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Lana Clarkson

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For the Canadian Supreme Court case involving another woman named Lana Clarkson, see Clarkson v. The Queen.
Lana Clarkson
Born
Lana Clarkson

(1962-04-05)April 5, 1962
Long Beach, California, United States
DiedFebruary 3, 2003(2003-02-03) (aged 40)
Alhambra, California, United States
Years active1982–2003
Height6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Websitehttp://www.lanaclarkson.com/

Lana Jean Clarkson (April 5, 1962 – February 3, 2003) was an American actress and fashion model. Clarkson was a native of Los Angeles County. She played roles in science fiction and fantasy movies. On April 13, 2009, songwriter and producer Phil Spector was convicted of second degree murder in relation to her death by gunshot.[1]

Early life

Born in Long Beach, California, to Donna and James M. Clarkson, Lana Clarkson was raised in the hills of Napa Valley, California. She had a brother, Jesse J. Clarkson, and a sister Fawn. While living in Northern California, she attended Cloverdale High School and also Pacific Union College Preparatory School. During the Christmas season of 1978 and after her father's death, Clarkson's family moved back to Southern California and settled down in the Los Angeles region of San Fernando Valley. Right after Clarkson's family moved back to Los Angeles County, Lana pursued a career in entertainment industry as a performer and fashion model.

In the early 1980s, Clarkson landed bit parts in film and television. In 1982, she made her screen debut as a cameo character in director Amy Heckerling's coming-of-age comedy based on the Cameron Crowe book, Fast Times at Ridgemont High,[2] as the wife of science teacher Mr. Vargas (Vincent Schiavelli). The film was her first speaking role. In 1983, she also peeks into the frame in "Scarface" behind Michelle Pfeiffer dancing the floor of the Babylon Club.

Career

Clarkson's best known films may be her work with Roger Corman, appearing first in his fantasy film Deathstalker, as a female warrior/love interest to the title character played by Richard Hill.[2] Corman oriented his films towards young male viewers, using a mix of action and female nudity. Clarkson's work in Deathstalker led to her being offered the title role in Corman's next film, Barbarian Queen, a role Corman referred to as "the original Xena" because of the parallel in featuring a strong female leading character in an action-oriented sword-swinging role.[3] The film gained cult status, in part due to an infamous scene where Clarkson is bound topless to a torture rack, interrogated, and raped.[2]

In 1987, Clarkson appeared in the John Landis spoof Amazon Women on the Moon. Following that, Clarkson starred in Roger Corman's Barbarian Queen sequel, Barbarian Queen II: The Empress Strikes Back, though the plots and characters bore no resemblance to the other film. Filmed in Mexico, the movie featured mud-wrestling Amazon women, magic sceptres, and (like its predecessor) several lengthy scenes where Clarkson is tortured topless or naked on a stretching rack by a villain. Clarkson received star billing in the film which went directly to video. Although sales of the video were low, Corman did manage to turn a profit.[2]

In 1990, she starred as a supporting character in the period horror film Haunting of Morella as the evil attendant to a young woman played by model/actress Nicole Eggert. In the film, Clarkson played a dominating lesbian character who tries to resurrect the spirit of a witch burned at the stake during the Salem witch trials.

Clarkson's work in the B movie sci-fi genre inspired a cult following, making her a favorite at comic book conventions, where she made some promotional appearances signing autographs for her fans.

She appeared in numerous other B movies as well as a range of television spots and appearing in commercials for Mercedes-Benz, Kmart, Nike,[2] Mattel and Anheuser-Busch. Her television appearances include parts on Night Court, Silk Stalkings, Riptide, Three's Company, Knight Rider[2] and Wings, and a guest appearance as a villain on the television adaptation of Roger Corman's film Black Scorpion in what would be her final role.

During her career, Clarkson traveled around the United States and Europe while working on high fashion photo shoots. Other projects took her to Japan, Greece, Argentina, Italy, Switzerland, France, Jamaica and Mexico.

