Tura Satana

This article is a Biography

This article is part of

"The Pin-up Girl History Project" Click here for Pin-up girl page

"The Spiderpool History Project" Click here for Nexus:Spiderpool

Click here for Special History Projects information

Tura Satana

Tura was a burlesque performer of the 1950s and `60s. She was a strikingly tall and buxom brunette who would star in Russ Meyer's cult film classic Faster Pussycat Kill! Kill!

Satana performed at several hotels on the Las Vegas Strip, including the Silver Slipper, and also appeared at numerous strip clubs across the nation--including Jack Ruby's Carousel Club in Dallas.

Born

10 July 1935, Hokkaido, Japan

Birth Name

Tura Luna Pascual Yamaguchi

Nickname

Miss Japan Beautiful

Height

5' 7" (1.70 m)

Mini Biography

Tura started exotic dancing when she was only 13 years old. She integrated acrobatics, humor, and sensual beauty to her dancing art form. As a dancer, she started doing guest appearances in films such as "Our Man Flint" and "Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed?" Tura's skills as a martial artist landed her small roles in TV shows such as Hawaiian Eye, Man from U.N.C.L.E., Girl from U.N.C.L.E, The Greatest Show on Earth, and Burke's Law.

Spouse(s)

John Satana (1951 - 1952) (divorced)

Endel Jurman (1 November 1981 - 15 October 2000) (his death) 6 children ? (1961 - ?) (his death)

Trade Mark

Femme fatale

Trivia

• Had a daughter, Kalani, at 19.
• Has three sisters and one brother.
• Is part Japanese.
• Went to James A. Riis Elementary School in Chicago.
• Her first marriage, to a 17-year-old boy (she was only 13), lasted only 9 months. The marriage was arranged by their families.
• Grew up in Chicago.

Measurements

At time of her exotic dancing career, 36D bust. In 1998, noted "Right now I'm about a 40FF." (Source:Celebrity Sleuth magazine)

She legally owns her likeness and image. So, whenever Russ Meyer wanted to change the artwork or rerelease the project Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! (1965), he had to get her permission and sometimes pay her all over again.

Personal Quotes

When I was dancing burlesque was an art - classy and elegant and requiring talent. I got out of it when it started to become raunchy and lost the art. Now they call it nude dancing, but its plain old pornography as far as I'm concerned. They do things on stage that I wouldn't have even thought of doing.

---

A Personal Note from Robin

The picture below is of Tura Satana. It was taken by Harold Lloyd (at the Spiderpool, part of the John McDermott estate) and is printed as a 3-D photo on p.100 of "Harold Lloyd's Hollywood Nudes in 3-D" < ISBN:1579126790 Buy it from Amazon.com > (This book is part of "The BackDrop Club Research Library")

The picture below was taken at the Spiderpool, part of the John McDermott estate.

Jump to: Main Page • History • Icons • Library • Life Lessons • Links • Micropedia • Macropedia • Time Line
What links here • References and Sources • Help • Contact info