Elvira's Planet of the Glamazonian Ghouls with Trixie

0:00This episode is sponsored by Wonderful Pistachios. Craving something sweet and satisfying? Try Wonderful Pistachios chocolate sea salt and chocolate toffee flavors. They are deliciously roasted pistachios, thinly dipped in dark chocolate antioxidant goodness, with 50 % cacao, the protein power of pistachios, and just the right sweet and savory punch to your palate. Chocolate sea salt brings that perfect snack time balance, while chocolate toffee adds a crispy crunch to every bite. Snack time never tasted so good. Visit wonderfulpistachios.com to learn more. And we're live on Match Day as Doug reaches for a buffalo wing.

0:36He's got it. Oh, and he's gone for a can of Pepsi, too. What a finish. There's no doubt about it. It just tastes better. Match Days deserve Pepsi. Mornings have a rhythm. You can hear it. Feel it. And at Quaker, we fuel it. With 100 % whole grain oats. and a good source of fiber in every bowl, helping you turn that rhythm into your soundtrack for a great day. Fuel to start whatever's next. Quaker, official sponsor of FIFA World Cup 26. I-O, let's go! I-O, let's go! Ready or not, Tucson, here we come! From Linda Ronstadt Theatre. We'll see you on Sunday, November 9th. You know who we should invite?

1:25Linda Ronstadt. Oh, Tempest du Jour. She lives there. I think she's still with us. Wonderful. Thursday, November 13th, we're coming to Hawaii at the Blaisdell Theater. I haven't been to Hawaii in 10 years. Honolulu. Honolulu. Wow. Aloha. Take us at TrixieandKati.com. Bye, Roach.

1:46Two extra special things going on today. One, Katya's not here. Let's clap for that all around. Who's not here? Katya, exactly. And number two, we have Cassandra Peterson in the house, Elvira. I can't believe it. wow cheers your own team out there not clapping it's completely difficult that's depressing thanks guys that's support did you have a good time getting into Burbank today? yesterday oh yeah it was great four hours late that's all oh gosh we're right by the airport too do you fly into Burbank do you fly into LA? I have shot right here before I did my Hulu special I think either in this studio or one right across I've shot some stuff there too they have a huge set you know what's funny when I shot in there Their psych is so big you can pull a car in there.

2:30Yeah, I know. And maybe you did that. I did. In my Hulu special, we used the Macabre Mobile. Am I okay to understand there's two Macabre Mobiles, right? There's multiple? No. There's just one? One. Whoa. There is one that is a complete fake, not real Macabre Mobile that goes around the country saying it's the Macabre Mobile. Oh my God. I was going to do that to Angeline, so I guess I'm not going to do that. Don't do it. I won't do it. Do you ever see it driving and do you ever walk up and is it kind of stolen valor? No, no, no. When you see the fake Macabre-mobile, do you ever want to walk up to the window and be like, hi, what's up?

3:06No, I just want to walk by with my key on the side. Right. No, you know, it was a weird story. I had my car made and then I later bought it and I had to have it fixed up. So I took it to George Barris, who is a great guy. and he's done the Batmobile and he's done the Munsters car, all these old cars, you know. He's passed away since. But really cool, nice guy. And then I had my car fixed up by him. And the next thing I know, they had made a copy. While it was in there being fixed, they made a copy. And then they sent that car around, just like they do with the Batmobile, saying it was the real car used in the movie and stuff.

3:48And of course it wasn't. I have the real car. Interesting. kind of feels at worst illegal, but at best kind of shady. Oh, we tried to get them to stop, and it was pretty difficult. It was just like, don't do it. And they kept doing it. I think you should. No Macabre Mobile. I also think you should take back hearses and the Batmobile. No more black cars. That's just your thing. Really? Yeah. I think you have that kind of power. Thank you. I will. I was getting ready for this interview today, and I had a weird mix of pressure to make sure that our audience got to hear important things from you, but also comfort knowing that I think I know everything there is to know about you.

4:23Oh, that's good. Well, you do the interview by yourself then. I'm leaving. No, I'm so grateful you're here. I freaked out when I got the opportunity. I have things that I've wanted to ask you for forever. And do you mind if we just go for it? You just go for it. Ask me anything. I watch a bunch of your archival, aka bootleg footage on YouTube, like every Halloween. I love to watch your interview on Joan Rivers. Yeah, that was great. Have you seen that in a while? No, not in a million years. It really hits. It's so snappy and fresh. Really? You thought so? Y 'all have such a good back and forth.

