Star Stowe (born Ellen Louise Stowe; March 19, 1956,

Little Rock, Arkansas (The Little Rock, The "Little Rock") , government_type = council-manager government, Council-manager , leader_title = List of mayors of Little Rock, Arkansas, Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_ ...

– March 16, 1997,

Coral Springs, Florida Coral Springs, officially the City of Coral Springs, is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. The city is located approximately northwest of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Fort Lauderdale. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. C ...

) was an American model. She was ''

Playboy ''Playboy'' is an American men's lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. K ...

'' magazine's

Playmate of the Month A Playmate is a female model featured in the centerfold/gatefold of ''Playboy'' magazine as Playmate of the Month (PMOTM). The PMOTM's pictorial includes nude photographs and a centerfold poster, along with a pictorial biography and the "Playm ...

for its February 1977 issue. Stowe was murdered by an unknown assailant.

Biography

Stowe was born Ellen Louise Stowe on March 19, 1956 in Little Rock,

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

and grew up in Arkansas,

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

and

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

. Her father was an engineer. When she was a teenager she moved to

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

and then to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, where she worked 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 ...

in an adult club. Stowe chose to call herself "Star" because of her love of the skies and had a blue star tattooed below her

bikini line Bikini waxing is the removal of pubic hair using a special wax, which can be hot or cold, that adheres to hairs and pulls them out when the wax is removed quickly from the skin, usually with a cloth strip. While the practice is mainly associa ...

. She dated Gene Simmons and he sent her photos to Playboy. Her shoot was photographed by Pompeo Posar, and included some pictures with a

Rickenbacker Rickenbacker International Corporation is a string instrument manufacturer based in Santa Ana, California. The company is credited as the first known maker of electric guitars – a steel guitar in 1932 – and today produces a range ...

bass guitar. The shoot was used as the centerfold in the February 1977 issue, and she was Playmate of the Month. She was the first playmate with a visible tattoo. Stowe at one time dated

KISS A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...

founder and

bassist A bassist (also known as a bass player or bass guitarist) is a musician who plays a Bass (instrument), bass instrument such as a double bass (upright bass, contrabass, wood bass), bass guitar (electric bass, acoustic bass), synthbass, keyboar ...

Gene Simmons Gene Simmons (born Chaim Witz; he, חיים ויץ, ; born August 25, 1949) is an Israeli-American musician. Also known by his stage persona The Demon, he is the bassist and co-lead singer of Kiss, the hard rock band he co-founded with Paul ...

. As well as taking part in a number of publicity shots for the band, Stowe also appeared on one of the band's picture discs. Stowe later married and divorced Peter Maligo, with whom she had a son, Michael. Stowe moved to

Fort Lauderdale A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

in 1986 to find work as an exotic dancer. When Michael was six she sent him to live with her mother but still stayed in touch with him through phone calls and visits. The dancing didn't work out. Stowe eventually fell into

prostitution Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in Sex work, sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, n ...

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol (drug), alcohol that results in significant Mental health, mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognize ...

and

drug abuse Substance abuse, also known as drug abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods which are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder. Differing definitions of drug abuse are used in public health, ...

. In 1991, Stowe moved in with a boyfriend and gave up drugs and prostitution. This lasted until August 1996, when after a drunken argument they split. Stowe went back to her former life on the streets.

Murder

Stowe was last seen working the streets in her old neighborhood between 3pm and 5pm on March 16, 1997. Her body was later found strangled and partially clothed. It was three days before her 41st birthday. Police believe that she was picked up, killed and then dumped sometime after 5pm on the 16th. Police linked the murder to that of Sandra Kay Walters, a prostitute who had been strangled in Fort Lauderdale a few weeks earlier on February 25. When Tammy Strunk was found murdered in November 1997 police believed the deaths might be the work of a

serial killer A serial killer is typically a person who murders three or more persons,A * * * * with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. While most authorities set a threshold of three ...

. This theory was strengthened when several other prostitutes in the area were subsequently strangled and dumped in a similar manner. Her murder remains unsolved.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stowe, Star 1956 births 1970s Playboy Playmates 1997 deaths 1997 murders in the United States 20th-century American people 20th-century American women People from Little Rock, Arkansas American murder victims American prostitutes Deaths by strangulation in the United States Female murder victims Sex workers murdered in the United States Unsolved murders in the United States Victims of serial killers People murdered in Florida American female erotic dancers 1997 in Florida

Biography

Murder

See also

References