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It is doubtful that Clyde Fitch had heard of MAE WEST, who was but 16 years old when the playwright passed on. But there's a point to be made, so show some patience.
• • Born in Elmira, New York, Clyde Fitch [2 May 1865 – 4 September 1909] was an American dramatist with a brilliant career.
• • Clyde Fitch wrote over 60 plays — — 36 of them original — — which varied from social comedies and farces to melodrama and historical dramas.
• • The Clyde Fitch Report's editor is Leonard Jacobs, who set forth down his CFR editorial path in 2006. Joining the blogosphere, Jacobs said he wished "to create a platform in which I could opine on or consider those topics for which I lacked a place in my professional life."
• • Early in the month of August, the Clyde Fitch Report very nicely encouraged their readers to come out and take the Mae West and Texas Guinan tour. In turn, we would like to take you by the elbow and steer you into the Clyde Fitch embrace — — www.clydefitchreport.com — — and tell 'em Mae sent ya.• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • none • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWestNYC
Mae West.
MAE WEST, with the rough baritone voice she had as a child, was often cast as a male in stock productions. She played the leading role of Little Lord Fauntleroy several times in Brooklyn theatres.
• • The British-born playwright and author Frances Hodgson Burnett [24 November 1849 — 29 October 1924] is best known for her children's stories, especially The Secret Garden, A Little Princess, and (of course) Little Lord Fauntleroy.
• • Born in Cheetham Hill, Manchester, in England, Frances emigrated to America (Knoxville, Tennessee) after her father died in 1865.
• • Following the death of her mother in 1872, Frances became the head of the household. Pressed with the demands of supporting herself and four younger siblings, she looked for income from writing assignments.
• • Serialized in St. Nicholas Magazine in 1885, Little Lord Fauntleroy is a sentimental children's narrative that became a huge hit for the publication. In 1886, this work was separately published as a novel. The book was a commercial success for its author, and its fanciful sketches by Reginald Birch set fashion trends.
• • The Fauntleroy suit — — described by Frances Hodgson Burnett and sweetly illustrated via Reginald Birch's detailed pen-and-ink drawings — — created a major fad in formal attire for American middle-class children:
• • • • "What the Earl saw was a graceful, childish figure in a black velvet suit, with a lace collar, and with lovelocks waving about the handsome, manly little face, whose eyes met his with a look of innocent good-fellowship." — — Little Lord Fauntleroy
• • Clothing that Frances Hodgson Burnett popularized had been modeled on the garments she sewed by hand for her two sons, Vivian and Lionel. Under the influence of Birch's illustrations for Little Lord Fauntleroy, many middle-class American parents began dressing their sons in velvet suits with lace collars and sashes and short knee-pants, and to have their boys' hair curled into long ringlets like Cedric — — a mode that was considered aristocratic.
• • In 1921 a silent movie version was released starring Mary Pickford as Little Lord Fauntleroy.
• • Here is 15-year-old Mae West, costumed for the part in a theatrical production, in 1908 — — ninety-nine years ago.
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • 1908 • •
NYC
Mae West.
Wouldn't you love to own a lavender feathered headdress that once adorned the head of Mae West? Robert Weisfeld yearned to — — and did.
• • A movie-maven since he was in elementary school, Robert Weisfeld always dreamed about collecting things that were once used, worn, or signed by the famous. Among his first teenage purchases was a hand-tinted poster of 1920s siren Jean Harlow. A black bonnet worn by Lillian Gish in the 1915 silent film “Birth of a Nation” is the oldest item in his possession.
• • The 53-year-old native of Abingdon, Virginia estimated that he has now amassed well over 500 bits of glitterati including Mae West's ornamental plumage, a “Kelly’s Heroes” military helmet autographed by Clint Eastwood, and a top hat of Fred Astaire’s. Footwear attracted his eye, too. He owns Betty Grable’s silver heels, three pairs of Jean Harlow’s size-3 shoes, and Bette Davis’ baby shoes.
• • For years, these keepsakes were in storage until his 80-year-old mother Martha had a brainstorm: put them on display.
• • Opened on 26 July 2007, Star Museum covers the 20-by-88-foot first floor of an 1865 building in downtown Abingdon, Virginia. Robert Weisfeld is planning for a seasonal rotation of his memorabilia, elements built around his appreciation of pop culture, Hollywood, and music.
• • Robert Weisfeld developed his collection as an adult living in Manhattan for almost 17 years. He scoured second-hand emporiums, thrift shops, antique stores, flea markets, and he attended the estate auctions of Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, and Rock Hudson. Eleven years ago, he returned to his Southern roots when he came home to be editor of the Virginian.
• • His collection has been insured for about $160,000. Not counting boxes of letters, newspapers, copies of Life Magazine, and photos, Weisfeld estimates he owns close to 1,000 unique bits that were once in the hands of a notable individual, for instance, actress Rosalind Russell’s $10.64 check for a 1947 electric bill and Richard Burton’s Roman shield from “Cleopatra.”
• • One showcase is arranged as if Marilyn Monroe had dropped her faux-leopard purse. Her wallet, sunglasses and paste chandelier earrings have slipped out, as well as a Las Vegas hotel swizzle stick, a pair of Frank Sinatra’s cuff links, and John F. Kennedy's White House matchbook.
• • The museum also genuflects to several musical and pop-culture personalities. Visitors will see clothing worn by Elvis Presley, Loretta Lynn's concert gown, and a 1949 Life Magazine cover signed by slugger Joe DiMaggio. But the museum’s focus — — from the photos on its walls to the evening gloves on view — — is the Hollywood studio heyday of the 1920s to the 1950s.
• • Come up and see Mae West in Abingdon, Virginia — — along with Jean Harlow, Marilyn Monroe, Rita Hayworth, Fred Astaire, Janis Joplin, Loretta Lynn, and Elvis.
• • Collect even more Mae West memories on Friday evening 17 August 2007, when a guided tour will explore Manhattan's WEST-side during the "Mae West Side Story" walking tour. The event — — open to the public — — is timed to salute Brooklyn's own sexpot on her birthdate. [See the Annual Mae West Gala posting below.]• • Only 11 more days until Mae's birthday!
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Mae West
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • 1934 • •
NYC
Mae West.
