I Know Where I'm Going by Charlotte Chandler

Maybe that's the source of my energy, especially my sex energy. They only just found out that I had a double thyroid. It isn't good for your looks, and it cuts down on what you are. She said it was a good thing because she didn't have any liquor. Her next query had the same tone of entrapment as the smoking suggestion. But the secret is it has to be warm, and you have to have a man put it on you - all over.' Her approving look indicated that I had passed an important test. I assured her that this wouldn't be necessary. I don't let anyone smoke in my presence.' 'If you smoke,' she said, 'you'll have to leave the room. Mae gave me a hard look and said there was something to tell me before we 'got into it'. She pointed out that although she was Diamond Lil, Lil was not Mae because there was more to Mae West. Mae West had to be there herself she couldn't just send Diamond Lil. Perhaps she didn't like to give interviews to women because she couldn't act her part. As she spoke, her sculpted platinum hair would swing as in a shampoo commercial. Whenever Mae interjected one of her celebrated epigrams to make a point, she would change from a serious tone to the sultry flippancy of Diamond Lil. They also signified that in her mid-80s she was not afraid to be in competition with her younger self. The celebrations of herself on display throughout the apartment evinced no false modesty. Once Mae had achieved perfection by her own standards, she hated any change. The furniture was upholstered in eggshellwhite silk and satin, and appeared virginal, as if it had just been moved in for my visit. The apartment in Hollywood's Ravenswood was truly an extension of Mae West. To the end, she nobly resisted any assault on her fairytale castle. 'I considered spending my time with girls a waste of time, so I didn't mingle with any.' The only exceptions were her beloved mother and her sister.įor Mae West, Hollywood had real unreality, and that was the way she liked it. 'They always sent a man,' she told me, not specifying who 'they' were. If she were going to see anyone at all, a man would have been preferable any day, and especially any night. I had cost her three hours, but it would have been double that if I had been a man. She already knew all the people she wanted to know, especially in light of the hours she felt compelled to spend on hair, makeup and dress before she could see anyone. Mae West had been giving no interviews at all. There's nothing better in life than diamonds.' Knowing what you want is the first step toward getting it. But you've gotta try, and you've gotta know how to try. She studied me, then said encouragingly, 'You could, honey.

I Know Where I'm Going by Charlotte Chandler