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Burlesque star Dixie Evans dies at 86

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Burlesque legend Dixie Evans photographed at the GMG Studio in Henderson Monday, May 31, 2011.
Photo: Leila Navidi

Pay your respects with a shimmy and shake: According to the Burlesque Hall of Fame, burlesque icon Dixie Evans died August 3 at age 86. A posting by the BHOF said that Evans "died peacefully following a stroke earlier this year."

Burlesque Queen Dixie Evans

Evans founded the Exotic World museum in California, later brought to Vegas and dubbed the Burlesque Hall of Fame, as well as the Miss Exotic World pageant. She was known for evoking Marilyn Monroe onstage with a head of blonde curls and obvious sex appeal. "I did the act with a producer’s chair and movie camera and casting couch, and did a whole scene of a girl going to Hollywood," Evans told the Weekly in 2011. "I really gave that couch a workout, trying to improve my act."

Evans stayed active in the local burlesque community, creating the The Dixie Evans Burlesque Show and performing in Las Vegas for special events well into her 80s.

"We want to show what burlesque was before TV," she told the Weekly regarding her blowout 85th birthday bash, which featured performances by Miss Karla Joy, Kalani Kokonuts, Cha Cha Velour and Evans herself. "When TV came along, burlesque died and came back as what we see in gentlemen's clubs, where the girls just get naked and serve beer. This is to show girls everywhere what it is to get dressed up and really entertain."

Thanks for all the entertainment, Dixie. You'll be missed.

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