Mae West: Dan Makarenko

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 7 of 18 segments.
• • Mae West’s Secret Self • •
• • Mae West: Vaudevillian Dan Makarenko was important once • •
• • Aileen St. John Brenon wrote: Therefore, Dan Makarenko used to be seen often around Broadway and 46th Street, New York's mart for vaudevillians.
• • Aileen St. John Brenon wrote: While she was in New York recently, Miss West encountered her old acquaintance of the variety shows, and sensing his predicament, promised to find some film work for him in Hollywood.
• • Aileen St. John Brenon wrote: She did not forget.

• • Aileen St. John Brenon wrote: Makarenko, now in Hollywood, will appear in an important role in her new Paramount picture, "I'm No Angel."
• • Note: Though Makarenko has three film credits (one of these for the Yiddish language feature “Tevya”), he is not listed in any Mae West productions. By 1933, Daniel Makarenko would have been 54 years old.
• • Mae West: Was approached by a former inmate • • …
• • This will be continued on the next post.
• • Source: Screenland; issue dated for October 1933.   
• • On Wednesday, 26 July 1950 • •
• • On Wednesday, 26 July 1950, Guido Deiro, age 63, died after a long illness. He was Mae West's secret Italian husband, at one time a vaudeville headliner, a composer, and a recording artist for Columbia Records. Mae West married Guido Deiro after her relationship with Frank Wallace (husband # 1) fell apart.
• • 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 • •
• • Interviewing Mae West is rather like talking with the Sphinx or warming up to the Mona Lisa. You are so filled with awe at conversing with one of the Wonders of the World, and with admiration of the ultimate in symbolic sex sorcery, that addlement may easily set in.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "My public expects me to be bad."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • The New York Clipper mentioned Mae West.
• • "Answers to Queries" • •
• • Frank Tinney was at the Moulin Rouge (New York Theatre) in "A Winsome Widow." There were also Harry Kelly, Chas. J. Ross, Leon Errol, Chas. King, Elizabeth Brice, Emmy Wehlen, Harry Conor, Sidney Jarvis, The Dolly Twins, and Mae West.  . . .
• • Source: The New York Clipper; published on Wednesday, 20 July 1921
• • 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 5,045th 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 1933 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest

Mae West: Four-a-Day

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 6 of 18 segments.
• • Mae West’s Secret Self • •
• • Mae West: Caught maurauding the larder • •
• • Aileen St. John Brenon wrote: She has learned to size people up at a glance.
• • Aileen St. John Brenon wrote: When the pair had gone, Miss West looked like a naughty school girl caught maurauding the larder.
• • Aileen St. John Brenon wrote: When she was a vaudeville headliner some years ago, a performer named Dan Makarenko [1879 ― 1957] frequently appeared on the same bills with Mae West.  
• • Aileen St. John Brenon wrote: Mae said Makarenko was an important figure then, in the world of the four-a-day.  
• • Aileen St. John Brenon wrote: But entertainment tastes shifted from vaudeville to the deluxe motion picture theatres.
• • Mae West: Vaudevillian Dan Makarenko was important once • •…
• • This will be continued on the next post.
• • Source: Screenland; issue dated for October 1933.   
• • On Thursday, 25 July 1946 • •

• • The famous photo of Mae West with her hand on bodybuilder John Farbotnik's flexed upper arm was taken on Thursday, 25 July 1946 after the muscleman had won the Mr. Chicago title.
• • Notice Mae West's strappy platform high heels. Very very much the 1940s chic.
• • 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 • •
• • Hollywood — William Morris, Jr., Murray Feil, William Perlberg, Albert G. Ruben, Moss Hart, Harold Hecht, Bert Marx, Alexander Hall, Frankie Eastman, and Arthur Lubin at Mae West's Paramount party.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: "As a rule I have most actors around me work faster than I do; they keep the pace while I take my liberties in my timing."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • An article in a Singapore newspaper discussed Mae West
• • "Notes on the Screen" • •
• • Mae West's next film will be "The Queen of Sheba" • •
• • "Close-Up" offered this tidbit to film fans on 25 July 1934: I understand that Mae West's next film will be "The Queen of Sheba." That is not a joke. My information is that "the production will not be burlesque, and the star will give a 'straight' characterisation." Clearly Miss West is ambitious; but her ambition may lead her into trouble.  . . .
• • "Close-Up" added: As the Queen of Sheba she would have to create a very different characterisation. It remains to be seen whether she can do that. Cecil B. deMille at once suggests himself as director. He directed Betty Blythe in the original Queen of Sheba film. …
• • Source: The Argus (Australia), on page 5; published on Wednesday, 25 July 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 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 5,044th 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 July 1946 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest

