Background:

A beautiful, conservative-looking redhead, Cassandra Peterson, with trade mark beauty mark (mole) under her right eye, black dress with the plunging neck line and slit on the right side, ruby ring, snake-shapped earrings, black fingernails, black pumps, the dagger she stores on her belt, and her bouffant hairdo, is popular for her on-screen persona “Elvira, Mistress of the Dark,” a character she created in the early 1980s that has been featured in countless television and film productions, most notably the 1988 comedy film Elvira, Mistress of the Dark.

Off camera, Peterson owns a production company named Queen B Productions in Los Angeles. She is a complete vegan and strong supporter of animal rights. Also, she has been an avid devotee for gay rights issues. The big fan and close friend of Vincent Price was listed as Femme Fatales magazine’s the Sci-Fi’s Sexiest B-Queens in 1997. On a more personal note, Peterson is the mother of a 15-year-old daughter named Sadie (father Mark Pierson).


Showgirl

Childhood and Family:

Cassandra Peterson was born on September 17, 1949, in Manhattan, Kansas, and grew up in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where she attended Palmer High School and graduated in 1966. She knew she wanted to become a dancer after seeing her idol, Ann-Margret, in Viva Las Vegas (1964). This led to a trip to Las Vegas, Nevada, where 17-year-old Cassandra made a name for herself as the youngest showgirl in Las Vegas history.

In 1981, Cassandra was married to Mark Pierson, and the couple welcomed a daughter named Sadie ten years later.


Tomoko’s Kitchen

Career:

Kansas-born, Colorado-raised Cassandra Peterson, who inspired to become a dancer after watching Ann-Margret in 1964’s Viva Las Vegas, traveled to Las Vegas, Nevada, just days after graduating from high school. There, she became a showgirl at The Dunes and created a history for being the youngest showgirl in Las Vegas. When Elvis Presley saw her singing talents, he encouraged Peterson to pursue a career in music. She toured Europe extensively as the vocalist of an Italian rock band and stayed in Rome. It was there that Peterson came to attention of filmmaker Federico Fellini that led to a bit part in his classic film, Roma (1972), which marked Peterson’s film acting debut.

Back in the U.S., Peterson founded her own nightclub appraisal called “Mama’s Boys,” which toured the national club circuit, and joined the Los Angeles-based satiric improvisational troupe The Groundlings in the late ‘70s. With the company, which also produced such prominents as Phil Hartman, Pee Wee Herman, Jon Lovitz and Julia Sweeney, she perfected her now well-known comedic talents as both a performer and writer. Small roles in movies Cheech & Chong’s Next Movie (1980), Coast to Coast (1980) and King of the Mountain (1981) followed.

However, the struggling performer did not make great impact until the fall of 1981 with the birth of her character, Elvira, which she created with close friend Robert Redding after signed by KHJ TV LA to star as hostess for their TV Show, “Movie Macabré” (1981). As the hostess of the weekly horror-flick series, Peterson equalized her spooky sensuality with a solid stream of vulgar one-liners and dreadful witticisms.

Subsequently, Elvira appeared in guest roles in many TV series such as “CHiPs” (1982-1983), “Fantasy Island” (1983), “The Richard Simmons Show” (1983), “The Fall Guy” (1984-1985), “Just Say Julie” (1989) and “Totally Hidden Video,” and on the telepics Last of the Great Survivors (1984), Get Out of My Room (1985) and Bob Hope Buys NBC? (1985). In addition, Peterson also played various characters in such films as The Sting II (1983), Stroker Ace (1983), Pee-wee’s Big Adventure (1985), Balboa (1986), Echo Park (1986), Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold (1987) and Pledge Night (1988).

The popularity of the Elvira personal hit the highest point in 1988 when Peterson’s flirtatious creation starred in the big screen film for the first time in Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, a comedy/horror directed by James Signorelli. The film, however, was released only to a small number of theaters because of financial problems. As for Peterson, her performance won a Saturn nomination for Best Actress and a Razzie for Worst Actress.

Peterson continued to make personal appearances as the Mistress of the Dark in numerous TV and film productions, including “The Elvira Show” (1993), Attack of the Killer B-Movies (1995, TV), Superstition (1997), Encounter in the Thrid Dimension (1999), Elvira’s Haunted Hills (2001) and Scares & Dares (2001, TV). As of 2006, she declared her plan to retire as Elvira, and that she would be searching a successor for the role through reality TV program.

The actress is set to play Mary Mulders in the upcoming Tomoko’s Kitchen (2006). The comedy film will cast Peterson opposite Tomo Kawaguchi, Steven Engle, Louisette Geiss, Darren Schnase and David L. Lander, among others.


Awards:
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