January 26, 2007
Liz Renay No Longer (Desperate) Living
1950's blond bombshell with a sorted past, Liz Renay, died on Monday at age 80. She's best known to my generation for playing Muffy St. Jacques in John Waters "Desperate Living". As late as last year, she was still doing stage performances, as documented in this video clip from the 2006 Miss Exotic World Pageant and Striptease Reunion in Las Vegas.
A short bio is below, but read the 1999 Monk interview, visit the MySpace tribute page, and don't miss the photo gallery! Fabulous. Find out how she "streaked" down Hollywood Boulevard with 4,000 cheering onlookers (see photo), had seven husbands, slept with Jerry Lewis, Glen Ford, Burt Lancaster (as documented in her book "My First 2000 Men"), and went to jail to avoid being "hit" by mobsters. Fabulous.
Knockout Liz Renay's personal life has often overshadowed her film career. She became a showgirl and, later, a stripper after running away from home in the 1940s. In the 1950s, Renay made an effort toward acting, but when she was sentenced to three years in Terminal Island Prison after refusing to fink on mob activities, her hopes for screen stardom vanished. However, after her release from prision, Renay published her famous autobiography My Face for the World to See, and found work as an actress, albeit in low-budget films. Some of her work includes The Thrill Killers (1964; with Ray Dennis Steckler), The Nasty Rabbit (1965; with Arch Hall Jr.), and John Waters' Desperate Living (1977; with Mink Stole). Renay's latest film to date is Ted V. Mikels' Mark of the Astro-Zombies (2002; with Tura Satana).
Links: My Space Tribute - Monk Interview - Alpha Blue Archives
Posted by lavenderlounge at 10:05 AM
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