Plan 9 From Outer Space
1959
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Maila Elizabeth Syrjäniemi (December 11, 1922 – January 10, 2008), known professionally as Maila Nurmi, was an American-Finn actress who created the campy 1950s character Vampira. She was raised in Astoria, Oregon , where she worked in tuna and salmon canneries.
Maila Nurmi. Actress: Vampira Returns. The original glamour ghoul herself, "Vampira", of late night 1950s television, was actually born Maila Syrjäniemi (later changed to the easier surname Nurmi) on December 11, 1922 in Gloucester, Massachusetts (not Finland as she often claimed).
Many actors spend decades building impressive careers, but all Maila Nurmi needed was one night to create a legend. Most famous as the woman behind Vampira, television’s first horror host, Nurmi's life was like one long Halloween party—in the best and worst ways.
Maila Nurmi. Actress: Vampira Returns. The original glamour ghoul herself, "Vampira", of late night 1950s television, was actually born Maila Syrjäniemi (later changed to the easier surname Nurmi) on December 11, 1922 in Gloucester, Massachusetts (not Finland as she often claimed).
Jan 12, 2021 · In "Glamour Ghoul," a niece of Maila Nurmi — better known as Vampira — documents the exciting, fraught Hollywood life of a bygone horror camp icon.
Jan 25, 2021 · Vampira hobbed-knobbed with celebrities and made guest appearances on popular network shows. However, Maila Nurmi, the quick-witted woman in the skin-tight black dress, remained a mystery. As Vampira's creator, Nurmi was consumed by the role, rarely appearing in public out of character.
Jan 16, 2008 · But Nurmi’s cultural resonance did not translate into long-term wealth. In 1989, she lost a $10 million lawsuit that contended Cassandra Peterson’s late-night horror hostess...
In 1954, a 31-year old former model, nightclub coat-check attendant and necktie painter named Maila Nurmi attended a Hollywood party with her husband, actor-writer Dean Riesner. She made her own vampire costume, inspired by the cartoons of Charles Addams, out of fabric scraps.
Apr 15, 2021 · She was Maila Nurmi, an Oregon girl trying to pose and preen her way to Hollywood stardom in the 1940s.
Nov 3, 2019 · To mark the Halloween season, film and culture writer Sabina Stent looks back on Dennis Stock’s photographs of one of America’s first horror heroines – Maila Nurmi, aka Vampira. As a child, Maila Nurmi was not invited to Halloween parties.
