Mae West: Tongue-in-Cheek

The greatest "glamour girl" was MAE WEST. Then came Carole Lombard. And then Dietrich. At any rate, according to Paramount's view, noted Marlene Dietrich in her delightful memoir. And you can hear that good-natured, tongue-in-cheek amusement rippling through many pages in her book.
• • Marlene Dietrich added:  MGM, of course, also had its glamour girls in Jean Harlow, Greta Garbo, Joan Crawford. ... At that time there were no "sex symbols." In my opinion this notion first came into being with Marilyn Monroe. Sex was then taboo.
• • "We must do all that only and exclusively with the eyes," Mae West explained to me one day. And we all stuck to this. There was no scene in which we undressed or appeared semi-nude, nothing improper. I must confess I prefer that method to what you see on the screen nowadays. I don't like it, and I'm sure the public shares my dislike. ...
• • Source: "Marlene Dietrich — My Life" by Marlene Dietrich [Weidenfeld and Nicolson Ltd; 1st UK Edition; April 1989].
• • Mae West Movie Trivia • •
• • In "Myra Breckinridge" [1970] starring Mae West, that was Marlene Dietrich's singing you heard offscreen. The song was "The Man's in the Navy." Raise your hand if you knew that.
• • James Eagles [10 September 1907 — 15 December 1959] • •

• • Born in Norfolk, Virginia on Tuesday, 10 September 1907, James Crump Eagle entered the screen trade in 1928 when he was 21.  After he had been cast in bit parts in half-a-dozen films, someone added an "s" to his name.  Modest featured roles and mostly minor participation in motion pictures turned out to be his lot. 
• • In "She Done Him Wrong" [1933], starring Mae West, James Eagles had a small role as Pete.
• • Those fleeting actions that required a eye-blink of screen time (i.e., the messenger, bus boy, bell hop, radio operator, sailor, soda jerk, and henchman) sum up a career that spanned from 1928 — 1950. His Hollywood resume has 53 films to his credit.
• • James Eagles died in Los Angeles on Tuesday, 15 December 1959.  He was 52.
• • On Friday, 15 December 1933 • •
• • The release date for "She Done Him Wrong" in France was on Friday, 15 December 1933. In that country, the film's title was "Lady Lou."
• • On Wednesday, 15 December 1937 • •
• • An article "Mae West Script Angers Listeners" ran in The Hollywood Reporter in their issue dated for Wednesday, 15 December 1937.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "I told them . . . you can't take white people and play black music."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • An article on Cary Grant mentioned Mae West.
• • Brad Darrach wrote: By 1930 he was playing leads on Broadway, and in 1932 Paramount signed him to a five-year contract at $450 a week and changed his name to Cary Grant. In a year Cary Grant did bit parts in seven movies. Then one day Mae West got an eyeful of his sultry good looks. "If he can talk," she's supposed to have said, "I'll take him."  ...
• • Source: Flashback Column: "Cary Grant Remembered" by Brad Darrach for People Magazine; written on Monday, 15 December 1986
• • By the Numbers • • 
• • The Mae West Blog was started eight years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 2516th 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:http://maewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml
Mae West
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • 1933 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest
NYC  Mae West.

Mae West: Joseph Grant

MAE WEST was sketched in 1933 by Joseph Grant, whose birth and death occurred during the month of May.

• • Born in New York, NY on 15 May 1908, Joseph Grant was an illustrator and an animator who collaborated with Walt Disney, often serving in the capacity of designer and writer.  In 1933, Joe Grant was 25 when he was hired at Disney Studios.  "Mirror, mirror on the wall!  Who's the fairest of them all?" asked the Wicked Stepmother — — one of Grant's creations — — in "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" [1937].

• • According to his bio, Joe Grant played a central creative role in "Pinocchio" and "Fantasia" (two projects in 1940) and co-wrote "Dumbo" [1941] and "Lady and the Tramp" [1955]. Though he left Disney in the 1950s, he returned to consult on their popular animated films such as "Beauty and the Beast" [1991] and "The Lion King" [1994].

• • His fascinating portrait of Mae West as Diamond Lil in 1933 was done in India ink, gouache, and pencil on paper.  This bold and very striking drawing is now in the possession of the National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution.

• • Joseph Grant died in Glendale, California in May — — on Friday, 6 May 2005.

• • Rudolph Valentino [6 May 1895 — 23 August 1926] • •

• • When she was 33 years old, Mae West adopted Rudolph Valentino as her spiritual adviser.

• • On Sunday, 25 July 1926, Mae met Valentino at Tommy Guinan's speakeasy.

• • Since Mae West was charmed by the vibrant 31-year-old Italian stallion, she was stunned by the abrupt end to his life that occurred one month later when the actor was only 31. Mae and Texas Guinan suspected a jealous rival had poisoned him.

• • The silent film star died at the Polyclinic in New York City on 23 August 1926.

