Mae West: Curve-Kissing Costumes

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 52 of a lengthy piece — — and our final segment of it.
• • Laughing off the “Fatness” ― Mae West’s Body Image and Female Spectators in the Early 1930s • •
• • Mae West: Sequins made costumes sparkle to spotlight curves • •
• • Mio Hatokai wrote: Once Lady Lou comes up on the stage, the camera occasionally turns to the floor, panning to show us the faces of the charmed audience.
• • Mio Hatokai wrote: It is noteworthy that we see a glimpse of the troop’s performance when Chick Clark tries to strangle Lou.
• • Mio Hatokai wrote:Here, Lou is wearing a glittering, revealing sequined dress that emphasizes her voluptuous figure to the maximum.

• • Mio Hatokai wrote: Giving up the idea of killing her, Chick drops his knees, and clings on to her waist, and tearfully begs for her love.  
• • Mio Hatokai wrote: This moment signifies Chick’s submission to the allure of Lou’s body, and in the next shot, we see the dancing troop twirling around, kicking up their legs to a gleeful tune.
• • Mio Hatokai wrote: This inserted shot underlines the victorious power of female body.
• • “You Don’t Have to Have Feet to Be a Dancer” • •
• • Mio Hatokai wrote: In her next film, “I’m No Angel,” Mae West plays a circus performer named Tira. Loved by men, Tira gets luxurious gifts from her admirers.
• • Mio Hatokai’s lengthy excerpts of his article have now ended. However, you can read his entire 22-page article at Waseda University.
• • Source: Academic anthology on film stars released by Waseda University, 2015.
• • On Saturday, 30 December 1933 • •
• • Picturegoer, a British publication sold in movie houses, ran a three part series: "Making Love to Mae West." The first installment ran on 10 December 1933, it continued on Saturday, 30 December 1993, and the final portion appeared on 6 January 1934.
• • Cary Grant's byline appeared. The actor either wrote it or (perhaps) merely signed it.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • The trouble with writing a biography of someone like Mae West is that her image is not only larger than life, it's also big enough to dwarf the portrait you are trying to create. For most of her life, unto the very brink of the grave, she was engaged in imprinting that image of the sexiest of sexy women. Every action, every word, every gesture, off screen and on, seemed to be devoted to making indelible that persona.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: “I have to tell you you're the greatest of all the funny men, Groucho. Whenever you're in L.A. come up and see me."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • An article on a new accessories line mentioned Mae West.
• • "Vintage Glamour: Mae West gets a makeover" • •
• • As uncertain times push consumers to seek comfort in nostalgia, screen legend Mae West is returning in a modern form. Jo Roberts reports.
• • Jo Roberts wrote: Old-style glamour is making a comeback. Legendary Hollywood actress and playwright Mae West is to become the face of a fashion brand — — 29 years after her death. It is hoped the late icon will bring some star quality to a range of bags and wallets, which will be sold in boutique stores from spring 2009.
• • Jo Roberts wrote: Using the well-known faces of a bygone era in advertising is not unusual. Gene Kelly has danced to Singing in the Rain for Volkswagen, while Elvis adorned the television screen for defunct mobile brand One-to-One. But featuring a dead celebrity on new products is less common. Could this manner of generating comforting nostalgia in difficult economic times become a wider trend? ...
• • Source: Brand Strategy Magazine; published on Wednesday, 10 December 2008
• • 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 4,898th 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: https://maewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml  
• • Be sure to bookmark or follow The Mae West Blog
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • onscreen in 1933 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest

Mae West: Body Conscious

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 51 of a lengthy piece.
• • Laughing off the “Fatness” ― Mae West’s Body Image and Female Spectators in the Early 1930s • •
• • Mae West: Her body aroused desire • •
• • Mio Hatokai wrote: The painting is a celebration of the buxom female body, and arouses the desire for the power it represents.
• • Mio Hatokai wrote: As the film progresses, we find more celebratory moments of female body, mostly in relation to vaudeville elements.

