Celebrity Grave: Lana Clarkson, Actress & Murder Victim

Clarkson's private funeral service was held on February 19, 2003 in Los Angeles, California. Her remains had been cremated and interred at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, in the Columbarium Rotunda attached to the Chapel in Hollywood. On February 23, 2003, her family and friends attended a memorial in her honor which was held at Henry Fonda Music Box Theatre in Hollywood, California.

-- wikiLana Jean Clarkson (April 5, 1962 – February 3, 2003) was an American actress and fashion model. Clarkson was a native of Los Angeles County. On April 13, 2009, songwriter and producer Phil Spector was convicted of second degree murder in relation to her death.

Early life

Born in Long Beach, California to Donna and James M. Clarkson, Lana Clarkson was raised in the hills of Napa Valley, California. She had a brother, Jesse J. Clarkson, and a sister Fawn. While living in Northern California, she attended Cloverdale High School and also Pacific Union College Preparatory School. During the Christmas season of 1978 and after her father's death, Clarkson's family moved back to Southern California and settled down in the Los Angeles region of San Fernando Valley. Right after Clarksons's family moved back to Los Angeles County, Lana pursued a career in entertainment industry as a performer and fashion model.

In the early 1980s, Clarkson landed bit parts in film and television. In 1982, she made her screen debut as a supporting character in director Cameron Crowe's coming-of-age comedy Fast Times at Ridgemont High, as the wife of science teacher Mr. Vargas (Vincent Schiavelli). The film was her first speaking role.

Career

Clarkson's best known films may be her work with Roger Corman, appearing first in his fantasy film Deathstalker, as a female warrior/love interest to the title character played by Richard Hill. Corman oriented his films towards young male viewers, using a mix of action and female nudity. Clarkson's work in Deathstalker led to her being offered the title role in Corman's next film, Barbarian Queen, a role Corman referred to as "the original Xena" because of the parallel in featuring a strong female leading character in an action-oriented sword-swinging role.[citation needed] The film gained cult status, in part due to an infamous scene where Clarkson is bound topless to a torture rack, interrogated, and raped by an evil king.

In 1987, Clarkson appeared in the John Landis spoof Amazon Women on the Moon. Following that, Clarkson starred in Roger Corman's Barbarian Queen sequel, Barbarian Queen II: The Empress Strikes Back, though the plots and characters bore no resemblance to the other film. Filmed in Mexico, the movie featured mud-wrestling Amazon women, magic sceptres, and (like its predecessor) a lengthy scene where Clarkson is tortured topless on a stretching rack by an evil king. Clarkson received star billing in the film which went directly to video. Although sales of the video were low, Corman did manage to turn a profit.

In 1990, she starred as a supporting character in the period horror film Haunting of Morella as the evil attendant to a young woman played by model/actress Nicole Eggert. In the film, Clarkson played a dominating lesbian character who tries to resurrect the spirit of a witch burned at the stake during the Salem witch trials.

Clarkson's work in the B movie sci-fi genre inspired a cult following, making her a favorite at comic book conventions, where she made some promotional appearances signing autographs for her fans.

She appeared in numerous other B movies as well as a range of television spots and appearing in commercials for Mercedes-Benz, Kmart, Nike, Mattel, and Anheuser-Busch. Her television appearances include parts on Night Court, Silk Stalkings, Riptide, Three's Company, Knight Rider and Wings, and a guest appearance as a villain on the television adaptation of Roger Corman's film Black Scorpion in what would be her final role.

During her career, Clarkson traveled around the United States and Europe while working on high fashion photo shoots. Other projects took her to Japan, Greece, Argentina, Italy, Switzerland, France, Jamaica and Mexico.

In 1980's she volunteered weekly at the AIDS charity Project Angel Food which delivers food for those in Los Angeles disabled by HIV or AIDS, at a time when the disease was greatly feared by the general public.

As she approached her thirties, Clarkson's career began to stall. No longer able to earn a living as an actress, Clarkson sought alternate routes of income, including operating her own website on which she sold autographed DVDs of her films and communicated directly with her fans on her own message board. Although she made a living by playing busty, lusty women, Lana's fondest desire was to be cast as a comic actress.

