In the history of world cinema, Mae West has always been the main "sex bomb" of her time, despite the fact that she came to the cinema when other actresses usually end their careers.
Biography. early years
Mary Jane West was born on August 17, 1893 in Brooklyn, New York, to Matilda and John West. Their family was different from ordinary families: mother, German emigrant Matilda "Tilly" West, from childhood dreamed of becoming an actress, but at the insistence of her parents went to work as a seamstress, but then abandoned this profession and became a model. The father, known in Brooklyn as "Brawler Jack", made a living by fighting in the arena, and later became a police officer and "bouncer".
In her family, she was called “May” since childhood. Mei was the oldest child, but was always the mother's favorite. Matilda pampered her daughter, preferring to educate her with persuasion and flattery, and as a result, Mei grew up wayward and spoiled. From the age of three, the girl learned to parody the acquaintances of her parents, to their great pride. Her first public appearance took place at the age of 5 in a local church.
However, the father, who was proud of his daughter's successes in home theater scenes, was not happy that Mei was going to perform in front of the public. Matilda ignored his fears, and when her daughter was 7 years old, she enrolled her in a dance school. Soon the girl began to appear in local vaudeville under the stage name "Baby May". After she won the first prize and $ 10 dollars, her father sharply revised his views on his daughter's theatrical career and began to attend all of her performances, sitting in the front row and being her most devoted fan.
Theatrical career
At the age of 14, Mei began performing professionally on the stage, mainly in vaudeville and operetta. Her mother became her manager: she personally sewed all the costumes for her daughter, followed the schedule and signed her contracts. Matilda's dream to get into the world of show business has finally come true.
In her performances, Mei used the image of an innocent girl from the Victorian era: she was dressed in a pink and green satin dress, wore a white hat with pink ribbons. But at the same time, she performed frank dances typical for vaudeville and popular songs with obvious sexual connotations.
In 1909, her mother introduced May to Frank Welles, also a vaudeville performer, hoping that this acquaintance would help her daughter expand her circle of work and find new places for performances. After two weeks of rehearsals, May and Frank decided to organize a dance tandem and perform together in vaudeville and circuses. The couple went on tour to the Midwest, as far away as possible from May's mother's oversight. Welles made a marriage proposal to May several times, but the girl refused each time, preferring to have a serious relationship with the actors from their theater troupe. However, she reconsidered her views on marriage after a conversation with one of the actresses, who told her about her "crazy days" of youth and how marriage could save her from loneliness and unplanned pregnancy.
On April 11, 1911, May finally accepted Welles' offer, and the couple legally married in Milwaukee, Viscontin. To do this, 17-year-old Mei had to lie about her age, adding one year to herself. The newlyweds promised each other to keep the marriage secret from the public and parents. It remained a mystery until 1935, when May West was at the height of her fame and archival documents came to light.
Later that year, Mae West auditioned for a role in her first Broadway show, A La Broadway. Although the show was canceled after only 8 performances, West became well known among theatergoers. At the premiere, the actress was noticed by successful Broadway producers Lee and JJ Schubert, who invited her to their show. Mei agreed, but stayed briefly in a new place due to a conflict with the main actress. After that, West continued to perform in vaudeville outside New York and on Broadway.
It was around then that she met Guido Deiro. The lovers did not hesitate to demonstrate their feelings in public, and their passionate and noisy romance became public. Deiro was so carried away that several times he asked May's parents for permission to marry (then no one knew that she had a legal husband - they divorced only in 1920). However, Matilda categorically refused to approve of this relationship, fearing that her married status could damage Mei's career. She agreed with the arguments of the mother, but continued to meet with Guido. In the end, the mother outright forbade her from these meetings, believing that Guido was not a good enough game for her daughter. Mei this time obeyed, and within a short time completely severed all relations with Guido Deiro.
In 1918, Mae West finally came to great success with the play "Sometime", where she was paired with Ed Wynn. Her whole role was reduced to a frank dance, where she demonstrated the movements of her shoulders and chest. After that, similar proposals fell on the actress, but now West could afford to rewrite dialogues and increase her roles. Soon she began to write plays for herself, using the name Jane Mast as a pseudonym.
Success and public scandals
In 1926, Mae West landed her first major Broadway role in Sex, which she herself wrote, directed and produced. The play was a huge success, but respectable critics condemned its plot as anti-moral. It got to the point that West, along with part of the troupe, was arrested for moral violations and sentenced to 10 days of community service, of which she served 8, receiving an early release for diligent behavior. This incident did not stop the actress, but added hype and increased ticket sales for her plays.
The next play, which West wrote again, called Drag, dealt with the issue of homosexuality. The show was a tremendous success in Connecticut and New Jersey. However, when May announced her desire to stage the play on Broadway, America's morale organizations pushed for the ban. This time, West decided not to flirt with the law and canceled the production in New York.