In the 1980s she volunteered weekly at the AIDS charity Project Angel Food which delivers food for those in Los Angeles disabled by HIV or AIDS, at a time when the disease was greatly feared by the general public.[2]

As she approached her thirties, Clarkson's career began to stall. No longer able to earn a living as an actress, Clarkson sought alternate routes of income, including operating her own website on which she sold autographed DVDs of her films and communicated directly with her fans on her own message board. Although she made a living by playing busty, lusty women, Lana's fondest desire was to be cast as a comic actress or perform as a comedian. Her publicist friend Edward Lozzi told Vanity Fair writer Dominic Dunne that Clarkson had been working on a stand-up comedy act that he had witnessed. [1]

In 2001, while living on the canals in Venice, California, for the last several years, Clarkson developed, wrote, produced, and directed a showcase reel entitled Lana Unleashed. To make ends meet, she took a side part-time job in early January 2003 at the House of Blues, in West Hollywood, California.

Death

On February 3, 2003, Clarkson was shot dead in the mansion of music producer Phil Spector. In the early hours of that morning, she met Spector while working at the House of Blues. Both left the House of Blues later in Spector's limo and drove to his mansion. Spector and Clarkson went inside while his driver waited outside in the car.[4] About an hour later, the driver heard a gunshot before Spector exited his house through the back door with a gun. He was quoted as saying, according to affidavits, "I think I just shot her."[4]

Spector stated that Clarkson's death was an "accidental suicide" and that she "kissed the gun".[5]

Spector was tried for the murder of Clarkson four years later in 2007. On September 26, 2007, the case was declared a mistrial because the jury was hung 10 to 2 for conviction.[6][7][8][9] He was tried again for second degree murder on October 20, 2008. On April 13, 2009, the jury found Spector guilty of murdering Clarkson.[10][11] Spector was formally sentenced on May 29, 2009, to 19 years to life in the California State Prison System and will be 88 years old before becoming eligible for parole.[12][13][14][15][16]

References

  1. ^ "Phil Spector Found Guilty In Murder Retrial, Faces At Least 18 Years In Prison". idiomag. 2009-04-14. Retrieved 2009-04-26.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Shooting victim was B-movie actress BBC News (February 4, 2003), accessed March 2, 2010.
  3. ^ Lana Clarkson biography at tribute website lanaclarkson.com
  4. ^ a b "PHIL SPECTOR: THE "MAD GENIUS" OF ROCK'N'ROLL". TruTv.com. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
  5. ^ "Phil Spector Jailed For 19 Years For Murdering Lana Clarkson | World News | Sky News". News.sky.com. Retrieved 2010-06-30.
  6. ^ Archibold, Randal C. (2007-09-27). "Mistrial Declared in Spector Murder Case". The New York Times. Retrieved 2007-09-26.
  7. ^ Davey, Jonathan (2007-09-26). "Court TV - Live video stream of Phil Spector verdict". (transcribed). Retrieved 2007-09-26.
  8. ^ The Darwin Exception's complete day by day online coverage of the trial April 25, 2007.
  9. ^ Facing the music: Did Hollywood record producer Phil Spector shoot actress Lana Clarkson late at night in the hilltop mansion Spector called "The Castle"? September 12, 2007.
  10. ^ Li, David K. (2009-04-13). "''New York Post'', April 13, 2009". Nypost.com. Retrieved 2010-06-30.
  11. ^ "Phil Spector convicted of murder". BBC News. April 13, 2009. Retrieved April 13, 2009.
  12. ^ "Phil Spector jailed for 19 years". BBC News. May 29, 2009. Retrieved May 22, 2010.
  13. ^ "Phil Spector gets 19 years to life for murder of actress - CNN.com". CNN. 2009-05-29. Retrieved May 22, 2010.
  14. ^ James, Frank (2009-05-29). "Phil Spector Gets Likely Life Sentence For Murder". NPR. Retrieved 2010-06-30.
  15. ^ "Spector Likely Life Sentence after Jurors Vote 18 Years". Hollywood Today. Retrieved 2010-06-30.
  16. ^ "Phil Spector Sentenced to 19 Years For Lana Clarkson Death". Personalmoneystore.com. Retrieved 2010-06-30.
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