In 2001, while living on the canals in Venice, California for the last several years, Clarkson developed, wrote, produced, and directed a showcase reel entitled Lana Unleashed. To make ends meet, she took a side part-time job in early January 2003 at the House of Blues, in West Hollywood, California.

Death

On February 2, 2003, Clarkson met music producer Phil Spector at the West Hollywood House of Blues night club, while working as a hostess at VIP Foundation room. After her shift ended, Lana was invited by Spector to join him for a drink. Soon after midnight they left House of Blues and headed in his limo to his home in Alhambra, California.

In the early morning hours of February 3, 2003 Clarkson was found dead by a single gunshot to her mouth in a foyer of Spector's mansion "Pyrenees Castle" in Alhambra, California. She was pronounced dead at the scene at 6:25 that morning. The Alhambra Police Department responded to a shooting call shortly after 5:02 am and Phil Spector was arrested and taken into custody on suspicion of murder. Later that day he was released on $1 million bond. Spector claimed that Lana Clarkson committed suicide, however his driver and butler Adriano DeSousa stated that before police arrived, Spector declared that he thought he had just killed somebody. The Los Angeles County medical examiner Dr. Luis Pena who performed Clarkson's autopsy right after she died, ruled her death a homicide in his autopsy report. On November 20, 2003 Phil Spector was indicted for Lana Clarkson's murder, and on September 27, 2004 he was ordered to stand trial in Los Angeles.

During the subsequent trials, witnesses testified that Spector was prone to violence when drunk, and had drawn a firearm numerous times in their presence.

Clarkson's private funeral service was held on February 19, 2003 in Los Angeles, California. Her remains had been cremated and interred at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, in the Columbarium Rotunda attached to the Chapel in Hollywood. On February 23, 2003, her family and friends attended a memorial in her honor which was held at Henry Fonda Music Box Theatre in Hollywood, California.

On April 13, 2009, after two trials, Phil Spector was convicted of second degree murder at Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center in Los Angeles, California. Spector was sentenced to 19 years to life (15 years for second degree murder plus 4 years for the use of a firearm in the commission of a crime) on May 29, 2009 making him eligible for parole in 2028.

-- wiki
West Hollywood House of Blues - Where Phil Met Lana
On February 2, 2003, Clarkson met music producer Phil Spector at the West Hollywood House of Blues, while working as a hostess at VIP Foundation room. After her shift ended, Lana was invited by Spector to go home with him for a drink. Soon after midnight they left House of Blues and headed in his limo to his home in Alhambra, California.

-- wikiPhil Spector's Castle of Blood
In the early morning hours of February 3, 2003 Clarkson was found dead by a single gunshot to her mouth in a foyer of Spector's mansion "Pyrenees Castle" in Alhambra, California. She was pronounced dead at 6:25 am. The Alhambra Police Department received the call shortly after 5:02 am and Mr. Spector was arrested on suspicion of murder. Later that day he was released on $1 million bail. Spector claimed that Lana Clarkson committed suicide, however his driver and butler Adriano DeSousa stated that before police arrived, Spector declared that he thought he had just killed somebody. The Los Angeles County medical examiner Dr. Luis Pena who performed Clarkson's autopsy, ruled her death a homicide. On November 20, 2003 Phil Spector was indicted for Lana Clarkson's murder, and on September 27, 2004 he was ordered to stand trial in Los Angeles. On April 13, 2009, Phil Spector was convicted of second degree murder at Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center in Los Angeles, California. Spector was sentenced to 19 years to life (15 years for second degree murder plus 4 years for the use of a firearm in the commission of a crime) on May 29, 2009 making him eligible for parole in 2028.
-- wiki Lana Clarkson Lived on the Venice Grand Canal Actress Lana Clarkson enjoyed living the dream, even when times got tough. She lived in an apartment on the Grand Canal in Venice just off Washington Boulevard. Her career suffered, but she still looked good. She still had a shot a greatness. She took a job working at the House of Blues on the Sunset Strip, hoping to make some new connections that could help her career. Then, one night she went home with Phil Spector and you know the rest.

-- LAKompany.com