4:57Well, this is the funniest thing. It was really weird. When I was in Vegas, okay, you're going to love this. I was briefly married to her valet. To her. No, to a guy that helped her with her dresses and her makeup. Don't ask me why. Did you think maybe, you know, most straight guys don't get into the dresses? he was completely gay total queen love and anyway I don't know we got drunk in a bar we went and got married anyway it's very easy to do that in Las Vegas sure yeah so anyway so I hung out at Joan River's house in Bel Air a lot and with her husband Edgar and their brand new baby which was you know Melissa Melissa I was like is there another baby no no it was just Melissa but I hung out with them quite a bit and got to be very friendly with Joan.

5:51And I loved her. I just loved her, loved her. And Edgar, I loved him. He helped me actually with my career and thing. He would introduce me to agents. They knew I was trying to get acting work in LA. And Edgar really helped me. He was a very sweet man. That whole Edgar story is kind of a nightmare. I think sometimes there's no trick to it other than you need somebody who has a little bit of poll who will who will say your name it's true it's true he said oh you ought to meet this person oh go over there and you talk to them i'll tell them you're a friend and blah blah blah you know i mean right otherwise you're just showing up with 900 000 other people at interviews and you know hoping and praying hoping that's right so anyway he was very helpful and he was very very nice and i really liked them both but when i went on that show with jones i was expecting her to be her snarky Joan Rivers self.

6:45And instead, she was very, very nice to me. And I almost felt like the interview was really a dud because you know how she's normally with people. She's really. She kind of cuts into them. Honestly, with you, I felt like because you were there and you were in your drag. It was also a Halloween episode. So I believe Paul was down the couch from you. And so it was a you were obviously the perfect guest for that, of course. And you come out and it's drop dead gorgeous. And it's, you know, it's like really good magic late night television when you come out. It's so cool. Thank you. I love that. But I felt like it just missed the thing.

7:20I was sort of prepared to get into like a cat fight, like fake fun, like, oh, well, Joan, you know, trade barbs and stuff. And then she was just nice to me. Sure. So I guess I guess that was good, but I don't know. When I watch interviews of you with the male late night hosts, obviously, like, they will talk about your figure in a way that's a little bit workaround. And with Joan, I guess what I liked about it is she could just be like, okay, let's immediately talk about the breasts, you know? And she just immediately was like, I think she said when those things drop, there's going to be an earthquake in China.

7:51Love that. I was like, I mean, so fun. It was great. It was fun. And I mean, I just love her. And obviously you've seen her documentary. Of course. It's a work. One of my favorites of all time. Yeah. I read your book, of course, when it came out. Cruelly Yours, I believe. Yours Cruelly. Yours cruelly. But you almost got it. I bought it on my iPad. I read it on tour. And I just, you were so candid. So some of the stuff I knew, but there's a particular story of how you started Elvira. You talked about, I think, being freshly married and like outside of LA. And you got a call and they were like, come in for this.

8:26And you were like, I think I might just quit. Right? Yeah. Which time was that? It was like when you got the call to come do Vampyra at the time. Oh, yeah. No, at the beginning. which was right over here in Hollywood. Yeah, no, I just thought it sounded like the weirdest damn thing in the world, but I thought, oh, well, I'm pretty excited. It's an acting job. I'll be paid a couple hundred dollars. I mean, I was very excited about getting any work that paid money then, you know. Right. But I wasn't excited about, my God, it finally landed the role of a lifetime. Local television, right. No, it wasn't like that.

9:03Yeah. It was like, whoa, dude, I got a gig that lasts longer than one day. Right. And I guess most drag queens think of you as obviously a drag queen, and we all loved you before we even knew what drag queens was. I think of me as a drag queen, too. Right. And I guess for some of us, we come up with this character and start hawking it in gay bars or whatever. And when I think of the way you did it, which is kind of reverse of like, you got this opportunity. Obviously, at the time, you had no idea it was going to be such a long-lasting opportunity. No, I really thought, God, I hope this lasts like two or three weeks at least.

9:35so I can eat and live. Make some money, pay my rent. And I am obsessed. I'm obsessed with this thing you talk about in some of your interviews where you weren't able to maybe get financial raises at first, but you were able to ask for things. Could you tell the listeners about that? I think it's so amazing. Yeah, that really was lucky. And it wasn't just me. It was my lawyer. It was my manager's, which was really, aka my husband at the time, who didn't really know what he was doing. But my lawyer said, you know, they're not going to pay you more. Why don't you just ask for the rights instead to have a fan club?

