Mae West: No Piffling Sum

When Helen Lawrenson came up to see MAE WEST, Esquire's first female journalist was closing in on her sixtieth birthday and the Brooklyn bombshell was 73. A color photo by Diane Arbus flashed across the double-page-spread, hunched under half the title as if warding off a punch in the nose.
• • In honor of  Helen Lawrenson's October birthday, enjoy her seldom seen interview. This is Part 3 of 46 parts.
• • "Mirror, Mirror, on the Ceiling: How'm I Doin’?" • •
• • Not bad, Mae, for a woman of seventy-three • •
• • Mae West: She lives in the same apartment since 1932 • •
• • Helen Lawrenson wrote: Mae West lives in the same apartment she has had since she first went to Hollywood in 1932. At one time she owned the whole building [sic], called The Ravenswood Apartments, but she told me she sold it some years ago, or at least a part interest in it.

• • [Editor: This is inaccurate. During the Depression, Mae West helped the owners refinance their mortgage. As Mae West explained to a doorman, Chris Basinger, years later, "I was so controversial that we felt good tenants would shy away if they thought Mae West was the landlady."]
• • Helen Lawrenson wrote: Mae West tends to get deliberately vague about her financial affairs, but she has always had a reputation as a hard-nosed businesswoman, and estimates of her total take range from four to six million.  
• • Helen Lawrenson wrote: In her heyday she was the highest-paid actress in Hollywood, getting $300,000 a picture, plus an extra $100,000 for writing the script, no piffling sum during the Depression years.  
• • Mae West: Federal Tax Returns • • . . .
• • Helen Lawrenson's interview will be continued on the next post.
• • Source: Esquire; published on Saturday, 1 July 1967.
• • On Saturday, 14 October 1933 • •
• • The review in Film Daily (on page 6) had this title: "Mae West in 'I'm No Angel.'" Film Daily ran it in their issue dated for Saturday, 14 October 1933. The New York Evening Journal printed their review (on page 8) on 14 October 1933, too. The New York Post ran a glowing piece about Mae on 14 October 1933: "America's sweetheart."
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • What set Mae West apart, what made her obvious shortcoming as a sex symbol evaporate, was her total belief in herself.  
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: “Tongues have wagged and supposed 'low-down' has been printed to the effect that James A. Timony, my manager, is my husband. “
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • The Associated Press covered the Mae West robbery.
• • Studio Bus-Boy Protests He Was Only Curious When He Took Money from Tree • •
• • Six Others Picked Up at Scene, Released • •
• • Star Mae West Says Notes Threatened Acid Attack to 'Ruin Career' • •
• • The Associated Press wrote: Los Angeles, Oct. 8.— Joseph E. P. Dunn, department of justice agent, asked Mae West to come up and see him to-day about a reported extortion plot in which a suspect is being held in custody.
• • Dunn said he attempted 'to get into personal communication' with the buxom actress to-day and that Mae West refused to see him, sending word she would like to have the entire investigation deferred to a later date.
• • The agent, indicating the government liked to act swiftly against extortioners, let Miss West know her presence at his office was desired at the soonest time possible. ...
• • Source: The Associated Press; published on Tuesday, 8 October 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 4,500 blog posts. Wow! 
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started fifteen years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 4,582nd 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 • • at home in 1978 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest