay Backs Mae West in Her Dispute Over Husband." Notice the timing of Louella's supportive article and Mae's appearance on her radio program on April 26th. Hmmmm.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "That's the ninth man since January I'm supposed to have been married to."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • An article on upcoming TV shows mentioned Mae West.
• • "TV Satire Series for Mae West" • •
• • Hollywood, April 24 — First six scripts of a proposed 26-episode tele-film series starring Mae West in satires on famous romantic heroines of history and literature have been completed by the actress and William LeBaron, who will produce. The latter is due in New York early next week to conduct negotiations for national sponsorship.
• • The six scripts already completed and ready for the cameras are half-hour episodes based on incidents in the lives of Priscilla and John Alden, Camille and Armand, Cleopatra, Madame DuBarry, Fatima, and Lady Hamilton.  ...
• • Source: Billboard Magazine; published on Saturday, 1 May 1954
• • 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 16th 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 4,700 blog posts. Wow! 
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started fifteen years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 4,720th 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: https://maewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml  
• • Be sure to bookmark or follow The Mae West Blog
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • from Modern Screen in 1933 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest

Mae West: Dance the Midway

In 1933, MAE WEST was interviewed in Modern Screen before her latest motion picture opened.
• • What was the dance Mae called The Midway? • •
• • "No!" says Mae West, speaking of the "Midway," the dance she does in her newest picture, "I'm No Angel." Explains the movie queen, "It's not a dance of the hands and feet, but a dance of the Midway.”
• • Mae West: "Move Your Feet?" • •

• • Mae West adds, “I throw discretion to the winds and my hips go North, South, East and West. Come up and see me because I'm No Angel.”
• • Mae West: Unmarried. Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., August 17. Paramount player. Featured in "Night After Night," "She Done Him Wrong." Next is "I'm No Angel."
• • Source: Modern Screen; published in the issue dated for October 1933.
• • On Tuesday, 23 April 1935 in The Hollywood Reporter • •
• • A review of "Goin' to Town" appeared in The Hollywood Reporter in their issue dated for 23 April 1935.
• • On Sunday, 23 April 2006 • •
• • Voice of America featured "Mae West: The Wild Woman of Film and Stage" on Sunday, 23 April 2006.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • Shortest quest for inspiration: Mae West's announcement that she would go to bed and there write a new screen play for herself. The title: "Not Bad."
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "He's the kind of man a woman would have to marry to get rid of."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • An article on The Midway referred to the stomach dance performed by Mae West.
• • "Naughty Doings in the Midway Plaisance" • •

• • On the Midway, the Midway, the Midway Plaisance,
• • Where the naughty girls from Algiers do the Kouta-Kouta dance.
• • Married men without their wives give a longing glance
• • At all the naughty doings on the Midway Plaisance.  . . .
• • Note: This quite erotic and exotic dance, featured at the Chicago World’s Fair of 1893, eventually was called the “hoochie-coochie” or "The Midway."
• • Source: The Seattle Post-Intelligencer; published on Friday, 23 February 1894
• • 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 16th 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 4,700 blog posts. Wow! 
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started fifteen years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 4,719th 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: https://maewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml  
• • Be sure to bookmark or follow The Mae West Blog
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • from Modern Screen in 1933 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest

Mae West: Power to Shock

Articles on MAE WEST and 1930s reviews of her motion pictures that reveal how she was viewed by her peers are the most interesting. This review appeared in Time Magazine in 1934. This is Part 6 of 6 parts.
• • "Belle of the Nineties" (Paramount) • •
• • Mae West told Miss DeMille to gain weight • •
• • Katherine DeMille studied cutting and carried script for Cecil B. DeMille, her father.
• • Lately, Katherine DeMille has been taking thyroid treatments and has lost 25 lb.
• • Paramount Pictures had been quite pleased but Mae West told her to gain weight for Belle of the Nineties.
• • Katherine DeMille likes to play heavies. She says that anyone can be an ingenue but to be a menace takes action. She does a lot of swimming at the Beach Club in Santa Monica and plays a little tennis. She gives the kind of parties at which people go upstairs and dress in funny clothes, then come down and do acts. She knows a lot about music and likes musicians at her parties. She joined the company of Viva Villa as an extra, got a small featured role without bothering to reveal her identity.
• • Paramount scouts liked her work, singled her out for a long term contract before they knew her name. She refused to play in her father's Cleopatra (TIME, Aug. 27). Her next picture will be The Gilded Lily.
• • This six-part article has now been concluded. A fascinating look at Mae's Hollywood in 1934.
• • Source: Time Magazine; published on Monday, 24 September 1934.
• • On Sunday, 22 April 1928 in New York • •

• • "Diamond Lil" • •
• • On Sunday, 22 April 1928, The New York Times was purring about Mae West. On the theatre page was an announcement that "Diamond Lil" was the most prosperous of all the recent stage productions. Broadway backers paid attention, noticing that Mae had given the Royale Theatre its first hit — — a non-musical, no less.
• • It would be the hip-swinging role that Mae West famously brought to the silver screen as well.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • In a career that lasted over eighty years, the performances of Mae West were famous, or infamous, for their power to shock, their transgression of boundaries of class, gender, sexuality and propriety, and for the frequent opprobrium that West seemed to attract.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "I have had to do my share of outsmarting men through necessity."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • An article in a Florida newspaper mentioned Mae West.
• • "In Days Before Dolly, There Was Mae West" • •
• • Allen Rose of The Sentinel Staff wrote: Dick Gordon of Indialantic still gets a laugh recalling the day he met Mae West, late star of stage, screen and radio, as they used to say, and self-proclaimed ''last of the red-hot mamas.'' ... Let's just say that Mae resembled Dolly Parton physically. Blonde wigs, fancy gowns, and all that went with them.  ...
• • Source: Orlando Sentinel; published on Wednesday, 20 April 1988
• • 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 16th 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 4,700 blog posts. Wow! 
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started fifteen years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 4,718th 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: https://maewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml  
• • Be sure to bookmark or follow The Mae West Blog
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • onscreen in 1932 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest

