The Candy Gram: Bombshell Betty

In our ongoing Q&A series --"The Candy Gram"-- we ask the same quirky questions of burlesque's various performers. If you want to be added to the mix, drop us a line at kellydinardo AT gmail DOT com. Today, say hello to Bombshell Betty.

What is your hometown?
I live in San Francisco, CA

How long have you been interested in burlesque/performing?
I have always loved the old song and dance movies. I have been teaching and/or performing striptease and burlesque since I turned 18 in 1996.

How many pairs of pasties do you own?
Wow! I have at least 50 pairs of novelty pasties I use or have used in the numbers I have choreographed over the past 12 years. I even have a small chest of drawers for them all. It was designed for sheet music, but the drawers are the perfect depth for pasties. I don't do all those acts anymore, but I sometimes use the pasties for new acts. I have about 300 pairs that my partner and I made to sell on my web page. I'm not sure if those count, but I do "own" them.

What are your three favorite songs to perform to?
Right now, the songs that happen to go with my three favorite numbers are,
Devotchka C'est C'est La, Sister Kate, which I sing and dance to with my new band and Beethoven's 5th.

What three items could you not live without as a performer?
Pasties, G-String, and Lipstick

Who had the biggest influence on your career?
My mom. She is so supportive and such a great person. I am so lucky to have her!

Who is your favorite burly queen?
Satan's Angel or Holiday O'Hara are my favorite legends. And of course my students just blow me away with their creativity and sass. I am always a proud mother hen at our student shows and it makes me so happy to see them get out there and perform at the local professional shows.

What is your favorite item of clothing?
That's like asking a mother to pick her favorite child!

What's the last movie you saw?
I watched Happy-Go-Lucky at the Opera Plaza Cinema here in SF. It's a small independent movie and we saw it in a small independent theatre. It was very sweet.

What's on your must-see-TV list?
I have no TV. Seriously, kill your TV! I sometimes watch the Daily Show online because my partner can't live without it. It's a funny show when I don't think about how depressing some of the news they make fun of actually is.

What book is on your nightstand?
I'm hiring right now, so I've been reading Human Resources for Dummies. Gotta love a little light reading. I am also reading an instructional book on Chinese Brush Painting (and it came with a brush and ink set). I can't wait to try my hand at it.

If you could go anywhere for vacation, where would you go?
I want to go back to Europe, hopefully this year. In the near future, I AM going to NYC and Orlando FL for my pin-up workshop tour and "working vacations".

If you could have any superpower, which one would you want? Why?
I already have one. I just can't tell you what it is. In light of that fact, I also like having the power to make people laugh by mixing the sexy with the silly. Twirling tassels to me is the perfect example of that. If you look at it, it's really a silly thing to do, yet it is sexy at the same time. Most of my numbers are a mixture of silly and sexy.

Satisfy your appetite for more Candy Grams: Foxy Moxy, Bambi Galore, Mis Rosie Bitts, Sahara Dunes, Mimi Rockafellar, Baby Le Strange, Rose Darling, Satan's Angel, Ophelia Flame, Panache La Plume, Ginger Valentine, Madame Rosebud, Little Brooklyn, Victoria Veneance, Sauci Calla Horra, Penny Starr Jr., Gemma Parker, Darla DeVine, Sparkly Devil, Vivienne VaVoom, Lux LaCroix, Charlotte La Belle Araignee, Bunny Love, Amber Topaz, Amelie Soleil, Red Hot Annie, HoneyLu, Kimberlee Rose, Vicky Butterfly, Dominique Immora, Yasmine Vine, Cherry Bomb, Millie Dollar, Joanie Gyoza, Bonbon Vivant, Lola Martinet, Frankie Boudoir, Vixen Violette, Ravenna Black, Veronica Lashe, Amber Ray, Beatrix von Bourbon, Angie Pontani, Tanya Cheex, Bloody Belle, Clams Casino, Trixie Little, Michelle L'Amour, Margaret Cho, Miss Dirty Martini, Princess Farhana, Miss Delirium Tremens, Paris Green, Jo Boobs, Jack Midnight, Heidi Von Haught, Diamond Minx, The Titillation Twins, Scratch, Creamy Stevens and Gina Louise.