Russ Meyer
Russell Albion "Russ" Meyer (March 21, 1922 - September 18, 2004) was an American motion picture director.
He made a number of amateur films at the age of 15, and worked during World War II as a newsreel cameraman. Upon returning to civilian life, he became a glamour photographer, and found himself working for Hugh Hefner's newly launched Playboy magazine.
From here, he became a director of nudie films. His films are more ribaldry than pornography, and seem unusually focused on women with large breasts. His later films are almost entirely devoted to this vision; his discoveries include Kitten Natividad and Uschi Digard. He co-wrote Beyond the Valley of the Dolls with film critic Roger Ebert. Faster, Pussycat. . . Kill! Kill! is usually considered to be his greatest, or at least his most idiosyncratic, picture.
Meyer was known for his quick wit. While participating with Roger Ebert in a panel discussion at Yale University, he was confronted by an angry woman who accused him of being "nothing but a breast man". His immediate reply: "That's only the half of it."
Meyer died at his home in the Hollywood Hills, of complications of pneumonia and dementia.
Selected filmography
