Lady Bunny on the echoes of Mae West in drag culture | American Masters | PBS

Official website: www.pbs.org/americanmasters | #AmericanMastersPBS
On February 6, 2019, iconic drag performer and artist Lady Bunny chatted with directors Sally Rosenthal and Julia Marchesi about actress Mae West's onstage persona and how she cultivated a legion of queer fans. Interview conducted for "Mae West: Dirty Blonde" (2020).
Chapters:
00:00 Through Mae West reruns Bunny finds a guide for “the tricks of the trade”
02:09 On the persistent rumors around West’s gender and her natural affinity towards drag tastes
03:41 West as a trailblazer in the technology of beauty enhancement
05:26 Mae’s strut and schtick inspires a generation of drag queens
09:18 West’s encounters with the drag scene of the early 20th century
11:16 The enduring legacy of drag balls
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Now in its 37th season on PBS, American Masters illuminates the lives and creative journeys of those who have left an indelible impression on our cultural landscape-through compelling, unvarnished stories. Setting the standard for documentary film profiles, the series has earned widespread critical acclaim: 28 Emmy Awards-including 10 for Outstanding Non-Fiction Series and five for Outstanding Non-Fiction Special-two News & Documentary Emmys, 14 Peabodys, three Grammys, two Producers Guild Awards, an Oscar, and many other honors. To further explore the lives and works of more than 250 masters past and present, the American Masters website offers full episodes, film outtakes, filmmaker interviews, the podcast “American Masters: Creative Spark,” educational resources, digital original series and more. The series is a production of The WNET Group.

[@charlienaujokas446]

It's so right to see Lady Bunny on American Masters.

[@joshuaortiz4886]

100%

[@1505harbor]

Hun-Bun the Historian

[@rebeccamcneil5586]

Lady Bunny’s laugh and charisma is just so contagious

[@tula1433]

LOVE that Lady Bunny is speaking on the icon Mae West. The original groundbreaker! ❤

[@wendybutler1681]

On American Masters, no less! I could listen to her speak history all day.

[@josephottavi-perez8203]

Young Mae West was a playwright as well as actress on Broadway in the '20s and was very connected with the Queer community in New York. A friend to many Drag performers, Mae hired them for her play "The Drag," which she intended to bring to Broadway. However, it was closed out of town. Her character in "Diamond Lil" is heavily inspired by performers Mae knew.

[@frankmarter6845]

I knew her from 1965 to 1980. I saw her dozens of times. She was Mae West 24 hours a day.

[@jennysmith9134]

So cool. Anything else you would like to share? Or perhaps specific stories that you nor her wouldn't others' reading?

[@vanessawhitneypro]

Wondrous Lady Bunny talking about Wondrous Mae West?! Yes, Please! Thank You, American Masters PBS!

[@frankmarter6845]

You are a bright light and a smart person. I knew Mae West for 15 years. She was a little over 5’ tall and wore 6” clog type shoes to appear taller. She was a woman 100%. That rumor is just that an erroneous rumor. No one has had more misinformation printed about her. She dressed up in nice street clothes when I saw her. She only wore gowns when appearing in some special occasion. Her hands were feminine. Welch didn’t know her. She just made one movie with her. She was jealous of Mae’s stature in the acting world. Mae was a sweet generous lady who treated my mother and me very nicely.

[@tula1433]

Wow this is incredible! May I ask how old you are and what decade you knew Mae? I honestly love the “rumors” it just adds to Mae Wests mystique!

[@rian5156]

Love this story ❤

[@lucio.martinez]

Cheers to Lady Bunny! A timeless and entertaining character of our GLBTQ+ community.

[@carlpacheco2058]

Mae West is the original blonde bombshell! I adore her, she made such an impression on me as a child

[@NIGHTGUYRYAN]

i love how every documentary about mae west is just everyone roasting her 😂😂

[@SeanWarren]

Behind the make up, the wigs and the incredibly quick wit, Lady Bunny is a highly intelligent person.

[@tonymansfield9711]

Lady Bunny and Mae West are The Ultimate Bombshells.

[@fairycloudz315]

Bunny has so much knolwedge, i love her so much

[@yormosi-6251]

Lady bunny is so fun. American legend

[@whermany]

Thank you PBS for including BunBun! We love her.

[@nomi.hagen.]

Bunny is never not funny ❤

[@KZ-gi7ey]

He a coke head.

