Famed Horror Movie Hostess Vampira Dies
Nurmi Was TV Personality In LA In 1950s
POSTED: Tuesday, January 15, 2008
UPDATED: 12:56 pm EST January 15,
2008
  Image Entertainment Vampira starred in such films as director Ed Wood's cult film classic "Plan 9 from Outer Space." |
Maila Nurmi, whose alter-ego Vampira was a spooky and sexy television personality of the 1950s, has died.Nurmi was 85.She created her Vampira character to host horror movies on television in Los Angeles in 1954.Nurmi wore a revealing black dress and fishnet stockings, and pasted on blood-red lipstick and dark mascara as she introduced films like "Revenge of the Zombies" and "Devil Bat's Daughter.""The Vampira Show" was canceled after about a year, but Nurmi remained a cult figure among B-movie buffs and is thought to have inspired Morticia Addams on "The Addams Family," which premiered about 10 years later.Nurmi also had starring roles in a few films, most notably as Vampire Girl in director Ed Wood's grade-Z horror film cult classic "Plan 9 from Outer Space," which starred film icon Bela Lugosi and pro wrestler Tor Johnson.Actress Lisa Marie played Vampira in the 1994 Tim Burton-directed biopic "Ed Wood," which chronicled Wood's films, including "Plan 9."In 1989, Nurmi lost a $10 million lawsuit that said Cassandra Peterson's character, Elvira, was pirated from Vampira.
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