It was the MAE WEST motion picture, “Belle of the Nineties” [1934] that helped Joe Breen consolidate his position as an administrator, according to the authors of “The Dame in the Kimono.” What a fascinating insider’s look. This is Part 1 of 9 parts, a brief excerpt from their 416-page book.
• • Leff and Simmons wrote: Roman Catholics referred to Breen as “our man.”
• • Leff and Simmons wrote: Father Lord wanted Hays to unleash the Production Code watchdogs, to add “those teeth about which he so loudly talked in times past” and have a “reliable man” make them bite.
• • Leff and Simmons wrote: Joe Breen, whom Father Lord recommended, was ready.
• • Leff and Simmons wrote: On May 12, Breen announced that the superintendent of Catholic schools in southern California had suggested that local club women “boycott unwholesome and immoral motion pictures.”
• • Leff and Simmons wrote: An indifferent Paramount had produced “Belle” to snare audiences that had flocked to “She Done Him Wrong” and “I’m No Angel.”
• • Mae West: Her opinion of “Belle” • • ...
• • This will be continued on the next post.
• • Source: “The Dame in the Kimono: Hollywood, Censorship, and the Production Code” by Leonard J. Leff and Jerold L. Simmons [University Press of Kentucky, Paperback; 6 July 2001].
• • On Tuesday, 11 April 1911 in Milwaukee • •
• • Mae West’s Marriage Certificate Found • •
• • According to Time Magazine: Myrtle Lorraine Sands, a young woman who used to work in Los Angeles, where she had fun spotting film folk in public places, is now in charge of re-indexing the records of births, marriages and deaths in the office of the County Register of Deeds, Milwaukee. One day last fortnight, when she happened upon Marriage Certificate No. 40553, Myrtle Sands's eyes bulged, her heart jumped. The certificate proclaimed the union of Frank Wallace and Mae West, of Brooklyn, N. Y., April 11, 1911... [Time, 6 May 1935].
• • Mae described herself as a kiss-less bride.
• • Shortly after, Wallace wed another woman and Mae married the Italian accordionist Guido Deiro.
• • After a lot of legal wrangling, bids for alimony and $1,000 a month "maintenance" (by penniless Frank), and heaps of bad publicity, Mr. and Mrs. Wallace divorced officially on Thursday, 23 July 1942.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • Mae West hails from Brooklyn and she is neither old nor young. Frankly, Mae's ageless.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "All my motion pictures have made big money."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • Newspaper coast to coast covered Mae West’s indignation over acid threats on film stars.
• • Note: Mae West had shown her agitation and anger in numerous news interviews she gave following the threats about acid being thrown in her face.
• • As one example, Mae West told the news media: "It's time someone in Hollywood — — speaking very frankly — — showed what is known as intestinal fortitude. They threaten us in the picture colony under penalty of having acid thrown in our face. And they don't stop at acid threats either. They threaten to kill. It's time someone called their hand. And if it has to be me, I'll do it."
• • Mae West announced that she would acquire an armored limo to protect Jim Timony and herself. …
• • Source: Associated Press rpt by The Leader-Post [Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada]; published on Saturday, 24 February 1934
• • 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 4,969th 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 • • costumed in 1934 • •
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