[@frankrossi9255]

Love Lady Bunny !!

[@greggmitchell2392]

Bunny on PBS!

[@randybailey7115]

I heard once on an interview show, someone that had work with May West, that her walk was more a "shuffle on stilts." She would have her figure sewn into her costumes, placing her thumb on the seam she would know exactly how the light was hitting her.

[@coreywhy]

Luv it , I'm checking things out on here about Mae West , just fabulous 👑💛 Lady Bunny is fantastic & fabulous 👑💛 Once she passed me in the West Village ... stopped and said " my hair might be bigger than hers " She was in full Drag and I loved it 🤣

[@johnnyoutlaw6534]

Bunny is incredible.

[@freddifan73]

I had to play back the Sextette trailer twice to make sure I actually heard Mae drop the f bomb (yes, I know it was the 70s) lol The movie itself, judging by the trailer, was at best a b movie, but If Mae West is in it I'll still watch it lol I adore Mae West. She wasn't afraid of speaking her mind (more than once she probably told the studios what they could do with the Hayes Code lol) and she had no problem using her sex appeal on stage and screen (and nobody could tell her not to dress the way she did, even if they could, technically, tell her what she could and couldn't say or sing lol)

[@vibeworks]

I can’t say enough wonderful about Lady Bunny, someone I knew personally back in the Limelight days. What a generous human being, so talented. She commands respect with her presence out of the kindness she exudes. I know this seems a weird take because her persona is maybe bitchy? Or something like? Bunny is an exceptional human being. So glad PBS tapped her for this commentary. She’s an ICON. Wigstock changed society around the world and I will never not promote her contribution to a better world. Thank you, Bunny. Thank you.

[@campatey4342]

love you lady bunny

[@dreamofmzjeanie]

I 🩷 Lady Bunny! Brava!

[@jahlaune]

Mae Westbwas the best extrovert Hollywood ever saw

[@frankmarter6845]

I am 80.

[@greeneyedwarlock882]

LOVE LOVE LOVE LADY BUNNY FOR-EVAAAAAA' and her explaining the one and only Mae West is PERFECTION!!!🏳‍🌈🏳‍🌈🏳‍🌈🏳‍🌈🏳‍🌈🏳‍🌈🏳‍🌈🏳‍🌈🏳‍🌈

[@SamH-em6sp]

❤hair hopper!❤

[@BendiFaguette]

NOT Fatty Arbuckle! Hahaha I always thought Bunny looked more like Monty Woolley! 🤭😍

[@Syren90...Aka9]

Auntie Bun-Bun!!❤ *💐 💐💐

[@je3720]

Raquel Welch added fuel to that fire regarding the insinuation of Mae being a Man when they worked on Myra Breckenbridge, Totally classless. Mae was all woman she just dared to be an ambitious one, Mae was smart, beautiful witty the whole package.

[@TaylorMMontgomery]

lol it looks like her body is just floating in the black background 😆

[@josefn9078]

that audio recorded conver between gay friends, Betty and Mae West, chitchatting all old and along. Talking also about Drag Queen impersionators and pretty much themselves, not as insightful or meaty as one wished tho

[@deftbeck1669]

The background and her dress makes it look like she has no arms.

[@FumerPue]

What ever happened to her ebony and irony podcast ? Is she dead or something ?

[@StevieyTV]

this woman’s nose

[@jiensuyang3915]

Drag is a culture??? D’où know the meaning of culture?

[@rsi4561]

so fake. trying to clout surf

[@frankrossi9255]

Mae looked Amazing in Sextette !! No skateboard, that's not true...

[@Bonobo3D]

I think the most likely device Mae West may have used in Sextette and many of her movies, was a slant board, a long padded board which will accommodate the full length of the lying body, movie studios provide them for actors to rest on between performances to avoid wrinkling costumes. Perhaps this is what was lost in translation to become, erroneously, a "skateboard." I recall reading that Mae West was wheeled to a spot on set, on a wheeled slant board.

[@frankrossi9255]

Mae outshined Raquel in MYRA BREAKENRIDGE !! that is the reason miss welch did not like Mae.... jealousy is a terrible thing

[@greeneyedwarlock882]

Ummmmmm......HARDLY. 🤣

[@frankrossi9255]

@@greeneyedwarlock882 Mae was the STAR of Myra !! She had creative control and was paid the most !!!!!

[@Myplop]

It was officially confirmed on his autopsy that Mr West was indeed a dude