Mae West, plus sexy que Marilyn Monroe

(Languages of this post: Interlingua, English)

Mae West nasceva in Brooklyn, New York, in 1893. Su patre, John West, habeva un carriera variate con travalios minor. Su matre tamen jocava un rolo importante in le disveloppamento de su carriera.

Mae comenciava a travaliar in gruppos de theatro quando illa esseva un puera juvene, e in 1907 illa esseva parte de un vaudeville show que interteneva le publico in multe partes del Statos Unite. “Vaudevillle” esseva un show con un varietate de intertenitores qui cantava, ballava, e narrava bromas. Illo esseva multo popular in le Statos Unite in le prime parte del seculo vinti. Ma con le perfection del technologia del cinema e del radio, illo deveniva obsolete como medio de intertenimento.

Quando Mae West habeva 18 annos, illa comenciava a apparer in le famose theatros de Broadway in New York. Illa appareva in multe productiones musical, como “Hello, Paris” e “A la Broadway”. In le proxime 15 annos illa cantava e dansava e in productiones de Broadway e in shows de vaudeville.

In le annos del “Roaring Twenties” in le Statos Unite (inter 1920 e 1929), Mae West comenciava a scriber e producer su proprie productiones de theatro, in le quales illa comenciava a crear le bromas sexual que in annos ulterior la faceva famossissime. Ma quando illa comenciava iste nove parte de su carriera, illa debeva confrontar difficultates a causa del puritanismo in le societate american, que esseva un fortia cultural plus potente in ille epocha que in le epocha contemporanee.

Su prime pecia de theatro habeva le titulo “Sex”. Illo esseva multo popular, ma le autoritates de New York diceva que le obra menaciava le moralitate public e lo claudeva brevemente, e Mae West esseva incarcerate pro un septimana. Illa tamen esseva felice. Illa credeva que iste incidente la facerea famose in omne le Statos Unite, e isto occurreva exactemente como illa prediceva.

Mae West diceva que illa apprendeva multo de su incarceration. Le personas que illa cognosceva durante su dies incarcerate, illa diceva, stimulava su imagination durante que illa construeva le personalitates de multe personas in su obras ulterior.

Le humor de Mae West, naturalmente, esseva fortemente sexual. Ma illa apprendeva a exprimer se inidrectemente in le dialogos que illa scribeva. In omne su obras tamen, illa esseva le stella. E omne le altere actores orbitava circum illa.

Un de su pecias de theatro le plus famose esseva “Diamond Lil”. Mae West planificava iste obra attentemente de maniera que illo esserea popular con un grande varietate de spectatores. Le action de “Diamond Lil” occureva durante le ultime parte del seculo dece e nove in The Bowery, un parte de New York cuje reputation notorie esseva multo ben cognoscite.

Le vestimentos de ille era esseva specialmente sexy sur le corpore de Mae West. Illa credeva que le personas plus vetule inter su spectatores trovarea interessente iste periodo del historia de New York, que al feminas inter su spectatores placerea su vestimentos ric e elaborate, e que le plus juvenes inter su spectatores admirarea specialmente le intriga sexual suggerite per le pecia.

Le rolo de West esseva illo de un cantatrice qui travaliava in un cabaret, e illa habeva multe amantes e aventuras sexual. Le pecia esseva un grande successo. Illo esseva representate plus que 300 vices in Broadway e postea pro multe tempore in multe altere partes del pais.

Lil deveniva le exemplo le plus representative del personages de Mae West e eventualmente formava le parte plus importante de su identitate personal. “Pro esser Diamond Lil”, diceva Mae West, “lo que es importante non es lo que io face e lo que io dice. Lo que es importante es como io lo dice e mi apparentia quando io lo face e lo dice.”

Post le grande crise economic in le Statos Unite que comenciava in 1929, Mae West habeva unes annos difficile. Illa debeva confrontar battalias legal pro le sexualitate de su pecias theatral, e in 1930 moriva su matre, e illa sapeva que le tempore habeva venite pro un cambio in su vita.

In 1932 illa vadeva a Hollywood, California, pro comenciar un carriera in le industria cinematic. Su prime film esseva “Night After Night”. Le productor del film timeva le censura del puritanic Hays Office, que regulava le forma e contento del films american de ille epocha pro assecurar lor “moralitate”. Ma eventualmente ille permitteva que Mae West modificava le fabula que se narrava in le film pro dar a illo le humor special de West, le qual addeva enormente al excitamento del film.

