Mae West: Almost Kissing

MAE WEST was a soft touch for a hard luck story. Mae rarely discussed her generosity in an interview, however, which makes this seldom seen piece in Screenland worth reading. This is Part 9 of 18 segments.
• • Mae West’s Secret Self • •
• • Mae West: Invited her to get warm in her dressing room • •
• • Aileen St. John Brenon wrote: “Miss West was kind enough to listen to me and immediately invited me to her dressing-room.”
• • Aileen St. John Brenon wrote: "Once there, I told Mae West my story. She didn't ask me any questions, but simply said she understood. She gave me $10, and let me sit in her dressing-room to get warm. She told me if I ever needed any more to come to see her.”
• • Aileen St. John Brenon wrote: "I wonder if Mae West realized how great a sum that $10 seemed to me! I left her after almost kissing her hands in gratitude. And since that night, things have seemed so much better."
• • Mae West: Unless you’re bad, you don’t get a break • • …
• • This will be continued on the next post.
• • Source: Screenland; issue dated for October 1933.   
• • On Wednesday, 28 July 1954 in Variety • •

• • Variety was awestruck by "this magnificent herd of males" and such a refreshing new concept. The article "Odds Are Sex-to-1 Mae West Makes Her Point in Las Vegas" was printed on page 3 in Variety on Wednesday, 28 July 1954.
• • July 2004: Mae West Blog launches • •
• • What are we up to, writing about the Brooklyn-born bombshell for eighteen years now?
• • We’re here to keep Mae mavens up to date, correct errors, celebrate each revival of a play she wrote, post the latest Westian stage and book reviews. And answer our fan mail!
• • The light’s still on. Come up and see Mae every day.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • Had Mae West been available for the part that Ethel Merman played, there probably would have been even more complaints.  
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Reflecting upon her divorce from Frank Wallace, Mae West noted this about hastily tying the knot in 1911: "It was later proved to be some knot. The judge must have learned it from a sailor."
• • "He'll always remain in the wastebasket of my memories," Mae West quipped on learning of the death of her former bridegroom Frank Wallace.
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • An article about a theatre mentioned Mae West.
• • "Mae West Sold Out Here" • •
• • Kelly Lincoln wrote: Before the NJPAC was the Paramount Theater. Opened in 1895 as the Newark Vaudeville house, it was converted in 1917 by Newark's own architect, Thomas W. Lamb into a movie palace, with a neo-classical interior that became known as "Adamesque."
• • Kelly Lincoln wrote: In 1932, it was renamed the Paramount. It operated as a movie house until 1 April 1986, when a 500% increase in insurance forced the 2003 seat Newark theater and the Adams theater to close.
• • Kelly Lincoln wrote: Among the stars that trod the boards here was Mae West, according to Variety.   ...
• • Source: The Examiner; published on Wednesday, 28 July 2010
• • 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 18th anniversary • • 
• • Thank you for reading, sending questions, and posting comments during these past eighteen years. Not long ago, we entertained 3,497 visitors. And we reached a milestone recently when we completed 5,000 blog posts. Wow! 
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started eighteen years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 5,047th 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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• • Be sure to bookmark or follow The Mae West Blog
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • in 1954 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest

Mae West: Acted in the “Olio”

MAE WEST met her fans on the silver screen and between the pages of the day’s popular fan magazines, all of whom skated dizzily on the surface of facts and never did any fact-checking. This is the first section, Part 1, segment 30 of 32.
• • "The Real Mae West" • •
• • Mae West: Took part in the “olio” • •

