Fred Olen Ray posted the sad news that FIRECRACKER and RAW FORCE star Jillian Kesner passed away suddenly on Dec 5th, of complications from an undiagnosed form of Leukemia. A staph infection followed and she died within 24 hours of it's discovery.
She was 57.
Sad news indeed. It has been only about 55 weeks since her husband, director/cinematographer Gary Graver, passed away, also from cancer.
She was usually neither the best nor the best-looking actress in her exploitation movies, but she usually made a large impact anyway, whether it was her topless kung fu fighting in FIRECRACKER (a scene Allan Holzman directed in L.A. after Roger Corman decided Cirio Santiago's Philippines production needed more skin), her bikini dancing in the jawdropping RAW FORCE or her odd banter with hero Alex Cord in the Graver-directed erotic thriller ROOTS OF EVIL. Corman marketed her as some kind of karate champion in FIRECRACKER publicity. Of course, she wasn't, but it's fun to play along.
From what Fred Ray has said about her on audio commentary tracks, she seems to have been a sweet person, and from her behind-the-scenes credits on Graver's movies, obviously someone who loved her late husband very much.
The most words ever devoted to FIRECRACKER:
FIRECRACKER: CONTEST AND CONTRADICTIONI couldn't get through it, but try your luck.