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Susan Bottomly

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Susan Bottomly, Viva, Ultra Violet and Tiger Morse

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Billy Name. Susan Bottomly

[::SemAp Twitter || SemAp::]

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Happy 76th, Mary Woronov.

With Nico, Andy Warhol, and International Velvet.

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Vintage Cosmopolitan covers (70s & 80s) Models: Lisa Cummins , Susan Bottomly, Clotilde ,Lisa Vale,Valentine Monnier & Agneta Eckemyr 

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Muse 

Susan Dunn Whittier Bottomly [01.10.50] 

Commonly known as International Velvet, Susan Bottomly is an iconic and rather obscure figure of the 1960s counterculture movement. The daughter of prestigious attorney John Bottomly (who helped prosecute serial killer Albert DeSalvo aka The Boston Strangler), she was raised in a distinguished upper-class family, attending private and boarding schools, often being expelled due to rebellion. During her teens, Bottomly signed a contract with Ford Agency and began modelling professionally, landing on the cover of Mademoiselle magazine in December 1965, at age fifteen. 

Through boyfriend Gerard Malanga, Bottomly was introduced to Andy Warhol, who later described her as “very beautiful”. After moving to New York and settling with Malanga at the Chelsea Hotel, Bottomly became part of Warhol’s Factory scene and also one of his muses, whom he referred to as “superstars”. Starting with a screen test in 1966, Bottomly (now known as International Velvet—originated from an old nickname, Black Beauty) went on to collaborate with Warhol in several of his films, namely Superboy (1966), Since (1966), Chelsea Girls (1966), The Velvet Underground Tarot Cards (1966), and **** (Four Stars) (1967). As an actress, she also had a cameo role in John Schlesinger’s 1969 classic Midnight Cowboy, in a party scene which features multiple members of the Factory. 

As a Warhol superstar in the mid-sixties, Bottomly was regarded as one of the potential successors of Edie Sedgwick, Warhol’s estranged and most influential muse. During this time, Bottomly dated fellow Factory regulars Gerard Malanga and David Croland. It is also rumored that she had a brief encounter with Lou Reed. A tall, lean brunette with big hair and flamboyant makeup, Bottomly would often accompany Warhol to events such as the 1967 Cannes Film Festival; the pair also collaborated for the February 1967 cover shoot of Esquire magazine, photographed by George Lois. The shoot is titled “The New American Woman: through at 21”, but Bottomly was actually 16 at the time the photos were taken. 

In the transitional period between the 1960s and the 1970s, the Factory scene went through changes, and by the mid-seventies it had died out. After being introduced to Christian Marquand, Bottomly got a small part in his 1968 sex comedy Candy. Marquand sent Bottomly to work with a theatre company in Italy; upon returning to the U.S., she was determined to leave the Warhol/Factory scene. This coincided with the incident of Warhol being shot by Valerie Solanas. 

By the early 1970s, Bottomly was working more prominently as a high-fashion model, being featured in magazines such as Vogue Paris and Vogue Italia. She eventually relocated to Europe, becoming a notorious face in European fashion editorials. A marriage to photographer Tony Kent ended in divorce. In 1994, Bottomly wrote and starred in International Velvet Superstar, directed by Michel Haddi, a short black-and-white experimental documentary which features Bottomly’s recollections about her life. She has returned to and currently lives in the United States. 

“There were other girls who were just as beautiful as Susan Bottomly was, but her way of moving made her extra beautiful. People constantly wanted to know, “Who is she?” … She also had one of the few bodies that could really bring out the ultimate look in a dress like, say, the ones Paco Rabanne made out of plastic disks or like the short black “discotheque dress.” And with her long neck, she could wear the new big earrings the way nobody else could… Susan would spend hours putting on the latest makeup, stroking on Fabulash over and over again, painting her eyes three different shades of brown… Watching someone like Susan Bottomly, who had such perfect, full, fine features, doing all this on her face was like watching a beautiful statue painting itself.” –Warhol.

“It was quite a year, 1966. I took my first acid trip, I lost my virginity, I was a debutante, I graduated from school, I left home, I moved in to the Chelsea Hotel and started hanging out at the Factory with all the amazing people that were there.” 

“We went to parties all the time. I used to see quite a bit of Gerard Malanga and Edie [Sedgwick]—Edie was one of my favorite people—but mostly I would go to parties with Andy [Warhol].” 

“You are the first great post-atomic breakthrough/ Leader in make-up./ You are the most confident walking/ From the crowded beach to water’s edge./ You make sure that the bust/ Outline remains constant when the straps are dropped/ For sunbathing. You sport a new pale blue denim/ Shirt with button-down collar and pocket on sleeve.” –Malanga, “Prelude to International Velvet Debutante”.

“Velvet was a slob. (…) A society girl from Boston hoping to follow in Edie Sedgwick’s footsteps.” –Mary Woronov.

“I wanted as much attention as I could possibly get… But I had no idea how to handle the attention. I was very clumsy. I would drink too much, often. I had no idea what I was doing… I remember having a few twangs about the fact that Viva was becoming more important than I was. On the other hand, I knew it was time for me to move on…” –about leaving the Factory.

“I just really loved being with Andy, he was—he had this magic eye that looked at you and you felt magical when he looked at you. At least that’s how it was for me.” –about Warhol.   

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Susan Bottomly and Jackie Curtis, 1970s. Posted by @susanbottomlydaily on Instagram, edited by us.

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Andy Warhol, {1966} Screen Test: Susan Bottomly

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Susan Bottomly and David Croland, somewhere in the 1960s

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Susan Bottomly photographed by Gianni Penati for Vogue Italia, January 1973.

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Warhol superstar Susan Bottomly photographed by Billy Name.

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Warhol superstar Susan Bottomly aka International Velvet, 1967.

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Susan Bottomly and Andy Warhol being interviewed on the radio in New York