Mae West: Gus Sun

When MAE WEST was an aspiring vaudevillian, one of the bottom-rung bookers who gave her a start was Gus Sun, born in Ohio on the seventh of October.
• • Gus Sun [7 October 1868 - 1 October 1959] • •
• • Born in Toledo, Ohio on Wednesday, 7 October 1868, Gus had three brothers (John, George, and Pete) and they combined their efforts to train animal acts for circuses.
• • By 1889, Gustave Ferdinand Klotz had assumed the stage name “Gus Sun” and was working as a juggler for the Summerville and Lee Circus of Chicago, IL.
• • While the Gus Sun Booking Agency was largely considered the bottom rung on the Vaudeville circuit, its popularity was undeniable.
• • At one time during the mid-1920s, his circuit included approximately 275 — 300 theaters.
• • Gus Sun was responsible for giving Hollywood legends such as Mae West, Bob Hope, the Marx Brothers, W.C. Fields, Eddie Cantor, Fanny “Funny Girl” Brice, and Will Rogers their start in his shows. Gus Sun also booked Sophie Tucker, Chic Sale, Ted Lewis, Moran and Mack, and numerous other acts. A typical tour would include stops in his native Ohio as well as Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.

• • Gus Sun created the “split week,” which saw an act spend the first half of the week in one city, the second half in another; allowing his patrons more variety.
• • It was said that Gus was so cheap, he sent all his telegrams collect, making his clients pay to hear from him about bookings and schedule changes.
• • Sun made such an impact on the entertainment world that in 1947 Warner Brothers was in talks to make a movie based upon his to life.
• • Billboard reported his death in their issue dated for Monday, 5 October 1959.
• • According to Billboard, on Thursday, 1 October 1959, Sun died at Mercy Hospital in Springfield, Ohio, from complications after a fall that had broken his hip. Gus Sun was about to celebrate his 91st birthday. Internment was in Ferncliff Cemetery.
• • On Saturday, 7 October 1933 • •
• • Motion Picture Herald published a review of "I'm No Angel" in their issue dated for Saturday, 7 October 1933.  The piece was signed by their staffwriter McCarthy.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • A couple of months ago, Mae West sauntered into Arthur Knight's film class at USC, put her hand on her hip, took her time looking around the room, and finally said: "Hello, boys."
• • It was a co-ed class.
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said:  "I don't believe that you need any kind of chemical to get high."
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • An article about a Bushwick maid mentioned Mae West.
• • "Mae West Still Comes on Strong But She Forgot to Pucker" • •
• • Lee Mueller wrote: One of these women, named Elsie, said she worked in that hotel as a cleaning maid and lived over in Brooklyn's Bushwick section where Miss Mae West was born.
• • Lee Mueller wrote: "When I was a girl growing up, Mae West was somethin'," Elsie said. "I heard about her when she was in vaudeville, you know. I remember I told my mother I wanted to grow up to be like Mae West and she slapped me. . ."
• • Source: Syndicated feature written by Lee Mueller, NBA, rpt in The Daily Times (Burlington, N.C.); published on Wednesday, 15 July 1971 
• • 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 16th 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 4,500 blog posts. Wow! 
• • By the Numbers • •
• • The Mae West Blog was started fifteen years ago in July 2004. You are reading the 4,577th 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 • • vaudeville booker Gus Sun • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest

