Yours Cruelly, Elvira: Memoirs of the Mistress of the Dark

At 18 months old, Cassandra Peterson doused herself in boiling water and survived with third-degree burns. This experience inspired her love of horror and led her to a career in film and comedy. She auditioned at KHJ as hostess for late-night vintage horror movies and got the job on the spot, becoming the world's sexiest, sassiest Halloween icon.

Format: Hardback
Length: 304 pages
Publication date: 14 October 2021
Publisher: Hachette Books

On Good Friday in 1953, at only 18 months old, 25 miles from the nearest hospital in Manhattan, Kansas, Cassandra Peterson reached for a pot on the stove and doused herself in boiling water.

Third-degree burns covered 35% of her body, and the prognosis wasn't good.

But she survived.

Burned and scarred, the impact stayed with her and became an obstacle she was determined to overcome.

Feeling like a misfit led to her love of horror.

While her sisters played with Barbie dolls, Cassandra built model kits of Frankenstein and Dracula and idolized Vincent Price.

Due to a complicated relationship with her mother, Cassandra left home at 14, and by age 17, she was performing at the famed Dunes Hotel in Las Vegas. Run-ins with the likes of Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., and Tom Jones helped her grow up fast. Then, a chance encounter with her idol Elvis Presley, changed the course of her life forever, and led her to Europe, where she worked in film and traveled Italy as the lead singer of an Italian pop band. She eventually made her way to Los Angeles, where she joined the famed comedy improv group, The Groundlings, and worked alongside Phil Hartman and Paul Pee-wee Reubens, honing her comedic skills.

Nearing age 30, a struggling actress considered past her prime, she auditioned at local LA channel KHJ as hostess for the late-night vintage horror movies. Cassandra improvised, made the role her own, and got the job on the spot.

Yours Cruelly, Elvira is an unforgettably wild memoir. Cassandra doesn't shy away from revealing exactly who she is and how she overcame seemingly insurmountable odds. Always original and sometimes outrageous, her story is loaded with twists, turns, and unexpected revelations.

Through it all, Cassandra remained fiercely independent, never losing sight of her goals or her sense of humor.

Yours Cruelly, Elvira is a testament to the power of resilience, determination, and the pursuit of one's dreams, even in the face of adversity.

Weight: 582g
Dimension: 161 x 236 x 29 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780306874352