One of the earliest blonde bombshells in show business was the controversial and beloved actress Mae West. She wrote and appeared in plays and films from the 1920s to the 1970s and was one of the earliest sex symbols in the entertainment world. She was even arrested and jailed for obscenity following production of her self-written play “SEX” in 1926.
She was also a dear friend of mine and one of the first celebrities I can think of who was interested in the spirit world. Mae herself was very psychic and she taught me about one particular aspect of the psychic world – the art of clairaudio. As anyone interested in or experienced in the spiritual world knows, clairaudio is the ability to the listen to the sound of a voice and pick up psychic vibrations from it. It is the technique I’ve used through the years when appearing on radio and taking phone calls from listeners and it’s allowed me to do telephone readings with clients around the world. As the person speaks, I hear their voice but also a voice from spirit giving me information. While I had the natural ability, Mae encouraged me to develop it – when I was about 5 or 6 years old.
From my birth till my late teens, my family and I lived in Buffalo, New York. It was common for performers to try out stage plays in Buffalo before heading to Broadway and Mae did this often. She and my mom Kaye developed a close friendship and thus Mae became a friend of mine, as well.
Her own psychic ability and devout interest in spiritualism caused her to be aware of my abilities soon after we met (I’d begun reading tea leaves at 4 years old and spontaneously gave psychic messages soon afterwards).
When Mae telephoned my mom for a chat, and I answered the phone (yes, I was a precocious child), she began coaching me through the art of clairaudio. She’d say, “Now just wait a minute, Dearie, before you get your mom. I want to ask ya somethin’, ok? And just tell me the first thing that pops into your head without thinkin’ about it, like ‘yes’ or ‘no’ or ‘good’ or ‘bad’ – see what I mean?”
She would encourage me to listen to her voice and pick up psychic messages from the spirit world at the same time. At first my messages were simple and short, as Mae suggested. Later I gave her the name of someone or an initial. And eventually, I was able to give her longer messages and answers to her questions.
She also sought guidance from a respected medium named Reverend Jack Kelly. Mae was psychic in her own right but so loved the spirit world that she could not get enough of it, thus she sought out any additional experiences she could have. Often, my mom Kaye, Mae and I would attend Reverend Kelly’s spiritual church where we would receive messages from him. It was a delightful way to spend time together.
Even though Mae is an entertainment legend and still talked about today, it may not be commonly known that she used her psychic ability to help her career and personal life. When she needed an idea for a new film, she told me about her own use of her psychic gifts: “It’s like this, Dearie. I need an idea for a pitchur’, so I say, ‘Forces, Forces, I need some good dialogue so please help me out here.’ Before long, words and ideas come racing in and I call a stenographer (like today’s secretaries) to write down what I say. I just open my mouth and it all comes out.”
Mae was basically going into trance during this time and dictating her scripts while in the trance state. Classic films such as “She Done Him Wrong” and “My Little Chickadee” were written by Mae using this technique.
Her “Forces” (the spirit world) also told her to eat roughage to help a colon problem she had, at a time when her doctors were telling her to eat a bland, soft diet. But she helped her health problem immensely.
Mae’s considerable fortune was not entirely due to her entertainment ventures. She used her psychic ability to buy and sell property, quite successfully. Starting in the 1930s, she and James Timony (her lover, manager and constant companion) would take drives on Sunday afternoons and Mae would let her guides direct her to good investments.
She told me about a Sunday when she pointed to a desolate parcel of land near Los Angeles and told Timony, “Ya see this area here? Buy it.”
He did as he was told, spending $16,000 of Mae’s money. Sometime later, the property became a few blocks of very valuable land in the San Fernando Valley, forming part of Van Nuys, California. Years after that, she sold a small parcel of that land to “America’s Sweetheart”, actress Mary Pickford, for $180,000! The remaining portion went on to become worth millions.
On another Sunday drive, Timony bought another parcel at Mae’s insistence. It became part of the city of Sepulveda, California.
And Mae bought the chic Hollywood apartment building, The Ravenswood, where she was living. She lived there for over 40 years and when she finally sold it, she made sure a clause was included in the bill of sale saying she could live rent-free in her 6th floor apartment until the end of her life, which she did.
I visited her there many times once my mom and I moved to Southern California. The experiences remain etched in my brain. I would enter the gold and white apartment, pass her white piano and then wait for Mae to make her entrance. She was always made up, always glamorous – always “Mae West.”
She would offer me a piece of chocolate from what seemed like a never-ending supply in an ornate box. Though Mae was a diabetic, she said she kept the candy on hand for “energy” from time to time.
Then she would ask me (and any other guests) to sit while a recording was played. It was often “Frankie and Johnny”, one of her most notable performances. She would sing along, catching a glimpse of herself in the wall-to-wall mirrors and undulating to the music.
Conversation would inevitably turn to the spirit world, though, because of her keen interest. One time, I had to cut our conversation short, telling her I had to go to visit a client.
“It’s that Monroe girl, ain’t it?” she smiled. Apparently she’d found out that I was advising Marilyn Monroe. I told her that I was indeed going to visit Marilyn and asked what she thought of her.
Hands on hips, swaying in the mirror as she looked at herself, she raised her eyebrows, laughed and said, “Well, she’s okay. If you like carbon copies!”
Ironically, it was another blonde bombshell who broke the news to me about Mae’s passing in November of 1980. When I returned home from an appointment there was a telephone message saying, “Hello, dear Kenny. Well, we’ve just lost Mae.” The actress was legendary Lana Turner. Mae was truly loved by everyone.
In addition to our times together at The Ravenswood, I often attended Mae’s plays and visited her backstage afterwards. We secretly held séances following her performance. She always referred to herself in the third person since she considered herself a businesswoman and commodity. So when a message came through for her it was not unusual to hear her say “Mae West wouldn’t do that” or “Yes, that would be very good for Mae West.”
There was a softer, gentler side to her by all means, but only a select few got to see it and I consider myself fortunate to have been in that small group. She was a dear soul, a good friend and a daring and talented actress and businesswoman.
Over the years when I have relayed stories about Mae in the media, I’ve been asked how one can develop the talent for clairaudio. Of course, it helps to have been born with the ability, as was my case. I believe many people are born with a predisposition towards having gifts such as this.
But to refine or bring out the talent, I suggest meditating with a red candle and after placing the white light of protection around your entire body to ward off any negativity, ask for spirits to come in. Ask for their guidance. Listen for voices. Listen for raps and taps or other phenomena that would otherwise not happen (lights flickering, etc.).
Then begin practicing with a friend. Have a conversation, open yourself up to the spirits, and see if you hear a voice whispering to you while your friend is talking. This is the beginning of clairaudio.
Are we always accurate? I have said on numerous occasions that I don’t believe any psychic/medium is 100% accurate. There is always room for misinterpretation. For example, there might be a spirit who speaks with an accent that makes understanding them somewhat difficult. Or they do not make themselves entirely clear. Think about this – how many times have you had a conversation with a friend on Earthplane and found out later that you misunderstood what they said or the intention behind it?
But clairaudio is a wonderful tool to add to our spiritual gifts, and I have the friendship of Mae West to thank for opening me up to its possibilities.
My friend, famed newspaper columnist James Bacon, wrote Mae’s obituary for a Los Angeles newspaper. The headline was, MAE WEST WAS GLAD TO SEE YA. It was true – she had a love of people and a love of spiritualism and I am blessed to have known her.
]]>
