Blaze Starr | |
|---|---|
 Blaze Starr in 1974 | |
| Born | Fannie Belle Fleming (1932-04-10)April 10, 1932 |
| Died | June 15, 2015(2015-06-15) (aged 83) Wilsondale, Wayne County, West Virginia, US |
| Other names | "The Hottest Blaze in Burlesque" |
| Occupation(s) | Stripper,American burlesque star, nude model,gemologist |
| Years active | 1950–1983 (stripper) 1956–1989 (actress) 1989–2015 (gemologist) |
| Spouse | Carroll Glorioso |
| Modeling information | |
| Hair color | Red |
Blaze Starr (bornFannie Belle Fleming; April 10, 1932 – June 15, 2015) was an Americanstripper andburlesque star. Her vivacious presence and inventive use ofstage props earned her the nickname "The Hottest Blaze in Burlesque". She was also known for her affair with Louisiana GovernorEarl Kemp Long. Based on her memoirBlaze Starr! My Life as Told to Huey Perry (published in 1974), the 1989 filmBlaze told the story of that affair starringPaul Newman as Long andLolita Davidovich as Starr, with Starr herself acting in a cameo role and as a consultant.[1][2]
Starr was born on April 10, 1932,[3] in ruralWayne County, West Virginia, alongTwelvepole Creek,[4][5] (also spelled Twelve Pole Creek)[6] the second eldest of 11 siblings[7] born to Lora (née Evans) and Goodlow Fleming.[6]
Reared in the Newground Hollow[7] (also spelled New Ground Hollow)[6] area ofWilsondale, West Virginia,[8] she left home at either age 14[7] or 15,[5] claiming to have suffered a gang rape during her teenage years.[9] She first moved toLogan, West Virginia, working as acarhop, and then from there toWashington D.C., where, according to her autobiography, she was discovered by a promoter while she was employed in adoughnut shop.[10][11]
She recalled:
I was 15 and working as a waitress at the Mayflower Donut Shop in Washington, D.C., when a man named Red Snyder told me I was pretty and ought to be in show business. I said I had been raised to believe it was sinful to dance, but I could play the guitar. "Good," he said. "I'm going to make you a star." Red said he wanted me to dress up as a cowgirl, play the guitar a little and then strip. I had never heard of striptease before. But Red sweet-talked me and said the girls who did all had to be really beautiful. When you have never even shown your belly button, the thought of stripping is scary. So when I went onstage for the first time in my red-and-white cowgirl outfit, I used my hat to cover myself. After the show I threw up. It wasn't that I thought there was anything wrong with stripping. I was just overwhelmed by the emotion of getting into show business.[7]
Snyder became Fleming's first manager, encouraged her to start stripping, and gave her thestage name Blaze Starr.[citation needed]
Starr moved toBaltimore, where she began performing at theTwo O'Clock Clubnightclub in 1950. She eventually became its headliner.[5] She rose to national renown after she was profiled in a February 1954Esquire magazine article, "B-Belles of Burlesque: You Get Strip Tease With Your Beer in Baltimore". The Two O'Clock Club remained her home base, but she began to travel and perform in clubs throughout the country.[12]
Starr's striking red hair, voluptuous figure and on-stage enthusiasm were a large part of her appeal. The theatrical flourishes and unique gimmicks she used in her stage show went beyond established burlesque routines like thefan dance and balloon dance.[12] She often performed with dangerous cats, including a baby black panther.[9]
Her trademark routine was "the exploding couch". As she explained in 1989, "I had finally got my gimmick, a comedy thing where I'm supposed to be getting so worked up that I stretch out on the couch, and — when I push a secret button — smoke starts coming out from like between my legs. Then a fan and a floodlight come on, and you see all these red silk streamers blowing, shaped just like flames, so it looked like the couch had just burst into fire."[4]
Blaze was arrested more than once. The first time was inPhiladelphia,Pennsylvania, for lewdness, by a young police officer,Frank Rizzo, who would later become that city's police commissioner and mayor. Another time was inNew Orleans.[9]
In 1968, Starr bought the Two O'Clock Club onThe Block inBaltimore,Maryland, which at the time was valued at 65,000 dollars. She continued to perform in the club.[11] In the early 1980s, Starr made an appearance at theMitchell Brothers'O'Farrell Theatre inSan Francisco.
In the late 1950s, while briefly working at theSho-Bar onBourbon Street in theFrench Quarter ofNew Orleans, Starr began a long-term affair with then-governor Earl Long.[13] Starr was in the process of divorcing her husband, club owner Carroll Glorioso, and Long was married to the state's first lady, known colloquially as "Miz Blanche".
Two of Starr's performances, including the combustible sofa, are among the burlesque routines featured in the 1956 compilation filmBuxom Beautease, produced and directed byIrving Klaw.[14] DirectorDoris Wishman's 1962 filmBlaze Starr Goes Nudist, anudie-sexploitation film, features Starr's one lead movie role.[15] As the title suggests, she plays herself. The film is also known asBlaze Starr Goes Back to Nature,Blaze Starr Goes Wild,Blaze Starr the Original, andBusting Out.
Diane Arbus photographed Starr in 1964.[15] The photo "Blaze Starr at home" was included in the book and traveling exhibitDiane Arbus: Family Albums.[16]
The 1989 movieBlaze recounted the story of her and Long's relationship. The film was directed byRon Shelton, adapted by him from Starr's memoirBlaze Starr: My Life as Told to Huey Perry (1974), and starredLolita Davidovich as Starr andPaul Newman as Long. Starr herself appeared in acameo role and acted as consultant, earning four percent of the film's profits.[2]
Some of Starr's costumes and other memorabilia have been displayed at theMuseum of Sex inNew York City[17] and theBurlesque Hall of Fame inLas Vegas.[18]
Journalist Frank Lovece wrote in 1989 that "Starr ... gave up stripping six years ago to become agemologist and make and sell jewelry. Each holiday season, at the Carrolltowne Mall here in the Baltimore suburbs, she is a local celebrity selling earrings, bracelets and necklaces fashioned from the gemstones and crystals she collects the rest of the year."[4]
Starr was a first cousin of singerMolly O'Day.[19]
Starr died June 15, 2015, either at her home inWilsondale, West Virginia,[20][21] or at a hospital in nearbyWilliamson (sources vary).[22] She was 83 years old. She had been worried about the health of her dog, whom she adopted as a stray. One of her sisters claimed the stress, along with a "severe heart condition", killed her. Her dog died hours later.[22]
Born June 9, 1948, at NewGround [sic] Hollow in Wilsondale.... Survivors include ... sisters, Berta Gail Fleming (Freelin) and Blaze Starr, both of Wilsondale
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