1973's LITTLE LAURA AND BIG JOHN was a crime drama loosely based on the lives of John Ashley, his girl friend, “Queen of the Everglades” Laura Upthegrove, and the exploits of the Ashley Gang in southeast Florida from the early 1900s through the 1920s. The gang terrorized the area with bank robbery, hijacking, bootlegging, murder and running liquor between the Bahamas and Stuart, FL Co-star Fabian Forte had previously played gangster Pretty Boy Floyd in 1970's A BULLET FOR PRETTY BOY.
I loved/love her work. I don't think I ever saw her in something I didn't like. Some people approach their craft fearlessly and I think she was one of them. RIP, Ms. Black.
One of Black's most well-remembered films is this 1975 TV-movie--particularly the final segment about a devil doll that comes to life. Black played four different roles in the film's three segments.
In 1975's THE DAY OF THE LOCUST, Karen Black played an aspiring actress. In the film, there is a scene where Black's character “Faye Greener” anxiously watches a movie to see her small role. Footage of Black as Faye was cut into Twentieth Century-Fox’s 1937 release, "Ali Baba Goes on the Town," which starred Eddie Cantor.
I know her mostly through her association with Jack Nicholson -- my alltime favourite actor. Sorry to hear about her death in such a relatively young age.
This explicit 1978 film was the very first movie screened at the newly-created Toronto Film Festival. An unrated version six minutes longer than the R-rated version was screened in Quebec. That unrated version was later released on video in English.
This 1978 Italian crime film was not released in the U.S. until 1981, when Maverick Pictures International released it as THE SQUEEZE. Anthony M. Dawson (Antonio Margheriti) directed. Dawson was best known as the director of 1960s Italian sci-fi films such as THE WAR OF THE PLANETS.
