Mae West: Screen Naughtiness

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 1 of 6 parts.
• • "Belle of the Nineties" (Paramount) • •
• • When almost overnight Mae West became an immensely profitable symbol of screen naughtiness by padding her hips and uttering double-entendres without moving her upper lip, Paramount officials decided that she knew what she was doing. They gave her a free hand with her pictures, under the congenial supervision of producer William Le Baron.
• • Mae West and Leo McCarey look over the script • •

• • The completion of her third picture last June coincided precisely with the peak of cinema reform agitation by the Legion of Decency. The Hays office called its original title ("It Ain't No Sin" directed by Leo McCarey) quite "dangerous." The New York State Censors refused to give the picture a license.
• • Thereupon Paramount officials in Manhattan sent the film back to Hollywood for a new title and other changes.
• • Mae West: New Orleans spluttered vehement objection • • ...
• • To be continued.
• • Source: Time Magazine; published on Monday, 24 September 1934.
• • On Friday, 15 April 1927 • •
• • Taking advantage of the legal woes of his sister-in-law Mae West, Beverly's husband Sergei Treshatny obtained a divorce on Friday, 15 April 1927. Well, somebody had a nice weekend, eh?
• • The play "Courting Mae West" dramatizes aspects of Beverly's relationship with Sergei, her divorce, and her hot — cold bond with her older sister Mae.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • Mae West's train passed through Harrisburg, PA the other day but Mae denied herself to autograph seekers and such during the pause at the station. Those who were 'roundabout said that she had "six husky-looking bodyguards."
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "My pictures do not shock me, but I have been genuinely shocked by stories and some scenes that I have seen in the pictures."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • An article on fashion and Hollywood style discussed Mae West.
• • "The Secret to Mae West's Style" • •
• • Cynthia Robins wrote: The wisecracking personality and slightly nasal delivery, by the way, didn't originate with Mae West. So says Marc Wanamaker, a Hollywood film historian and archivist.
• • Cynthia Robins wrote: Marc explains: "Mae got a lot of her style from Texas Guinan, a stage actress and movie actress in the early silents who became a bar owner in New York. A lot of the lines attributed to Mae (and W.C. Fields, for that matter) like 'Never give a sucker an even break' came from Texas Guinan. They all had known each other for years from vaudeville." ...
• • Source: Cynthia Robins, Chronicle Beauty Writer, The San Francisco Chronicle; posted on Sunday, 15 April 2001
• • 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 4,713th 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 1934 • •
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