Here I go again on my own

May 8, 2021 9:29 AM

Actress and self-proclaimed 'vid vix' Tawny Kitaen is dead (sltmz).

Besides working beside Tom Hanks in 'Bachelor Party,' Kitaen was a phenomenon in the Eighties for her work beside the group Whitesnake (yt links).

posted by kfholy (29 comments total)

Kitaen dated Ratt guitarist Robbin Crosby while she was still in high school and even followed his band to L.A. in the late '70s.

JFC.
posted by praemunire at 9:33 AM on May 8, 2021 [2 favorites]

She was the best part of The New WKRP.
posted by The Underpants Monster at 9:47 AM on May 8, 2021 [2 favorites]

I think that sounds worse than it was, praemunire. Crosby was only two years older thank Kitaen, and I don't think that Ratt existed when they started dating. It doesn't sound like it was a rock-star-preying-on-a-teenager situation. It sounds like it was two teenagers dating, and one of them went on to become a rock star.
posted by ArbitraryAndCapricious at 10:02 AM on May 8, 2021 [25 favorites]

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posted by Faint of Butt at 10:22 AM on May 8, 2021

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posted by djseafood at 10:36 AM on May 8, 2021

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posted by stevil at 10:40 AM on May 8, 2021

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posted by Heywood Mogroot III at 10:41 AM on May 8, 2021

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posted by Ten Cold Hot Dogs at 11:02 AM on May 8, 2021

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posted by scaryblackdeath at 11:04 AM on May 8, 2021

I remember when she physically assaulted her husband, MLB pitcher Chuck Finley, kicking him with her high heel shoes, stomping on his foot while it was on the accelerator pedal of their car, and twisting his ear, leaving him with visible bruises and abrasions. Some in sports media at the time thought that was just hilarious, presumably both because domestic violence wasn't taken as seriously then and because it was a woman attacking a larger man.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 11:06 AM on May 8, 2021 [16 favorites]

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posted by Splunge at 11:13 AM on May 8, 2021

TMZ mentions her attacking Finley. He filed for divorce '3 days later'.
posted by kfholy at 11:36 AM on May 8, 2021

Huh, Kitaen was her real surname. I would not have guessed that. Of her daughters, I guess Winter Kitaen has the cooler name, as Raine Kitaen sounds like the feline version of a rain dog.

RIP.
posted by chavenet at 11:37 AM on May 8, 2021 [1 favorite]

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posted by Annabelle74 at 11:41 AM on May 8, 2021

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If you want to memorialize her by enjoying some of her work, let me recommend Witchboard (1986) as a fun horror flick!
posted by demonic winged headgear at 11:49 AM on May 8, 2021 [6 favorites]

When I was 13 I went with a friend to see the Tawny Kiitaen-starring Gwendoline, thinking it was just an Indiana Jones ripoff. Turned out it was that and a softcore BDSM flick with copious nudity and sex. My puberty took quite the turn that day. RIP, Tawny.
posted by ejs at 12:17 PM on May 8, 2021 [11 favorites]

Just over a year ago, a close friend arranged, via cameo.com, for Tawny Kitaen to record a birthday greeting for me. It was a wonderful gift for this BACHELOR PARTY fan, and now I'll treasure it more than ever. RIP, Tawny. Thanks for the memories.
posted by Dr. Wu at 12:50 PM on May 8, 2021 [15 favorites]

I worked in a movie theatre the summer that Bachelor Party came out and so i was forced to watch it hundreds of times. I say forced, but I was 18 and probably liked it more than I remember. I disliked Whitesnake, but still always watched her videos.

RIP
posted by Hey, Zeus! at 1:20 PM on May 8, 2021

I immediately recognize her name, but for The New WKRP, where she basically played the Loni Anderson role, if not as well. I don't actually remember anything else about the show, but for her name, instant recognition.
posted by Four Ds at 1:47 PM on May 8, 2021 [1 favorite]

From Kitaen's former spouse's (MLB pitcher Chuck Finley) Wikipedia entry: He filed for divorce three days after Kitaen was charged with committing domestic violence against him, having beaten him with a stiletto heel. They have two daughters, Wynter and Raine. Tawny Finley, in a declaration to the Orange County Superior Court, claimed Finley used steroids among other drugs. She also claimed he bragged about being able to circumvent MLB's testing policy.[3] When told of his wife's accusations, which also included heavy marijuana use and alcohol abuse, Finley replied: "I can't believe she left out the cross-dressing."[4]

Stiletto heel, meet zinger
posted by elkevelvet at 3:45 PM on May 8, 2021 [11 favorites]

I mentioned the domestic abuse because I was a bit surprised it didn't figure more prominently into the conversation.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 4:55 PM on May 8, 2021 [5 favorites]

Nathan Rabin has been writing reviews of Kitaen's movies and TV movies for the last year:

The Perils of Gwendoline in the Land of the Yik-Yak
Bachelor Party
California Girls
Crystal Heart
Instant Justice
Happy Hour
Witchboard
Glory Years
White Hot
Three of Hearts
Hercules and the Circle of Fire
posted by JDC8 at 5:53 PM on May 8, 2021 [5 favorites]

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posted by introp at 6:37 PM on May 8, 2021

She was a classic Seinfeld girlfriend.

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posted by rhizome at 6:52 PM on May 8, 2021 [7 favorites]

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posted by filtergik at 1:44 AM on May 9, 2021

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posted by Gelatin at 4:29 AM on May 10, 2021

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posted by Mutant Lobsters from Riverhead at 9:08 AM on May 10, 2021

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posted by SonInLawOfSam at 10:51 AM on May 11, 2021

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posted by detachd at 4:08 PM on May 16, 2021