Vixen

California: Eve Productions, 1968. Two vintage black-and-white still photographs from the 1968 film. Seen in the stills is Erica Gavin (Vixen) and Jon Evans (Judd), and a split image with Erica Gavin and Harrison Page (Niles), the duo responsible for the film's thick racial tensions.

"Vixen!" was one of Meyer's best, sleaziest, and most commercially successful films, made at the peak of his independent productions (after "Faster Pussycat! Kill! Kill!" in 1965 and before "Beyond the Valley of the Dolls" in 1970). What is less well known is that this film, by way of Ms. Gavin, marked a breakthrough in the onscreen portrayal of women in terms of sexual aggression, using the then-new platform of late 1960s American independent cinema and the aftermath of the Summer of Love as a canvas.

Gavin's titular character is a married woman whose sexual boundaries are none, but instead of being a typical sex romp, the film heads off into areas that can be reasonably described as unexplored by sexploitation films, including communism, race relations, political debate, and terrorist activity. But also present in the film are many of the genre's more familiar themes (breast size, incest, nonstop sexual activity) and a generous dose of humor.

8 x 10 inches. One still with a faint tape ghost and two short tears, else Near Fine overall.

[Book #139327]