Proud to announce that Trippin’ with Terry Southern: What I Think I Remember has been named one of three finalists for the Independent Publishers Book Awards for Best Autobiography/Memoir of 2009. There were close to 4,000 entries in 67 categories. Scroll down to category #27 to see our competition for the Gold Medal.

Awards ceremony to be held in NYC on May 25th. Of course, Gail Gerber and I will be there. Now all I have to do is decide if I should wear Vera Wang or my Vivienne Westwood catsuit. Hmmmm

Sixties starlet Dorothy Provine sadly passed awawy this week. The energetic blonde beauty is remembered most for her singing and dancing abilities and as a talented comedienne in such films as It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, Good Neighbor Sam, The Great Race, and That Darn Cat. So it may come as a surprise that this beautiful blonde had the female lead in two spy movies—The Man from U.N.C.L.E. film One Spy Too Many (1965) and the James Bond rip-off Kiss the Girls and Make Them Die (1966). Provine’s expert comedic performances are the films’ high points and she steals the spotlight away from her male co-stars.

You can read more about Dorothy Provine’s work in the spy genre in my book Film Fatales co-written with my friend Louis Paul.

One of my favorite actresses of the sixties is Nancy Kwan who starred in such movies as The World of Susie Wong, Flower Drum Song, Honeymoon Hotel, Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story, etc. She had a wonderful quality about her and was able to transcend the docile Asian woman parts usually played by Miyoshi Umeki and had a warmer persona than icey France Nuyen and was able to sink her teeth into some not-so-sweet ladies such as her butt-kicking villainess Yu-Rang who finally meets her match with Sharon Tate in The Wrecking Crew.

Nancy Kwan has a new documentary about her life entitled To Whom It May Concern: Ka Shen’s Journey. Ka Shen is Kwan’s childhood name. As the promotional copy extolled, “Hollywood’s postwar Asian superstar, Nancy Kwan, acts as tour guide around her personal and professional history.” Below is a clip of Kwan introducing the film at a screening:

I received a few inquiries regarding my previous post about Tina Louise and her parasol. Starting way back in the sixties, the beautiful actress was aware of the sun’s harmful effects on the skin and would always been seen with a parasol when filming exterior shots. Below is a short clip that her daughter thinks was taken during a photo shoot ca. 1966.