It's the dangerous women of Russ Meyer's epic "Faster Pussycat, Kill! Kill!" (1965) Predating "Thelma and Louise" by 20 years, this cinematic masterpiece lets everyone know what "girl power" is all about. A perfect post-modern fable filmed in glorious "black and blue." The three women featured (from left to right) are Haji, Lori Williams, and Tura Satana. 
     The most famous of the three, without a doubt, is Satana. In the years since the movie was released, Satana has become a cult idol with her leather tough attitude and karate chops. (The honest truth is she's nothing like her character Varla. She is actually the sweetest person you could ever meet.) She originally was a well-known burlesque dancer who went by the name "Miss Japan Beautiful." After that, she moved on to film work. Unfortunately, this was her only movie with Meyer, which is a shame, since Meyer really knew how to showcase her, ahem, talents. (Haji, on the other hand, appears in a few other Meyer projects including a cameo in the Meyer/Ebert masterpiece Beyond the Valley of the Dolls. Williams, after this movie, seemed to disappear from the cult status radar.)
    Satana is still very active in the burlesque/pin-up/cult film community. She has a wonderful website (TuraSatana.com) with a very detailed biography. She is truly one of the coolest women of our time.
 

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