''Striporama'' is a 1953

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

directed by Jerald Intrator. The film starred a number of

burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.

comedy, dance and striptease acts that were popular during the early 1950s. Today, it is best known as one of the few feature films starring

pin-up model A pin-up model (known as a pin-up girl for a female and less commonly male pin-up for a male) is a model whose mass-produced pictures see widespread appeal as part of popular culture. Pin-up models were variously glamour models, fashion models ...

Bettie Page Bettie Mae Page (April 22, 1923 – December 11, 2008) was an American model who gained notoriety in the 1950s for her pin-up photos.

Plot

A meeting of the “Council of Culture” is taking place in New York City. The council is collecting various art forms for inclusion in a time capsule, However, the council members refuse to consider having mention of burlesque entertainment in their time capsule. News of the decisions reaches a trio of burlesque comics (Jack Diamond, Mandy Kay and Charles Harris), who disrupt the council's meeting by imitating gangsters. The three funnymen take out a movie projector to offer evidence of the artistic value of burlesque entertainment. The remainder of the film is a plotless revue that features such acts as stripper Rosita Royce dancing with a number of trained birds, the Apache-style dance duo of Marinette and Andre, a male bodybuilder dubbed “Mr. America” who flexes his muscles and plays the harmonica while balancing a blonde woman on his shoulders, a number of routines featuring solo women (including Lili St. Cyr) in various acts of undressing, and several comedy sketches including Diamond, Kay and Harris.

Production and rediscovery

''Striporama'' was filmed in color, which was unusual for low-budget burlesque revue films. The production also offered the only color footage of Bettie Page in a speaking role.Film Journal International review
/ref> In the film, Page appears twice: in a comic sequence where she is the shared dream of roommates Diamond and Kay, and later as a harem girl who enjoyed an extended bubble bath. ''Striporama'' also saw an early appearance by actress

Jeanne Carmen Jeanne Laverne Carmen (August 4, 1930 – December 20, 2007) was an American model, actress and trick-shot golfer. Early life and career Carmen was born in Paragould, Arkansas. As a child, she picked cotton before running away from home at ...

, who had a dialogue-free bit part as a streetwalker that circled the Marinette and Andre dance number. ''Striporama'' was originally released in adults-only theaters that specialized in

exploitation film An exploitation film is a film that tries to succeed financially by exploiting current trends, niche genres, or lurid content. Exploitation films are generally low-quality "B movies", though some set trends, attract critical attention, become hi ...

s. Over the years, the last five minutes of original footage became lost. As a

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work A creative work is a manifestation of creative effort including fine artwork (sculpture, paintings, drawing, sketching, performance art), dance, writing (literature), filmmaking, ...

film, it had been available from several home video labels. In May 2001, the film had a theatrical re-release in

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 ...

. Critics who reviewed ''Striporama'' nearly a half-century after it was created compared its rediscovery to its time capsule plot device. David Sterritt, writing in the ''

Christian Science Monitor Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...

'', noted the film was “quite tame despite its lurid title, containing little that would push the boundaries of today's PG-13 rating.” Michael Atkinson, writing in ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the crea ...

'', found the film “occupying a nudity-free yet salacious middle ground between, say, ''

Singin' in the Rain ''Singin' in the Rain'' is a 1952 American musical romantic comedy film directed and choreographed by Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen, starring Kelly, Donald O'Connor, and Debbie Reynolds and featuring Jean Hagen, Millard Mitchell and Cyd Charis ...

'' (the “Beautiful Girl” fashion show is echoed here) and progressive seaminess like

Ed Wood Edward Davis Wood Jr. (October 10, 1924 – December 10, 1978) was an American filmmaker, actor, and pulp novel author. In the 1950s, Wood directed several low-budget science fiction, crime and horror films that later became cult cla ...

and Stephen Apostolof's ''

Orgy of the Dead ''Orgy of the Dead'' is a 1965 erotic horror film directed by Stephen C. Apostolof (under the alias A. C. Stephen). The screenplay was written by cult film director Edward D. Wood Jr., who adapted the screenplay into a novel. Genre The film b ...

''.”

Armond White Armond White (born ) is an American film and music critic who writes for ''National Review'' and ''Out''. He was previously the editor of '' CityArts'' (2011–2014), the lead film critic for the alternative weekly ''New York Press'' (1997–201 ...

, reviewing the film for the ''

New York Press ''New York Press'' was a free alternative weekly in New York City, which was published from 1988 to 2011. The ''Press'' strove to create a rivalry with the ''Village Voice''. ''Press'' editors claimed to have tried to hire away writer Nat Hento ...

'', considered the film “a shabby camp experience, but as a relic of what show business and movies used to be, it instructs one on changing tastes in sex and humor.”New York Press review

References

External links

* {{Bettie Page 1953 films 1953 comedy films Films about striptease American comedy films 1950s English-language films 1950s American films