10:16And we went, oh, yeah, that'd be fantastic. We asked for that. Then later on down the line, next quarter, they're not going to pay you more, but maybe they'll give you the rights to make T-shirts and merchandise. Oh, that'd be awesome. And then that just kept going and going until one day we realized, we had all the rights. Yeah. All the rights. So it was like little at a time. They knew what they were doing, but I mean, they didn't know what they were doing, but they realized finally, oh, we just gave away all the rights and we owned them. And when they gave them to us, we signed a document and we owned them.

10:50I have always wanted to ask you about that attached to this question was, at which point did you realize the rights you were asking for had like real value? Like at which point were you like, oh my gosh do they even realize that i'm going to be able to really count some money here like do they realize that i have something really marketable yeah it was a ways down the line it wasn't um i don't know that we really realized it right we owned the rights to something but we didn't really know what you know um i think we had a better idea of what when one i was invited on the Johnny Carson show, which, believe it or not, at that time was the only talk show.

11:31I mean, there were little ones, Tom Snyder and things, you know. But that was, if you were on that show, you were famous. That's all there was to it. I'm still hoping I get a call. Well, you might. It's a very... He's dead, but... At this time, and I recently was on vacation and had it on. It's a very calming sounding show. Yeah. He has a very calming voice. And I, did you watch Late Night with the Devil? That movie? No, I didn't. I know the movie. I have not watched it yet. And if you're going to tell me to watch it, you're like the third person. I'm sorry. I asked Peaches on the phone today.

12:03Shout out to Peaches Christ. I said, do you think she's seen Late Night with the Devil? I said, I was reviewing her late night appearances and I think she would love this movie. But it feels a little insane to tell Elvira to watch a horror movie. No, there's a lot of them that I don't get to. I've seen like a billion million. People feel responsible for you seeing every single horror movie that ever existed. It's just not possible. I try. I try. Right now, I want to go see Weapons so bad. And none of my friends went to see horror. It's really weird. My partner hates horror. My friends don't like horror.

12:35I can't get anybody to go with me. It's isolating. And I feel weird sitting in a movie theater alone watching a horror movie. And they go, there's Elvira. She's Elvira. Elvira's here alone watching a horror movie. That's so sad. It's like the Elvira equivalent of you at a bar at 4 p.m. Yeah, it is. She's getting her fix. I know. I just don't want to do it. Weapons, I think, is available to watch at home now. Oh, I hope so. Okay, that's how I can watch it. without looking pathetic. Besides, your partner. Don't tell him it's a horror movie. It's a lovely romance tale. There you go. The kids will be there.

13:03Yeah. And then she'll have my purse for the next month and it'll be my fault. Oh, yeah. When July arrives, we as humans can finally live up to our full potential as sun-dazed creatures who say things like, let's go kayak on the open ocean, or I can absolutely pull off a straw hat and a floral shirt. This summer, I'm dreaming about a getaway to Traverse City, Michigan, where I found a beautiful home in Lake Michigan that I booked with Airbnb, the perfect headquarters for peak lake-based summer whimsy. I want to wake up slowly, make coffee in a real kitchen, then head out for cherry pastries, pumpkin pancakes, and a heroic afternoon of pretending I actually know how to kayak.

13:43After that, maybe we can drive out to Sleeping Bear Dunes, climb an enormous sandy hill, and then stare out at Lake Michigan like we're in a fancy shampoo commercial. Then, in honor of the season, we reward ourselves with ice cream. That is what the height of summer does to me. It makes every trip feel less like a vacation and more like a golden little movie where everyone is slightly sunburned and deeply committed to snacks. All with a home base that feels like summer you can actually settle in. That is why I love booking stays on Airbnb. I want a living room where everyone can collapse after a day in the water, a kitchen for late night sandwiches and lazy breakfasts, and enough space to feel like we are living our best summer lives.

14:23And if I'm traveling with friends, even better. We can stay together, eat dinner together, and play card games badly. And maybe that one great trip becomes three great trips. Maybe it's Traverse City now, the Outer Banks next, or a long weekend in Bar Harbor after that, eating lobster rolls and becoming emotionally attached to a lighthouse. However summer unfolds, It just feels more personal when you book through Airbnb. This episode is sponsored by Wonderful Pistachios. Hey, Katya, I have an important question for you. Do you know what I love about summer? You know what, Trixie? I don't. Well, good, because I'm about to tell you.

