8: Mae West

This episode is about:

Mae West – a glamorous legend of classical American cinema that shamelessly celebrated female sexuality and is known for her campy and witty humor.
Fun Fact: Mae was underwhelmed with her first role in “Night After Night” but that didn’t deter her. Mae demanded that she re-write her own part and came up with a memorable entrance to the big screen:
– As she walks into frame for the first time, an attendant exclaims, “Goodness, what beautiful diamonds!” – “Goodness had nothing to do with it, dearie,” she replies.

Sources:

– Curry, Ramona. “Mae West as Censored Commodity: The Case of “Klondike Annie”.” Cinema Journal 31, no. 1 (1991): 57-84.
– Hamilton, Marybeth. “Mae West Live: “SEX, The Drag, and 1920s Broadway”.” TDR (1988-) 36, no. 4 (1992): 82-100.
– Black, Gregory D. “Hollywood Censored: The Production Code Administration and the Hollywood Film Industry, 1930-1940.” Film History 3, no. 3 (1989): 167-89.
– https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2020/06/mae-west-autobiography-scandal
– https://www.americanheritage.com/immortality-mae-west#4