Mae West: Lil Fulfilled

The summer air was feverish with applause during July 1928 when MAE WEST was riding a big box office wave at the Royale Theatre.
• • Though this Broadway showplace [located at 242 West 45th Street] had first hung out its shingle during January 1927, and has become known for long-running musicals, a non-musical was the theatre's first bonanza: Mae West’s "Diamond Lil," which wriggled in on 9 April 1928 and maintained its sunny side up for over 170 performances.
• • Time Magazine took its temperature [issue dated Monday, 23 April 1928].
• • Time's theatre critic, sparing no flair, admitted Lil had his heart at hello: "Diamond Lil" — — Propped up under the armpits by a dress that might have been designed by the stage carpenter, Mae West played the role that she had written about a bygone queen of Manhattan's underworld. Diamond Lil was a harlot whose heart was as big and golden as the enormous swan shaped bed that stood in her elaborate cubicle above Gus Jordan's saloon and brothel. None the less, she was hardboiled; when a Salvation Army captain came to save her soul, she planned to seduce him and when a lady threatened a double cross, Diamond Lil stabbed her in the tenderloin district. Despite her efforts, Gus Jordan, the Bowery boss, is caught eventually, for white slave trafficking. The Salvation Army captain, really a member of the police force, is his captor; Diamond Lil cuddles into his arms at the end saying, "Boy, I knew you could be had.''
• • Actress West plays her heroine with an eloquent and minatory calm, which contrasts well with the chryselephantine magnificence of her appearance. There are old-time tough songs, outmoded slang words ("moll," "dick," "corset"), and singing waiters, one of whom yodels, in the musty barroom, the same song with which he recently amused Manhattan cabaret patrons. "Diamond Lil" is an entertaining melodrama, concluded Time's man on the aisle.
• • You just don't hear critics uttering "minatory" these days, do you? Minatory — — means of a menacing or threatening nature
• • And how about that $25 phrase "the chryselephantine magnificence"? Chryselephantine — — (adjective) means made of, or overlaid with, gold and ivory, as certain objects made in ancient Greece.
• • The Royale Theatre on West 45th will be one of the tour stops on 16 August 2009.
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
• • Walking Tour: "Gaudy Girls on The Gay White Way: Mae West & Texas Guinan in the Theatre District"
• • When: 4:00 PM on Sunday — — 16 August 2008 — — rain or shine
• • Meet: Shubert Alley, 44th Street, West of Broadway, New York, NY 10036
• • Price: $10 [this walking tour lasts about 90 minutes]
• • Subway: N or R [BMT] train to West 42nd Street; 1 [IRT] train to Times Square
• • Previous walking tour photos can be seen on the Mae West Blog — — MaeWest.blogspot.com.
• • For more details, do read this blog and/ or post any questions.
___________
Source:http://courtingmaewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml

Courting Mae West
Mae West
• • Photo: Mae West • • onstage in 1928 as Diamond Lil • •
NYC
Mae West.

Mae West: November 1927

MAE WEST could not have been thrilled during November 1927. The New York Times planted a bitter raspberry with their review of her latest play (published on Saturday the 5th of November 1927). Written by Mae West, age 34, and her long-time collaborator, the production opened on Friday evening 4 November 1927 — — and lasted for merely nineteen performances. Mae West appeared in a bathing suit, a sight which brought out the spite and malice in her longtime detractors. In other words, this project was a turkey that never made it as far as Thanksgiving.
• • "THE WICKED AGE" TAME — —
• • Mae West Wins a Bathing Beauty Contest in Her New Play.
• • Although it is milder than "Sex" and will probably not cause Mr. Banton and the gendarmes to come on the run, Mae West's newest contribution to dramatic art, staged last night at Daly's Sixty-third Street Theatre, will doubtless stand as the low point of the theatrical season of 1927-28.
• • "The Wicked Age" is the name Miss West has given it, and according to its own admission it is a satirical comedy, in which case "Bringing Up Father" is simply mordant and biting irony. [Ouch!]
• • Dragging through the evening until nearly midnight, "The Wicked Age" seemed at its first New York performance incredible cheap and vulgar trash, with only such minor amusement as was to be derived from watching the exhibitionistic antics of Miss West as a faintly redeeming feature.
• • The bathing beauty contest as practiced along the Jersey Coast was the pressing sociological matter upon which the author-actress had her say.
• • This permitted her to introduce a contest scene in the second act in which, a blithe spirit of the younger generation, she captured first honors. The third act, up to 11:35, was devoted to . . .
— — Excerpt: — —
• • Drama Review: "The Wicked Age" Tame
• • Published in: The New York Times
• • Published on: 5 November 1927 — — Saturday
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
• • "Courting Mae West" is based on true events in the life of Mae West during the Prohibition Era. The first scene is set in a Greenwich Village speakeasy during December 1926; the finale is set in Hollywood during December 1932.
___________
Source:http://courtingmaewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml

Courting Mae West
Mae West
• • Photo: Mae West • • 1927 • •
NYC
Mae West.

Mae West: Annual Gala

The Frisky Factor Increases
Secrets of an Actress Are Exposed in August

New York, NY (PRWEB) July 21, 2007 – – Calling all FRISK-a-teers! The wild WEST side of Mae West will be apparent on August 17, 2007 during the celebration of the Annual Mae West Gala in New York City. Secretive and image-conscious, the Brooklyn bombshell carefully covered up her private life, which included frequent partying at speakeasies, a secret marriage to an Italian accordionist, séances behind curtains, and multi-racial love affairs.
• • Next month, on the actress's birthday [Friday evening on August 17], the Annual Mae West Gala will focus on Manhattan's busy theatre district, where Mae's West Side Story will unfold in over a dozen sites between West 50th Street and West 63rd Street.
• • Participants will come up to see three addresses where the blonde bombshell hung her famous hats along with the former speakeasies where she rendezvoused with Rudolf Valentino, George Raft, and others.
• • Other locations include her dance school, the jewelers who created the "Diamond Lil" sparkle, legitimate theatres, former vaudeville houses, and more. In the past, guests of these yearly Mae West events have included playwright Sam Shepard, actress Jessica Lange, broadcaster Joe Franklin, ballplayers from the New York Yankees, well-known screenwriters, and a diverse group of Mae devotees who travel cross country to The Big Apple during the dog days of summertime.
– – WHO – – WHAT – – WHEN – – WHERE – – HOW MUCH – – SUBWAY INFO – –
• • Festivities kick off on Mae West's birthday August 17, 2007.
• • The public is invited.
• • TIME: "Mae West Side Story" tour begins at 7:00 PM – – ends 8:30 PM.
• • PLACE: Tour begins on Broadway at West 50th Street [NE corner].
• • SUBWAY: BMT to Broadway – – West 49th Street station
• • • • • • COST:
• • VIP tickets: $25 per person – – including tour and reception and giftbag – – and all VIP tickets must be pre-paid by August 15, 2007.
• • TOUR ONLY: $15 per person (CASH only) – – buy tickets on Friday evening August 17 for tour only – – $15 tickets do not include party nor giftbag.
• • Sorry, no exceptions and no refunds. Advance payment via PayPal.
• • Updates and past party pictures are online.
• • URL: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com
• • Sponsorship/ giftbag inquiries welcome.
– – WHO – – WHAT – – WHEN – – WHERE – – HOW MUCH – – SUBWAY INFO – –
• • Source: www.prweb.com
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
________________________________________________________________
Source:http://courtingmaewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml

Courting Mae West
Mae West
• • Photo: Mae West • • 1932 • •
NYC
Mae West.