Teaserama

Years before Bettie Page became a cult icon for the goth and fetish fraternity, before she became the world's most famous dominatrix, Playboy's Playmate of January 1955 appeared in frankly harmless "gentlemen's" entertainment like Teaserama.

Back in the 1950s I'm sure this conveyor belt of teasing strip routines and ribald adult humou was scurrilous stuff but nowadays you could almost show it to your grandparents. Teaserama contains no full frontal nudity but has plenty of charm as some of the world's most famous burlesque dancers, including Cherrie Knight, Twinnie Wallen and Honey Bear, work their magic. High on this list is Tempest Storm; the woman who transfixed director Russ Meyer at an early age and probably played a large part in the late "King of the Nudies" obsession with well-endowed young ladies.

As a stand alone feature most will not gain much from Teaserama, but for its DVD release Umbrella Entertainment have put together a set of extras that place the film in its historical context. This elevates Teaserama from extremely mild-mannered titillation to being an important document of the sexual proclivities of 1950s cinema audiences. Page remains an icon today and is the subject of the forthcoming film, The Notorious Bettie Page directed by Mary "I Shot Andy Warhol" Harron. Still alive but refusing to be seen in public, Page remains a reminder of a bygone era when sexuality was more about suggestion than in-your-face smut. Teaserama is quite enjoyable, in a retro kind of way, but to be honest it's hard work to sit through in one sitting. 

DVD Extras: Producer David. F. Friedman provides an entertaining commentary and we get a clip of Bettie Page performing in Striporama and a '50s short entitled Teaser Girls in High Heels. Add to that some Bettie Page trailers and the usual Umbrella trailers and you've got a nice selection of extras.

Available from: Umbrella Entertainment

 

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