VAMPIRA (personality)

Vampira (born Maila Elizabeth Syrjaniemi) was a Finnish actress from the 1940s to the 2000s. She emigrated to the United States as a baby, and the family changed its surname to "Nurmi"; her uncle was famed runner Paavo Nurmi; Howard Hawks intended to groom her as a major star, but she left him and became a cheesecake model, and hit on the idea of dressing as Vampira in 1954 at a costume party, and she became a Los Angeles late night host for one year; she later had small bit parts in a few movies, and became involved in animal protection rights. Some of her movies include: Plan 9 From Outer Space, and Sex Kittens Go To College. Of course she also starred on TV's "The Vampira Show". Nurmi passed away in 2008 at the age of 85.