Well, here we go. I am so delighted to be speaking with the beautiful and talented Mae Musk. When people see this interview, they're going to look at you and say, oh my God, I know who she is. That's that beautiful woman who looks half her age who does international modeling. So tell me about some of the campaigns. Where would people know you from?
Well, first of all, the cover goal, commercial, that phase, over and over, I wonder what age that is. Isn't that fabulous? Yes, it is. It makes even young women feel happy about aging. In your 70s, you can do a beauty commercial because you make it look so effortless. Well, it's, you know, I'm looked off to well. They treat me so beautifully. So it does feel effortless. But to be in good health and look good in your 70s, you really have to eat well and you have to be happy and you have to, you know, mix with happy people so that you don't have misery around you, which is aging. I love that. You talk about that in the book and we're going to get to that. But of course, I also have to get to the question about who your children are.
Okay. The most famous being this guy named Elon, who has transformed us in terms of transportation, space. I get nervous before every rocket, I mean, it's a 50th launch or something. So I've been to launches but I've also usually now it's on my iPad. That's amazing. But you also accompany him to quite a few pieces. Yes, yes. I go to try to get to many launches, especially of Tesla. But then I also have to go to Kimball's big green launches and, you know, especially the gardens, you know, in LA, it's in Compton and Hawthorne. You watch children growing their own vegetables and fruit. It's just too wonderful.
So in case people are wondering, Kimball is your second son. Yes. And Toska is your daughter. Is my daughter. So tell us about your other children as well, what they're doing.
Well, Toska has the platform called Passion Flix and this is where she takes best-selling romance novels and makes them into movies. But with these movies, the women have to be strong and confident and successful and intelligent and they are not abused. They're not diseased. They're not dying and all that type of things. She's done a lot of those. And now it's her own platform and then it's happy. Of course, there's drama because it's romance. Female directors, women get paid the same as men. How she features the women in her films. Does a lot of that come from her mother? She's also watched her mom become this amazing person.
Well, my kids are happy with me. They always, when they are interviewed, they say lovely things about men. That's nice. That's so sweet. And your own mom, because I read about her in the book as well. What a force of nature she was. Way ahead of her time. But then she was always treated as an equal. So she wasn't aware that women are not treated equally because my father treated us all, my brothers and sisters and me, we were all treated equally. So we didn't know there was a difference. And then you go through stages of your life and you figure out things and they're not pleasant. Yes. We're going to talk about that next. But I want you to finish then talking about Kimball. Yes. Because you mentioned the gardens. Yes. How did that come about?
Well, that came about when he broke his neck. Oh. So he was tubing with his children, broke his neck and he was two months' line flat. I mean, it was horrifying. And with his six inch bolt in his neck. And then he just said, you know, even though we went through poverty, you know, peanut butter sandwiches and bean soup, we always had enough fruits and vegetables and many children don't have enough. And so that's when he decided he's going to build vegetable and fruit gardens in Colorado because that's where he lives. And then he found the gardens fell apart and the teachers don't have time to help with the gardens. So then he said, I have to start this big green nonprofit and he always has about 100 gardens in the city so that his team will then teach the children. The children have to do all the work and I put the dirt into the containers and then they have to plant the seeds, but they have an expert gardener teaching them how to do it.
Okay. So people who are hearing this and wondering, you know, I know you let your children follow their own path. Yes. And that's one thing that you also write about here. Right. The people that you love, let them go their way. Right. And you didn't just, you want to go to school? Did they pay for their own school? They didn't get loans and they had to get scholarships because I couldn't afford it, you know. And even my two most of science degrees, I didn't do them because I had money. I couldn't afford to do it, but then I got scholarships to be able to do research work that the medical faculty wanted me to do.
You know, that all sounds like planting the seeds and whether you knew it or not at the time, even planting seeds in your children, which explains in a way just how you were brought up. So I want you to take me back to the beginning. I know you were born in Canada. And can you imagine at two and a half, we were on a cargo ship coming from Canada to South Africa in 1950. No. With a plane, correct? You broke the plane. You broke the plane. The plane, my dad took the wings off because he had to crate it and then landing in Cape Town and then with four children in the back seat and this one, you know, it is one propeller. It was a canvas plane and flew up South Africa to find out where we should live. That's amazing.
