Mae West: RKO Boston

In 1927, New York University co-eds invited MAE WEST to the prom. In 1938, Harvard’s Ivy League magazine editors asked her to come up sometime to Cambridge, Massachusetts. We were not there but now we can enjoy her remarks together.
• • Mae West Tells a Few Things to Reporters in Boston • •
• • Radiant in all her buxom splendor, brimming over with her famous "sex personality," platinum-haired Mae West surged into Boston yesterday and at the CRIMSON'S invitation expressed her desire to see Harvard as it really was.
• • Amidst flashing emeralds and pink chiffon in her dressing room at the RKO Theatre, Mae admitted she didn't go in much for purity, but what other people made out of her use of the English Language was more or less up to them.
• • Lacking her usual "umphy" drawl, she floundered when asked if college men make good lovers. "I guess I haven't been around enough."
• • Censors College Girls • •

• • If a college girl, on the other hand, is too concerned about her figure she might as well throw her books away, Mae believed. "When a girl is at school her mind should be on her studies. It's physical culture that takes care of the beauty angle.”
• • Should "Birth of a Baby" be censored? She'd rather not say. "I don't care to look at them. After a mind has developed to a certain extent, it should know about these things."
• • No, it's not always the handsomest male who is the sexiest. Among Hollywood actors she picked George Raft as scoring high in sex personality, "But if I just look at a man, they think it's something else."
• • Boosts Her Cuteness • •
• • Charlie Chaplin had it, too. A form of sympathy, a certain cuteness was in his twiddling of a woman's skirt. Mae thinks she has this kind of cuteness and gets a big kick when everyone laughs.
• • "Robert Taylor has charm, but he is not sexy," explained Mae. “Taylor appeals to the flappers, but not to the women who are a little smart — you know what I mean."
• • Mae had an explanation for Clark Gable's appeal, too. According to Mae, Gable puts himself over by force, "by wrestling with the women."

• • The curvy star just can't figure out why she's criticized. She empties churches, thousands flock to see her. "But many people think that because there is such a big box office there must be something wrong."
• • Diminutive little Assemblyman Francis X. Coyne of Dorchester, Mass., sponsor of a bill to tax the real estate of Universities which hire communists or fascists, was at the train station to greet the actress as she deboarded in orchids and gray foxes.
• • Note: The RKO Boston Theatre was a movie theatre in Boston, Massachusetts, located at 616 Washington Street, near Essex Street in the Boston Theater District. It opened as the Keith-Albee Boston Theatre on Monday, 5 October 1925.
• • Source: The Harvard Crimson; published on Wednesday, 20 April 1938.
• • Photo: Mae West relaxes backstage after arriving in "bean town" by train (April 1938).
• • Photo: Boston chef James Braddock feeds Mae West backstage on Thursday, 21 April 1938.
• • On Sunday, 13 May 1956 • •
• • Blonde bombshell Jayne Mansfield encountered the very handsome Mr. Universe 1956 Miklos (Mickey) Hargitay on Sunday, 13 May 1956, while attending a performance of the "Mae West Revue" at the Latin Quarter night club in Manhattan.
• • Twenty months later, Jayne Mansfield and Mickey Hargitay wed on 13 January 1958. They had three children and, alas, would divorce in 1964.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • Despite numerous protests against the "Advertising Bally-hoo of Movie Trailers," I say a big bouquet to them! I should never have gone to see Mae West, Otto Kruger, Katharine Hepburn, George Arliss, and — believe it or not — Greta Garbo, were it not for one of these "coming events."
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "People with careers are too busy to spend enough time on their marriage. I have seen several marriages which should have been happy fail — chiefly because of that lack of time."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • The Boston Herald mentioned Mae West.
• • Jed Gottlieb wrote: Yes, decades-old movies can be burdened by expected flaws, (Where are the people of color? Where is anyone from the LGBTQ community? Why is that 27-year-old woman head over heels for that over-the-hill 57-year-old man?)
• • Jed Gottlieb wrote: But contrasting expectations, writer/actor Mae West and director Howard Hawks (who both worked with Cary Grant [1904 - 1986] extensively) offer a decidedly progressive outlook.
• • Jed Gottlieb wrote: With Grant, who was more than a decade younger than West, as her love interest, Mae West made two pictures in 1933, “She Done Him Wrong” and “I’m No Angel,” that championed the working class while attacking traditional power structures. …
• • Note: Born in 1904, Cary Grant was eleven years younger than Mae West, born in 1893.
• • Source: Boston Herald; published on Sunday, 7 February 2021
• • 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 17th anniversary • • 
• • Thank you for reading, sending questions, and posting comments during these past seventeen years. Not long ago, we entertained 3,497 visitors. And we reached a milestone recently when we completed 4,900 blog posts. Wow! 
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started seventeen years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 4,993rd 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 • • in Boston, April 1938 • •
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Mae West: A. Toxen Worm

