Born Lysette Chodzko, on Sep 26, 1963, in London, England, UK.

Ever notice that when a movie bombs, the stench of failure usually only follows the star of the film? Everyone else — the director, producer, other actors — seem to slide into the next film with nary a whiff. Consider Showgirls, which has become almost idiomatic for “bomb”. Elizabeth Berkley can scarcely show her face in polite society anymore, but director Paul Verhoeven and co-star Gina Gershon have both moved on and few remember that they had anything to do with that film. And Janeane Garofalo has been involved with more bombs in Hollywood than the Allies were in Dresden, but since she's rarely the star, the blood is never on her hands.

Given this Unified Field Theory of Hollywood Scapegoats, bitterly outspoken, unrecognized British bombshell Lysette Anthony comes off a bit puzzling, for it's her firm belief that she took the fall for the 1983 bomb Krull — even though she wasn't really the star. Of the reviews I've been able to find on the web, only one made any mention of her outside of the plot summary, and then it was only to suggest that the young girl playing the Princess (Lysette) should have been a little more buxom to warrant all the hubbub surrounding her character in the film. Apparently the reviews in Britain were different. “They said I was an amateur,” Lysette remembers, “My voice was dubbed when there was nothing wrong with it ... People were so thoughtless and horribly unkind to me over Krull. In one year, I went from being a promising newcomer to being thrown out with the garbage because people thought I couldn't cut it. Washed up at 19! I was battered to shit.”

Well she must have been right about the reviews singling her out, because for the next few years she was the Elizabeth Berkley of Britain, finding work only in minor TV projects. And even when one of those projects became a hit, she was still known as a “dubbed actress” — and a terminal virgin (on account of the character she played). So she packed her bags and headed out for Hollywood, where no one remembered her in Krull and would surely grant her the chance to earn the respect she deserved. And just to make sure they noticed that she had arrived, she came the same way so many other actresses desperate to get noticed have: in the pages of Playboy.

Of course, like every actress who becomes briefly famous for showing her tits, Lysette resented that most of the new flood of roles coming her way were more interested in her tits than her acting ability. But she went ahead and made her fair share of Shannon Tweed-style, direct-to-video erotic thrillers just the same while waiting for her Big Break. And it did come — several times, in fact — but as respectable as those breaks were (one with Woody Allen, another with Mel Brooks), they came and went without leaving so much as a ripple to mark their passing. (Lysette feels that Woody's screwing his adopted daughter just before the film was released is what ultimately screwed the film's chances at the box office.) So whereas in Britain her name seemed forever bound to Krull and voice-dubbing, in the U.S. her name is still more associated with late night cable erotica than anything else.

Finally, in 1999, she threw in the towel and went back to Britain to work as a producer. “I can't stand LA anymore,” she told Maxim. “The best way I can describe it is that LA is like the worst bloke you ever went out with — you do everything right and he treats you like shit.” Of course, by coming to the U.S. a virtual unknown and launching her career by posing nude for magazines, she really only did “everything right” as long as she was planning to become the British Shannon Tweed, not the British Meryl Streep. Yes, getting naked in Playboy is a great career move, but only if you're planning on getting naked as a career. To expect to be treated like Nicholson or DeNiro because you've flashed your tits is ridiculous.

The bottom line is this: Most of the work entertainers get and the expectations people have of them are a direct result of the way they first chose to become famous. Lysette chose to get famous by taking her clothes off. She may not like where that's taken her, but at some point she really needs to break out of her Misunderstood Artist Syndrome and stop blaming the world for not being impressed with her when she's fully dressed.

Also sprach Golem.

Film

• Farewell to Harry (2002) .... Louie Sinclair
• Beneath Loch Ness (2001) .... Elizabeth Borden
• Dead Man's Gun (1999)
• Tale of the Mummy (1998) .... Dr. Claire Mulrooney
• Man of Her Dreams (1997; aka “The Fiancé;”) .... Faith Moore
• Misbegotten (1997) .... Caitlan Bourke
• Prince of Lies (1996)
• Robinson Crusoe (1996) .... Mrs Crusoe
• Dracula: Dead and Loving It (1995) .... Lucy
• Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde (1995) .... Sarah Carver
• Affair play (1995)
• Dead Cold (1995) .... Alicia
• A Brilliant Disguise (1994) .... Michelle
• The Hard Truth (1994) .... Lisa Kantrell
• Face the Music (1993) .... Julie Sanson
• The Hour of the Pig (1993; Briths/French aka “The Advocate”) .... Filette d'Auferre
• Look Who's Talking Now! (1993) .... Samantha
• Save Me (1993) .... Ellie
• Husbands and Wives (1992) .... Sam
• The Pleasure Principle (1991; British) .... Charlotte
• Switch (1991) .... Liz
• Days in February (1990)
• Without a Clue (1988 — aka “Sherlock and Me”) .... Fake Leslie
• Zoeken naar Eileen (1987; Dutch; aka “Looking for Eileen”) .... Marjan/Eileen/Karnen
• The Emperor's New Clothes (1987) .... Princess Gilda
• A Drop in the Ocean (1985)
• L'Étincelle (1984 — aka “Tug of Love”) .... Patricia
• Krull (1983) .... Princess Lyssa
• Night Train to Murder (1983) .... Kathy Chalmers, Eric's niece

• Trilogy of Terror II (1996; USA) .... Laura, Bobby's Mom, Dr. Simpson
• Target of Suspicion (1994) .... Jennifer
• A Ghost in Monte Carlo (1990) .... Mistral

• Tales From the Crypt: “Forever Ambergris” (1993; HBO) .... Bobbi

• Poirot: The Hollow (2004) .... Veronica Cray
• Hotel! (2000) .... Amanda Brown
• The Lady and the Highwayman (1989) .... Lady Panthea Vyne
• Jack the Ripper (1988) .... Mary Jane Kelly
• Look Good, Feel Fantastic (1987)
• Ivanhoe (1982) .... Lady Rowena

• Oliver Twist (1985) .... Agnes/Rose
• Princess Daisy (1983) .... Lady Sarah

• Night & Day (2001) .... Roxanne Doyle-Wells
• Kids Passport to the World (2000) .... Presenter/co-host
• Cluedo (1991; aka “Clue”) .... Miss Scarlett
• Dark Shadows (1991) .... Angelique Bouchard
• The Bretts (1987)
• Lovejoy (1986)
• Three Up, Two Down (1985) .... Angie Tyler
• Auf Wiedersehen Pet (1984) .... Christa
• Jemima Shore Investigates (1983)
• Crossroads (1964)

• Depeche Mode: The Videos 86-98 (1998) .... Girl in "I Feel You" Video

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