I know. Now that's adventurous. No question about that. So this is your youngster when this happened. Yes. Before what I can remember. Just see photos of it. And the photos that I've seen in your book, you look happy. Yes, we were so happy as children. And we would go across the Kalahari Desert with a compass. There were no maps. We mapped it out for them. So there's a Maypan and a Mayhill. And the camel patrol would be ready to find us if we didn't get to the other side of the desert in three weeks. Wow. I know. Well, tell me, you got to South Africa. You went to school there. Yes. How did you, you met your husband there? Yes. And your children's father. Yes. So tell me how that came about. I was this nerdy girl at school. So I didn't really get dates, you know, because I was such a nerd. And then I became a model at 15. So then I became good enough to be dated by my ex-husband. Ah. Yes, yes. I had a better state. I said, yeah, any day to the prettiest girls. And then, but I really wasn't attracted to him. But he was very persistent and I wasn't getting many dates anyway. So we did date quite well, but he was quite aggressive. And that's so pretty much after a few years, my brother said, banned him from coming to my home. And for two years, I didn't see him. And the next thing he turned up in Cape Town when I was working there with an engagement ring. And I said, I'll never wear it. I'll never wear it. And I didn't know how he had markers. I didn't know who gave it to him. And then the next thing I get a telegram, remember, this is now in 1917. And you didn't phone? It was too expensive. You didn't write. And there was a telegram saying, congratulations on getting married. The invitations are out. Already there are 800 people coming. So you need to come back home. And I thought, so he planned the wedding and everything. He planned it with my twin sister because she was then getting married at the same time as me. And my dad suggested we might as well both get married together. And you don't want to upset your parents and say, no, I didn't agree to this. And so I went through with him and I thought, well, you know, I was lonely alone in Cape Town. And I was, I gained 65 pounds.
No. And yeah. And then I had back trouble and knee trouble. So I wasn't in a happy situation. And I thought, well, what can be worse? Marriage can't be that bad than it was. You said something. And I know it's in the book. You said I would be beaten up. Did you suffer that kind of abuse? Yes. Yeah. Yeah. I think I was beaten up. But the thing is, and you know, there was a saying in South Africa. When you get divorced, you stop falling in the shower. Because every time you have a scene with bruises, you said you fell in the shower. Yeah. So there was, so it was a common saying in South Africa. When I was married, I was told about three times a day that I'm boring and stupid and, you know, and ugly. And, and, and if I protested, then I could be beaten up. So I definitely never protested that.
The thing in your mind, you're saying, well, I can't be that ugly and I can't be that, you know, I can't be that stupid. And I was a model and had a Bachelor of Science degree already. But I couldn't be boring. I mean, who knows? Because nobody wants to be our friends. And it's only when I got divorced that I found out that I had friends coming out of the woodwork. They were, they just didn't want to mix with my old woodwork. It means that women can come out of it, an abusive situation and live a better life. And I had three wonderful children who gave me so much joy. I just had to look at them and I would say, how lucky I am.
So may you did get married and you had three wonderful children. How long did you stay in the marriage before you moved back to Canada? No. First of all, I was married for nine years. Then I ran away with the children. I was there for 11 more years in lawsuits all the time from my ex-husband continuously. And then I moved to Canada at 41 and started all over. But my funds were blocked in South Africa. I actually managed to buy a home, you know. And for once I was financially secure. I had a big practice, a nutrition practice. I was modeling a lot and I was saying, for once I'm financially secure. And then I came to Canada. You know, I had already moved there. So I came to visit him because Toska wanted to move as well. So we explored Canada. All the universities would take me on except for the University of Montreal because my French isn't good enough. I speak French of France, which is like Dutch and German. Oh, there's Africa. Yes. But it's not good enough for research work. So then I came back thinking, oh, Toronto is the best. But when I came back, Toska had sold my home, my car and my furniture. And she was 15 and nobody knew she was 15 because it was 5 or 10. And she sold your home at 15 and the car. But I still had to sign it because she couldn't sign it at 15. And she wasn't able to have the rights. And then she just said, why are we waiting? I said I wanted to get my PhD first at the University of Cape Town. I was going to go there. And she said, well, wait, the Mars will go now. And she had a point.
You know something. The incredible things that you've done in this period of time. And I know you don't mind talking about it because you wrote about it in your book, A Woman Makes a Plan.
Yes. And it sounds like you did almost every step of the way. Some of it, well, you had to. You write about when you first, you were raising three children on your own. And you didn't have a lot of money.
Well, that was the one-bedroom apartment where I was doing my hospital internship in Bloomford in New York. We became completely bilingual because no one could speak English. It really helps you with the language. And so it was a one-bedroom apartment. Kimball and Toscah slipped in the bedroom and I slipped in the living room kitchen. And it was the doctor's quarters. I was so honored that they would allow me to stay there while I worked in the hospital. So then they paid me $300 a month while I was doing my studies and working. And they charged me $77 for me and my kids to eat there and stay there. So I was willing. I had no way to spend money.