Le proxime anno illa appareva in un nove film. Isto esseva le version cinematic de “Diamond Lil”. Ma completar iste film non esseva facile. Le Hays Office prohibeva que on face versiones cinematic de plure pecias de theatro de Mae West, que includeva “Diamond Lil”. E pro facer iste film, illa cambiava le titulo del film de “Diamond Lil” a “She Done Him Wrong”. Illa anque debeva apprender a exprimer su sexualitate plus indirectemente. Iste modificationes addeva al popularitate del film e al personalitate de Mae West mesme.

In “She Done Him Wrong” Cary Grant es Captain Cummings, le interesse amorose principal de Mae West. Iste film confirmava su reputation como un del plus grande astros cinematic de illa epocha. Ecce un parte del dialogo del film, in le qual Lady Lou invita Captain Cummings a su apartamento:

LADY LOU: Tu sape, sempre me ha placite un homine con un uniforme. Ille uniforme es multo apte pro te. Pro que non veni tu a visitar me alicun die? Io me trova in mi apartamento cata vespere. Quando tu habera un momento libere, me placerea multissimo si tu venirea a visitar me.

CAPTAIN CUMMINGS: Ma io es occupate cata vespere.

LADY LOU: Occupate? Que essaya tu a facer? Insultar me?

CAPTAIN CUMMINGS: De nulle maniera. Io simplemente ha multe cosas a facer. Nos ha reuniones in Jacobsen’s Hall cata vespere. Si tu ha un momento que tu pote sparniar, tu es multo benvenite a venir a visitar me illac.

LADY LOU: Io te ha audite. Ma tu non me decipe. Tu sape, io ha cognoscite antea homines como tu. Proque non veni tu a visitar me in mi appartamento?

CAPTAIN CUMMINGS: Eh ben, io…

LADY LOU: Tu ha nullo a timer. Io non dicera ullo a altere personas. Io te narrara tu fortuna.

(Nota que on pote vider West e Grant in YouTube durante que illes parlava iste dialogo.)

Post le production de iste film, Mae West deveniva etiam plus famose, e illa poteva producer su proxime film, “I’m no Angel” exactemente como illa voleva. In iste film illa travalia in un circo e, como sempre, affollava le homines de su vita con desiro sexual. Iste film esseva enormemente succedite economicamente.

Mae West continuava a facer su films con lor contento sexual enorme durante le resto del decada del annos trenta e in le prime parte del decada que comenciava in 1940. Le criticas del cinema dice que iste esseva le parte le plus excitante de su carriera. Illes anque dice que post iste periodo, illa solmente se repeteva. Ma multes in le Statos Unite amava su identitate establite como vamp e continuava a vader a su productiones. Illa continuava a apparer in pecias de theatro, a scriber libros, e a apparer in programmas de television.

Al etate de 85, Mae West esseva un icone de Hollywood. Illa appareva in un film con le titulo “Sextette”, e pro le ultime vice Mae West esseva un vamp cuje potentias sexual nulle homine poteva resister. Alicun criticas diceva que iste film esseva irremediabilemente vulgar. Altere criticas la laudava pro su spirito invincibile. Duo annos plus tarde, Mae West moriva in su apartamento in Hollywood, California.

Mae West etiam nunc es un del actrices plus famose in le historia de Hollywood pro su erotismo classic; e su independentia, humor, e sexualitate continua a influentiar le actores e actrices contemporanee de Hollywood e del altere partes del mundo.

---

Mae West, Sexier than Marilyn Monroe

Mae West was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1893. Her father, John West, had a varied career with odd jobs. Her mother, however, played an important role in the development of her career.

Mae started to work in theater groups when she was a young girl, and in 1907 she was part of a vaudeville show that entertained the public in many parts of the United States. “Vaudeville” was a show with a variety of entertainers who sang, danced, and told jokes. It was very popular in the United States in the first part of the twentieth century. But with the perfection of movie and radio technology, it became obsolete as a medium of entertainment.

When Mae West was eighteen years old, she started to appear in the well-known Broadway theaters of New York. She appeared in many musical productiones, such as “Hello, Paris” and “A la Broadway.” In the next fifteen years she sang and danced in Broadway productions and in vaudeville shows.

During the Roaring Twenties, Mae West started to write and produce her own theatrical productions, in which she began to create the sexual jokes that in later years made her very famous. But when she began this new part of her career, she ran into difficulties because of the puritanism in American society, which was a more powerful cultural force then than it is now.

