Stella may have told this magazine, but since I only have the cover and not the insides, I can't tell you why she posed in the nude. What I can tell you is that like fellow nude models Marilyn Monroe and Jayne Mansfield, Stella Stevens possessed actual acting talent, particularly when it came to comedy acting. To prove my point, I've enlisted the aid of...
...these two guys.
First up, Jerry:
The Andy Griffith Show fans will have recognized Ernest T. Bass himself, Howard Morris, in the above clip. Note how uncharacteristically subdued Jerry seems. He may have met his match in Morris.
But back to Stella...
...this time with Dean:
A very earthy woman. Dino could have done a lot worse.
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| 1938-2023 |
Hi, Kirk!
ReplyDeleteWe gotta stop meeting like this! The Reaper's gone berserk, and now he's taken the lovely vixen Stella Stevens. I would argue that Marilyn Monroe was a better actress than you give her credit for, equally convincing with comedic or dramatic roles, and she was also a gifted and underrated singer. I also think MM was more attractive than Stella, just saying... but Stella first wowed me in Nutty Professor, and I also admired her in The Poseidon Adventure. It breaks my heart to know that she spent the latter part of her life suffering from Alzheimer's disease. It's hard to imagine such a terrible fate for a once fresh and vibrant woman.
Thanks for hopping right on this one, good buddy Kirk. Let's hope the dang Reaper is willing to take the weekend off so we can all get some rest.
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DeleteShady, here's what you wrote:
Delete"I would argue that Marilyn Monroe was a better actress than you give her credit for..."
And here's what I wrote:
"...like fellow nude models Marilyn Monroe and Jayne Mansfield, Stella Stevens possessed actual acting talent..."
Gee, Shady, I thought I was COMPLIMENTING Marilyn's acting talent, all the while comparing Stella Stevens own abilities favorably to hers, but I can't help how you interpret a sentence. It's late, and I don't feel like rewording it to make my point clearer.
Your curiously unnecessary defense of Marilyn Monroe aside, I do agree that it's sad that Stella Stevens had Alzheimer's, but I sometimes wonder if it may be worse for the onlookers than the onlook-ees. After all, once the disease really got under way, she was probably completely unaware of her sad state. It might be the ultimate proof that ignorance is bliss. And to be totally sane but watch your body fall about apart due to the ravages of age can't be too pleasant either.
Your wording is AOK. In my fatigue and haste, I misread the sentence.
DeleteThat what I kind of suspected, Shady. Sorry if I got a bit umbrageous there, but I have an Andy Warhol print of Marilyn Monroe looking down at me as I type this, and I don't want her thinking I'm being mean to her. It might fly off the wall and hit me in the head.
DeleteThe name does ring a vague bell. RIP
ReplyDeleteI'll try for better acoustics, Debra
DeleteThe Matt Helms poster is hilarious. Can’t believe the studios got away with that at the time. Don’t know how they “pulled that off.”
ReplyDeleteMitchell, hopefully they washed their hands afterwards.
DeleteI am completely unaware of her aside for her being in 'The Nutty Professor'. I seems she received second billing on the poster so clearly she was a drawcard. There has been rather too many obits written lately.
ReplyDeleteAndrew, I almost made this an "Under the Radar" post, my series of posts about talented people who never achieved much in the way of fame. Except that Stella Stevens DID achieve fame in the 1960s, to the point where she was one of the most photographed women in the world. She just didn't remain famous, that's all. By the way, the magazine cover I have at the top of the post is from Australia, so her fame did reach your neck of the planet.
DeleteThe Poseidon Adventure is always a big tradition with me on New Year's Day and I'll always love her part as Linda Rogo in that movie. Flashy, trashy brassy and swore like a drunk sailor. What wasn't the love?
ReplyDeleteOh, yeah, Maddie. She was married to the character played by Ernest Borgnine. What a pair!
DeleteToo many funerals, as others have said. I was wondering how Sophia Loren is today, thinking of them all and singing the "Goodness Gracious me" song she did so well with Peter Sellars- you probably know it .
ReplyDeleteJenny, I checked, and Sophia is still alive, but unfortunately, Peter died years ago:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUZCXaStvnc
Another one bites the dust. MAKE IT STOP! I must admit I've never seen the nutty prof.
ReplyDeleteNot even the Eddie Murphy version, Mike?
DeleteNope!
DeleteBeautiful with a sense of humor. Double threat.
ReplyDeleteSo right, Lux
Delete