• • Aileen St. John Brenon wrote: As a member of the stock company, when there were no child parts in the plays, she was called upon to take part in what are known in old-fashioned plays as "olios," or vaudeville acts in between the scenes of the plays.
• • Aileen St. John Brenon wrote: She sang popular songs and gave her imitations, being what was known on the billboards as a "coon shouter."  
• • Aileen St. John Brenon wrote: It was at this stage of the game, she avers, that she learned to roll her eyes, a propensity, however, that had to be curbed when she became, for the sake of drama, "Little Eva" or "Little Red Riding Hood."
• • Mae West: Discovered she liked being around boys • • ...   
• • This will be continued on the next post.
• • Source: The New Movie Magazine; issue dated for June 1934.
• • On Sunday, 27 June 1954 • •

• • On Sunday night, 27 June 1954, Mae West delighted the Las Vegas club goers — — and the female patrons stormed the stage — — when the bodybuilders in "The Mae West Revue" filed into the Sahara's Congo Room.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • Mae West was all about breaking rules. Mae made her film debut at age 40 in the 1932 “Night After Night,” in a supporting role for which she wrote her own dialogue.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "Sex is emotion in motion."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • A trade magazine mentioned Mae West and Mike Todd.
• • Mike Todd has penciled in "Catherine Was Great," the Mae West opus for late June. …
• • Source: Billboard Magazine; published on Saturday, 3 June 1944
• • 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 5,000 blog posts. Wow! 
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started seventeen years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 5,024th 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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• • Be sure to bookmark or follow The Mae West Blog
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • at The Sahara in 1954 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest

Mae West: Celebrity Persona

MAE WEST met her fans on the silver screen and between the pages of the day’s popular fan magazines, all of whom skated dizzily on the surface of facts and never did any fact-checking. This is the first section, Part 1, segment 10 of 32.
• • "The Real Mae West" • •
• • Mae West: Remarkable and fascinating • •
• • Aileen St. John Brenon wrote: Mae West, the woman, is just as remarkable, and just as fascinating a human being as Mae West the celebrity.
• • Aileen St. John Brenon wrote: But totally different and at opposite poles are Mae West the star, and Mae West the woman.  
• • Aileen St. John Brenon wrote: And it is the woman as I have seen her that I want to introduce to you.
• • Aileen St. John Brenon wrote: You all know, Mae West the star, whether you live in Hyde Park, London, Charlottenberg, Berlin, or Chillicothe, Ohio.  
• • Mae West: Her philosophy • • ...      
• • This will be continued on the next post.
• • Source: The New Movie Magazine; issue dated for June 1934.
• • On Tuesday 30 May 1950 • •
• • On Tuesday 30 May 1950, Mae West made the front page in Australia. This tantalizing tidbit was featured in The Argus and elsewhere.

• • Las Vegas, Monday: Mae West will open soon a gambling restaurant — casino in Las Vegas. Her lawyer Charles Catt, announced today that Mae West would be a featured attraction in the casino's floor shows.
• • Note: The "Mae West Revue" was not assembled until a few years later. However, it's clear Mae was mulling over her prospects with her manager and her lawyer. Aware that there were opportunities for live entertainment in Nevada's big rooms, the performer was already putting out feelers in 1950.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • The Legion of Decency has had its effect. Mae West will finally come forth in "I'm a Lady," leaving behind her "I'm No Angel," "She Done Him Wrong" and the like.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "Harry Richman was one of my pianists. And so was Whispering Jack Smith."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • Motion Picture Herald mentioned Mae West.
• • Did the Hays Office See It? • •  
• • Balaban and Katz's theatre advertising copy announcing the opening of Mae West's "Belle of the Nineties" in Chicago said that it is "Paramount's Picture Presented Exactly as Produced."  
• • If this advertising is truthful, then we are all wrong in our recollections of Paramount having returned the original version to its studio in Hollywood for a scrubbing and toning down that necessitated more than a few retakes. …
• • Source: Motion Picture Herald; published on Saturday, 29 September 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 5,000 blog posts. Wow! 
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started seventeen years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 5,004th 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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• • Be sure to bookmark or follow The Mae West Blog
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • onstage with Louise Beavers in July 1954 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest

