BIOGRAPHY – Linnea Quigley

Published on: 9th September, 2009

BIOGRAPHY - Linnea Quigley  | read this item

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Jamie Lee Curtis may be considered by many to be the original scream queen, but the moment more respectable offered came flooding in she left the world of horror behind and embraced the mainstream, only once returning to her roots with the studio picture Halloween H20 twenty years later. But one actress who not only embraced her reputation but also revelled in it was Linnea Quigley, the queen of the b-movies. Forever remembered as the naked zombie with the flame-red hair in Dan O’Bannon’s punk classic The Return of the Living Dead, Quigley’s body of work during the 1980’s consisted of such low budget favourites as Don’t Go Near the Park, Silent Night, Deadly Night, Night of the Demons and Hollywood Chainsaw Hookers. Often appearing naked and usually as a victim, Quigley became a star and her name alone would draw crowds to the drive-ins to watch her meet her grizzly demise.

Born Linnea Barbara Quigley on May 27 1958 in Davenport, Iowa to a chiropractor and psychiatrist father and housewife mother, Quigley would make her first appearance in the late 1970’s in Fairy Tales, an adult fantasy co-scripted by low budget producer Charles Band, in which the actress would be cast as Sleeping Beauty. Contrary to her image, Quigley was extremely shy as a teenager, something she would be forced to overcome if she was to work in horror movies, which would often require nudity. At that time, the young star also had musical ambitions and would often hang out with groups and play guitar as she struggled as an extra in a string of forgettable flicks. Eventually recommended to an agent by a friend, Quigley’s first substantial role would be in the bizarre splatter Don’t Go Near the Woods, in which the nineteen-year-old would make her first full frontal appearance (although this would later be omitted from the final cut).

Although shot in 1979, the movie would not be released for two years, at the height of the slasher boom (following other titles such as Don’t Answer the Phone!, Don’t Go in the House and Don’t Go in the Woods). Several years later, it would achieve notoriety in the United Kingdom where it was subsequently banned as a ‘video nasty.’ Don’t Go Near the Park is notable for being one of the few films from the 1980’s in which Quigley would not be killed on screen, although her character would disappear from the story halfway through. Her next role would be in another low budget horror, Herb Freed’s cult slasher Graduation Day, starring alongside genre favourite Christopher George (who had previously appeared in Lucio Fulci’s Paura nella città dei morti viventi/City of the Living Dead and James Glickenhaus’ The Exterminator). Once again required to appear topless, her role as Dolores would not mark her first death scene but would introduce her to a whole new audience – the horror crowd.

Desperate for work, Quigley would appear in countless cheap features, although her willingness to strip for the camera would make her popular among independent filmmakers, who would usually include nudity in their movies as a substitute for plot or characterisation. These early efforts would include Kidnapped Girls Agency, Nudes in Limbo, Party Games for Adults Only and The Black Room. In 1984, she was cast as the blind and innocent younger sister of Linda ‘The Exorcist‘ Blair in Danny Steinmann’s exploitation classic Savage Streets. The role would be a significant challenge for the young star, not only having to give a convincing performance as a blind girl but, in the film’s most notorious scene (and also a catalyst for the violence to follow), would be gang raped and left beaten, prompting Blair to exact bloody vengeance.

Taking its cue from the likes of Death Wish and I Spit on Your Grave, Savage Streets would mark the commercial debut of adult filmmaker Steinmann, whose next project would be Friday the 13th Part V: A New Beginning, another film notable for its excessive nudity and violence (although the majority of it would be removed by Paramount and the MPAA). The same year, Quigley would appear in another controversial movie, Charles E. Sellier Jr.’s yuletide slasher Silent Night, Deadly Night. Condemned by both the PTA and respected critics Siskel and Ebert, distributors TriStar Pictures were forced to remove the movie from cinemas, only adding to its controversy and popularity. The film would tell of a boy who, after witnessing his parents brutal murder at the hands of a man dressed as Santa Claus, eventually dons the image and goes on a killing spree, punishing those that he feels are immoral and impure. Quigley would appear topless yet again, famously impaled on antlers by the antagonist in graphic close-up.

