Vive La Difference!

I have always felt more attuned to the past. This affinity requires the legerdemain of avoiding nostalgia's deadfall. Looking back with rose-colored glasses leads to sentimentality and self-delusion. As humorist, Finley Peter Dunne said, "The past always looks better than it was. It's only pleasant because it isn't here."

Two unique characters from those thrilling days of yesteryear comprise the subject of my latest musing. Born in the ebbing of the 19th century and despite less than salubrious habits, they both lived into my lifetime.

Gambler, hustler and con man, Alvin Clarence Thomas, better known by the moniker, Titanic Thompson, spent his life making wagers, hustling golf and pool. The nickname arose after one of his bets. A by-stander asked, "Who is that guy?" The loser answered, "He's Titanic; he sinks everybody."

Natural athletic ability and extraordinary hand-eye coordination explained his skill at golf and pool. However, not all of his wagers were above board. Thompson would cheat and finagle to give himself
every advantage. My favorite one - days before he came into a town, he would move the sign giving the mileage to reach the city limits. When he got to town, he'd bet everyone he saw that the distance marker was incorrect. Of course he'd win. This would lead to more wagers and usually more losses for the locals.

The other subject is more familiar - Mae West. This dynamic female pushed the envelope of censorship, and in a era of male-domination controlled her life and career.  I first became aware of her through her movies. However, she didn't go to Hollywood until she was 40. By that time she had sang and danced on the New York stage and had written provocative, successful plays for almost 20 years.

The first play she wrote, directed and starred, was Sex. The play drew crowds, but got her arrested on vice charges. Her next play, Drag, focused on homosexuality, but the authorities closed it during rehearsals. She continued to write titillating works which thrilled audiences and upset the status quo. When asked if censorship bothered her, she laughed and said, "Not at all, it makes me money!"

On the set of her first film, Night after Night, she complained about her lines. The director let her improvise. That provided her first memorable movie quote. A hat-check girl says "Goodness what beautiful diamonds!" Mae's reponse, "Goodness had nothing to do with it, dearie." George Raft, star of the movie commented that West stole that scene and everything else except the movie cameras.

She challenged discrimination on all fronts. West moved into a plush apartment building in Hollywood. Her paramour at that time was William "Gorilla" Jones, an African-American boxer. Management barred Negroes, not uncommon in the 1930s. Mae proceeded to buy the complex and remove the ban. She owned it and lived there until her death in 1980 at 87.

Some examples of Mae's prowess:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJS670okmZc

There is a shortage of true individuals like the aforementioned. Technology advances at warp speed, but uniqueness languishes. At times, I think we've transformed into a society of lemmings taking selfies of ourselves as we rush over the edge into oblivion. As ever - BB

"Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect." ~Mark Twain