Roberta Collins(1944-2008)
- Actress
Brassy'n'beautiful blonde Roberta Collins was a terrific, dynamic and
scene-stealing delight who greatly enlivened a bunch of choice
down'n'dirty 1970s drive-in exploitation pictures with her earthy good
humor, boundless vitality, superior acting ability, strong, forceful
personality and smoldering sex appeal. Born on November 17, 1944, the
tall, leggy, shapely and radiant Roberta first began acting in the late
1960s. Collins made a smashing impression as Alcott, a fiery'n'feisty
prison inmate in Jack Hill's
chicks-in-chains classic
The Big Doll House (1971).
Roberta was likewise fantastic as Belle, a bawdy, jovial, kittenish
prison inmate in Jonathan Demme's
marvelous tongue-in-cheek gem
Caged Heat (1974) and hilarious as
champion race car driver Matilda the Hun in the uproariously tasteless
sci-fi black comedy hoot
Death Race 2000 (1975). Other
noteworthy parts include one of
Claudia Jennings' bitter rivals in
The Unholy Rollers (1972),
Jean Harlow in the odd
Train Ride to Hollywood (1975),
Jim Brown's secretary in the
outrageous blaxploitation riot
Three the Hard Way (1974), a
forlorn wayward prostitute in Tobe Hooper's
excellent Eaten Alive (1976), a
klutzy student driver in the hugely enjoyable car chase romp
Speedtrap (1977), and a neurotic
egocentric actress in Matt Cimber's outstanding
The Witch Who Came from the Sea (1976).
Alas, Roberta Collins' career ran out of gas and came to an unfortunate
close in the 1980s, as such latter lesser credits as
Hardbodies (1984),
School Spirit (1985), and
Hardbodies 2 (1986) all sadly
confirm. However, Collins did contribute a typically fine and
impressive turn as a tough prison security chief in the gritty
babes-behind-bars revenge item
Vendetta (1986). She also did guest
spots on the TV shows
The Rockford Files (1974),
Kolchak: The Night Stalker (1974),
Cade's County (1971), and
Adam-12 (1968). Roberta Collins died
at age 63 from an accidental overdose of drugs and alcohol on August
16, 2008.