#Liz Renay

[bitter69uk]

“The men sat in the next booth at the Brown Derby. My back was to them. Suddenly I perked up as I heard my name. “Liz Renay,” one of them said. “There’s a girl who had some tough breaks.” “She brought it on herself,” the other voice said. “Still … it’s kind of sad. She wasn’t just another one of those French pastries who come to Hollywood to look for fame. She had it. She has one of the most beautiful faces I ever saw. You know, she just missed being great.” I turned to get a look at the man who had just spoken. I recognized him as William Ornstein, a reporter for Hollywood Reporter. Ornstein spoke again: “Yeah, that Renay really could have made it big. She was on the way to becoming a superstar. Add a few good breaks and subtract a few of the bad ones and you know, she could have been Marilyn Monroe.”

/ From Liz Renay’s chatty, meandering autobiography My Face for the World to See (1971) /

Born on this day: the sublime Liz Renay (née Pearl Elizabeth Dobbins, 14 April 1926 - 22 January 2007) – b-movie actress / burlesque queen / jailbird / naive outsider painter / gangster Mickey Cohen’s moll / “Streaking Grandmother” / authoress of multiple volumes of sordid memoirs (including My First 2,000 Men and Staying Young) / all-round kitsch icon and the woman hailed by John Waters as “my idea of total glamour.” For Waters’ fans, Renay is venerated for her performance as Muffy St Jacques in punk masterpiece Desperate Living (1977) - especially for her acidic delivery of lines like, "I was having an erotic dream!" and "I sleep in the room next door - naked!" She’s also memorable in The Thrill Killers (1964) and The Hard Road (1970).

#lobotomy room #liz renay #john waters #desperate living #burlesque #vintage smut #vintage sleaze #b movie #muffy st jacques #kitsch #streaking grandmother #my face for the world to see #bouffant wig

[chronophotographic-gun]

Desperate Living (1977)

#desperate living #desperate living 1977 #john waters #mink stole #jean hill #susan lowe #liz renay #edith massey #mary vivian pearce #brook yeaton #karen gerwig #1970s #1977 #lgbtq #filmedit #film #cinema #movies

[oldshowbiz]

#liz renay

[marypickfords]

Liz Renay in The Thrill Killers (Ray Dennis Steckler, 1964)

#liz renay #the thrill killers #ray dennis steckler #caps

[mariocki]

Lady Street Fighter (1980)

"Go back home, Linda. Take my advice: don't try to get to the bottom of this. Or you'll be killed. Get it?"

"What a kook."

#lady street fighter #street fightin' cinema #1980 #american cinema #exploitation film #renee harmon #james bryan #jody mcrea #trace carradine #liz renay #tony romano #bob morris #steve sexton #stephen machey #elisa m. kipp #gil grace #mark glover #mio shy astarr #lalania castinni #aww yeeeh more street fightin' goodness.. but hold on‚ where's Sonny Chiba? or Etsuko Shihomi? come to think of it this doesn't even look #like Japan... yes it's time for a trash cinema ripoff from the US of A! whether this was ever intended as any kind of cash in on the Street #Fighter franchises or if the title was simply pulled from a hat i couldn't tell you. this is real indie exploitation rubbish‚ from the man #who made Don't Go in the Woods (released the following year)‚ quite genuinely one of the worst slasher films ever made‚ and German born #star writer and producer Harmon‚ who plays a high kicking karate badass smuggler and has multiple shower scenes (as an aside‚ Harmon was #50 or so when she made this‚ so genuinely props to her on some fearless choices made in this production‚ good for her dot JPEG) #the plot is barely comprehensible but involves multiple assassins and double and triple crosses. it's dumb as rocks and twice as cheap but #i have to admit it has... something. a certain endearing quality‚ a kind of amateur filmmaking charm. fx are pretty much non existent (a #guy gets shot point blank with a shotgun at one point and just falls over yelping without a spot of blood) and the soundtrack is largely a #terrible muzak cover of Morricone's score for The Good the Bad and the Ugly (almost certainly done without permission) #but this is DIY cinema people‚ you can't expect it to be GOOD. can you? asking bc there's a sequel and I'm scared to watch it

[littletroubledgrrrl]

#liz renay #desperate living #1977 #70s #john waters

[horrorwaveofgrain00000]

#black frankenstein #horror movie #black cinema #horror movies #classic #horror classic #john hart #ivory stone #andrea king #roosevelt jackson #liz renay

[schlock-luster-video]

On October 14, 1977 Desperate Living debuted in New York City.

