Kathryn "Kathy" Keeton (February 17, 1939 – September 19, 1997) was an
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
magazine
A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combinatio ...
publisher
Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...
along with her partner, and later husband, ''
Penthouse
Penthouse most often refers to:
*Penthouse apartment, a special apartment on the top floor of a building
*Penthouse (magazine), ''Penthouse'' (magazine), a British-founded men's magazine
*Mechanical penthouse, a floor, typically located directly u ...
'' publisher
Bob Guccione
Robert Charles Joseph Edward Sabatini Guccione ( ; December 17, 1930 – October 20, 2010) was an American photographer and publisher. He founded the adult magazine ''Penthouse'' in 1965. This was aimed at competing with Hugh Hefner's ''Playboy'', ...
.
Early life and show business career
Born in South Africa and raised on a farm, Keeton took up dancing in childhood to strengthen a leg affected by
polio
Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe s ...
. She won a scholarship to the
Sadler's Wells Ballet in London, but left after she turned 18 to work in a
nightclub
A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music.
Nightclubs gener ...
. She appeared in
bit part
In acting, a bit part is a role in which there is direct interaction with the principal actors and no more than five lines of dialogue, often referred to as a five-or-less or under-five in the United States, or under sixes in British television, ...
s in four British movies: ''
Carlton-Browne of the F.O.
''Carlton-Browne of the F.O.'' (U.S. title: ''Man in a Cocked Hat'') is a 1959 British comedy film made by the Boulting Brothers and starring Terry-Thomas, Peter Sellers, and Luciana Paluzzi. It centres on an inept Foreign and Commonwealth Offic ...
'' (1959) (as a tabletop dancer), ''
Expresso Bongo
''Expresso Bongo'' is a 1958 West End musical and a satire of the music industry. It was first produced on the stage at the Saville Theatre, London, on 23 April 1958. Its book was written by Wolf Mankowitz and Julian More, with music by David ...
'' (1959), ''
Too Hot to Handle'' (1960), and ''
The Spy Who Came in from the Cold'' (1965) (as a
stripper
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 ...
). At the age of 24 she was what The Associated Press called "one of the highest-paid strippers in Europe".
Publishing career
She met Bob Guccione in 1965 and they remained together, although they did not marry until 1988. In his publishing company her title was President/Chief Operating Officer of General Media Communications, Inc. She founded the magazines ''
Viva
Viva may refer to:
Companies and organisations
* Viva (network operator), a Dominican mobile network operator
* Viva Air, a Spanish airline taken over by flag carrier Iberia
* Viva Air Dominicana
* VIVA Bahrain, a telecommunication company
* ...
'' (1973), ''
Omni'' (1978), and ''
Longevity
The word " longevity" is sometimes used as a synonym for "life expectancy" in demography. However, the term ''longevity'' is sometimes meant to refer only to especially long-lived members of a population, whereas ''life expectancy'' is always d ...
'' (1989). She also wrote two non-fiction books, ''Woman of Tomorrow'' (1986) and ''Longevity: The Science of Staying Young'' (1992). She was
plaintiff
A plaintiff ( Π in legal shorthand) is the party who initiates a lawsuit (also known as an ''action'') before a court. By doing so, the plaintiff seeks a legal remedy. If this search is successful, the court will issue judgment in favor of the p ...
in the landmark
U.S. Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
case of ''
Keeton v. Hustler Magazine, Inc.
''Keeton v. Hustler Magazine, Inc.'', 465 U.S. 770 (1984), was a case in which the United States Supreme Court held that a state could assert personal jurisdiction over the publisher of a national magazine which published an allegedly defamatory ...
''.
Illness and death
After her diagnosis with
breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or a re ...
, Keeton treated herself with
hydrazine sulfate, after reading about it in ''Penthouse'', one of her own publications. She claimed that she had rid herself of or shrunk almost all of the tumors and extended her life by several years, after being given a dire initial prognosis of only six weeks to live by her doctors.
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
.[ Keeton was buried at "The Willows" (now known as ]Locusts on Hudson
Locusts on Hudson is a estate in Staatsburg, New York, owned by hotelier André Balazs. The property has both an operating farm and manor. The historic estate now acts as an events venue due in part to its naturalistic landscape. A portion of th ...
) in Staatsburg, New York
Staatsburg is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in Hyde Park, a town in Dutchess County, New York, United States. The population was 377 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Poughkeepsie– Newburgh– Middletown, NY Metropolitan ...
, the country home she shared with her husband.
References
External links
Keeton's proposed lawsuit against NCI; info regarding hydrazine sulfate
*
1939 births
1997 deaths
American magazine founders
American magazine publishers (people)
Penthouse (magazine) people
South African businesspeople
South African film actresses
American women company founders
20th-century South African actresses
20th-century American businesspeople
20th-century American businesswomen
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