Moms Mabley was born Loretta Mary Aiken on March 19,1894 in Brevard, North Carolina. As a teenager Moms relocated to Cleveland, Ohio in 1908 where she joined the vaudeville scene. At this point in her life she picks up the nickname “Moms,” due to her nurturing relationships with fellow performers. Mabley collaborated with celebrities such as the duo Butterbeans and Susie, Zora Neale Hurston, and Paul Robeson, as well as doing solo work. She was the first woman comedian to perform at the Apollo Theater and appeared on that stage more times than any other entertainer. Not only did Mabley do live performances, she was in a few movies such as Killer Diller (1948) which starred Butterfly Queen and Nat King Cole. Later in her career, Mabley attracted white audiences. In 1962 Mabley performed at Carnegie Hall, followed by appearances on television shows such as The Ed Sullivan Show. Her album The Funniest Woman Alive: Moms Mabley at the "UN" (1961) made it into the Billboard Top 20.Mabley took her stage name from a man named Jake Mabley, who she fell in love with as a young adult. She never married but had several subsequent romances with men and women. Her stage aesthetic ranged from androgynous to matronly. On stage she took on topics such as sexuality and race relations. She was posthumously inducted into the Apollo Walk of Fame in 2015, as well as being named one of Equality Forum's Icons. A documentary film, directed by Whoopi Goldberg, was made about her life.