#desperate living #john waters #mink stole #jeannholl #susan lowe #liz renay #trash film #indie film #comedy movies #black comedy #dreamlanders #cult classic #exploitation film #trash trilogy #lgbtq cinema #lgbtq fan art #lgbtq film #art #movie art #drawing #movie history #pop art #modern art #pop surrealism #cult movies #portrait #cult film

[outofeverythingthisnamewasleft]

#liz renay #regis philbin

[genevieveetguy]

. Every word I ever utter shall be considered a royal proclamation!

Desperate Living, John Waters (1977)

#John Waters #Liz Renay #Mink Stole #Susan Lowe #Edith Massey #Mary Vivian Pearce #Jean Hill #Brook Yeaton #Karen Gerwig #George Stover #Thomas Loizeaux #Chris Lobinger #Charles Roggero #1977

[vintagevisions]

Liz Renay 1952

[marypickfords]

The Thrill Killers (Ray Dennis Steckler, 1964)

#liz renay #the thrill killers #ray dennis steckler #caps

[originalharmonysalad]

Tino Avelli artwork for 1977 John Waters film "Desperate Living" starring Mink Stole, Edith Massey, Liz Renay and Jean Hill.

#tino avelli #john waters #desperate living

[habit-forming]

Liz Renay

#retro #pinupgal #pinupgirl #pinupmodel #liz renay #retropinup #retrogirl #retro glamour #glamorous

[bitter69uk]

The men sat in the next booth at the Brown Derby. My back was to them. Suddenly I perked up as I heard my name. 

“Liz Renay,” one of them said. “There’s a girl who had some tough breaks.” 

“She brought it on herself,” the other voice said. 

“Still … it’s kind of sad. She wasn’t just another one of those French pastries who come to Hollywood to look for fame. She had it. She has one of the most beautiful faces I ever saw. You know, she just missed being great.” 

I turned to get a look at the man who had just spoken. I recognized him as William Ornstein, a reporter for Hollywood Reporter. 

Ornstein spoke again: “Yeah, that Renay really could have made it big. She was on the way to becoming a superstar. Add a few good breaks and subtract a few of the bad ones and you know, she could have been Marilyn Monroe.” 

/ From My Face for the World to See (1971) / 

Died on this day: the vivacious Liz Renay (née Pearl Elizabeth Dobbins, 14 April 1926 - 22 January 2007) – b-movie actress / burlesque queen / convicted felon / naive outsider painter / gangster Mickey Cohen’s moll / “Streaking Grandmother” / authoress of multiple volumes of sordid memoirs / all-round kitsch icon and the woman hailed by John Waters as “my idea of total glamour.” For Waters’ fans, Renay is venerated for her performance as Muffy St Jacques in punk masterpiece Desperate Living (1977) - especially for her acidic delivery of lines like, "I was having an erotic dream!" and "I sleep in the room next door - naked!" She’s also memorable in the 1964 exploitation shocker The Thrill Killers. Thanks to my friend Grant I’m currently reading Renay’s biography My Face for the World to See. Her writing style can best be summarized as “chatty.”

#liz renay #burlesque #b-movie #john waters #desperate living #muffy st jacques #my face for the world to see #lobotomy room #starlet

[schlock-luster-video]

Remembering Liz Renay on the anniversary of her date of birth. (1926 - 2007) Here's some Desperate Living art to mark the occasion!

#happy birthday #liz renay #desperate living 1977 #desperate living #the thrill killers #mark of the astro zombies #a date with death #lady godiva rides #virgin cowboy #john waters #b movies #cult movies #exploitation film #movie art #art #drawing #movie history #pop art #modern art #pop surrealism #portrait #cult film