Wow. So that was great. And then I ran a modeling school for the Dietitics scholarship fund. And then I did a lot of modeling too.
哇,那真是太棒了。然后我为营养学奖学金基金举办了一家模特学校。而且我也进行了很多模特工作。
Was that something that you thought went together, the modeling and being a dietitian? Because being a dietitian, you had to learn about nutrition. Did that enter your mind or was it just something totally you thought this is something I'd like to do?
No. Well, I started modeling at 15, but I didn't pay much attention to it because I knew it was very short-term. Looking back. I mean, really. And then I did the Bachelor of Science degree, but I never let modeling interfere with my studies and I didn't interfere with my work as well. And so then if they wanted to book me for a modeling job, I needed three weeks notice that I didn't book science a day. And I wouldn't do more than four days a month. All right. But I was always surprised that they still wanted me that much. Remember, as you get older, I was the oldest model in South Africa. Then the oldest model in Canada. Then the oldest model in San Francisco. And then actually in New York, they were model my age. Why do you think that was? As I was getting older, they weren't accepting him, but then they would say what about you?
Yeah, I don't know. I was whatever it is. I'm happy.
是的,我不知道。我只是随遇而安。我很开心。
Let's go back because you told me you were a plus-size model before.
让我们回去,因为你之前告诉我你是一个加大尺码模特。
Yes. Well, when I was after my divorce, then I met this guy and he just wanted to marry me the first day. He met me.
是的。嗯,当我离婚后,我遇到了这个人,他在第一天就想和我结婚。他见到了我。
Oh. I thought it was wonderful for six weeks. And then he became very busy, but he wanted to be married to me still. And then he got another model pregnant and they moved next door to me. And so I was engaged to him. He had a surprise engagement party after I refused to see him. So then I took my engagement ring off. And then I ate my way through that one.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. I loved it. I was good. But you picked up the weight. Which is what women do. Right? Well, I just thought what the man said. And food makes you very happy, especially when it's chocolate and ice cream. And burgers and fries and fried chicken and all of that. That's not a taste grade. I loved it. Cookies. I could do six cookies before I take a breath.
No, I stayed in bad situations too long. Because you think you can change people or change their attitudes and you can't. And then you'll get very hurt and very sad. And then you need to make a plan to get out of that. And it might mean you're financially strapped, you're scared, you don't know what the future is going to hold. But at the moment, it's pretty horrible. So you need to move away from it.
So that's how you dealt with all the adversity. How did you deal with raising children, sort of like a co-parenting, right? Their father was in their lives, is that correct?
Yes. Ilo went to go and live with him at 10. Because he had two encyclopedias. And then he got a computer. So that's something I could never afford. So that was good. And then it's about 13. Kimbo was missing his brother. So he went to go and live with him too. And then I had them every week. And I picked them up in Friday afternoon and picked them back Sunday night. And then Toscoden went to live with him at all. And I tried to live to stay weekends there, but then she'd call me crying and I would go and pick up. So. But that's something to get used to as well. That's not very easy to have to raise families.
You know, the thing is I had a happy home. The kids had a choice. And we all have a happy home now. You know. We love spending time together. And we used to spend weekends together. Because then my twin sisters, kids were their best friends.
What would you say your kids have learned from you?
你认为你的孩子从你身上学到了什么?
I think they saw me working all the time. I would start at 7.30 in the morning, getting into school. Alright. And then I would start seeing clients at 8 in the morning. And I would finish at maybe 7.30 at night if I wasn't teaching in the evenings. And when I moved to Toronto, I taught nutrition at a college two nights a week. And then I taught modeling two nights a week. Because then I got a free office in the model agency to have my practice. I could never afford to rent anything. So you worked all of this out? No, it happened. It just happens. The model agency offers you a chance to have a free office if you model for them and teach in the evenings. Wow. I mean, it's better than rain. No question. I know. It's incredible. Yeah. It almost, I like when you said no, it just happened. Because it almost sounds like you had a plan for everything. But things happen and you had to make a plan. Yes. And you also say, well, why don't I do this? Why not? Let me try this. Let me do that.
And then when we were in Toronto, I mean, I would have to do manicures and pedicures for my kids. And teenage boys, you really don't want to do pedicures on them. The police, we couldn't afford it. So you did it all yourself. I would cut their hair. And I was saying to Toska, luckily we didn't have Marissa's. We couldn't see the back of their head because I really wasn't good at that. But we didn't go to movies and we didn't go out for dinner. And it was fine. We all got jobs. As long as I had a roof over their head and food, that was great.
