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Meet the star of such fabulous and freaky cult films as Russ Meyer's legendary Faster Pussycat! Kill! Kill!
by Leesa G.
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EDITOR'S NOTE: Come back with us to a time before movie theaters became concrete bunkers at the shopping mall and before cutting-edge "independent films" were slick multi-gazillion dollar releases from a division of the Walt Disney Company. In the '50s, '60s, and early '70s, the United States had a thriving subculture of truly independent filmmakers — directors and actors who cranked out wild and weird low-budget fare which played primarily on drive-in screens. It was a time when such schlock and exploitation masters as Russ Meyer, Ted V. Mikels, and Roger Corman thrived as equal parts cinematic auteur and carnival barker, when stunningly bizarre flicks would be released willy-nilly in different markets under a variety of lurid titles (Blood Orgy of the She-Devils, aka Female Plasma Suckers). Sadly, the gradual disappearance of drive-in theaters meant that most of these fascinating, fun films — and the colorful individuals who created them — were all but forgotten for the better part of two decades. Today, however, such movies are finding a new life as cult favorites among hip film connoisseurs, and interest in the creators and stars is on the rise. We sent Leesa G., co-owner of Cinemania (a video store specializing in B movies and exploitation films), to have a conversation with Tura Satana, a cult icon who worked with both Meyer and Mikels — and is therefore uniquely qualified to shed some light on the indie film scene of long ago. How cool is this bad, busty babe? Consider this: one band has taken the name Tura Satana and another calls itself Faster Pussycat in honor of her signature film.
Tura Satana is best known as Varla in Russ Meyer's Faster, Pussycat! Kill!
Kill!. What many people don't know is that she: holds several belts in
karate, raised two daughters while working as a stripper on the burlesque
and Vegas circuits, and today works as a personal bodyguard for a casino.
Here, Ms. Satana talks about martial arts, breaking into burlesque at the
tender age of 15, her life in films, and how Elvis (yes, The King) attempted to turn a meek, mild girl named "Priscilla" into a Tura clone.
LEESA G: You've had quite a life! How old were you the first time you were married? Was this an "arranged" marriage?
TURA SATANA: I was 13, and yes, this was an arranged marriage. I was told that I had to marry Johnny, because I had been engaged to him when I was born. He was 17 and I was 13. We were married in Hernando, Mississippi. It is the only state that will still marry a 13-year old, with or without parental consent.
LG: Remember that, all you wanna-be child brides out there! Was it
after you and your first husband split up that you decided to go into burlesque?
TS: When Johnny and I parted company, we did so on a mutual basis. He and I are still friends. Anyway, I got into burlesque a couple of years later. I had always wanted to be a singer and had studied voice for quite a few
years. I went back to junior high school after my divorce and tried to
catch up on the schooling that I missed while I was married. It was very
hard to do; everyone knew that I had been married and was no longer
"innocent." It was after I left school and moved out west that I started
thinking about dancing. I had been told that I had a great body, so I made a
living doing some nude photography modeling. Never any porno stuff, just
figure modeling.
LG: Tell us about some of the different venues where you danced at the time.
TS: I first got a job dancing while out in Los Angeles. I danced at the
Tropicana Club for Turk Prujan. He was a great guy. He said
that I could make the music come alive with just the motions of my body. When I danced at the Tropicana, I was a legitimate dancer. After I moved to
Chicago, I worked in couple of clubs as a legit dancer, and then I went to
Calumet City, Illinois — the cesspool of strip clubs. I went there as
a legit dancer with a routine of Spanish and Indian dances, but the guys
there wanted to see skin and not talent. I was making $75 a week as a
legit dancer. I was offered $125 per week if I would strip. After that, I worked in an act called Galatea, the Statue that Came to Life. It was fun because I could really make the audience stand up and take notice of this Oriental woman — we didn't say 'Asian' back then — with big boobs.
LG: Was burlesque a pretty rough business for someone so young?
TS: Yes. It was an extremely rough business to be in at any age, but
especially at the age of 15. I worked at the Rendezvous Club in Calumet
City. I met a man there by the name of Tiger Dupre; he had his wife, two
children and his girlfriend all living in a large trailer. He asked me to
come and be one of his ladies and said he would be my protector. He was good for some things, but in others he was very lacking. In order for me to leave
Calumet City without being harmed in any way, I had to call in a favor from
an old friend. When the owner of the club would not release me, my friend
called up and told him that, if he wanted to stay in business, he had better let me leave and in good graces. Once my friend called, I was allowed to leave there with no strings. Most gals, once they came to Calumet city, stayed there for the rest of their lives. It's nice to have friends like that. I still have a few like that around.
LG: How old were you when you had your daughters?
TS: When I had my first daughter, Kalani, I was 19 years old. I danced
until I was eight months along and then I quit dancing for five months.
LG: How did you disguise the fact that you were pregnant so that you could
continue dancing?
TS: You don't disguise that fact that you are pregnant when you are
stripping! I was very lucky, I just didn't show very much until I reached
eight and a half months. Then, all of a sudden, I looked very pregnant and I quit dancing for the time being.
LG: What was it like to be a single mom in show business? That's a very common thing to be these days, but back in the early 1960s I would guess it was almost unheard of. In fact, I seem to remember reading that it torpedoed Patti Duke's career for a while...
TS: Being a single mom in show business is not easy. I didn't want to be away from my children while I worked, so I took them on the road with me; I didn't want to be an absentee mother. Those kids were very well-traveled during their younger years. By the time Lani was ready to go to school, she was already a world traveler. I have always felt that schooling is a
very important part of growing up, so my children stayed with their
grandparents when it was time to go to school. When I finally retired from dancing, it was so that I could be with my kids and watch them grow.
LG: Tell us about some of the TV shows you've been on.
TS: I was on lots of different TV shows — Hawaiian Eye,
Valentine's Day, Man from U.N.C.L.E., Girl from U.N.C.L.E., The Greatest
Show on Earth, Burke's Law, talk shows, etc. etc.
LG: How did you end up doing the 1963 movie Irma la Douce with Shirley MacLaine?
TS: I was working at a nightclub called The Pink Pussycat in Los Angeles and Billy Wilder (director of Irma La Douce) came in to catch the show,
because he had heard about this big-busted Oriental female that worked
there. Since I was the only Asian working there, I think he came to see
me! After the show, he came back stage to speak with me about reading for a
part in Irma La Douce. I read for the part and wound up working with Billy for over three months at Samuel Goldwyn Studios. He was a very good director and wonderful person to talk with. He also made me feel very special.
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