Her reputation would be cemented with his next role, as the death-fixated Trash in The Return of the Living Dead, an unofficial sequel to George A. Romero’s zombie classic Night of the Living Dead (the original premise had been devised by Romero’s former collaborator John Russo). Its mixture of punk, gore and nudity, coupled with appearances from such experienced actors as Clu Gulager, James Karen and Don Calfa, made The Return of the Living Dead an immediate success with the young crowds. For her role, Quigley would wear flesh-coloured bottoms to give the impression that she was completely nude, even allowing for her to be re-animated as a naked flesh-eating zombie. Despite its popularity and promises of a sequel, all but Calfa and co-stars Thom Mathews and Allan Trautman would be absent from Return of the Living Dead Part II, which would appear three years later.

By this point, Quigley was in high demand and, although she was in her mid-twenties, was still offered teenage roles. 1988 would prove to be one of her most successful years, starting with an appearance in Fred Olen Ray’s cult flick Hollywood Chainsaw Hookers, starring alongside the original ‘Leatherface,’ Gunnar Hansen, and adult actress Michelle Bauer. This would mark yet another of Quigley’s films that would become the subject of controversy in the United Kingdom. Due to the reputation that The Texas Chainsaw Massacre had gained as the most violent movie ever made (despite having a significant lack of blood on screen), any film that featured the word ‘chainsaw’ in the title would immediately incur the wrath of the BBFC, resulting in it eventually being released as Hollywood Hookers.

Her other notable appearance that year would be in Night of the Demons, Kevin Tenney’s low budget, tongue-in-cheek flick that catered to the same kind of crowd who had enjoyed Sam Raimi’s The Evil Dead and Lamberto Bava’s Dèmoni (Demons). In the role of Suzanne (a part Quigley almost rejected, believing that she was too old), she would become possessed by a demon but not before appearing topless again. Another successful film of the year would be Renny Harlin’s A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master, in which Quigley would appear briefly as a soul from Freddy’s chest during the finale as heroine Alice (Lisa Wilcox) finally defeats the bogeyman and sends him back to Hell. Although it would only be a brief cameo, this would mark a significant moment in Quigley’s life as she would meet her future husband, FX artist Steve Johnson, although they would later separate.

As the 1980’s came to an end there was a change within the industry, particularly the horror and exploitation genres. With the slasher film finally laid to rest and zombies no longer popular, both the studios and critics felt that it was time for a fresh approach. ‘Horror’ had become a dirty word and instead filmmakers would dub their films with more respected titles like ‘psychological thrillers.’ This would mark the end of a successful era for many who had made a living from low budget b-movies. Legendary makeup artist Tom Savini would attempt to reinvent himself as an actor and director, although he would fail to gain the popularity he had enjoyed through his FX work. Quigley too would struggle to find roles as interesting and unique as the ones she had worked on throughout the eighties. As the next decade began, the ’screen queen’ was no longer a label of interest and the likes of The Return of the Living Dead had all been forgotten.

Throughout the 1990’s Quigley would continue to constantly work, still occasionally appearing in genre pictures like Innocent Blood and Pumpkinhead II: Blood Wings. Much of her output during this era, however, would consist of straight-to-video efforts. In 2001, disillusioned by the Hollywood scene, she decided to relocate to Florida to be closer to her parents. A renewed interest in the likes of The Return of the Living Dead and Silent Night, Deadly Night would once again re-launch Quigley’s popularity. Many of her earlier cult films, such as Don’t Go Near the Park and Graduation Day, would be released on DVD, allowing fans to rediscover them after over two decades. Appearing at various conventions and The Return of the Living Dead reunions with her former co-stars, coupled with the success of her website, Quigley has once again become the (scream) queen of the b-movies.

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