BLACK TIGRESS

Lola Colt (Faccia a faccia con El Diablo) – Italian title
Lola Colt – Italian title
Lola Colt – French title
Lola Colt – sie spuckt dem Teufel ins Gesicht – German title
Frente a frente - Postuguese title
Lola Colt – Spanish title
Kara Seylan Lola – Turkish title
Lola Colt Face to Face with the Devil – English title
Lola Baby – English title
Frontier Tigress – English title
Black Tigress – English title

A 1967 Italian production [Cines Europa (Rome)]
Producer: Aldo Pace
Director: Siro Marcellini
Story: Luigi Angelo
Screenplay: Luigi Angelo, Lamberto Antonelli, Siro Marcellini
Cinematography: Giuseppe La Torre [Telecolor, VistaVision]
Music: Ubaldo Continello
Songs: “Why Did You Go?”, “You’re the One I Love”, “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot”
sung by Lola Falana (Loletha Falana)
Running time: 93 minutes

Cast:
Lola Gate - Lola Falana (Loletha Falana)
Larry Stern/El Diablo - Germán Cobos (Germán Hernandez-Cobos)
Rod Strater - Peter Martell (Pietro Martellanza)
Paco - Franco Dady (Franco Daddi)
priest - Evaristo Maran
Don Rogers/Rodriguez - Tom Felleghy (Tamás Fellegi)
Rose Rogers/Rodriguez - Erna Schürer (Emma Constantino)
Virginia Blake - Dada Gallotti (Alba Gallotti)
player in saloon - John Petty (Giovanni Petrucci)
saloon singer - Marlena Possenti
townsman - Elio Angelucci
Pablito - Enzo Santaniello
saloon band - “The Rolls 33”
Slim - Attilio Corsini
with: Alex Antonelli, Bernard Berat, Carlo Balini, Ena Inoka, Lea Monaco, Ivan Scratuglia, Andrea Scotti, Franco Balducci

A song and dance troupe arrives in the town of Santa Ana which is held in the grips of El Diablo and his gang of Mexican bandits. One of the girls in the show Virginia, has malaria and they must hold-up in town until she recovers. Although the town objects to the showgirls the local saloon owner takes pity on them and allows them to stay at his saloon. This gives Lola the opportunity to sing a few songs, strut her stuff and rally the town and challenge El Diablo. El Diablo is running a protection racket where he taxes the town and if they don’t pay hostages are taken to his secret ranch and are murdered if the town refuses his orders. Rod is a local former medical student who looks after the sick Virginia and eventually falls for Lola. The town fails to rally around Lola until El Diablo kills a small boy. The town has had enough, and follows Lola who forces El Diablo into a showdown where he is killed and the hostages are freed. Rod and ends up leaving town with Lola and the troupe at the end of the film.

You Tube link: www.youtube.com/watch?v=dU4y-uoE3J4

Lola Falana (real name Cleao Twine) was born of African American and Cuban parents, she left home as a teenager and played opposite Sammy Davis, Jr. in 1964’s “Golden Boy”. She then toured Italy, as a singing and dancing sensation. She became proficient in Italian and made a couple of films including “Black Tigress” while she was in Italy. Returning to America, she posed for Playboy, and became part of the 'Blaxploitation' fad, becoming the highest paid female entertainer in Las Vegas, and became the wife of Feliciano 'Butch' Tavares (of R and B/Funk band Tavares) from 1971-1975. Her dancing and singing was later curtailed when she contracted Multiple Sclerosis which left her partially paralyzed. She went into remission in 1987 but it later returned in 1996. She retired from show business and moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and lived with her parents. She returned to her roots and her faith in God and devoted herself to these ends. She has now recovered enough from the effects of MS to return to Las Vegas in 2006 where she now calls home.