Tura Satana Has Died

Tura Satana, the legendary star of one of the greatest cult films of all time, "Faster, Pussycat!  Kill!  Kill!", died Friday night in Reno, Nevada.  She was either 72 or 75.  (There's some dispute as to her birth year.) Read more about her strange career and life on the next page.

Tura was a busty, exotic-looking lady who started out as a nude dancer and model after spending some time in a California internment camp during World War 2. Seriously.

Tura was born in Japan, although her bloodlines were all over the map.  She had some Japanese, Filipino, Scots-Irish and even Cheyenne Indian in her.

It was a small part in the 1963 film "Irma la Douce", starring Jack Lemmon and Shirley MacLaine, that put her on the map.

Two years later, sexploitation director Russ Meyer cast her as the lead in "Faster, Pussycat", a movie about three go-go dancers who get mixed up in all manner of trouble…including MURDER.

Tura didn't do much acting after that and it was all low-budget stuff, like "The Astro Zombies" in 1968 and a movie that some people think inspired "Charlie's Angels"…called "The Doll Squad", in 1973.

She also bedded her share of Hollywood players and even rejected a marriage proposal from a young Elvis Presley… although she kept the ring.

Here’s Tura Satana in a clip from "Faster, Pussycat!  Kill!  Kill!"… in which she kills a dude with her BARE HANDS:

Here's the theme song from the movie: