Cassandra Gay Peterson [ 1 ] born September 17, is an American actress best known for her portrayal of the horror hostess character Elvira, Mistress of the Dark.
A member of the Los Angeles-based improvisational and sketch comedy troupe The Groundlings , Peterson based her Elvira persona in part on a " Valley girl "-type character she created while a member of the troupe.
The television show was revived in , featuring Elvira hosting public domain films, and airing on This TV until Elvira returned as a horror hostess in with 13 Nights of Elvira , a episode series produced by Hulu , and again in for a one-night 40th Anniversary Special that aired on Shudder. Peterson has made cameo appearances as Elvira in a number of films and television programs, including appearing as a guest commentator during WrestleMania 2 and as a guest judge on RuPaul's Drag Race , The Boulet Brothers' Dragula , and Halloween Wars.
Peterson was born on September 17, [ 3 ] in Manhattan, Kansas. In a interview, Peterson stated that as a child, she was more fascinated by horror-themed toys while other girls were occupied with Barbie dolls. Inspired by Ann-Margret in the film Viva Las Vegas , while on a trip to Las Vegas, Nevada , during high school, she convinced her parents to let her see a live show where she was noticed by the production staff; despite being only 17 years old, she convinced her parents to let her sign a contract.
After being introduced to film director Federico Fellini by the producer of a documentary on Las Vegas showgirls in which she had appeared, she landed a small part in the film Roma In her memoir Yours Cruelly, Elvira , she writes, "Perhaps the biggest mistake I made in my twenties was posing nude for a husband-and-wife photography team, who bullshitted me into doing what they said was a 'test shoot' for Penthouse magazine.