• • On Monday, 6 May 1935 in Time Magazine • •

• • Milwaukee clerk Myrtle Lorraine Sands, while helping to re-index official records in Wisconsin, chanced upon a marriage certificate showing that Mae West had married a fellow on 11 April 1911. The groom was Frank Wallace. Was that 1911 bride the Paramount Pictures movie star herself?

• • Already famous for her wiggling and shimmying, Mae tried every move to wriggle out of this tight spot by emphatically denying it all. However, "the great fact-finding machinery of the U.S. Press began to hum," according to the May 6th, 1935 issue of Time Magazine.

• • When New York reporters located the scrawny, unprepossessing vaudevillian, who was staying "in a theatrical hotel with his dancing partner, Trixie LeMae," Frank Wallace was quite happy to talk.  He affirmed the marriage was real. "The nerve of a brass monkey," was Mae West's response.

• • On Saturday, 6 May 1944 • •

• • Syndicated columnist Earl Wilson reviewed "Catherine Was Great" and his comments were printed in the Los Angeles Daily News on Saturday, 6 May 1944.

• •  On Thursday, 6 May 1976 • •

• • In conjunction with the news that "Sextette" starring Mae West was going into production, a light went on in City Hall.  Tom Bradley, mayor of Los Angeles, announced that he was creating a special Mae Day and issuing a proclamation in the movie queen's honor. Bradley presented West with a scroll validating her "valuable and important role" in the movie industry on Thursday, 6 May 1976.

• • In Her Own Words • •

• • Mae West said: "The wolf at my door? Why I remember when he came right into my room and had pups." [movie dialogue for Lady Lou in "She Done Him Wrong"]

• • Quote, Unquote • •

• • An article on a theft mentioned Mae West.

• • Lisa Rein wrote:  A colorful radio is displayed on nearly every horizontal surface. Among them are a set that doubles as a humidor and another, called a “Mae West,” that has a design feature “you could put a brassiere on,” J. David Goldin said with a laugh.  . . .

• • Source: Article: "In National Archives thefts, a radio detective gets his man" written by Lisa Rein for the Washington Post; published on 2 May 2012 

• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started seven years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 2292nd 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:http://maewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml
Mae West
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • 1933 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest
NYCMae West.
 

Mae West: Pasadena Double Feature

MAE WEST is headed to the Old Pasadena Film Festival this month.
• • According to Steve Mulheim, who staged this year's femme-in-focus film fest — — which will be offered at One Colorado and other nearby locations — — this free outdoor annual event that runs for three weeks is the biggest cinema series of its kind in California.
• • Mulheim, the president and CEO of the Old Pasadena Management Association, said the organizers decided to celebrate some of the first ladies of filmdom. Kicking off the fun at 8:30 PM on Thursday, 8 July 2010 was Diane Keaton starring in "Annie Hall" [1977]. Additionally, audiences are being treated to special enhancements such as a spirited live silent movie accompaniment by the Malibu Coast Chamber Orchestra. As viewers watch Mary Pickford shake her curls through "Willful Peggy" (and a number of shorties) on Friday, July 9th, the musicians will provide a novel soundtrack.
• • Crowd-pleasing selections will be screened every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday through the end of July 2010.
• • The star vehicles for actresses will include these memorable screen gems: Mae West in "She Done Him Wrong"; Katherine Hepburn in "Bringing Up Baby"; Bette Davis in "All About Eve"; Marilyn Monroe in "How to Marry a Millionaire"; Meryl Streep in "Death Becomes Her"; Barbra Streisand in "The Way We Were"; and others.
• • • • Mae West Double Feature • • • •
• • On Friday, 30 July 2010 movie buffs should prepare a generous bag of popcorn for the Mae West Double Feature.
• • Here's the description provided by the Pasadena organizers who made the schedule:
• • • • "She Done Him Wrong" (1933) — — Starring Mae West and Cary Grant, "She Done Him Wrong" follows New York singer and nightclub owner Lady Lou after her former boyfriend escapes from jail convinced that she has been unfaithful. Written by Ms. West about the story of famed Diamond Lil, She Done Him Wrong is on the American Film Institute’s list of 100 Greatest Comedies, and contains some of Mae’s most famous lines, pushing the censors of the time to their limits!
• • • • "I’m No Angel" (1933) — — Again starring Mae West and Cary Grant, carnival dancer Tira devises a shocking new act which gets her to New York and into the company of a bevy of rich young socialite men in "I’m No Angel." Written by Mae West, "I’m No Angel" maintained her reputation with cinematic censors.
• • WHERE: One Colorado Courtyard, 41 Hugus Alley — — on 30 July 2010 at 8:30pm. Info: 626.356.9725.
• • Tell them you heard about it on the MAE WEST BLOG.
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
________
Source:http://maewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml

Mae West
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • as Tira the incomparable, 1933 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest
NYC
Mae West.