Roberta Collins

Brassy'n'beautiful blonde 'Roberta Collins' (qv) 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' (qv)'s chicks-in-chains classic _The Big Doll House (1971)_ (qv). Roberta was likewise fantastic as Belle, a bawdy, jovial, kittenish prison inmate in 'Jonathan Demme' (qv)'s marvelous tongue-in-cheek gem _Caged Heat (1974)_ (qv) and hilarious as champion race car driver Matilda the Hun in the uproariously tasteless sci-fi black comedy hoot _Death Race 2000 (1975)_ (qv). Other noteworthy parts include one of 'Claudia Jennings' (qv)' bitter rivals in _The Unholy Rollers (1972)_ (qv), 'Jean Harlow' (qv) in the odd _Train Ride to Hollywood (1975)_ (qv), 'Jim Brown' (qv)'s secretary in the outrageous blaxploitation riot _Three the Hard Way (1974)_ (qv), a forlorn wayward prostitute in 'Tobe Hooper' (qv)'s excellent _Eaten Alive (1976)_ (qv), a klutzy student driver in the hugely enjoyable car chase romp _Speedtrap (1977)_ (qv), and a neurotic egocentric actress in Matt Cimber's outstanding _The Witch Who Came from the Sea (1976)_ (qv). Alas, 'Roberta Collins' (qv)' career ran out of gas and came to an unfortunate close in the 1980s, as such latter lesser credits as _Hardbodies (1984)_ (qv), _School Spirit (1985)_ (qv), and _Hardbodies 2 (1986)_ (qv) 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)_ (qv). She also did guest spots on the TV shows _The Rockford Files (1974)_ (qv), _Kolchak: The Night Stalker (1974)_ (qv), _Cade's County (1971)_ (qv), and _Adam-12 (1968)_ (qv). 'Roberta Collins' (qv) died at age 63 from an accidental overdose of drugs and alcohol on August 16, 2008.::woodyanders