Mae West: Vehement Poem

MAE WEST’s plump, curvaceous body was a vital element in her comedy. Academics have emphasized that “excessive body is one of the qualities of female unruliness, suggesting that she is unwilling or unable to control her physical appetites.” Japanese film historian Mio Hatokai discusses how Hollywood publicists and fan zines responded to this “fatness” in 1933. This is Part 18 of a lengthy piece.
• • Laughing off the “Fatness” ― Mae West’s Body Image and Female Spectators in the Early 1930s • •
• • Mae West: “The Audience Talks Back” • •
• • A poem by Mae West fan Mrs. Elizabeth J. Hill in Photoplay • •

• • Mio Hatokai wrote: Among them is a rhyming poem from Mrs. Elizabeth J. Hill, that goes like this: “She done him wrong,” and some folks say / “She’s no angel, that gal called Mae” / But she has “It” in every curve / And boy, those hips, how they can swerve! / Her hair it shimmers, her legs are neat / She’s the neatest gal you can meet / Her eyes are naughty but still quite nice / And does she glitter with all that ice! / Her clothes are stunning. Not quite discreet? / Well, neither are her charms effete.
• • Mae West’s body praised in detail in a “vehement poem” • •
• • Mio Hatokai wrote: This vehement poem praises Mae West’s body in detail, and as the third and fourth verses suggest, what attracts her most is also West’s curviness.
• • Mio Hatokai wrote: On the same page in Photoplay, however, we find a more cynical view of Mae West.
• • Mae West: Oversexed? • • ...  
• • Mio Hatokai’s lengthy article will continue on the next post.
• • Source: Academic anthology on film stars released by Waseda University, 2015.
• • On Tuesday, 11 November 1913 • •
• • Mae West's vaudeville routine was noticed by an entertainment critic for the Philadelphia Times, where some quotes appeared on Tuesday, 11 November 1913.
• • On Friday, 11 November 1932 • •
• • Behind the scenes, a tug-of-war was going on in Tinseltown. On one hand, Will Hays argued that Mae West would bring blatant indecency to the silver screen. On the other hand, studio executives sensed there was money to be made.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • Marybeth Hamilton gave a lecture "The Rise of Mae West" in London.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: “You see the speakeasy influence. Sit at a table, dearie, I always say. And don't forget your frills and ruffles and anything else that feminizes you."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • A newspaper columnist mentioned Mae West.
• • Louis Sobol wrote: Johnnie Ray travels backstage of the Latin Quarter to pose for a few camera shots with Mae West. ...
• • Source: The Desert Sun; published on Monday, 1 November 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 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 4,800 blog posts. Wow! 
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started seventeen years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 4,863rd 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 1933 • •
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