Above, Ingrid Pitt, left and Madeline Smith in The Vampire Lovers.
 
Sad news from London today as word of the death of actress Ingrid Pitt, star of several classic Hammer horror films, reaches us. Pitt died just two days after collapsing en route to a birthday celebration in her honor, at the age of 73.

Ingrid Pitt was best known for her risque roles in the Hammer “vampire lesbian” films, Countess Dracula and The Vampire Lovers. She was one of the first, if not the first scream queen to go starkers onscreen. Both of these films were—unbelievably—often shown uncut on “chiller theatre” type TV broadcasts in the 1970s. If you are a male of a certain age (ahem) and were a big fan of horror films growing up, there is a very good chance that Ingrid Pitt’s extremely lovely—and blood-smeared—breasts were the first boobies you ever saw (Can I get a few “amens” in the comments?).
 

 
Previously on Dangerous Minds:
Vampire Lesbians of Hammer