14:57Everything feels just a little more fun. Longer days, warmer nights, and snacks that feel like a treat. I could not agree more. And that is why this episode is sponsored by Wonderful Pistachios. Right now, I am deeply, emotionally, and spiritually into wonderful pistachios, chocolate sea salt, and chocolate toffee flavors. OMG, same. The delicious roasted pistachios are thinly dipped in dark chocolate antioxidant goodness, so you get that sweet, indulgent flavor. They are like a first date with your snacking soulmate. I agree. Chocolate sea salt strikes just the right balance. A little salty, a little sweet, and covered in rich, dark chocolate.

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16:22Plan B is available nationwide at all major retailers and through delivery apps like DoorDash. No ID, prescription or age requirement. It's the number one OBGYN recommended brand of emergency contraception and it won't impact your future fertility. That's freedom to be. Use as directed. I also watch, I mean, I don't know if you ever review this either, but there are plenty of bootlegs of you at your holiday, your Halloween performance at the farm. Not scary farm, right? Yes. I confuse that with Disney's not too spooky. I don't know what they're doing. It's like not too spooky, medium spooky. It's like salsa.

17:02It's called the Halloween haunt, actually. It's easier. That's what they called it. How did you start doing that? Like, right after it became Elvira, I'd been Elvira for about a year, they had Wolfman Jack doing this show out at Knott's Berry Farm. Did you ever hear of him? No. Oh, wait. He was like a big DJ in the LA area. He was really, like, back 100 years ago, a really big deal. Did he dress up? But a DJ. No, he just kind of looked like a wolf. He looked kind of like a biker with a goatee and kind of the Eddie Munster kind of. Kind of convenient. Willow speak. And they talk like this. and I was like, hi, everybody.

17:40This is a woman, Jack. You know, kind of like that. So anyway. You were like, they could do that. And apparently he had a little too much to drink most of the time when he was out there at the show. So they decided to get somebody else to do the show. Who can we have who only have a medium amount of drink? Yeah, well, not me. I'd say I was right up there with him. Right. But they decided to replace him and they called and asked if I wanted to do it. And I was like, what do I have to do? And they go, oh, sing, dance, tell jokes. The first show was so lame. Oh, my God. I'm hopping around singing, oh, Frankie, you're so fine.

18:19You're so fine. You blew my mind. Hey, Frankie, about Frankenstein. Right. Oh, my God. Really embarrassing and really pretty cheesy. But as time went on, the shows got better and better. You never saw one out there? No, I would. You would not believe it. It was full on Vegas. Yeah, you were too young. You weren't even born yet. I was born just a few years ago, really. I watch it on YouTube. I think there's a bootleg of maybe your last year. And I remember you saying in the show, like, this is the last year, so we're pulling all the stops. You pull the car out. There's this gag of yours that Katya and I have stolen from you.

18:54And we are just like the macabre mobile people who steal from you. Where you go off stage and then a rag doll of you. A bird comes flying across the stage. I love that so much. Was it a voiceover? you're like how about these moves they're just like throwing a rag doll of you and they're just throwing me all around and i imagine you're backstage sipping a coke being like how's the show going pretty good huh and there was i am i'm having this day right frank red ball um we're we then had one of the dancers a male dancer who was an acrobat come out and do hand you know what do you call it backflips backflips all the way across the stage i wouldn't say it was exactly a convincing body double.

19:31No, it wasn't at all. He was like a five-foot-tall Latino guy with tons of muscles, you know? Yeah, very muscly. So it really didn't, you know, but he's zooming across so fast. And of course, everybody knows it's fake, but it was hilarious. And I actually came up with that idea because in the movie, I had a body double doing all that stuff. I don't do back flips or anything, my God. But I did do this one thing where I was hanging upside down and I was pushing away at the floor. Oh, yes. So it looks like I'm... flipping, you know. So I said, oh, we got to recreate that kind of thing on stage, you know, where it's very obvious.

20:06It's a double, but. It's amazing. They act like we don't think it's obvious. When I introduce people to your work, which I've gotten to do is like, obviously I'll show them a film, but I love to show them one of your live shows. I also love that song, Once Bitten. It's on my holiday playlist. Love that song. It's great, isn't it? It's this girl. God, now you, oh, my brain. Oh, God, this is so horrible. Well, not too, it's been a long time, but an English singer who did that song and wrote it. God, what's her name? Thank you, Lori Choco. Shout out to Lori Choco. And she's so great. She was this friend of mine and she's like this six foot tall Amazon East Indian woman with the white blonde mohawk and just amazing looking.

