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After THE HEAT'S ON in 1943, Mae took a respite from the film world. The reason was the censors were getting stricter. She decided she would be able to have greater expression in her work if she went back to the stage.

Mae continued to be a success there. When censors began to let up, she returned to film work in 1970 in MYRA BRECKINRIDGE. Her last film was in 1978 called SEXTETTE.

Mae suffered a series of strokes which finally resulted in her death on November 22, 1980 in Hollywood, California. She was buried in New York. She was 87. The actress, who only appeared in 12 films in 46 years, had a powerful impact on us. There was no doubt she was way ahead of her time with her sexual innuendoes and how she made fun of a puritanical society. She did a lot to bring it out of the closet and perhaps we should be grateful for that.

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A blessed thing it is for any man or woman to have a friend, one human soul whom we can trust utterly, who knows the best and worst of us, and who loves us in spite of all our faults.