Haji (born Barbarella Catton; January 24, 1946 – August 9, 2013) was a Canadian-born actress of British and Filipino descent, and a former

exotic dancer A stripper or exotic dancer is a person whose occupation involves performing striptease in a public adult entertainment venue such as a strip club. At times, a stripper may be hired to perform at a bachelor party or other private event. M ...

known for her role in

Russ Meyer Russell Albion Meyer (March 21, 1922 – September 18, 2004) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, cinematographer, and editor. He is known primarily for writing and directing a series of successful sexploitation films that fea ...

's 1965

cult classic A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic. ...

Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! ''Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!'' is a 1965 American exploitation film directed by Russ Meyer and co-written by Meyer and Jack Moran. It follows three go-go dancers who embark on a spree of kidnapping and murder in the California desert. The fil ...

''. She made significant contributions to her roles by introducing elements of

psychedelia Psychedelia refers to the psychedelic subculture of the 1960s and the psychedelic experience. This includes psychedelic art, psychedelic music and style of dress during that era. This was primarily generated by people who used psychedelic ...

and

witchcraft Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have us ...

as well as writing most of her own dialogue.

Life and career

Born in

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, Canada, Haji—a nickname given to her by an uncle—appeared in several

films, including ''

Motorpsycho Motorpsycho may refer to: * Motorpsycho (band), a Norwegian rock band * ''Motorpsycho'' (film), a 1965 film by Russ Meyer * ''Motorpsycho Presents The International Tussler Society'', a 2004 album by The International Tussler Society * "Motorpsych ...

'' (1965), ''

'' (1965), '' Good Morning and... Goodbye!'' (1967), and ''

Supervixens ''Supervixens'' is a 1975 American film directed by American filmmaker Russ Meyer. The cast features Meyer regulars Charles Napier, Uschi Digard, and Haji. The film also features Shari Eubank (in a dual role) in one of her only two film roles a ...

'' (1975). Haji's final role was as Moonji in ''

Killer Drag Queens on Dope ''Killer Drag Queens on Dope'' is a 2003 low budget comedy written, produced, and directed by Lazar Saric. The film stars Alexis Arquette (also known as Eva Destruction) and Omar Alexis as two drugged up drag queens who work as contract killers ...

'' (2003). Haji was reunited with fellow

film stars

Kitten Natividad Francesca Isabel Natividad (February 13, 1948 – September 24, 2022), known professionally as Kitten Natividad, was a Mexican-American film actress and exotic dancer. She was noted for her 44-inch (112 cm) bust, and appearances in cult films ma ...

and Raven De La Croix in the 2001 comedy feature film ''

The Double-D Avenger ''The Double-D Avenger'' is a 2001 American comedy film by William Winckler. This film, first released in fall 2001, written, produced and directed by cult filmmaker William Winckler, is a campy spoof of "Wonder Woman" about a costumed superwoma ...

'', directed by

William Winckler William Winckler (born October 3, 1964 in California) is an American actor and independent filmmaker best known for writing, producing and directing cult movies, horror films and English dubbed animation. He is the son of child actor Robert ...

. In it, Haji played evil exotic dancer Hydra Heffer. Haji was featured as one of the top 1,000 most glamorous women of the 20th century in the book ''Glamorous Girls of the Century'' by Steve Sullivan. She was also interviewed in the book ''Invasion of the B-Girls'' by

Jewel Shepard Jewel Shepard (born January 3, 1958) is an American writer, photographer, and actress, best known for her roles in movies such as '' Party Camp'' (1987) and ''Return of the Living Dead'' (1985). Life and career Shepard arrived in California in ...

. Haji lived in

Malibu, California Malibu ( ; es, Malibú; Chumash: ) is a beach city in the Santa Monica Mountains region of Los Angeles County, California, situated about west of Downtown Los Angeles. It is known for its Mediterranean climate and its strip of the Malibu ...

. Haji died in

Oxnard, California Oxnard () is a city in Ventura County, California, United States. On California's South Coast, it is the most populous city in Ventura County and the 22nd-most-populous city in California. Incorporated in 1903, Oxnard lies approximately west ...

, at the age of 67. Never married, she had a daughter, Cerlette Lammé.

Selected filmography

* ''

'' (1965) * ''

'' (1965) * '' Good Morning and... Goodbye!'' (1967) * ''

'' (1975)

References

External links

* *
Haji
gravesite at Santa Barbara Cemetery {{DEFAULTSORT:Haji Actresses from Quebec Canadian expatriate actresses in the United States Canadian film actresses 1946 births 2013 deaths 20th-century Canadian actresses Burials at Santa Barbara Cemetery Deaths from stomach cancer Deaths from lung cancer in California Canadian actresses of Filipino descent Canadian people of British descent