Jennie Lee (born Virginia Lee Hicks, October 23, 1928 – March 24, 1990) 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, p ...

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 private events. Modern forms of stripping m ...

pin-up model A pin-up model is a model whose mass-produced pictures and photographs have wide appeal within the popular culture of a society. Pin-up models are usually glamour, actresses, or fashion models whose pictures are intended for informal and aesth ...

, union activist, and a minor role movie actress, who performed several

striptease A striptease is an erotic or exotic dance in which the performer gradually undresses, either partly or completely, in a seductive and sexually suggestive manner. The person who performs a striptease is commonly known as a "stripper", "exotic d ...

acts in

nightclub A nightclub or dance club is a club that is open at night, usually for drinking, dancing and other entertainment. Nightclubs often have a Bar (establishment), bar and discotheque (usually simply known as disco) with a dance floor, laser lighti ...

s during the 1950s and 1960s. She was also known as "the Bazoom Girl", "the Burlesque Version of Jayne Mansfield", and "Miss 44 and Plenty More".

Early life

She was born with the name Virginia Lee Hicks on October 23, 1928 in

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more t ...

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

. Due to her figure (42D"–26"–37), she became known as "The Bazoom Girl," "The Burlesque Version of

Jayne Mansfield Jayne Mansfield (born Vera Jayne Palmer; April 19, 1933 – June 29, 1967) was an American actress, ''Playboy'' Playmate, and sex symbol of the 1950s and early 1960s. She was known for her numerous publicity stunts and open personal life. He ...

," and eventually, "Miss 44 and Plenty More".

Career

Lee's act centered on how fast she could get her pastie propellers to spin and how dizzy she could make the audience. By the early fifties she broke into acting with minor roles in ''Peek-A-Boo'' (1953), ''Abandon'' (1958), ''Cold Wind in August'' (1961), and ''

3 Nuts in Search of a Bolt ''3 Nuts in Search of a Bolt'' is a 1964 comedy film starring Mamie Van Doren and Tommy Noonan, who also directed and co-wrote the film. Plot An out-of-work method actor is hired by a stripper, a male model, and a car salesman to listen to their ...

'' (1964) with

Mamie Van Doren Mamie Van Doren (; born Joan Lucille Olander; February 6, 1931) is an American actress, singer, and model. A Bombshell (slang), blonde bombshell, she is one of the "Three M's" along with Marilyn Monroe and Jayne Mansfield, who were friends and ...

. Despite her ambitions of mainstream stardom, she found herself

typecast In film, television, and theatre, typecasting is the process by which a particular actor becomes strongly identified with a specific character, one or more particular roles, or characters having the same traits or coming from the same social or ...

in side roles, and never got her acting career off the ground. In 1955, she helped start a union for dancers, The Exotic Dancers' League of North America (or EDL), acting as the club's first president. During this time in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, dancers' pay rates were very low and the EDL helped fight to improve them and push for improved working conditions. Lee's own salary was also very low, forcing her to live in run-down

studio apartment A studio apartment, or studio Condominium, condo also known as a studio flat (United Kingdom, UK), self-contained apartment (Nigeria, Ghana), efficiency apartment, bed-sitter (Kenya), or bachelor apartment, is a small apartment, dwelling in ...

s. The dancer tried to keep this from her friends, claiming in a 1980s interview: "They would've thought I was a hooker for sure." During her career Lee appeared on the cover of the magazines ''Stare'' in 1954; ''Risk'' in 1957; and ''Frolic'' in 1958, among others. She wrote an article on herself for a 1955 spread in '' Modern Man''. Besides her life as a stripper, Lee was a

pin-up girl A pin-up model is a model whose mass-produced pictures and photographs have wide appeal within the popular culture of a society. Pin-up models are usually glamour, actresses, or fashion models whose pictures are intended for informal and aesth ...

throughout her career. Like most of her contemporaries, she didn't pose

nude Nudity is the state of being in which a human is without clothing. While estimates vary, for the first 90,000 years of pre-history, anatomically modern humans were naked, having lost their body hair, living in hospitable climates, and no ...

, though in later years she did. She also wrote a monthly column on the burlesque and nightclub scene for several years that appeared in a variety of magazines.

Late life and death

As the years went by, the EDL became more of a social organization for retired dancers and collectible items associated in their acts. Lee gathered press pictures, gowns, pasties, and

G-string A G-string is a garment consisting of a narrow piece of material that barely covers the genitals, a string-like piece that passes between the buttocks, and a very thin waistband around the hips. There are designs for both women and men. Men's G- ...

s of burlesque dancers for the organization and displayed them at businesses she ran, including her nightclub/bar The Sassy Lassy. The collection would become part of the Exotic World museum (Burlesque Hall of Fame) in Helendale,

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, which was founded in 1961 by Lee. By the late 1960s, an aging Lee lost interest in her own burlesque career but was still interested in supporting the next generation of Exotic Dancers and memorializing her generation of burlesque performers. Lee died in 1991 at the age of 61 from cancer. With her death, fellow burlesque dancer,

Dixie Evans Mary Lee "Dixie" Evans (August 28, 1926 – August 3, 2013) was an American burlesque dancer and stripper, best known for a burlesque parody she performed as Marilyn Monroe. Career Evans entered show-business as a model and later chorus girl be ...

, took over the Exotic World museum and helped keep burlesque and Lee's legacy alive. In 1958, she was immortalized in the Jennie Lee song, recorded by Jan & Arnie. The song was credited to Jan & Arnie because

Dean Torrence Jan and Dean were an American rock music, rock duo consisting of William Jan Berry (April 3, 1941 – March 26, 2004) and Dean Ormsby Torrence (born March 10, 1940). In the early 1960s, they were pioneers of the California Sound and vocal surf m ...

was in the army at the time of the recording so their friend

Arnie Ginsburg Arnold William Ginsburg (August 5, 1926 – June 26, 2020), known as Arnie "Woo-Woo" Ginsburg, was an American disc jockey in the Boston radio market from the mid-1950s to the 1970s. Following this period, he became involved in the business si ...

recorded the song with

Jan Berry Jan and Dean were an American rock music, rock duo consisting of William Jan Berry (April 3, 1941 – March 26, 2004) and Dean Ormsby Torrence (born March 10, 1940). In the early 1960s, they were pioneers of the California Sound and vocal surf m ...

References

External links

Jennie Lee
at the Golden Days of Burlesque Historical Society *
Burlesque Legend and BHoF Founder Jennie Lee (VIDEO and COLORING PAGES)
at the

Burlesque Hall of Fame The Burlesque Hall of Fame (BHOF) is the world's only museum dedicated to the history, preservation, and future of the art of American burlesque, burlesque. Located in the Las Vegas Arts district at 1027 S Main st. #110, BHOF is a tourist de ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Jennie 1928 births 1990 deaths American film actresses American female erotic dancers American erotic dancers American vedettes 20th-century American actresses 20th-century American dancers American burlesque performers