Interview with Russ Meyer

	Together with Sam Patton, owner of the legendary Blast Off Video (Atlanta), we sat down with Meyer and discussed his past, his present and his future. -Sam McAbee, co-owner Blast Off Video (Chicago). Conducted in Atlanta, Ga. 1995 for the 30th aniversary screening of the classic film Faster Pussycat Kill! Kill! An Interview w/ the King of Sexploitation, Russ Meyer

So how did this whole "Faster Pussycat Kill! Kill! 30th anniversary screening come about?
The National Film Theater in London asked if I would introduce it again because we played it 15 years ago, along with the other films. What really peaked my interest was the fact that the Irish National Film Theater would play it in conjunction with the British, and it's kind of a nice play here, the Irish and the British, and they're both sharing in the expenses of hauling my ass over there to introduce the film.

That's amazing because I know the Germans are fanatics; they hold you in such a religious esteem.
Well, that's a little lofty. It's just that they have supported the films on television. The entier catalogue has been played for three years now with no cuts, right at the dinner hour. In France, I haven't been able to crack it. I have a good distributor, but there's no category for me. The play porno on the best T.V. channels from midnight on, and then they play children's shows from around ten until 4 in the afternoon. Then, it gets the so-called major film fair, so after that, there's nowhere for me. I have no category that is O.K. with the French.

Maybe as a transition from porno to children.
No, no. There is no transitional point that they can come up with. We're gonna do it by re-releasing three of the films in France, "Pussycat," "Ultravixens," and "Supervixens." What I'm doing here, I've decided to put two trailers on the end of each print, a trailer for "Ultravixens" and one of "Supervixens." There will be a card that comes up and it will say, "Coming Soon," and we'll play the trailers.

Well, who would you say was the biggest influence on you as a filmmaker?
My mother. She bought me a camera. Nobody influenced me. In WWII, I was a combat cameraman, I loved it...

3rd army?
1st and 3rd...

George Patton?
Well, they use that in such a general matter. You land in Normandy with the Texas-Oklahoma division and then Patton comes, he's got the 7th army and then my group, people always say, "I'm with Patton," that's such a broad term. He [Patton] was a bright general and he was a very sexual man even before the invasion. There's a place called Over Peover in England, and he would have his MP's get all the GI's out and he'd play ass-grab with the waitresses; hey more power to the guy.

Have you ever run into any problems making, or releasing any of your films?
You mean censorship?

Yes, on that level.
No, there's been no censorship. We have only one censor who says, if you cut so many scenes then we will give you an R, otherwise you'll get NC-17, that's the heinous censor we have .

What about distribution in the old days. Did you work with Dave Friedman (Ed. producer of "Blood Feast," "2000 Maniacs," )?
He's a good friend of mine. Dave did different kinds of films than I did, I think his started after mind. The thing that started mine was "The Immoral Mr. Texas:" that was the breakthrough film. It got busted the first five minutes in San Diego because thre was no patch (a patch is a bribe). It stayed out of the theaters for a year. My partner, Peter DeCenzie, ran into another fellow in Seattle; he was up there with a girlie-show, and somehos, Pete got to talking to the guy, and the guy was with the censor board.So pete says, "How about showing this film to your censors." And the guy's like, "Well..." So Pete says, "I'll tell you what, you get them together tonight or tomorrow night, and I'll have you come over to my suite..." He didn't have a suite; he just stayed in motel rooms. So he continues, "I'll have you come over to my suite and we will have some Italian food catered. " And damned if they didn't go for it. So, the first thing he did: he rented a suite. He had a projector and the print. Then, he went to some fast food place, bought spaghetti and picked up some wine. They came over, looked at it, and passed it cold turkey, which was like a license to steal. It played 58 weeks in Seattle, at the top art house, and it played all over the country.

So what's your relationship like with Hugh Heffner?
There's a great piece coming out in June, in Playboy. Ebert wrote it and it has a lot of pictures of mine and the girls that were in my films. That's one of the best things you can get into: to get into Playboy and have that kind of a spread.

I read that John Lazarr blames you for ruining his carrer. I was wondering if there was as story behind that?
Oh shit! Ruining? It's the greatest role he's ever had! He just called me last week and said, "you got any more work for me?" For some reason, I think he did one film, and nothing ever since..."

Well, he was in "Supervixens" also.
Oh yeah, that's right. Christ sake, I gave him another role, and he didn't have to show his breasts either.

And what about Charles Keating (ed. a man who called Russ Meyer "the most dangerous man in America").
Well, he's in the iron hotel right now. That's wonderful, he got what he deserved. One of the best things I've ever acquired is a picture of him holding a sign in front of him that says" L.A. District Attorney." I paid 150 bucks for it, it's in my book.

How close is it to being finished?
It depends. If we don't have any problems with the American representative, then I'll be going to Hong Kong to supervise the editing. It has 2500 photographs, and the title is "A Clean Breast." Ebert came up with the title. This is a fuck and tell book, and there's talk of turning it into a film

Will Charles Napier be in that? (ed. Napier was in three of Meyers' films, "Cherry...& Harry & Raquel," "Beyond the Valley of the Dolls," and "Supervixens").
Well, he's certainly too old to play himself, so I don't know. Now, I would direct it and I would use Robin Williams to play me.

Are you working on any new film projects?
Yes, Ebert and I have a script written called "The Bra of God," but I don't know if I want to do it anymore. I mean, right now, I'm doing these two extravagant get-you-through-the-night movies, one with Pandora Peaks, and one with a girl named Malisa Mounds. They're great films for whacking off, 'cause that's what they're for. They cost about a hundred thousand each, so they're not cheap.

So, do you see much of Haji?
Yes, she lives in the next town over. I live in Palm Desert, she lives in Palm Springs, and we are still good friends. She and I had a great affair for a number of years.

What about Babette Bardot?
She just disappeared. I was fucking her all the time, just constant fucking. [WE] even had a great weekend with both her and Jaji.

Wow! I read that for "Pussycat," you were going to keep every one from having sex.
Yeah, that's right, but she (Tura Satana) got mad at me. She said, "I gotta have dick!" I said, "Who are you gonna pick out?" and she got one of the cameramen. I said, "You're only gonna do it once, right?" and she said, "Yeah." I found out later from the guy, he said, "No, she fucked me all night and she was the first one to get up." Great lady!

Russ Meyer filmography:

The Immoral Mr. Teas (1959)
Eve and the Handyman (1960)
Erotica (1961)
Wild Gals of the Naked West! (1961)
Europe in the Raw (1963)
Heavenly Bodies! (1963)
Lorna (1964)
Fanny Hill: Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure (1964) Mudhoney (1965)
Motorpsycho! (1965)
Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! (1966)
Mondo Topless (1966)
Common-Law Cabin (1967)
Good Morning and Good-bye! (1967)
Finders Keepers, Lovers Weepers! (1968)
Vixen (1968)
Cherry, Harry & Raquel (1969)
Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970)
The Seven Minutes (1971)Blacksnake! (1973)
Supervixens (1975)
Up! (1976)
Beneath the Valley of the Ultravixens (1979
Pandora Peaks (2001)