This has certainly been a blueprint for this book, which is what we want to emphasize. Like, you have so much wisdom that you are imparting here. But that you've learned. I mean, just to be a woman. And yes, you have adversity. You have the bat marriage. You're raising the kids on your own. But you're traveling across the ocean to finally pick up roots and then start working again and going to school. Were there points where you thought you couldn't get out of bed or that you just couldn't get out of bed? No. No. I woke up ready to go every morning because I was determined to succeed. I mean, I had no choice. So I didn't have time to think about, oh, you know, I really feeling sad today. I had no time for that. I had to get up and go. Then keep it moving. Yeah. And actually my kids used to say, you never sleep because I could always hear them when they were little kids. I could hear them when I came to the video and I knew from their footsteps who they were. I said, they thought I never slept. But once they had, I sleep well.
Did you always have you modeled at 15? Probably because you were so gorgeous. How you looked, your height. But did you always feel that you had the grace or the movement to carry it off? I know you did other things as well. But we ended up back to you modeling in such a huge way. I'm super proud. Oh, I'm a supermodel. At 69 I became a supermodel. So, you know, keep in there. Keep going. At 69 I became a supermodel. That's when I got the big cover go contract. Wasn't it? A beauty contract of 69. I mean, it's every model's dream to have a huge beauty contract. And I've done beauty jobs before, but never with your name attached, it never as huge as this one. Why do you think it was that number 69? Do you think that they finally recognize, and when I say they, people in the industry, people, it's time to really recognize strong, attractive, mature women? I think what they're aiming for is the market. The market shows that women my age, 60s and 70s, we like to look good. And why not? You think they feel obviously this is important for the world to see, for other women to see because you're such an example. I know. Well, I think they just took a chance and that's what happened. And look at you. Yeah, I feel great. I really, I'm here. I mean, I know. And I love in your book you talk about how you eat and how to eat healthy. Yes. But you don't necessarily deny yourself. Yesterday, it was Tuskas twins seventh birthday party. I over ate on the cake. It was so delicious. So the old habits come back. Over-eighthily cake. So for dinner, last night, I had walked. You know why? I was still full from the cake. It was the best cake ever. So you felt like you didn't need to overeat after that? Yeah, I might have had an apple if I wanted to, but I wasn't hungry for the fact I'd overdone the cake. And you suffer for that. That's what I'm used to. And I eat perfectly again this week. I was going to say because you always, you seem the correct result. I correct myself. And the pasta was harder. Now I've suffered so much by not correcting myself right away that I don't want to go through there. And eating, and then you'd gain £5 so good in a week. That's very. Yeah. And then you're closer to tight. And that's an unhappy feeling. Yes. And then you'd buy a new clothes. That means spending more money. Yeah. Go, go. And then you get up to side, and it's not always as pretty as you want.
I agree. What do you want younger women to take from your life, even from this interview and from the book? Yeah. Women to read my book and see that I made mistakes and then are suffered. And may they suffer less and get out of the mistakes they make. Because you don't really know you make a mistake and then you get into a horrible situation and you can't get out of it. You think you can't, but then you make a plan and you need to get out of it and move on. Even if you are financially strapped and even if you are scared, you need to move on.
And for you in terms of aging, it's something that, I think you told me when I first met you, that you embrace it. Well, it's not like I'm embracing it. I'm not giving it much thought. I'm having the best time ever. And then somebody was interviewed and said that it's 82 is considered the happiest year. And I'm looking forward to that. And then my mom said her 90s were her happiest. So I've got a lot ahead of me.
So your mom, which lived to 98, is that? 98 years. And she was happy. She discovered really her life after 60. Yes. So after my father died, we didn't know she would survive because she just supported him the whole time. She was a ballroom dancing teacher. That's how she met him and a ballet dancing teacher and a drama teacher. And then she started taking art classes and photography classes. And so she won awards as a photographer. And you've seen the photos from the Canahari desert. They're beautiful. Yes. And it's just because she was good at that. But to do that after 60 years. And then she was in the Who's Who book of artists because she was exhibiting all the time. So you have all of those examples, actually. Yes. I mean, when it comes to music and art, culture.
