Punk Performers & Theories Of Ideology ('Punk Mass' 1970 - )

One of the interesting things about Linnea Quigley's film career is the timeline. She arrived just in time to become a key contributor to movies that formed part of the classic drive-in era. She then became a genre star with the introduction of affordable home video players, headling some of the most popular straight-to-video titles of the 1980s. She worked tirelessly on location throughout the misbegotten laserdisc era and still has some notable films that are only available to view on that format. She's successfully bypassed the worst excesses of the multiplex era though she has performed occasional cameos and bit parts in major studio pictures (generally, at the request of certain directors who are fans of her work). She's now one of the most influential figures in horror cinema and has played her part in the digital revolution. Her position at the vangaurd of D.I.Y. ("do it yourself") filmmaking is appropriate as she's a punk, and she's always demonstrated how a low-rent punk aesthetic driven by a resourceful punk's work ethic can take you places.

I think it's worth remembering that Quentin Tarantino originally planned to cast her as a waitress in 'Reservoir Dogs' (1992) until he cut all female parts out of the script (she's presumably the waitress Steve Buscemi doesn't want to tip), including the undercover cop portrayed by Nina Siemaszko in unused footage. Quigley's also worked with Fred Olen Ray and Craig Hamann, two directors who played a significant role in the evolution of Tarantino's filmmaking career.

It's been a long journey undertaken by Quigley and she's sometimes had company. Skirts bassist Brinke Stevens entered films in 1981. Their mutual friend and longtime associate Michelle Bauer also entered film in 1981. These three hard-working genre actresses are known in horror circles as the 'Scream Queen Trio'.

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I've mentioned previously that Brinke Stevens became a popular figure with heavy metal bands and appeared in several soft metal videos. She also appeals to metalheads because she's scientifically minded and served as a model for comic books and graphic novels. This led to her becoming the focal point of her own comic book, 'Brinke Of Destruction'. Quigley has also modelled for comic books in her time.

The early 1980s were important to the development of heavy metal and saw the emergence of the "Big 4". Metallica, Slayer and Megadeth were based in California so they were steeped in hardcore punk culture. This would include the work of the Skirts who imbued melodic songwriting and classical pop structures with dense fills and instrumental distortion. Linnea Quigley's torrents of six-string power chords were recorded inside metallic echo chambers.

Over on the east coast, Anthrax emerged in New York wearing their punk influences on their sleeve. They filtered local musical influences through the dark, distorted lens of melodic thrash metal. Their harsh, distinctive tones set them apart from their sun-drenched rivals. The band's creative umbrella often splintered so they reinvented themselves continuosly, providing New York with a counter-argument to a dominant wave of west coast metal.

The independent filmmakers who came to dominate the home video scene were unsurprisingly connected to two of American independent cinema's greatest filmmakers and movie producers, Roger Corman and Charles Band. For me, Corman the producer owned the 1970s and he remained a major force in the two decades following. However, I think it was Band who owned the 1980s and he remained a major force throughout the two decades following. They've both struggled with changing markets since the turn of the century, yet for every three or four films they've released during this period, I feel there's always been one or two among them that are at least worth seeing. They will always be my filmmaking heroes.

Corman and Band were hugely successful within the video market. Corman achieved this by carrying over talent whenever possible, and repeatedly building new filmmaking units around existing personnel. Band built an almost entirely new structure when he formed Empire Pictures, as he felt he'd learnt a great deal from mistakes he'd made in the past. David Schmoeller, Stuart Gordon, Ted Nicolaou, David DeCoteau, Rafal Zielinski and special effects wizard John Carl Buechler formed a crack unit around Band who became the chief in-house director himself. When Empire Pictures folded, Band wisely retained his filmmaking staff and formed Full Moon Pictures, securing independent cinema's hottest free agent, Albert Pyun, as his first signing.

Meanwhile, a small group of independent filmmakers were intent upon making their own movies the hard way. Actor David Winters formed Action International Pictures (AIP) in the mid-1980s with filmmakers David A. Prior and Peter Yuval. Winters had directed the concert feature 'Alice Cooper : Welcome To My Nightmare' (1975) and the documentary 'Girls Of Rock & Roll' (1985), for which the Skirts did a tie-in photoshoot that was published in 'Playboy' magazine. When Winters expanded his operations beyond the work of Action International Pictures, he offered general support and financial backing to religious filmmaker David Heavener.

Around the same time that Action International Pictures was officially launched, Fred Olen Ray, Jim Wynorski and David DeCoteau were leading a roving crew of young filmmakers on expeditions to capture film footage around California, some of whom had worked as technicians for Roger Corman and Charles Band (and would continue to do so). Ray's since gone on to form the film distribution company Retromedia Entertainment which has released a lot of genre films on dvd.

What connects both parties is the work of prolific crossover artist David Prior as he used some of the same technicians, shopped at some of the same rental places, and shot footage in some of the same locations, so he'd often cross paths with Ray, DeCoteau and Wynorski. Prior also worked with Ray's wife, actress Dawn Wildsmith, on the 'Future Force' franchise. Some of the movies these independent genre filmmakers made at the time lent heavily upon punk music and punk imagery.

Linnea Quigley and Brinke Stevens have both done a bit of wrestling in their time. In fact, Quigley is a former alligator wrestler of some note. Stevens made her acting debut in Robert Aldrich's wrestling picture '... All The Marbles' (1981).

Fred Olen Ray is a former carny who wrestles under the name Fabulous Freddie Valentine. Ray directed Luke Perry in the movie 'Silent Venom' (2009) and he later helped Perry's son Jungle Jack Perry get started in the professional wrestling business.

Actress J.J. North is a loyal member of Ray's stock company. North has wrestled for different promotions and she spent many years on the roster at Roman Gladiator Wrestling. North and her friend and frequent collaborator Theresa Lynn were originally Tromettes who appeared together in 'The Troma System' (1993).

Horror actress Tiffany Shepis is perhaps the most famous Tromette of all and she's also a wrestler. Shepis used to wrestle at a high level and she's made appearances in Jeanie Buss' promotion Women Of Wrestling (WOW). She's recently talked about trying to get a new wrestling horror into production.

Another leading horror performer who's also a Tromette and professional wrestler is punk Jenny Jannetty (I don't know if she's any relation to wrestling legend Marty Jannetty). It's odd that Jannetty has worked on four horror films directed by Brad Twigg yet he failed to cast her in his wrestling picture 'WrestleMassacre' (2018), though on the plus side, it is arguably his worst picture to date.

A quick word is in order for British wrestling and its part in the women's revolution. Punk culture is important to several of the women who've wrestled in EVE Pro-Wrestling, a breeding ground for top talent that calls itself Riot Grrrls of Wrestling for a reason. If you're unfamiliar with EVE, inaugural champion Britani Knight went on to become WWE Champion as Paige and she is now the subject of comedian Stephen Merchant's biopic 'Fighting With My Family' (2019). The promotion's most successful superstar is 3-time EVE Champion Nikki Cross who's now a 2-time WWE Tag Team Champion with her partner Alexa Bliss.

If you look at the women who've helped build EVE in to what it is today, Piper Niven, Kay Lee Ray and Nina Samuels have all gone on to work under the elite-level WWE banner. So has Millie McKenzie who used to tag with Xia Brookside, daughter of former wrestler and WWE staff member Robbie Brookside. Janie Hayter and Emi Sakura are now seeking permanent contracts at All Elite Wrestling (AEW).