MAE WEST had some unpleasant encounters with A. Toxen Worm. One headline dated for Wednesday, 4 May 1921, read "Mae West Foiled by Toxen."
• • Yes, there really was a gentleman named A. Toxen Worm.  Perhaps Mae was thinking of him when she wrote this line for "Belle of the Nineties" — — "Remember, I'm a lady, you worm." Though his Christian name was Conrad, he delighted in the odd pairing of his Danish surname "Worm" with his two middle names Aage and Toxen. No one could forget a sinister moniker like that.
• • Conrad Henrik Aage Toxen Worm [1866 — 12 January 1922] • •
• • Born in Denmark in 1866, at the turn of the century he was a press agent whose clients included the actor James O'Neill (father of Eugene).  Worm emigrated to the USA.  In 1910, the ambitious 44-year-old began working for the Shubert Brothers as a manager and a highly resourceful press agent.  His command of English was fluent enough to enable Worm to write  for the Shubert publication, New York Review.
• • In 1921, the officious 55-year-old bachelor was lying in wait for Mae West in Boston at the Shubert Theatre and there was a showdown.  The Worm turned victorious.
• • In 1922, The New York Times announced the death of this unmarried man.
• • "A. Toxen Worm Dead; Well-Known Theatrical Agent Dies of Apoplexy in Paris" • •
• • The Times wrote:  A. Toxen Worm, associated for twenty years with the Shubert theatrical enterprises, died Friday in Paris of apoplexy, according to word received yesterday by his counsel, Phelan Beale, in this city.  He had gone abroad on a vacation, following a term in charge of the Shubert interests in Boston.  Surviving are several brothers and a niece, Miss Ella Scheel of Copenhagen.  
• • Source: The NY Times; published on 00day, 15  January 1922.
• • Come along as we revisit the scintillating scene of the shimmy that never was.
• • Boston Nearly Sees "Shimmy Dance" • •
• • "Mae West Foiled by Toxen Worm— Lights Turned Off" • •

• • Boston, May 4  — — Bostonians almost saw the "shimmy" for the first time at the Shubert Saturday night. The censors long ago put the ban on this dance and have kept it on, so that while it has often been promised, it has never been seen.
• • When the news got around among the members of the "Whirl of the Town" that the show was to close, Mae West, the dancer, passed the word around she was going to give those in the house one fine demonstration of the "shimmy" dance at the final performance.
• • A. Toxen Worm heard the report and, when the time drew near for this little piece of business, he took up a position near the light switches backstage.
• • When Mae was all set for the finale, Mr. Worm passed the word to the electrician and the stage was suddenly thrown into darkness. Mae may have "shimmied," but if she did she was the only one that knew about it. However, she was much Incensed and was on her way to complain to Worm — — when she discovered that he was the one who had foiled her.
• • Source: Item in Variety; published on Wednesday, 4 May 1921.
• • On Tuesday, 4 May 1886 • •
• • On Tuesday, 4 May 1886 the black composer Shelton Brooks was born. Mae and Beverly performed his dance novelty "Walking the Dog" when they toured with their act "Mae West and Sister." In her 1928 Bowery melodrama "Diamond Lil," Mae performed his jaunty song "Where Has My Easy Rider Gone?" and the number would be reprised in "She Done Him Wrong" [filmed in 1932].
• • On Saturday, 4 May 1935 • •
• • A Los Angeles Times columnist noted on Saturday, 4 May 1935, that the news about Mae West's secret marriage to Frank Wallace had "chased Hitler, the NRA, and the quintuplets off the front page of every newspaper in America for two weeks."
• • On Sunday, 4 May 1969 • •
• • Reporter Whitney Bolton wrote an article, a first person remembrance: "Critic Impressed by Mae West Role of Siren at Seance." Bolton had attended one of Mae's backstage seances and his piece was published in the Philadelphia Inquirer in its weekend edition on Sunday, 4 May 1969.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • They figured that, because of those ultra-sexy things she did on the stage. Will Hays would frown upon Mae West on the screen.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said:  "It takes two to get one in trouble."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • The May Mann papers mentioned Mae West.
• • During her summer at college, May Mann began to pursue an interview with Mae West. According to May, this stunning star evaded the press in fine Garbo fashion. It was May's dream to actually go "up and see [her] some time," and write an exclusive on it. According to the editor of the Standard-Examiner, May got the interview "after two years of repeated effort . . . after considerable maneuvering, near appointments and finally by pulling all the 'strings of power and pull' in Hollywood" (Mae West article, box 9, fd. 5, editor's note). Through her contact with Miss West's personal representative, May became one of the five women to have a personal interview with Mae West . . . .
• • Source: Item in the May Mann Papers, 1930 —1982
• • 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 3,100 blog posts. Wow! 
• • By the Numbers • • 
• • The Mae West Blog was started ten years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 3170th 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 • • "Whirl of the Town," 1921 • •
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Mae West: Barnstable Seniors