Mae West: DeMille's Daughter

Articles on MAE WEST and 1930s reviews of her motion pictures that reveal how she was viewed by her peers are the most interesting. This review appeared in Time Magazine in 1934. This is Part 5 of 6 parts.
• • Belle of the Nineties (Paramount) • •
• • Mae West: Molly Brant was played by Katherine DeMille • •
• • Katherine DeMille's father was a Canadian named Edward Lester, killed in one of the Vimy Ridge engagements. Her mother died in a Los Angeles charity hospital.
• • Katherine DeMille [29 June 1911 ― 27 April 1995] • •

• • As Cecil B. DeMille's daughter she grew up in his big house on DeMille Road, a real estate development owned by him on a hill overlooking Hollywood. Katherine took the usual scholastic courses that interest girls with money in expensive private schools such as dancing, amateur dramatics, etc.
• • Katherine was the brightest girl in every school she went to, including a Los Angeles business college in which she studied stenography and shorthand so she might have a foundation for other professions in case she was an abject failure in the Hollywood film business.
• • Mae West told Miss DeMille to gain weight • • ...  
• • To be continued tomorrow with part 6, the finale.
• • Source: Time Magazine; published on Monday, 24 September 1934.
• • On Saturday, 21 April 1934 • •  
• • Mae West on the front page of Picture Show Magazine thrilled her British fans.
• • What a beautiful cover of Picture Show Magazine with that celluloid couple, Mae and Cary Grant. This very collectible United Kingdom publication was dated for Saturday, 21 April 1934. Mae was happy to promote her film "I'm No Angel" to the English movie-goers.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • Louella Parsons wrote: Mae West got herself a movie job. Yes, indeed! She signed a contract with William Shapiro who brought Bobby Breen to the coast. Shapiro, at one time associated with Sol Lesser, has obtained capital to finance the Mae West movie. Now here's the part that to me should even make the sphinx smile. Shapiro has an option on John Barrymore's services and is trying to get him to play opposite La West.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said:  “I don't know a lot about politics, but I can recognize a good party man when I see one.”
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • A newspaper in Canberra mentioned Mae West.
• • "Mae West Again at the Capitol" • •
• • Mae West, Broadway star who made such a sensational debut in films in "She Done Him Wrong," last year, will be seen at the Capitol Theatre to-night, Friday and Saturday in her second starring vehicle "I'm No Angel." This remarkable film won the distinction last year in America of being the most popular production of the year, and wherever else it has been screened it has generally proved an outstanding success.  ...
• • Source: The Canberra Times; published on Thursday, 19 April 1934
• • 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 16th 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 4,700 blog posts. Wow! 
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started fifteen years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 4,717th 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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• • Be sure to bookmark or follow The Mae West Blog
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • on the set of "Belle of the Nineties" in 1934 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest

Mae West: Vaudeville Gags

Articles on MAE WEST and 1930s reviews of her motion pictures that reveal how she was viewed by her peers are the most interesting. This review appeared in Time Magazine in 1934. This is Part 4 of 6 parts.
• • Belle of the Nineties (Paramount) • •
• • Mae West: Sole authorship of the two-line vaudeville gags • •
• • No one seeing the picture will question for a moment Miss West's claim to sole authorship of the two-line vaudeville gags which serve for dialog.
• • Typical wisecracks: "A man in the house is worth two on the street." "That guy's no good. His mother should have thrown him away and kept the stork." "What is your favorite sport? Don't embarrass me. boys."
• • Typical wisecracks: (In front of a picture): "It's an old master, you know. . . . . It looks like an old mistress to me. . . ." "Are you here for good? Well, I'm here, but not for good."

• • Katherine DeMille as Molly Brant • •
• • Katherine DeMille was in a Los Angeles orphanage • •
• • Cecil DeMille took Katherine DeMille, who plays Molly Brant in the West picture, out of a Los Angeles orphanage when she was 9.
• • Mae West: DeMille's role • • ...  
• • To be continued.
• • Source: Time Magazine; published on Monday, 24 September 1934.
• • On Wednesday morning, 20 April 1927 • •
• • Headlines announced: "Mae West Starts on Jail Term" and the sub-head was "Found Prison Inmates 'Very Interesting' on First Night."
• • The Scranton Times wrote: Mae West, star and coauthor of "Sex," with two negresses and three white women as fellow passengers, left Jefferson Market women's prison today in a prison van for the workhouse on Welfare Island, where she will serve nine days of the ten-day sentence imposed yesterday for giving an obscene play.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • 'Tis said here and there that "Diamond Lil" herself may come to the screen if Mae West and Columbia come to terms.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said:  "Public toilets were so filthy I couldn't face them."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • A New Zealand broadcast mentioned Mae West.
• • The Myra Breckinridge Affair – 20 April 2013 • •
• • Last week on "The Affair," Hikaru Freeman dared Johnny Lemon to watch the infamous "Myra Breckinridge," one of the first mainstream American films to deal with LGBTIQ lives.  As you can note from the trailer, it had quite the cast . . . .  Let’s just say that Hikaru and Johnny agreed on it much like David and Margaret. . . .
• • Source: Item in Joy 94.9 radio New Zealand; published on Saturday, 20 April 2013
• • 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 16th 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 4,700 blog posts. Wow! 
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started fifteen years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 4,716th 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: https://maewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml  
• • Be sure to bookmark or follow The Mae West Blog
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • "Belle of the Nineties" in 1934 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest