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Product Description Lipstick & Dynamite shines a spotlight on the forgotten first ladies of the ring. Gladys 'Killem' Gillem wrestled women, men, alligators, and bears. At 18, Ida May Martinez took to the road to flash the only thing she knew - how to kick, punch, and defend herself. Narrowly escaping a date rape at 16, Penny Banner trained for survival. Still kicking butt at 80, The Fabulous Moolah and Johnnie Mae Young live together with midget wrestler sidekick Diamond 'Lil, and continue to take bumps with World Wrestling Entertainment.Each woman reflects on her own remarkable life with fond and bitter memories, reconciling a wild, flamboyant youth with the reality of getting older and fading away. Lipstick & Dynamite follows Moolah, Johnnie Mae and the girls 60 years, many bumps and falls later as they discuss the money, the old days and what it's like to be a 'lady' in today's favorite guilty pleasure: spectator sport. Amazon.com If you recognize names like the Great Mae Young, Gladys "Killem" Gillem, and the Fabulous Moolah, then you long ago discovered the simple pleasure of watching women beat the heck out of each other. If not, then let Lipstick & Dynamite introduce you to some of the saltiest personalities ever to grace the wrestling ring, including the outspoken Ella Waldek, a former farmgirl turned roller derby jammer turned wrestling queen, who declares, "Whatever the referee didn't see was legal." This documentary mixes interviews, photos and film footage of actual bouts, and clips from shows like To Tell the Truth and cheesy movies like Racket Girls. There's some social commentary about the changing roles of women and society, but the real engine of this movie are the girls themselves, holding forth on angels and heels, sleazy producers (like the legendary "promoter of flesh" Billy Wolfe), fixed matches, the loneliness of the road, and much, much more. "Being tough didn't mean a damn thing," comments Gillem, who went on to wrestle lions and alligators after leaving the ring behind. Maybe not, but these tough old ladies are delightful company. Featuring a great soundtrack with songs by Neko Case and others. --Bret Fetzer
This is a loaded DVD which contains the 83 minute documentary about the girl wrestlers of the distant past as well as a bucket load of extras. I found the bonus stuff to be just as equally informative and entertaining as the main feature. There are 7 seperate interview segments. These include Men-Talk-Ladies(Ox Baker/Nick Bockwinkel/Red Bastien/Stan Kowalski/Karl Layer), Butcher Vachon(talks about Vivian Vachon), Reunion, Billy Wicks talks about Penny's love of Elvis, Elephant Boy on Moolah, and Anthony, wrestling super fan.There are two seperate Radio Interviews. These include: To the Best of our Knowledge(12 min) and Coincidence in a Half-Nelson(7 min). There are five featurettes. These are IFC at the "Angelika" segment, Atlanta Q & A, Chasing Moolah, NYC Premiere, and Tribeca Q & A. There are also 8 deleted scenes as well as theatrical trailers of various independant and foreign movies. Lastly there is the commentary from the director herself, Ruth Leitman. Ruth added further insight about the girl wrestlers, her experience with these wrestlers, as well as info about making the documentary.While I did not find all of the past female wrestlers in this feature to be the most compelling nor entertaining, I still appreciated the blood and guts that they spilled in order to tell/sell a story and further the art and craft of their chosen profession. While watching the documentary and listening to the commentary, I could not help but feel that Ruth Leitman really put her heart and soul into making this film. For Ruth Leitman and all the girl wrestlers of the past, their "labor of love" is much appreciated.