MAE WEST is one of the brain-exercising topics in a delightful free program for seniors in New England called "How to Remember Not to Forget Mini University."
• • Given from late April until June 18, 2015, here's what the course description promised:   The program explores skills to increase our brain cell functions. The additional session  will test your memory by presenting new topics and personalities such as Mae West, the Beatles, and Frank Sinatra. We will practice and evaluate our results.
• • If you are on Cape Cod, inquire here: The Barnstable Senior Center, 825 Falmouth Road, Hyannis, MA 02601.
• • On Monday, 29 April 1935 in the Cornell Daily Sun • •
• • The caption read: Autograph seekers drive Miss Lyn Olson, 22-year-old beauty parlor operator of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, "crazy" because she resembles Mae West, blonde screen actress of many marriage licenses. And the Associated Press b/w photo reveals so startling a likeness that Lyn Olson could have had a second career as a Mae West look-alike.  Were Lyn's eyes blue, too? 
• • Source: page 6 of Cornell Daily Sun; published on Monday, 29 April 1935.
• • On Friday, 29 April 1938 in the Boston Herald • •

• • Beantown readers were treated to this titillation on 29 April 1938, announced with a boldface headline:  Clutching, Squealing Crowd Greets Mae West with Mob Scene Here.
• • The Boston Herald reporter wrote: Complete with the publicized curves and husky, slurring accents that have made her practically a symbol of what she is pleased to call “the sex personality,” Mae West crashed into Boston yesterday morning through a clutching, squealing crowd of 3000 eager admirers who turned the South station into a mob scene.
• • The Boston Herald reporter noted: Cries of pain mingled with shouts of “There she is!” and “Give us a smile, Mae!” as the mob, in a surging onslaught, trampled on toes and barked shins to get closer to the object of it all. The plump blonde actress, in a trailing satin dress, with make-up thick on her features and a huge bunch of orchids clutched in a heavily jeweled hand, gave them the smile and was taken off to the Ritz-Carlton, where she is staying while appearing in person at the RKO Boston Theater this week.
• • On Saturday, 29 April 1950 in Pittsburgh • •
• • Pittsburgh's Mayor David Lawrence and Mae West shared the stage of the Nixon Theater on Saturday night, 29 April 1950, after the final performance of her play, "Diamond Lil." The 47-year-old playhouse was booked for bulldozing, making way for the new headquarters of the Aluminum Company of America.  Tsk.  But what do the citizens of Pittsburgh know about the magnificence of the theatre arts anyway?
• • On Sunday, 29 April 1984 in The N.Y. Times • •
• • N.Y. Times reporter Francis X. Clines was reviewing Peter Conrad's book and gave his 29 April 1984 column this spunky title: "Walt Whitman's and Mae Wests's New York."
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • Mae West will visit Las Vegas soon to complete plans for building a gambling casino and restaurant. She will be featured in floor shows at the new establishment, which will be named "Mae West's Diamond Lil Casino Restaurant."
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said:  "Mr. Dwight Eisenhower's a leader, and a leader has drive and decision and power, and that makes a man a sexy man."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • The Los Angeles Times mentioned Mae West.
• • "Mae West named Woman of the Century" • •
• • It was on Wednesday, 12 May 1971 when Mae West, UCLA’s Woman of the Century, spoke to students after a screening of her 1933 classic movie “I’m No Angel.”  . . .
• • Source: Item in The Los Angeles Times; published on Saturday, 15 May 1971
• • 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 1,430 visitors. We reached a milestone recently when we completed 3,100 blog posts. Wow! 
• • By the Numbers • • 
• • The Mae West Blog was started ten years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 3167th 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 1938 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest
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