• • Mio Hatokai wrote: Before Lou’s first singing act in the film, a troop of bare-legged women sings and dances to a song introducing Lou.
• • Mio Hatokai wrote: This moment not only heightens the spectators’—— both diegetic and otherwise — — expectation for Mae West / Lady Lou’s stage act, but also celebrates the female body in a broader sense.
• • Mae West: Sequined costumes sparkle, spotlight curves • • ...   
• • Mio Hatokai’s lengthy article excerpts will conclude on the next post.
• • Source: Academic anthology on film stars released by Waseda University, 2015.
• • On Wednesday, 29 December 1937 • •
• • Variety did an article on the ill-fated broadcast Mae did on NBC: "Mae West Case Big Dilemma in Washington." This piece was printed in Variety on Wednesday, 29 December 1937.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • Mae West had her own style. The colors of her living room were white, cream, beige, gold, and pale pink, with expansive arrangements of artificial flowers, polar bear rugs, coffee tables with mirrored tops backed in gold, and ornate lamps with bare-breasted women playing lutes.
• • But the pièce de résistance was a nude statue of Mae West’s likeness atop a white-and-gold piano. Her boudoir had mirrors everywhere, including on the ceiling.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "Tired of all those jokes about my figure and my man talk? No, if people expect me to be the same off-stage — why I call that flattery."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • An article printed in People Magazine 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.
• • Brad Darrach wrote: 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." Cary Grant disliked the woman [sic] but "She Done Him Wrong" made him faintly famous as the hunk she hooked with a notorious (and frequently misquoted) line: "Why dontcha come up sometime and see me?"
• • In People Magazine, Brad Darrach wrote: In my opinion, “Topper” [1937] made him a star. ...
• • Source: "Cary Grant Remembered" by Brad Darrach for People Magazine; written 15 December 1986; reposted on 27 April 2011
• • 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 4,897th 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: https://maewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml  
• • Be sure to bookmark or follow The Mae West Blog
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • Mae West onscreen in 1933 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest

Mae West: Evokes Arousal

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 50 of a lengthy piece.
• • Laughing off the “Fatness” ― Mae West’s Body Image and Female Spectators in the Early 1930s • •
• • Mae West: Turns the table on the men • •

• • Mio Hatokai wrote: Rowe goes further by applying Gaylyn Studlar’s argument of masochistic pleasure that men may feel when they give themselves over to the image of a female who evoke the all-powerful mother, saying, “Mae West turns the table on the men, asserting both her power over — and desire for — men.”  
• • Mio Hatokai wrote: However, both Seidman and Rowe fail to mention the effects that this painting brings about on the minds of female spectators.
• • Mio Hatokai wrote: Gaylyn Studlar’s model is also applicable; for women, it evokes the desire for what the powerful pre-Oedipal mother possesses, namely, the breast and the womb.
• • Mae West: Her body aroused desire • • ...    
• • Mio Hatokai’s lengthy article excerpt will continue on the next post.
• • Source: Academic anthology on film stars released by Waseda University, 2015.
• • On Sunday, 28 December 1919 on Broadway • •
• • It was Sunday, 28 December 1919 and Mae West was very busy in Manhattan — — double-booked, in fact.
• • The 26-year-old "firefly of vaudeville" was appearing that night at the Lyric Theatre [on 42nd Street, west of Broadway]. Sharing the Lyric bill with her were these entertainers: Eugene and Willie, the Howard Brothers; Carl McCullough; the 4 Haley Sisters; and "8 other favorite acts."
• • On the same Sunday night, Mae West performed at the 44th Street Theatre [near Broadway]. On the program was the top-billed act — — Sophie Tucker and Her Kings of Syncopation — — along with Ames and Winthrop, Mae West, Riggs and Witchie, and "8 other favorite acts."
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • Mae West said she liked Elvis Presley. "He was raw and the sexiest actor around. He could sing, too.”
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "There is something about big cats that appeals to me."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • Cheat Sheet featured an article on Mae West.
• • Why Did Mae West Turn Down a Role in a Movie with Elvis Presley? • •
• • Laura Dorwart wrote: Mae West also considered her carefully crafted persona to be an important part of her art. That’s why it’s not too surprising that, at the age of 69, Mae West decided to turn down what many would have considered to be an incredible opportunity to star in a film with the King of Rock and Roll. …
• • Source: Showbiz Cheat Sheet; published on Sunday, 24 January 2021
• • 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 4,896th 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: https://maewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml  
• • Be sure to bookmark or follow The Mae West Blog
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • paperback version • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest

