Pawsome Pet Pictures: May West.

Personal Quote:

On Marilyn Monroe: "The only gal who came near to me in the sex appeal department was pretty little Marilyn Monroe. All the others had were big boobs".

I'm No Angel (1933).

I'm No Angel (1933). Cast: Mae West's third motion picture and Cary Grant. This was one of the few Mae West films that was not subjected to heavy censorship.

I'm No Angel" was released immediately after, She Done Him Wrong. Mae West's films saved Paramount Pictures from bankruptcy. Depression era audiences loved to see a woman rise from the wrong side of the tracks. Cary Grant stars opposite her for the second and final time. Film historians believe she was one of the reasons for the strict Hollywood production code that soon followed. The Hays Office forced a few changes including the title of the song "No One Does It Like a Dallas Man", changed to "No One Loves Me Like a Dallas Man".

Even though, West character lives with Ralf Harolde, she dates other men. When Harolde runs into trouble with the law, West becomes a dancer and a lion tamer. Soon she is "discovered" by playboy, Kent Taylor. She accepts his gifts, but she only has eyes for Taylor's cousin, Cary Grant. She finds a way to sue Grant for breach of promise. When Grant allows her to win the case, she realizes she's in love with him.

I'M NO ANGEL, is memorable for one quip after another as she cracks whips and dances with her maids ("Peel me a grape!"). If you've never seen a Mae West movie but have always wondered what made her a great star, this is the film to see!



Soundtracks:

"They Call Me Sister Honky-Tonk"
(1933) (uncredited)
Music by Harvey Brooks
Lyrics by Gladys DuBois and Ben Ellison
Sung by Mae West

"That Dallas Man"
(1933) (uncredited)
Music by Harvey Brooks
Lyrics by Gladys DuBois and Ben Ellison
Played on a record with Mae West Singing

"I Found a New Way to Go to Town"
(1933) (uncredited)
Music by Harvey Brooks
Lyrics by Gladys DuBois and Ben Ellison
Sung by Mae West

"I Want You, I Need You"
(1933) (uncredited)
Music by Harvey Brooks
Lyrics by Ben Ellison
Played on piano and sung by Mae West

"I'm No Angel"
(1933) (uncredited)
Music by Harvey Brooks
Lyrics by Gladys DuBois and Ben Ellison
Sung by Mae West at the end and during the closing credits.

Fun Facts:

When Rajah the Fortune Teller gives Tira (Mae West) her horoscope, he gives her birthday as August 17, which is West's actual birthday.

Considerable problems arose with the censors, mostly about the suggestive lines in some of the songs. The song "Nobody Loves Me Like a Dallas Man" was originally "Nobody Does It Like a Dallas Man". After the songs were toned down, the Hays office approved the film, and it was passed by the National Board of Review.

In 1935 and 1949, the production code was more rigorously enforced, and the film was not approved for re-release.

Mae West's famous line in this film, "Beulah, peel me a grape," was inspired by West's pet monkey, Boogie. The monkey loved grapes, and one day West noticed that although he would eat grapes by the dozens, he would always peel the skin off each one before popping it into his mouth.

Dorothy Peterson (December 25, 1897 – October 3, 1979).  Made her screen debut in the film, Mothers Cry(1930), where the 29-year-old actress aged nearly three decades in the course of the film. Mothers Cry instantly typecast Peterson in maternal roles.  She is best known for her supporting roles in the film, Treasure Island (1934). In 1942, she replaced Olive Blakeney as Mrs. Aldrich in the comedy series Henry Aldrich for President. Her last screen appearance was as the mother of Shirley Temple in, That Hagen Girl (1947).

Dorothy Peterson remained active on the New York TV and theatrical scene until the early '60s. She appeared in 83 films, and made several television appearances between 1930 and 1964.

Filmography:
Way Back Home (1931)
Forbidden (1932)
The Beast of the City (1932)
Business and Pleasure (1932)
So Big! (1932)
Night World (1932)
Life Begins (1932)
The Cabin in the Cotton (1932)
Payment Deferred (1932)
Call Her Savage (1932)
The Mayor of Hell (1933)
I'm No Angel (1933)
Treasure Island (1934)
Confession (1937)
Dark Victory (1939)
Too Many Husbands (1940)
Lillian Russell (1940)
Cheers for Miss Bishop (1941)
Saboteur (1942)
This Is the Army (1943)
Mr. Skeffington (1944)
The Woman in the Window (1944)
Sister Kenny (1946)
That Hagen Girl (1947)

Happy Birthday: May West!

I just recently became a May West fan, when I saw her first film, Night After Night(1938). Where she was allowed to rewrite her film debut scene as a hat check girl.

She brought her Diamond Lil character, now renamed Lady Lou, to the film, She Done Him Wrong (1933), with Cary Grant. West spotted Grant at the studio and insisted that he be cast as the male lead. The film was a box office hit and earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture. Cary Grant and Mae West performed again in the film, I'm No Angel (1933). The story is about a girl named Tira who sings for crowds of men. When her ex-boyfriend causes her trouble, she becomes a lion tamer to earn extra money to pay for a lawyer.

Tira's show takes her to New York City, where she is introduced to two cousins Kirk Lawrence and Jack Clayton. Despite his engagement to another woman, Kirk showers Tira with presents. Kirk's cousin Jack, decides to interfere and asks her to leave Kirk and his fiancee alone. While he is there, they fall madly in love. Tira tells her boss she’s quitting to get married. Knowing that he is about to lose his biggest money making act, her boss plots to break off the engagement, leaving her heart broken and confused. Tira sues Jack for breach of promise. The defense tries to use her past to discredit her, but the judge allows her to cross examine the witnesses herself. Will she win back Jack?


West's next films were: Belle of the Nineties (1934), Goin' to Town(1935) and Klondike Annie (1936), which many critics have called her screen masterpiece. That same year, West played opposite Randolph Scott in Go West, Young Man. After this film, West starred in Every Day's a Holiday (1937).

In 1939, Universal Pictures asked West to star in a film opposite W. C. Fields, to duplicate the film, Destry Rides Again. West accepted the role of Flower Belle Lee in the film, My Little Chickadee (1940)and The Heat's On (1943). West would not return to films until 1970.