Lipstick & Dynamite, Piss & Vinegar: The First Ladies of Wrestling (2004) (TV)

Director:

Ruth Leitman

Genre:

Documentary

Plot:

Ring legends such as The Fabulous Moolah and Gladys "Kill 'Em" Gillem Long provide candid insights into the history of women's professional wrestling. |

Cast

  (Credited cast)

Gladys Gillem	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler 1942-1962 (as Gladys 'Killem' Gillem)
Lillian Ellison	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler 1949-Present (as Fabulous Moolah)
Mae Young	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler 1940-Present
Ida May Martinez	...	Herself, Girl Wrestling 1952-1959
Penny Banner	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler 1952-1971
Ella Waldek	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler 1952-1971
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Lou Albano	...	Himself (archive footage)
Mars Bennett	...	Himself, Promoter
Maria Bernardi	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler
Eric Bischoff	...	Himself (archive footage)
Fred Blassie	...	Himself, Pro Wrestler (archive footage) (as Classy Freddie Blassie)
Janet Boyer-Wolfe	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler (archive footage)
Mildred Burke	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler (archive footage)
June Byers	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler
Rita Cortez-Lee	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler
Darling Dagmar	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler (archive footage)
Judy Grable	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler
Jody Hamilton	...	Himself (as Joe Hamilton)
Joe Hamilton	...	Himself, Manager
Karl Lauer	...	Himself, Promoter
Cyndi Lauper	...	Herself (archive footage)
Marie Laverne	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler
Sara Lee	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler
Diamond Lil	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler
Penny Mitchell	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler
Sputnik Monroe	...	Himself, Pro Wrestler
Gene Okerlund	...	Himself (archive footage)
Jack Pfeffer	...	Himself, Promoter
Wendy Richter	...	Herself (archive footage)
Gypsy Rose	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler (archive footage)
Millie Stafford	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler
Nell Stewart	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler
Tona Touch	...	Herself, Girl Wrestler

Runtime:

83 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White | Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Company:

Nightingale Company, The

Trivia:

Alt-Country singer Neko Case, who performs on the soundtrack, discovered while watching a rough cut of the film that one of the wrestlers, Ella Waldek, is actually an aunt of hers whom she had never met before. They subsequently met for the first time at the film's premiere.

Movie Connections:

Features "WWF Monday Night RAW" (1993)

Soundtrack:

Ballad of a Gink

A wonderfully entertaining film about a fascinating subject

This is one of the most highly entertaining and intriguing independent films I have seen in a long time. The subject matter is fascinating, it's about women wrestlers. In particular, it's about women wrestlers of the 40's and 50's. More specifically this film's main characters are 6 women who worked for the notorious promoter Billy Wolfe. These ladies are the very best in the business...no one can touch them as far as pure athletic talent, feminism and good old fashioned guts and glory is concerned. I was pleasantly surprised that the Fabulous Moolah was in this film as she is quite simply the best female wrestler ever to set foot inside the squared circle. This film puts to shame the scandalous "Bra and Panties" and "Evening Gown" matches that the sexist bookers of modern day currently showcase. These women were WRESTLERS in every sense of the word and the women who are wrestling today (and I use that term VERY loosely) could not hold a candle to them. Even to this day, the 80 plus year old Moolah and her wrestling partner "The Great" Mae Young are still in the ring kicking butt and taking names! What makes this film even more intriguing is the fact that each of these women persevered difficult upbringings, messy marriages, and various forms of violence throughout their rugged upbringings before they had ever even heard of a wrestling ring. The stories behind these ladies are the stuff of legends. These were not your plastic, Playboy-playmate, Barbie knock offs of today...these women were true athletes and pioneers of their time...you MUST watch this film!