Mae West: Object of Desire

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 49 of a lengthy piece.
• • Laughing off the “Fatness” ― Mae West’s Body Image and Female Spectators in the Early 1930s • •
• • Mae West: When a woman’s legs were confidential • •
• • Mio Hatokai wrote: Moreover, by telling us that the film takes place in the age when “legs were confidential,” it prepares us for bosomy figures with tight bodice and ankle-length skirt to come up on the screen.

• • Mio Hatokai wrote: In the opening sequence after the credits, we see men in a busy saloon, drinking and talking, and they soon start discussing the nude portrait of Lady Lou hanging over the bar.
• • Mio Hatokai wrote: Steve Seidman argues that this fixed image presents Lady Lou [Mae West] as an object of desire.
• • Mae West: Turns the table on the men • • ...      
• • Mio Hatokai’s lengthy article excerpt will continue on the next post.
• • Source: Academic anthology on film stars released by Waseda University, 2015.
• • On Monday, 27 December 1937 • •

• • "Every Day's a Holiday" starring Mae West was reviewed (on page 8) for Film Daily on Monday, 27 December 1937.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • Colonel Parker, who managed Elvis, dispatched a few telegrams to Mae West in Hollywood.
• • A Western Union telegram from him (dated Monday, 17 August 1964) reads “Dear Miss West, All best wishes to you on your birthday. And for many more on behalf of Elvis and myself.  Sincerely, The Colonel."
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: “If Kinsey is right, then I have only done what comes naturally, what the average American does secretly, drenching himself in guilt fixations and phobias because of his sense of sinning. I have never felt myself a sinner or committed what I would call a sin.”
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • Cheat Sheet featured an article on Mae West.
• • Why Did Mae West Turn Down a Role in a Movie with Elvis Presley? • •
• • Laura Dorwart wrote: She was asked to take on a supporting role alongside Elvis Presley in ‘Roustabout.’
• • Laura Dorwart wrote: But Mae West was known for maintaining a high degree of creative control over her roles. She didn’t give in to pushback easily. …
• • Source: Showbiz Cheat Sheet; published on Sunday, 24 January 2021
• • 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 4,895th 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: https://maewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml  
• • Be sure to bookmark or follow The Mae West Blog
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • in the movies • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest

Mae West: Sordid Realism

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 48 of a lengthy piece.
• • Laughing off the “Fatness” ― Mae West’s Body Image and Female Spectators in the Early 1930s • •
• • Mae West: To avoid “sordid realism” • •  

