Mae West: It Ain't No Sin
by Simon Louvish
Book Summary Information
Author: Simon LouvishEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2007-11-27
ISBN: 031237562X
Number of pages: 512
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Book Reviews of Mae West: It Ain't No Sin
Book Review: The Pen Is Mightier Than The Sword
Summary: 4 Stars
Simon Louvish's biography of Mae West, "It Ain't No Sin" is a workmanlike examination of a remarkable show woman's career that spanned the entire gamut of 20 Century showbusiness from vaudeville, the Broadway stage, talkies, sound recordings, Las Vegas, and eventually television.
Placing the accomplishments of this extraordinary performing artist in chronological order and making sence of her impact at the time and beyond represents a yoman's task, which for the most past, Mr. Louvish is well prepared.
It is disappointing that the much ballyhooed entree to "her previously unaccessed papers" offers so little insight to the workings of her mind. However Mr. Louvish does point out that Mae West spent a lot of time pushing the pen well into the wee hours of the night polishing and perfecting her craft , giving her adoring public the impression that she was pushing against something mightier than the proverbial pen.
Mae West endured well past her initial Hollywood prime and continued to thrill new audiences well into the 1950's, Sixties and Seventies. Unfortunately, this aspect of her career and life are skipped over lightly. Mae West flowered during the Free Love Generation of the 1960's and became a cultural icon that outgrew her initial camp second coming.
Her contribution to Gay Liberation and the legions of fans gay, hetrosexual and try anything who befriended and encouraged her in the later stages of her career are sadly overlooked. Perhaps this is because Mr. Louvish did not have the time available to dig beyond the surface in regards to this remarkable period of her public and private persona.
I have had the remarkable good luck to become acquainted with many of Mae West's "gay mafia" and been privy to many of the remarkable adventures they shared with her. Through the stories her confidantes related during the last two decades of her life, one comes to understand the truly personable and lovely individual Mae West really was. It is my hope that my manuscript, "Saint Mae Our Lady Of Hips & Quips," researched over a ten year span, will eventually find a publisher, and give Mae West's adoring public another aspect of this truly unique individual, who was like a diamond in her ability to focus light on the facet of her life she wanted seen at any given time.
In the meantime, Mr. Louvish's tome is as good a read on Mae West currently available, and is well worth having in your personal library.
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