Dead and Kind of Famous

Send us a text This podcast is all about making sure that the stories of Hollywood’s dead never die, and after this absolutely horrific week, we need to do just that in our own small way. Thank you to all of the firefighters, volunteers, loving citizens of Los Angeles, and people helping from afar. Humanity is the only thing that can save us in these dark times. Below you’ll find the links to the Los Angeles Times article that we referenced and used as a source for this episode in add...

Send us a text As we unravel the layers of Vampira's gothic charm, we celebrate her unique blend of dark humor and magnetic persona that captivated 1950s audiences. Picture her cruising Sunset Boulevard in full vampire regalia, her chilling scream echoing through the night—a scene that marked her groundbreaking show, Nightmare Attic. We reminisce about her vibrant friendships with Hollywood's misfits, including the infamous James Dean, and explore how their shared fascination with the macabre...

Send us a text Get ready to unravel the journey of a remarkable woman who bucked the expectations of her time at every turn. Maila Nurmi (better known as Vampira) was really and truly the original mistress of the night. As we take a look at her early years, we can see that dichotomy was always present for her. Her father was a teetotaler, while her mother was an alcoholic. She loved beauty, but she also gravitated towards darkness. Maila's path was anything but conventional, and through her ...

Send us a text Did you know that Toto was a lil lady pup named Terry who used to pee on the rug? Well in this episode, Toto tells ALL. And she tells it in first person! Our main source for this episode was an adorable book called I, Toto, which was written by Willard Caroll after he discovered a scrapbook that shed light on Terry's life and featured her favorite cheddar biscuit recipes. Happenstance led to Toto becoming the family dog of famed dog trainer, Carl Spitz, who taught Toto ...

Send us a text Today, we return to the complex story of Christopher Jones and explore his final "lost years" after he turned his back on Hollywood in the height of his fame. We unwind the tangled web of his life, from his alleged romance with Sharon Tate amidst Italian film sets, to his eerie ties with the infamous Cielo Drive. As we reflect on Jones' troubled final years, we ponder the profound impact of personal tragedies, such as the deaths of Sharon Tate and Jim Morrison, on ...

Send us a text What if the ghost of James Dean haunted an actor's career? Christopher Jones, a man forever overshadowed by his uncanny resemblance to the rebel icon, lived a life that was as electrifying as it was cursed. Jones's journey through the swinging '60s is a cocktail of passion and paranoia, particularly in his tumultuous relationship with Susan Strasberg. Throughout the episode, we navigate Jones's on-screen triumphs and setbacks, from his role in the cult classic "Wild in the ...

Send us a text Have you ever strolled through a graveyard and felt a sudden wave of curiosity about the people resting beneath the headstones? Especially the one’s featuring a mysteriously unrecognizable yet glamorous headshot? If you’ve ever been to Los Angeles’s most iconic cemetery, Hollywood Forever, then you know the type. And on their new podcast, Dead and Kind of Famous, hosts Courtney Blomquist and Marissa Rivera will be focusing on the graves of the, well… dead and kind of famous fol...

Send us a text Ever wondered what it takes to be dubbed a Hollywood bon vivant? Join us as we kick off "Dead and Kind of Famous" with the eccentric and flamboyant life of Baron Clement von Frankenstein. We'll take you through our amusing adventure in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, where we use Find a Grave to track down the baron's final resting place. Marissa and Courtney share their first impressions of his marble tombstone, the origin of his captivating surname, and even improvise an obit...