For several years, Mae West continued to write and stage plays with success. They all had "adult content" and had sexual connotations. In some of them, West was listed as a producer or screenwriter, but did not take part as an actress. Each time she had to find a compromise between the moral laws of the time and the desire to create an exciting plot. There were cases when West created two scripts for one play: one of them in case there were representatives of the struggle for the morality of the country among the audience. However, this only created additional publicity for her plays and fueled public interest.
Film career. Screenwriter work
In 1932, Hollywood drew attention to the brightest star on the stage. The actress has signed a contract with the Paramount Pictures film company. At that time, Mei was 38 years old, and it was too late for her to play the roles of sexy starlets, but her bright appearance and bold image interested the filmmakers. Her film debut was Night after Night, starring George Raft. Initially, West was unhappy with the short duration of her screen time, but accepted the role after she was allowed to rewrite her scenes.
In 1933, the film She Done Him Wrong was released, in which Mae West played the central role this time. The film was nominated for an Academy Award, and also marked the film debut of Cary Grant. The film was a tremendous success and saved Paramount Pictures from impending bankruptcy. In the next film, I'm No Angel, she again played opposite Cary Grant. Following the success of the film, May West received the title of one of the most commercially successful actresses in America. By 1935, May West had become the second highest paid person in the United States (the first was the publicist and entrepreneur William Randolph Hirst).
Like West's previous work, this film also earned criticism for being overly sexy and “defying morality.” The Motion Picture Production Code, which had the right to censor the films, began to track all of West's scripts. Most of her work has been heavily censored. Waist responded by increasing the number of ambiguous situations and dialogue in her scripts, intending to confuse critics and censors.
In 1936, Mae West starred in the film Klondike Annie, which ridiculed religious hypocrisy. William Randolph Hirst was so enraged by the script that he personally banned all publications about the film and its advertising. This did not interfere with the success of the film, which is considered the peak of Mae West's career.
As the years passed, West's fame slowly waned. Her two new films, Go West, Young Man and Everyday's a Holiday, were not successful at the box office, and the actress realized that the censorship had a significant impact on her creativity. On December 12, 1937, she made a guest appearance on The Chase and Sanborn Hour in two comedy sketches. The dialogues between her and the presenter, actor Edgar Bergen, were distinguished by risky humor and audacity. This led to many denouncing the release as "vulgar" and "unworthy," and Mae West was permanently barred from appearances on NBC.
In 1939, Universal Pictures invited West to star in the film with comedian William Claude Fields. The actress, who was just looking for a suitable excuse to return to the movie screens, agreed to the condition of complete control over the filming process. The actress personally wrote a western-style script called "My Little Chickedee". Despite the fact that West and Fields did not get along on set, the film was a huge success and eclipsed Fields' previous work.
In 1943, May West turned 50, and she thought about leaving the cinema to devote herself to Broadway. However, Grigory Ratov, director of Columbia Pictures, begged her to star in another film that would help him avoid another bankruptcy. West agreed, but the film, which had neither a strong plot nor good acting, flopped at the box office. West retired from cinema until 1970.
Later years. Departure from life
In 1954, West created a nightclub performance based on her previous vaudeville scenes. The performances included dancing, singing, and a "cheerleading" of half-naked, muscular men. The show ran with great success for three years. In 1959, May West published her autobiography Goodness Had Nothing To Do With It, which revealed her colorful personal life and path in show business. She has made several guest appearances on reality television shows. West also recorded several music albums of various genres, including rock and roll and a Christmas album, which was more a satire than a religious compilation.
In the 70s, she last appeared on the big screen: in the film "Myra Breckenridge" ("Myra Breckenridge", 1970), where she played a small role, and in the film on her own script "Sextette" ("Sextette", 1978). "Myra Breckinridge" flopped at the box office, although over time it became considered a cult film in its genre niche. In 1976, West began writing the screenplay for Sextet, which was based on one of her Broadway plays. The work was difficult: West forgot her own lines, refused to obey the director and periodically entered into disagreements with the creative team. Critics were unfriendly to the film, but it still earned the status of a cult.
In August 1980, Mae West fell several times while trying to get out of bed. She was taken to Good Samaritan Hospital in Los Angeles, where the actress was diagnosed with signs of a heart attack. The recovery was difficult, during which West developed a diabetic reaction to certain medications. On September 18, 1980, she suffered a second heart attack, after which the right side of her body remained paralyzed. Shortly thereafter, West contracted pneumonia. After prolonged treatment, her testimony improved, and the actress was discharged from the hospital home for further recovery. On November 22, 1980, at the age of 82, Mae West passed away. The actress was buried in her native Brooklyn.
