Maila Nurmi passed away early last year (2008) so it’s only fitting that I look at the 2007 documentary VAMPIRA: THE MOVIE by director Kevin Sean Michaels. Nurmi was best known to the public as Vampira, a bedeviled femme fatale of 1950s television as a host for obscure sci-fi and horror films. Modeled after the immortal Charles Addams character Morticia Addams, Vampira was decked in black hair and black clad clothing that made her look like she had no waistline. Nurmi on the other hand was a petite blond model who only wanted to earn enough money to become a traveling preacher.
Vampira was born out of Nurmi’s need to earn money to make her dream of becoming a traveling preacher a reality but her creation would soon have a life of its own. When Vampire appeared in the ‘50s no one had seen or experienced anything like her and in Michaels’ documentary he traces the beginning of Nurmi’s life and career as a horror-host icon through Nurmi’s own words. Nurmi, a recluse who disappeared from the spotlight long ago, is very candid about her life as Vampira with the ups and the downs. Vampira was a pop phenomena during her first year on television (sadly almost all of the episodes from her show have been lost but there are clips contained within this documentary) who was sadly fired and blacklisted when her contract (or written agreement as she likes to call it) was not renewed.
Nurmi recounts her mixed feelings and experiences on the infamous Ed Wood, Jr. film PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE, which is what most of her fans are most familiar with (me being one of them since I’ve never had the pleasure of being able to view the show). She is very candid about the making of this film leading to a very revealing look into the mind that was Ed Wood.
Michaels also adds in a lot of interview footage from people whom Nurmi has influenced over the years from Forrest J. Ackerman, Kevin Eastman (creator of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), Julie Strain, Sid (HOUSE OF 1000 CORPSES) Haig, Bill (THE DEVIL’S REJECTS) Moseley, writer David J. Skal , and Cassandra Peterson – aka Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, the women that Nurmi tried to sue for infringement of copyright. The film is a unique look at a woman who had a profound effect on the horror-host identity to which many people of our current horror-hosts are indebted. Nothing can be more true then the opening of the film which has Count Smokula singing a song about Vampira. Now that’s a legacy if I ever saw one.
Vampira was born out of Nurmi’s need to earn money to make her dream of becoming a traveling preacher a reality but her creation would soon have a life of its own. When Vampire appeared in the ‘50s no one had seen or experienced anything like her and in Michaels’ documentary he traces the beginning of Nurmi’s life and career as a horror-host icon through Nurmi’s own words. Nurmi, a recluse who disappeared from the spotlight long ago, is very candid about her life as Vampira with the ups and the downs. Vampira was a pop phenomena during her first year on television (sadly almost all of the episodes from her show have been lost but there are clips contained within this documentary) who was sadly fired and blacklisted when her contract (or written agreement as she likes to call it) was not renewed.
Nurmi recounts her mixed feelings and experiences on the infamous Ed Wood, Jr. film PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE, which is what most of her fans are most familiar with (me being one of them since I’ve never had the pleasure of being able to view the show). She is very candid about the making of this film leading to a very revealing look into the mind that was Ed Wood.
Michaels also adds in a lot of interview footage from people whom Nurmi has influenced over the years from Forrest J. Ackerman, Kevin Eastman (creator of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), Julie Strain, Sid (HOUSE OF 1000 CORPSES) Haig, Bill (THE DEVIL’S REJECTS) Moseley, writer David J. Skal , and Cassandra Peterson – aka Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, the women that Nurmi tried to sue for infringement of copyright. The film is a unique look at a woman who had a profound effect on the horror-host identity to which many people of our current horror-hosts are indebted. Nothing can be more true then the opening of the film which has Count Smokula singing a song about Vampira. Now that’s a legacy if I ever saw one.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment