My Face for the World to See

by Liz Renay, John Waters (Introduction)

Liz Renay was born into small-town life in Mesa, Arizona to a family of religious zealots. Then WW II came and she became a "V-girl," attracting servicemen with her beautiful face and voluptuous figure. Thus began her entry into the world of New York high fashion models and Fifty-Second Street strippers. Fate led her into the underworld, where she became a confidante and girlfriend to important mobsters and shady dealers. From New York she went to Hollywood, where she won a Marilyn Monroe look-alike contest and became a national celebrity; meanwhile her paintings were selling for $5,000 each and her poetry was recorded and broadcast. Then came an indictment and three-year probation for her unwillingness to cooperate with authorities by testifying against the mobster Mickey Cohen. A violation of her probation landed her in prison for three years. Married eight times, appeared before thirteen grand juries, with more lovers than any swinger of her generation-Liz Renay tells the story of her compelling and memorable adventures with honesty and candor.

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir, Biography, Biography Memoir, True Crime

457 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1971

Reviews

[Abbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Where to even begin with a beautifully trashy, tell-all book like this. Liz Renay is an icon, and her scandalous stories of her sexually adventurous teenage years, to the tales of the mob and prison life are endlessly interesting. Whether all the things in this book actually happened are up for debate, but who cares?! You don’t dive into a book like this looking for concrete facts.

Liz Renay’s writing style is easy to read and simplistic which wont appeal to everyone. But for a casual reader such as myself, I couldn’t put it down. Her wild descriptions of evenings with dangerous men, drinking lots of champagne and eating luxurious food were fascinating. It felt like a peeking through the curtains into a thrilling world I’ll never experience.

The section of the book dedicated to detailing Renay’s 3 years stay in prison was by far my favourite part. She’s adored by the inmates, runs numerous educational clubs, and battles with a fair share of rude, obnoxious prison guards. If even 20% of this book is true, I have to applaud how much of a fighter she was, and how dedicated she was to her children. Her opinions about sex were definitely ahead of the time, and frankly I think she deserves a lot more recognition.

I’ve wanted to read this book for a long time because John Waters is such a big fan (even incorporating the title into the script of Female Trouble). Thankfully, Trasho Biblio, an incredible indie library has a copy of the book, and I was able to borrow the book after joining. I recommend every UK John Waters fan to check out their library, they have some great trashy, obscure gems.

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

To say this autobiography is so bad it's good would be to slight the special magic of the late Liz Renay's unique flair for the written word.

For those unfamiliar with Ms. Renay, she was a b-movie girl, Vegas showgirl, mafia gun moll, self-styled multimedia artist and (perhaps most famously) one of John Waters' most memorable actresses (despite only appearing in one of his movies, "Desperate Living").

Reading this book is like watching "Valley of the Dolls" or "Mommie Dearest" for the first time. The camp is largely unintentional but written with such a raw, fresh sense of humor, who cares if you're laughing with or at the author? When Liz compares a stripper falling down a flight of stairs to a bag of canteloupes, just laugh!

For better or worse, the world will never know another talent like Liz Renay. If you want a frothy, kitschy, oddball treat, you could do worse than to crack her cover.

[Karen Jean Martinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sometimes research is the greatest, like when you are reading the improbable life story of a smart, liberated, wild, larger-than-life broad like Liz Renay. But the book (and her life) has to be amazing - El Vez wrote a song about her! Sadly, this edition lacks the John Waters intro, but the book breezes by, laughing through bad marriage, gangster affiliations, burlesque, prison, and a lot of love. A good reminder that an unconventional life is its own reward.

[Andy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty entertaining Autobiography of Renay who never quite hit the big-time due to her connections to sleazy characters (or possibly lack of any real talent other than enormous boobies). Hard to tell if she got a raw deal by the authorities or if that is just the way she colors her own story. It would have been nice if the book had some pictures of her and of her paintings that she wrote about.

[Chick Bookstop · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. If you want a soul searching biography with gritty underbelly and a CAST of characters that color the world, this is it! Liz Renay wanted the world, but the world just wanted to use and abuse her. Real, raw and beautiful, this is WAY better than Evelyn Hugo, any day.

[Erin Tuzuner · Rating 3 out of 5]

I cringe to list this as non-fiction, as it read as largely self satisfying bullshit. But as entertainment, it was quite passable.

[Zhanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I honestly did not expect to like this book as much as I did! It’s written rather plainly and is an autobiography of a woman I had never heard of, but the life she lived was just SO fascinating and exciting that I felt myself getting such a kick out of being taken along for the ride! Liz lived a full and chaotic life- she had 2 children, got married 6 times, went to prison for 3 years, and was a famous actress, writer, artist, and model. Something that struck me about her retelling of her life was just how positively she reflected upon it, even the difficult and awful things that happened to her. At the end, she wrote, “I’ve never engaged in the wasteful game of feeling sorry for myself more than momentarily.” I thought that was so powerful and spoke directly to the way I have lived my life- carrying my pain around and displaying it on my forehead for all to see, while hoping for pity and grace. Reading her story was inspirational and I’d read it again tomorrow in a heartbeat.

[Jeff Elder · Rating 4 out of 5]

What an incredible string of bad luck she had. I was familiar with her through her work in John Waters' Desperate Living. After reading it, I am pretty sure she inspired some of Female Trouble, as well. She was a very strong woman. She went through some horrible things, but kept her head high and kept thinking forward. I like her more, for sure, after reading this.

[Ellison · Rating 3 out of 5]

A drama rube shares her life experiences, raised in a strict home when she gains some curves she discovers that men are interested in her.....She goes through a series of men, has two children, a number of jobs, meets mobsters and goes to jail for three years! Adult content. Surreal. Name dropper.

[Think-On-It]

If you'd like to know what I thought of this book, please contact me directly and I'd be happy to discuss it with you.

All the best,

- TB

[Roland · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m only familiar with Renay through her role in John Waters’ film Desperate Living, so it was fascinating reading about the turbulent life of his first “real” movie star.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Liz Renay reminds me of a Russ Meyer heroine. Tough, strong and a lust for life.
She could have owned the world but chose to hang out with Mickey Cohen. Her friendship with him sabotaged almost all her chances of "Stardom'
This book was very amusing. Her life is told with more humor than pity. Everyone I shared this book with tried to steal my copy.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thoroughly entertaining!