THE POLISHED APPLE
Polly Staffle was born Oct. 31, 1936 as Jennifer Jones. When she was a young girl, her father called her “Daddy’s Little Polished Apple.” But since he had a speech impediment, everyone thought he was saying “Polly Staffle” and the name stuck.
Polly grew up to become a showgirl, a pinup girl, an actress and a practicing witch. But she was more than the sum of these things.She also wrote and directed her own movies and was a creative genius. She was a 60’s exploitation pioneer.
Polly was Bettie Page, Herschell Gordon Lewis and Doris Wishman all rolled into one package.
She would be considered overweight by today’s Hollywood standards. But she was proud of her body and loved to show it off. She knew exactly how to play when it came to the film industry and she exploited herself.
Polly was Bettie Page, Herschell Gordon Lewis and Doris Wishman all rolled into one package. She wanted complete control over any project she was involved in and would work nonstop in the makeshift editing room of her home office.
Sadly all of her work was destroyed and there is little evidence that she ever existed. Perhaps locked away deep inside a former producers vault are the six rare completed films she created. But like many features of the grind house era, her movies in circulation were butchered by theater owners serving as their own censors when they thought scenes were too violent or risqué. If any prints surface, they will not be the uncensored masterpieces Polly created. “Geneva’s Gash,” “Dirty Doll’s Hidden Agenda,” “White Devil, Black Magic,” “Everywhere I Am,” “Satanic Panic” and “Sin City Doom” could very well be lost forever.
As far as we know, the original prints all went up in flames when her Las Vegas home burned to the ground in 1968. Polly too was in the home and died in the fire. She was 32 and though foul play was suspected, no arrests were ever made in the case.
Many have speculated a former lover, jealous that he couldn’t have Polly, was to blame. Though she was never married, she was engaged at the time of her death. Others believe a religious group decided to carry out a modern day witch burning. There is also speculation that “competition” had her bumped off.
The legend has it that Polly is still hard at work today. Her spirit lives on in horror, film noir, martial arts, independent, low budget, exploitation, documentaries and the darker side of all films.
So in honor of Polly, this website is dedicated to searching and hopefully finding cinematic polished apples.
- CCF, January 2006
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Art House | |
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The Blood Shed | |
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Crime Scene | |
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Drive-In | |
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Nonfiction Archive | |
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Grind House | |
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Dramedy Club | |
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The Others | |
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The Romper Room | |
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Dollar Theater | |
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ShortCuts | |
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