Now you did say something in the book about when you really embraced ageism, your hair. Yes. Well, what happens is that I was at this model agency who was keeping me out of the market. And that happens with actors a lot, but not so much with model, but they did. And then I said, well, then, doesn't matter. Why am I coloring my hair? We meant to keep the roots blonde. So then I let it grow out and cut it very short and edgy because I wasn't working. And the agency said, nobody will ever book you again. And so then I had photos taken, a test shoot. And they were stunning photos with a short edgy hair. Again. They wouldn't even put it on the website. They were so upset. And then I went and sat there. I said, you haven't seen me after six months. I want to see the senior person. And I said, I'm out of here. And you have to let me out of the contract. And they did. And I went to move. Yes. I just sat in the lobby. I'm in the front at the front reception office. I wasn't going to move until they let me out of my contract. They did because I had nothing to lose. I went to a small agency within three months I had a billboard in Times Square. A billboard in Manishton Square Gardens. I flew to Montreal for a cover. I did my first editorial. I mean, suddenly I was this hot white-haired woman. And everybody was saying they'd been trying to book me for years. Really? And I was never available. That's what it was. It's not like you didn't want to. They weren't after you. You were busy. Yeah, I was not available. I got what they were told all the time.
Well, babe, what's next? What's next is the, I mean, the world's the limit. I've just come back from Milan fashion week. Yeah, so you were walking in the highest hills I've ever walked in. And some of the younger models actually took the hills off. Because they were 150 models, most of them, yeah. Took the hills off and just carried them off. But you walked in yours? I didn't know I had the option to take them off. And I walked in those. And I got to a fashion award. And now I'm going to Canada for a fashion award. So you plan to keep going. I'll go wherever. Everything takes me. I have all these agents and they're booking me and they're getting me great jobs.
Oh, wait a minute. Let's not leave this out. You were in a Beyonce video, correct? Yes. Yes. Was that fun? Well, that was the most magnificent outfit, a 35th long train behind me. Wow. This fabulous dress, Beauchelen. She does the most amazing styling. And it was the largest room I've ever seen with wardrobe. And the hills were 12 inches high and the platform was 6 inches. And they had two men had to prop me up on my heels. So all I could do is use my arms. Because if I tried anything else, I would have fallen off my heels. Oh, my goodness. That's hard work. Fantastic. I listened to you. I said hard work and you said fantastic. That's what it meant. And the first was all fantastic. But see, this seems like how you look at life, you know, where someone else may say something is difficult. You look at it. It's another journey or it's another challenge. It's something to me. And it's a privilege. It's a privilege to be a model at any age. Certainly in my 70s, you're going to see. It's really going to get better.
That is so wonderful. How do the younger models, they must be in awe? They love me. Of course. They can only take so many selfies with me because I can't do selfies with 150 models. I just give them so much hope, they say. I love just your personality and how approachable you are and how down to earth you are. Yeah, I think you don't really change. That's why when Elon, Kimball and Toska on separate days said to me, you're writing a book, you talk about your struggles and how you survived. And that's what's in my book. And struggling does make you humble. And there could be still more times that I'll be humble, but less humble because I've been humbled so many times. I'm being less humble. I love it. And you talk about your vacations. You go on vacations with your family. Yeah. And this is something that you enjoy with all of you together. It could be 40 in one setting. Yes. And you're happy with that. We love it. I have to say, we still all on our laptops. But this is a paper, the meals we all together. And of course my grandchildren love playing together. Oh, that's so sweet. Really sweet. And one more thing. This is Los Angeles. The entertainment industry is so big. And it's generally who you are. How many people know you? What you're driving? How do you define success, Mae? If you were to talk to people and let's say we are now, what's your definition of success? Being on your show? Oh, that is so nice of you to say that. Really? I would have to be successful to be on your show. But would you say it's how the person, how you feel about your life or? Well, I just think I'm open to so many opportunities. And I think there's going to be so many more ahead of me. And increasing my Instagram followers. Yeah, you have, how many do you have? Quarter of a million hours. Nearly 300,000. Oh, that's over a quarter of a million. I know. You're an influencer in the best of ways. So for those of you who had any more questions, you really need to read this book because it's all there. And look at you. You've lived a wonderful life and you've just gone through many, many challenges that you say some could be worse for some women, some women would never go through this. But you have really set an example or raised a bar. I have a chat to saying I prefer people to be interesting than beautiful. If you think I'm not pretty enough to be a model, just become an expert in whatever you love and share it with people. So it's not about me, me, me. I'm not so pretty. But I think it's more about what can you share with other people to make them feel good? That's being successful. That's being successful. Makes you feel good. Well it's been a pleasure. Thank you Miss Maemma. Okay.
Oh. Oh. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.