Women in Comedy You Should Know: Moms Mabley
I’m embarrassed to say that I only recently learned of Moms Mabley and her trailblazing career as a comedian.
In fact, I learned about her from season 3 of The Marvelous Mrs. Maise l! If you’ve seen Maisel, you’ll remember Wanda Sikes's hilarious portrayal of her. But before Mom’s Mabley was a character on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, she was a real-life, ball-busting, ferociously funny stand-up comedian who paved the way for so many female comedians and comedians of color. In fact, Wanda Sykes even credits Moms Mabley for inspiring her to become a stand-up comedian!
So let’s learn a little bit more about the icon that was Moms Mabley and how she became one of the most influential comedians:
Moms Mabley was born Loretta May Aiken in North Carolina on March 19, 1894, according to Biography.com, she had a hard upbringing— her father, who was a firefighter passed away when she was 11, and her mother soon after.
At the young age of 15, after losing both her parents and overcoming sexual abuse, she became fed up with her stepfather and decided to leave North Carolina. Loretta moved to Cleveland, Ohio where she experienced what life was like in show business for the first time. Once she was exposed to the world of performers and live shows she started performing on the Chitlin’ Circuit, which was a venue for Black performers during the Jim Crowe Era.
It was the Chitlin’ Circuit where she met an early boyfriend, named Jack Mabley whose last name she stole and used as her stage name in an effort to piss off her brother (who was against her career choice). She joked in an interview with Ebony magazine, “ ‘Jack was my first boyfriend. 'He took a lot off me and the least I could do was take his name.’ ”
That is so badass.
The nickname “Moms” came from her nurturing compassion towards other performers. The name, “Moms” also served as a tribute to her grandmother, a former slave, who she credits for inspiring her to chase her dreams. She based a lot of the physicality of her character on her grandmother as well, wearing floppy hats, frumpy housedresses, and even sometimes taking out her teeth. All of which killed with audiences, of course, along with her impeccable timing, clever social commentary, and raunchy humor.
And thus, Moms Mabley was born.
Moms Mabley made her debut at Connie’s Inn in New York City shortly after being discovered by the vaudeville team, Butterbeans, and Susie, according to Britannica.
After that, her star rose quickly. She started landing gigs in notable venues all over New York and in 1930 became the first female comedian to appear at the famous Appolo Theatre. AND THEN appeared there more than any other act in history, performing five shows a day. In addition to being the first woman to appear at the Appollo, she became one of the first openly gay comedians, often wearing gender-fluid clothes and would incorporate “lesbian stand-up routines” into her act. Moms was also the first woman to headline Carnegie Hall in 1962.
Moms Mobley was a hit. She made her way to the big screen in 1948 with the film Boarding House Blues and Amazing Grace in 1974. On the small screen, she performed her stand-up on several shows including The Ed Sullivan Show, The Merv Griffin Show, and The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. Over the span of her fifty-year career, she recorded 20 comedy albums, and at 75 years old became the oldest person to have a Top 40 hit in the United States with her cover of “Abraham, Martin, and John.”
Moms was one of the most prominent comedians in the history of comedy, with a thriving career that spanned five decades. Not only did she break barriers and hilariously speak cultural truths, but she inspired several other beloved comedians: Richard Pryor, Eddie Murphy, Whoopi Goldberg, Wanda Sykes, and many more. She is amazing and deserves to be remembered for the titan of comedy she was.
If you want to learn more about Moms Mabley, you can watch the documentary, Moms Mabley: I Got Somethin’ To Tell You on Amazon Prime.