• • Mio Hatokai wrote: This Gay Nineties setting, however, worked not only as a camouflage for “sordid realism” that the Hays Office and the SRC worried about, but also as a perfect backdrop to present West’s voluptuous body as a standard.
• • Mio Hatokai wrote: The intertitle after the opening credits reads: “A lusty, brawling, florid decade when there were handlebar on lip and wheel — and legs were confidential!”
• • Mio Hatokai wrote: Only a few minutes into the film, this statement makes it clear that we are about to see plenty of feminine curves in this film, which is quite easy to tell for those with knowledge of women’s fashion in the 1890s.
• • Mae West: A woman’s legs were confidential • • ...    
• • Mio Hatokai’s lengthy article will continue on the next post.
• • Source: Academic anthology on film stars released by Waseda University, 2015.
• • On Friday, 24 December 1937 • •
• • "NBC Bans the Name of Mae West from the Airwaves" • •
• • "Joking References to Adam-Eve Skit are Barred" • •
• • New York, Dec. 23. [AP] Word went out from the National Broadcasting Company today to keep the name of Mae West out of all programs over which it has control.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • "Roustabout" would surely be "a Mae West picture with Elvis as her stooge,” Col. Parker shouted at Hal Wallis.
• • Elvis was bitterly disappointed to learn that Mae West was out, with the role going to Barbara Stanwyck instead.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "Santa Baby, come and trim my Christmas tree."
• • Mae West said: "I never think about age. I'm health-minded. If you take care of your health and you're interested in positive thinkin' you'll be okay."  
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • Cheat Sheet featured an article on Mae West.
• • Why Did Mae West Turn Down a Role in a Movie with Elvis Presley? • •
• • Laura Dorwart wrote: But when called upon to act in the 1964 film Roustabout alongside Elvis Presley, West turned the role down. According to Elvis Presley’s former bodyguard, Sonny West, here’s why she was so opposed to acting with the King. …
• • Source: Showbiz Cheat Sheet; published on Sunday, 24 January 2021
• • 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 4,894th 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: https://maewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml  
• • Be sure to bookmark or follow The Mae West Blog
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • at home • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest

Mae West: Loaded with Lure

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 47 of a lengthy piece.
• • Laughing off the “Fatness” ― Mae West’s Body Image and Female Spectators in the Early 1930s • •
• • Mae West: Her body was “loaded with lure” • •  

• • Mio Hatokai wrote: To think about Mae West’s body image in “She Done Him Wrong,” the film’s setting of the Gay Nineties is of great significance.
• • Mio Hatokai wrote: As touted by the fan magazines, the actress and the perfume are “loaded with lure.”
• • Mio Hatokai wrote: Adopted from the original Broadway play, Diamond Lil, the period setting of 1890s was also a solution suggested by the Studio Relations Committee (SRC), the West Coast representative of the Hays Office, to veil the story in nostalgia and comedy.
• • Note: Mae West's 1928 play was about prostitution, sex trafficking, and white slavery on the Bowery. The 1933 screen version white-washed almost all of these elements.
• • Mio Hatokai wrote: To avoid “sordid realism,” the filmmakers thickened the air of nostalgia by employing period music and introducing the Bowery setting through a lighthearted montage in the opening sequence.
• • Mae West: To avoid “sordid realism” • • ...  
• • Mio Hatokai’s lengthy article will continue on the next post.
• • Source: Academic anthology on film stars released by Waseda University, 2015.
• • On Monday, 23 December 1929 in Los Angeles • •

• • Mae West took her "Diamond Lil" cast to the West Coast where she hoped to meet with Hollywood producers who would help bring the popular stage play to the silver screen. After a booking in San Francisco, Mae moved to her final California destination: Los Angeles.
• • An article about Mae was published in The L.A. Times on Monday, 23 December 1929.
• • On Sunday, 23 December 1984 • •
• • "West and Owney Had a Hot Romance" was a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at the bootlegger and Cotton Club owner Owney Madden, who was Mae's lover, written by film critic Kevin Thomas and printed in The Los Angeles Times on 23 December 1984.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • Is Mae West a destructive influence on minds of today's movie-goers? Read the first part of the life story of the real Mae West starting in this issue of New Movie Magazine.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "My picture 'It Ain't No Sin' is belly laughs about the low-lifes."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • Cheat Sheet featured an article on Mae West.
• • Why Did Mae West Turn Down a Role in a Movie with Elvis Presley? • •
• • Laura Dorwart wrote: She rose to fame penning Broadway plays that enraged conservative critics and scandalized many audiences. Later, as an actor, director, producer, and investor, she created a number of roles for herself as a sex symbol, comedic con artist, and confident femme fatale. …
• • Source: Showbiz Cheat Sheet; published on Sunday, 24 January 2021
• • 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 4,893rd 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: https://maewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml  
• • Be sure to bookmark or follow The Mae West Blog
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • in costume in 1928 and 1933 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest