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SPEAKER_04: Thank you, children. Thank you, darling. I know you children all relaxed back there, sitting back there, looking at it, Bob. You think you're gonna hear some jokes, don't you? Wait a minute, honey. You're gonna have to laugh a little louder. Mom can't hear you up there.
SPEAKER_04: That's it, thank you very much. Hello. From Wonder Media Network, I'm Jenny Kaplan.
SPEAKER_05: And this is the show where we talk about the world of television. From Wonder Media Network, I'm Jenny Kaplan. And this is Encyclopedia Womanica. Today marks the first day of a new month and the first theme of our second season. We're bringing you another full year of women you may not know about, but definitely should. All month, we're talking about leading ladies, women whose talents dazzled and transformed the entertainment industry. Today, we're talking about a woman once billed as the funniest woman in the world. She was one of the most successful vaudeville performers in history and the first woman to ever perform at the Apollo Theater. Let's talk about Moms Mabley. ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] Loretta Mary Aiken was born on March 19th, 1894 in Brevard, North Carolina. She was one of 12 children. Her childhood was marked by tragedy and violence. When Loretta was born in 2010, her father died in an explosion. Just a few years later, her mother was hit by a truck and killed on Christmas Day. By her early teens, Loretta had been raped twice. She became pregnant both times and the two children that she bore as a result were given away. When she was 14 years old, Loretta moved to Cleveland, Ohio. There, she was first introduced to the world of show business. Loretta was the first woman to become a role model in the world for her and started working venues that catered to African-American audiences. Some of Loretta's family members didn't approve of her career choice, so she adopted a stage name, Jackie Mabley, a slight deviation from her then boyfriend's name, Jack Mabley. Her name transformed once again when her fellow entertainers began referring to her as Moms due to her propensity to mother the other performers. Loretta was murdered by the vaudeville team, Butterbeans and Suzy, and began performing with them in New York City. There, she debuted at Connie's Inn and moved on to other noted venues, including Harlem's Cotton Club. Eventually, she headlined at the famed Apollo Theater.
SPEAKER_03: Ladies and gentlemen, my mom and your mom,
SPEAKER_04: Moms Mabley!
SPEAKER_05: Moms Mabley! Moms Mabley! Not only was Moms Mabley the first woman at the Apollo Theater, she became a regular. She appeared more often than any other act in the theater's history. Moms' comedy was littered with sexual innuendos, disparaging comments towards old men and lusty comments towards young ones. She used her deep voice, toothlessness, and seemingly elastic face to great effect.
SPEAKER_04: I went down, tried to get something to eat last night, coming back to the village. One woman was standing up there by a post crying. I never seen a woman cry so hard. She said, I said, what are you crying like that? She said, I'm crying because I'm so ugly. I said, well, I think you're a nice-looking woman.
SPEAKER_04: I said, I'm a man. On stage, she wore a house dress,
SPEAKER_05: floppy shoes, and knit cap. Her old lady persona was largely modeled after her grandmother who had been enslaved and was itself a commentary on bigotry toward African Americans. She was known for this type of sly social commentary as well as for her timing and ability to ad lib. In 1931, Moms took her talents to Broadway when she partnered with Zora Neale Hurston, best known for her celebrated novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God, on the show Fast and Furious. In 1933, she made her on-screen debut in the film Emperor Jones, and in 1948 appeared in the film Boarding House Blues. Moms' stand-up performances were recorded live and compiled into over two dozen comedy albums. The 1961 hit Moms Mabley, The Funniest Woman in the World, sold over a million copies. Moms became more widely known when she started making appearances on popular comedy shows, including The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour and The Ed Sullivan Show.
SPEAKER_04: And I met another old man. Older than his birthday. And ugly! He was so ugly, honest to goodness, he hurt my peel. And that's it.
SPEAKER_05: In 1974, while shooting a film entitled Amazing Grace, Moms suffered a heart attack. She managed to complete filming, but passed away shortly thereafter on May 23, 1975. She was 81 years old. Moms Mabley's trailblazing career was celebrated on stage in the 1987 play Moms, and in the documentary Moms Mabley, I Got Something to Tell You. Moms was a young woman who was very much into film. And for Moms, Moms Mabley, I Got Something to Tell You, directed by Whoopi Goldberg. To this day, she remains a barrier-breaking, gut-busting woman who charted a new course for what a comedian could look and sound like. All month, we're talking about leading ladies. For more on why we're doing what we're doing, check out our Encyclopedia Womanica newsletter, Womanica Weekly. Encyclopedia Womanica. And you can follow me directly on Twitter at Jenny M. Kaplan. Special thanks to Liz Kaplan, my favorite sister and co creator. Talk to you tomorrow. I want to tell you about another show I think you might like. Outward from Slate podcasts is a whip smart monthly salon about the issues animating LGBTQ communities. It's hosted by Slate writers Brian Louder, Christina Cattarucci and Rumaan Alam. Together and with plenty of special guests. They serve up deep dives and hot takes on the biggest topics in queer culture and politics. In recent months, Outward has covered the queerness of quarantine bubbles, the legacy of Larry Kramer and ACT UP and the resourcefulness of virtual gay sex parties. Subscribe to Outward from Slate wherever you listen to podcasts.
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