Moms Mabley

Picture from Google images.


Article By Gail Nobles


Jackie “Moms Mabley was an African American comedian. Her birth name was Loretta Mary Aiken. She took her stage name Jackie Mabley from her boyfriend. Later she became known as “Moms”.  She was born in Brevard, North Carolina. Mabley was a very successful entertainer and earned $10,000 a week at Harlem’s Apollo Theater. Mabley could sing and told very funny jokes. She wore a house dress and a funny hat. Mabley performed with no teeth in her mouth. To me, her appearance went along well with her performance. Here are some of the funny things she would say………………


Moms Mabley: Let me tell you what happened to me in the good ole days. You couldn’t do nothing that you wanted to do. And you better not open your mouth. If you did, they would nock your brains out……………..If daddy said so, that was it. See, I wasn’t nothing’ but a child. Nothin’ but a child 14 going on 15 years old. And just as cute as I want to be. Hair hanging down my back. See, I’m half Indian, and the other half the beauty parlor takes care of that. And this ooooooooolllllllllllldddddddddd  dead, puny, molded man. I mean an old man. Santa Clause look like his son. He was older than his mother………………My daddy liked him. I had to marry that old man. My daddy should have married him. He the one liked him.