Jennifer Billingsley

[rlg118]

Mannix S1E11 - "Catalogue of Sin"
Jennifer Billingsley
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0082515/
Born: May 14, 1942 in Honolulu, Hawaii, USA

[rlg118]

Mannix S1E11 - "Catalogue of Sin"

[togolane]

Brute Corps

[SanteeFats]

[Findcandor]

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1963 Press Photo regarding Lady in a Cage

Composing a post for the actress Pamela Rodgers led me to dig up one of her appearances from The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'s second season episode of "The Adriatic Express Affair" (1965), where she happened to play second banana to Jennifer Billingsley.



Since I have an appreciation for Ms. Billingsley, given how everything I've seen her in has made her come across as (although she has appeared in much other fare where she obviously must have played different characters) spirited and "loose," in addition to her being a fine actress and one who looks pretty good (her IMDb page's description states, "Her initial claim to fame was her striking resemblance to Brigitte Bardot," although I don't see that resemblance, striking or otherwise), I also snatched shots of her from the U.N.C.L.E. episode. Sure enough, Vintage Erotica Forum had a thread devoted to her, an itty-bitty one but still a thread, and let me present the shots now:



First she makes goo-goo eyes at Napoleon Solo, and then she shifts her attention to Illya Kuryakin. See, this is the problem with "loose" women. On one hand, we love loose women, because they make it easier for us, but on the other hand, once we have something going, they could easily be distracted by our competitors.



As you may see from the last shot above, a scuffle causes Illya to fall from the train's roof, and while he is perilously hanging upside-down, does Jennifer's character scream, and do what she may to rescue him? Are you kidding? Instead she chooses to kiss him through the glass. You have just got to love Jennifer Billingsley for being so loose and unrestrained. (You might say this was just in the script, but you would be wrong. It's really Jennifer Billingsley.)




Take a look at the beginning of this thread. Four posts. That's right; in the last ten years, only four lousy posts — while we have threads for other ladies that go on and on, forcing a head scratch, as the question arises: are some of the others really that special? While others who have demonstrated themselves to exude heat go ignored? Is there no justice in this world?

So I couldn't let it go with simply the views above. Allow me to tack on shots from the web (supplemented by my frame grabs, as with the first example below) as we get a better idea of Jennifer's cinema output, to be followed by what appears to be her only big nude appearance of worth (illustrated with original frame grabs).


Let's begin with Jen's minor role in 1971's Welcome Home Soldier Boys, concerning returning Vietnam vets who blow up a town "Rambo" style. (Can't go wrong with Joe Don Baker, here.) Their adventure begins as the touring ex-soldiers pick up Jennifer, whose car has broken down. The back seat allows for serious make-out sessions, but Jennifer will soon regret attempting to extort money from these boys, although what happens to her is not deliberate. She is her lovable, rambunctious self in this role.




Jennifer plays the gal who turns Gator's head in one of her biggest major film breakthroughs, 1973's White Lightning, the kind of movie that made Burt Reynolds the number one box office star for years in a row. (Featuring revenge, moonshining, good ol' boys, a corrupt sheriff — Ned Beatty excelled in such roles — and the works.) The film marked Laura Dern's film debut.


Bo Hopkins is in the last three shots.


The first photo below has been identified as the pilot of the cop TV show, The Rookies, from 1972. Jennifer appeared in two episodes of The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, and my guess is the second photo (with Ozzie) presents a scene from season thirteen's "Breakfast for Harriet," 1965. The last photo (as may be read) is from the TV series O.K. Crackerby!, also from 1965, episode entitled "The Saint John Raid." The bikini-clad Jennifer is flanked by actors Hal Buckley and Indus Arthur.




Another one of Jennifer's appearances in a noted movie is Lady in a Cage (1964), where she played the wild teenaged girlfriend of the brawny James Caan, as he and his gang of punks terrorized Olivia de Havilland (the role was originally slated for Joan Crawford), recovering from an accident and trapped in a home elevator. The film was realistically handled, and well done.


You may see from at least the bathtub shot how the producers, no dopes, capitalized on Jennifer's sex appeal.


For those who may benefit by a look at the person behind the flesh, an article from The Daily Herald (Provo, Utah), March 11, 1968:



I have remarked in one of my past posts an appreciation for a member who has transcribed articles for easier reading, and I will do the same:

Jennifer Billingsley, Polly Prentice in Channel 4's "General Hospital," is a determined young actress who has laid down strict rules for her future. "I enjoy doing 'General Hospital' for the scope and exposure it gives me," she said. "But it's comedy I'm really looking forward to doing. I've made a hard and fast rule for myself—no more dumb blonde roles and no more sick ingenue parts." Jennifer was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, but left there at the age of three months. From then on she did a great deal of traveling with her family as her father was a colonel in the Army and was transferred frequently. She attended a U. S. Army school in Austria and schools in North Carolina, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas and Illinois, Contrary to most views, Jennifer doesn't believe that the moving from school to school made her childhood difficult.
She loved it and thrived on the challenges. "That's when I first started making rules. One was that I would be among the top 10 both in popularity and in grades within the first 10 days I attended each new school. I always made it, too." At an early age she decided that she wanted to be a ballet dancer. When she left home to try her luck in New York City, she attended the New York City Ballet School. This led to musical comedy and summer stock roles... Soon thereafter, Jennifer decided to give up dancing for "straight" parts. (Followed by a listing of some of her credits.) Jennifer is married to Jesse Lee Kincaid, a classical guitarist and composer. (The marriage lasted for five years, ending in 1971.)

What was that about "making rules"? If there is one thing we know about Jennifer Billingsley is that she goes with the flow, and does not make rules.




Let's now get to the big finish, accenting what this forum, at its heart, has a taste for (i.e., "sex," not "violence"). While Member "Togolane" and Super Moderator "SanteeFats" have graciously allowed for looks at Jennifer's nudity from 1971's Brute Corps in the last two posts (with the poster stating, as may be read above, "Anything They Want... They Take"), our VEF'ers focused on the tamer swimming scene. I'd like to now present the brutal scene. (Hey, it was called "Brute Corps" for a reason.)



Mercenaries for hire who are on their way to a conflict in Central America are shown to be so tough, even a band of bikers they run into are no match. Jennifer, a freewheeling hippie who is traveling by hitchhiking (ahhhhh, that Jennifer) hooks up with a draft dodging pacifist, and naturally they encounter the psychotic soldiers.



As you may read on the poster (they made sure to highlight this dialogue), while one of the beasts (Alex Rocco) is having his way with our lady, he forces her to say, "I am an animal," and she finally screams with gusto, "I am an animal!" (Jennifer was a pretty good actress. Luckily the "boyfriend," suddenly no pacifist, rescues her after this exchange... with the help of one of the soldiers, who has a conscience.)


Jennifer gets her revenge in the end, in a more sedated way than the style of
I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE, MS. 45, and countless other such fare.

Yep, not exactly politically correct, but it was the sleazy seventies, and I do confess my appreciation for this kind of exploitative trash.


An IMDb commenter for the White Lightning page (in a review entitled, "Decent 70's Moonshine Flick!") used the following phrase: "Neglected Jennifer Billingsley." Shame, but it's true. Jennifer's screen career basically came to a halt in 1976, with one detour three years later. She is now eighty-two, and wherever she is, hopefully is healthy and happy.






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