Mae West: Guido's Gone

By way of her Italian accordionist husband, MAE WEST acquired a step-son, of sorts. She met the boy for the first time in 1938, when he was 10 years old. Formerly a vaudeville headliner, Guido Deiro was hit hard by the Great Depression, so Mae generously financed this child’s education and their relationship blossomed.
• • R. Mark Desjardins reviewed his memoir for The Mae West Blog during August 2019.
• • Guido Roberto Deiro’s title was: “Mae West and the Count — — Love and Loss on the Vaudeville Stage” [2019].
• • In this exclusive post, R. Mark Desjardins has composed Deiro’s obituary.
• • Guido Robert Deiro [18 February 1938 — 12 September 2019] • •

• • R. Mark Desjardins wrote: It is with great sadness I learnt of the passing of Guido Roberto Deiro, author of  "Mae West And the Count," which detailed the secret  marriage of his father to Mae West. It is not lost on me that his beloved wife Joan telephoned me with the news on November 22nd, the 39th anniversary of the passing of Mae West. 
• • R. Mark Desjardins wrote: Guido was first introduced to Mae West by his father, Count Guido Deiro when he was 10 years old, in 1938. When Mae returned to Las Vegas in March of 1959, Guido had opened up a small gym: Globe Health Studios. It was the only gym in town at that time equipped with heavy enough free weights and barbells for Mae's troupe to maintain their strength training regimen.

Guido and Mae with family, 1913

• • R. Mark Desjardins wrote: George Eifferman, who eventually won the title of Mr. Universe 1962, got the musclemen in Mae's Sahara act to work out there during their four week booking.
• • R. Mark Desjardins wrote:  When Mae heard about this, she arranged for Guido, then 21 years old, to come and see her after her performance. 
• • R. Mark Desjardins wrote: According to Guido, Mae West surveyed him from head to foot and stated, "You look a lot like your father, 'cept for his eyes." 
• • R. Mark Desjardins wrote: Guido was able to educate the world about the great accomplishments of his father. With the publication of the story about his father and Mae West in the Spring of 2019, Guido Jr. had achieved his goal. Guido has inspired me to finish the last lap of my own Mae West manuscript. During our brief friendship that spanned five months, we spoke several times for hours at a time on the telephone, as well as shared numerous emails. 
• • R. Mark Desjardins wrote: I will greatly miss his electrifying spirit and words of support.
• • Guido Roberto Deiro was born on Friday, 18 February 1938 in Reno, Nevada. Abruptly, he passed away on Thursday, 12 September 2019 in Las Vegas.
• • Photo of Guido, age 21, taken by body-builder George Eifferman. Photo-collage courtesy of Mr. Desjardins.
• • On Monday, 28 November 1932 • •
• • At the MPPDA board meeting on Monday, 28 November 1932, Adolph Zukor made promises to Will Hays that only "suitable material" would find its way into the script and the "Diamond Lil" title was already gone.
• • On Thursday, 28 November 2019 • • 
• • Happy Thanksgiving today to all of our dear readers. • •
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • Mae West was featured in the animated cartoon "The Coo-Coo Nut Grove" [1936]. The script took the audience on an amusing tour of a fashionable Hollywood night club.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "You've got to keep everything under control."
• • Mae West said: "That picture was a mistake from the word 'Shoot!'''
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • Town and Country mentioned Mae West, who was shown reading the magazine in one of her films.
• • Town and Country’s editorial assistant Lucia Tonelli wrote: Bette Midler came dressed as legendary actress, singer, and playwright Mae West, wearing a striking feather-and-beaded pink ballgown with an equally extravagant matching headpiece.
• • Lucia Tonelli wrote: Michael Kors and husband Lance LePere judged the costume contest  . . .
• • Source: Town and Country; published on Friday, 1 November 2019
• • 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 15th 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 4,300 blog posts. Wow!  

• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started fifteen years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 4,355th 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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Mae West
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • obituary in 2019 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest
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