Mae West: Cave Man Lyrics

Though most vaudevillians honed an act and toured with it for years, MAE WEST was always seeking new material. Moreover, she liked singing about rough and tumble types such as a grizzly bear and a cave man. Kendis and Brockman wrote a novelty number that Mae really grooved to.
• • In 1919, James Kendis [1883 — 1946] and James Brockman [1878 — 1967] were located at 145 West 45th Street in New York when they released their song "I Want a Cave Man . .." 
• • It’s interesting that the full title of the song Mae chose was "I Want a Cave Man Like William Hart — — The Movie Star" [words and music by James Kendis and James Brockman; arrangement by Freda Applebaum; published and copyrighted in June 1919]. Though "I Want a Cave Man" is a number ostensibly about Bill Hart, a Western film star, the lyrics reveal very little association with Hart except the fact that it would capitalize on his famous name.

• • Struggling in vaudeville after splitting with Guido Deiro, an accordionist who was a bonafide headliner, Mae revealed her restlessness by frequently changing her act, her costumes, and her accompanist. Nevertheless, there was something about this “Cave Man” song that made her stick with it.
• • In August 1920, Mae West opened at the Colonial with a new eighteen-minute vaudeville act titled “Songalog,” in which she performed this song and others.
• • In 1922, she was rehearsing the same number for the ill-fated “Ginger Box Review.”
• • In 1923, she formed a trio called “Mae West and Company” and selected it (again) for their repertoire. 
• • In his biography "Double Entendre: The Parallel Lives of Mae West and Rae Bourbon," Patrick C. Byrne described this song as "highly suggestive."
• • Here’s an excerpt from the lyrics.  See what you think as you imagine Mae performing it.
• • "I Want a Cave Man Like William Hart — — The Movie Star" [1919] • •
• • • • When Kitty was a little girl, one of her greatest joys
• • • • was not to play with dolls or toys but run around with all the boys.
• • • • And as Kitty grew older, Kitty grew bolder,
• • • • she told her Pa and Ma, “The fellow I marry must be
• • • • someone who'll make a big fuss over me.”
• • • • Chorus • • • •
• • • • I want a cave man, I want a brave man
• • • • who will love me thro' and thro'
• • • • I want a rough man, but not a tough man,
• • • • who'll fight for and protect me and fondle me too.
• • • • Don't like a small man, I like a tall man
• • • • To him I'd be some loving wife.
• • • • Oh, gee, I hate those guys who waste my time and "mush" me,
• • • • I'd love somebody big and strong enough to crush me
• • • • Take it from me, I want a cave man
• • • • Then I'd be satisfied with life. I want a Star.  . . . et cetera.
• • On Thursday, 25 November 1943 in NYC • •
• • Bouquets of praise did not shower Mae West after her film "The Heat Is On" was released right before Christmas in December 1943. Trading on The Big Apple's fondness for the Brooklyn bombshell, this ill-fated project had a special New York City premiere on Thursday, 25 November 1943.
• • Overheard in Hollywood • •
• • Australia's Savoy Theatre announced "Maurice Chevalier, Mae West now showing together on the same programme!!”
• • In Her Own Words • •
• • Mae West said: “The dumbest woman in the world can outsmart a man when she has to.”
• • Mae West said: “Since man started giving woman any sort of an even break, the female of our species has gotten ahead swiftly.”
• • Quote, Unquote • •
• • The B.B.C. mentioned Mae West.
• • Why do we say ‘it’s all gone pear-shaped’?
• • BBC History Magazine wrote: But the phrase pear-shaped really took off in popularity in the 1940s – in the 1940 film My Little Chickadee starring WC Fields and Mae West, the line, “I have some very definite pear-shaped ideas” appears – which gives a clue as to where it came from.  ...
• • Source: BBC History Magazine; published on Wednesday, 23 October 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 4,352nd 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 • • touring in variety in 1915 • •
• • Feed — — http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaeWest
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