Her first play had the title “Sex”. It was very popular, but the authorities of New York said that the work threatened public morality and briefly closed it down, and Mae West was thrown into jail for a week. She was happy, however. She believed that this incident would make her famous in the entire United States, and this happened exactly the way she predicted.

Mae West said that she learned a lot from being in jail. The people she met during her days in jail, she said, stimulated her imagination as she constructed the personalities of many people in her later works.

Mae West’s humor, of course, was heavily sexual. But she learned to express herself indirectly in the dialogues that she wrote. In all her works, however, she was the star, and all the other actors orbited around her.

One of her most famous plays was “Diamond Lil.” Mae West carefully planned this work so that it would be popular with a large variety of people in her audience. The action of “Diamond Lil” took place during the last part of the nineteenth century in the Bowery, a part of New York whose notorious reputation was quite widely known.

The clothing of that day was especially sexy on Mae West’s body. She believed that the older people in her audience would find this period of New York’s history to be interesting, that the women of her audience would like her rich and elaborate clothing, and that the younger members of her audience would especially admire the sexual intrigue suggested by the play.

West had the role of a singer who worked in a Cabaret, and she had a lot of lovers and sexual adventures. The play was a great success. It was shown more than 300 times on Broadway and afterward in many other parts of the country.

Lil became the most representative of Mae West’s characters and eventually formed the most important part of her personal identity. “To be Diamond Lil,” Mae West said, “what is important is not what I do and what I say. What is important is how I say it and how I look when I do it and say it.”

After the Great Depression began in the United States in 1929, Mae West went through a few difficult years. She had to fight legal battles because of the sexuality in her plays, and in 1930 her mother died, and she knew that the time had come for a change in her life.

In 1932 she went to Hollywood, California, to start a career in the film industry. Her first film was “Night After Night.” The producer of the film feared the censorship of the Puritanic Hays Office, which regulated the form and content of the American films of that era to assure their “morality.” But eventually he allowed May West to change the plot of the film to endow it with May West’s special humor, which added enormously to the excitement of the film.

Next year she appeared in a new film. This was the movie verision of “Diamond Lil.” But finishing this film would not be easy. The Hays Office forbade movie versions to be made of Mae West’s plays, which included “Diamond Lil.” And to make this film, she changed the title of “Diamond Lil” to “She Done Him Wrong.” She also had to learn to express her sexuality more indirectly. These changes added to the popularity of the film and to Mae West’s personality itself.

In “She Done Him Wrong” Cary Grant is Captain Cummings, the principal love interest of Mae West. This film confirmed her reputation as one of the greatest movie stars of that era. Here is a part of the dialogue of the film, in which Lady Lou invites Captain Cummings to her apartment:

LADY LOU: You know, I always did like a man in a uniform. That one fits you grand. Why don’t you come up sometime and see me. I’m home every evening.

CAPTAIN CUMMINGS: I’m busy every evening.

LADY LOU: Busy? So what are you trying to do, insult me?

CAPTAIN CUMMINGS: Why no! Not at all. I'm just busy, that’s all. You see, we’re holding meetings in Jacobsen’s Hall every evening. Anytime you have a moment to spare, I’d be glad to have you drop in. You’re more than welcome.

LADY LOU: I heard you. But you ain’t kidding me any. You know, I’ve met your kind before. Why don’t you come up sometime, huh?

CAPTAIN CUMMINGS: Well, I…”

LADY LOU: Don't be afraid, I won't tell. Come up, I’ll tell your fortune.

(Note that it is possible to see West and Grant on YouTube as they speak this dialogue.)

After the production of this film, Mae West became even more famous, and she was able to produce her next film, “I’m no Angel,” exactly the way she wanted to. In this film, she works in a circus and, as always, drives the men in her lives mad with sexual desire. This film was enormously successful economically.

Mae West continued to make her films with their enormous sexual content during the rest of the 1930s and the beginning of the 1940s. Movie critics say that this was the most exciting part of her career. They also said that after this period, she only repeated herself. But many in the United States loved her established identity as a vamp and continued to go to her productions. She continued appearing in plays, writing books, and appearing in television programs.

At age eighty-five, Mae West was a Hollywood icon. She appeared in a film with the title “Sextette,” and for the last time Mae West was a vamp whose sexual powers no man could resist. Some critics say that this film was utterly vulgar. Other critics praised her for her invincible spirit. Two years later, Mae West died in her apartment in Hollywood, California.

Even now Mae West is one of the most famous actresses in the history of Hollywood for her classic sexuality; and her independence, humor, and sexuality continue to influence contemporary actors and actresses in Hollywood and other parts of the world.