20:52and met her through a friend in LA and then we talked about her doing some music maybe for the movie and she said, I have a perfect song and so we recorded her doing it. But isn't that a great song? It's a great track. She did a remastered it later. Did you say another version? I think I have that version. I think that's the version I have. Yeah, it might be. It's really good. I just saw Joan Jett a few weeks ago and it reminds me of like a Joan Jett track. I love Joan Jett. Me too. I've seen her, I saw her 20 years ago and I saw her just last month and I was like 20 years apart. It's still incredible.

21:26Amazing. I always wonder if she hates me or something. Because I don't know. Susie from Susie and the Banshees hate me. Why? She said I ripped her off and I was like, I don't know. I felt like just another punk girl back then. We were all looking like that, you know? Yeah. How come maybe we think she ripped them off? She was angry that I, I ripped off Vampire. I ripped off Susie and the Banshees. I ripped off Morticia. Everyone, you name it. I ripped them off. And then there's people around driving your car. Yeah, bastards. So who's ripping off who? You know what I mean? Anyway, I don't know. It was a look, but I do love Joan Chet.

21:56I always think she's great. Love. Obsessed. She did a show. She's on tour right now with Billy Idol. And I'd not seen him before. That'd be so awesome. She's on tour. I wonder where they're going. I just saw them in Milwaukee. I was so like a movie. I saw a billboard of them while driving and like immediately pulled over and got the tickets. I was like, I'm going to this. Oh my gosh. She opened for him, which, you know, it's really a double billing. Not Billy Idol. Yeah. He was great. I love Billy Idol too. Yeah. What is he like? He was awesome. I mean, this is back when he was really happening.

22:24He was so gorgeous. Oh, my God. He was awesome. We had a lot of fun together. Yeah. Wow. He was great live. So, hi, can I get Billy Idol and get backstage and then meet Joan Chahad? Please. That's what I'll do. You should. Have you never met Joan? No. Oh. I just think you know everybody. I know. I sort of do. I've been around so damn long. I was in her house. I really have just met just about everybody on earth now. who's who has ever scared you i mean i think starstruckness is hopefully a universal feeling is there anybody where like i'm gonna lose it besides what you mean scared me in what way like like come up to you with a knife no like like starstruck like starstruck where you're like i'm not gonna freak out hello ma 'am huge fan oh yeah michael jackson oh wow yeah i mean i was i was i couldn't talk i mean that was really a big deal back then you know and he had just come out with Thriller, which is the biggest song in the world ever.

23:22And I was just like, shaking his hand. He shook my hand. He had that glove on and it poked really, really hard. But I tried to be really cool, you know, and not style it, you know. And I was just like, oh, God, got my hand. And then he goes, oh, I really love you, Farrah. I love you so much. And I'm like, Michael Jackson's telling me he loved me. You know, I couldn't even. I think I was just stuttering like a blithering idiot. This is a huge opportunity for you to just grab the glove and take a little piece of memorabilia. I know. I should. You know, and then just run. Too late now. Too late now.

23:55Yeah. I have another question. But thanks for the advice. Of course. I'm trying to steal something of yours today if I can. Okay. Hopefully, can we talk about your cookbook? Mm-hmm. You have a brand new cookbook. Tell us about it. Well, it's so awesome that I didn't bring a copy. It's not out yet, is it? It's out now. Yeah, it just came out. Yeah, and I did not bring a copy. I could kick my butt. She couldn't get one because everyone bought them all. That's right. They're all sold out. They are doing pretty damn well, I must say. I must say. I'm not surprised, right? No, it's great. I mean, well, I don't know.

24:31I didn't know. Are people going to buy a cookbook from Elvira? I don't know. I don't know, but I'm really happy. It was like number 33 on the 100 bestseller list on USA Today. Love that. Yeah. People got to eat. They got to eat. They got to eat. And why not eat dead things? They do. Fun things. I also just threw a Halloween party and it's hard to find good spooky recipes. Obviously, people are going to think of you as the authority of that. Yeah, I hope so. There are good recipes. They're fun. They're easy to do. I mean, they have all, not all of them are easy. It's kind of like runs the gamut from like you totally can't cook to you've got to be a really good baker, which I am not.