Krista Grotte - A Closer Look

Actress and fitness model Krista Grotte's "day job" as a project manager for a Florida-based aviation technology company, requires her to travel quite a bit, which would make one wonder how she also manages to have a successful acting and modeling career. You'd think her frequent travels would hampering her show biz career. However, Krista says she coordinates the two by scheduling her shoots and appearances to coincide with where she'll be at the time, thus turning what could be an obstacle, into an advantage.

A favorite of award-winning director Thomas J. Churchill, Krista's proud to be starring in his upcoming film Check Point, and rightfully so. It deals with domestic terrorism, an issue our country is currently faced with, and has a strong cast. She's also been recently cast in three more of Thomas' upcoming films; Marilyn: Zombie Hunter, starring Sarah French, and two that have just been recently announced: Beautiful Nightmare, which will also feature Vida Ghaffari in a starring role, and Nation's Fire, which was covered in last week's press release featured here, that also included her Eye on Entertainment interview with the lovely Dawna Lee Heising.

Also, a correspondent for the Florida-based TV show Born to Ride, Krista, a motorcycle enthusiast herself, is a familiar face among the biker community throughout the southern states, where the show is broadcast. Just press play to hear about that and much more in Krista's very recent and exclusive interview with Idol Features.

March 21, 2016 interview with Krista Grotte

In This Corner; Miss Ruby Tuesday

Whether known by her real name of Robin Lisa Kelly, her ring name the Red Snapper (among others), or her stage name Ruby Tuesday, this lady has had a colorful life and career under all of her names. Now a hairstylist in Southern California, Ruby (as I'll stick with here) is very open about her past, not that there's any reason for her not to be. She's got some stories to tell, along with some names to drop, and a jaw-dropping photo collection to document her escapades.

Ruby's show biz career began when she was a teenager and got a gig as a regular dancer on American Bandstand, which lasted six years. Then came her stint as the "Red Snapper," during the early-80s, when nightclub mud wrestling was in its heyday. She went on to wrestle under a couple of different ring names and later became an exotic dancer and adult magazine model.

This written interview is being published concurrently with the audio interview Ruby did tonight for Idol Features' podcast channel, where, besides Ruby's, you'll find several other of our audio interviews. Stay tuned for many more, among which will probably be a Part 2 with Ruby, in the near future. Above photo of Ruby as the Red Snapper at the Hollywood Tropicana, circa 1984, is from her personal collection.

Scarlett Dark

Scarlett Dark is the lead singer, keyboardist, and a founding member of the San Francisco Bay Area rock band, Lipshok. Their music is described as "progressive symphonic metal that is unique, gothic, haunting, melodic, ethereal, and highly commercial." At one time a cover band, they now have three albums behind them with a fourth due out later this year, in which most of the songs are penned by Scarlett.

In the mundane world (as she puts it) Scarlett is known as Debbi Douglas; wife, mother, and tennis pro. No kidding ....and her tennis credentials are impressive. As a competitor, Debbi (as I'll refer to her when I'm talking about her tennis career) was ranked as high as number 4 in women's singles in California. In college, she reached number 7 in the NCAA, and was a two time All American. She was inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame at Cal State Hayward, just last year. Even though many of Debbi's colleagues and students at the Harbor Bay Tennis Club (where she works by day) are aware of her alter ego, Scarlett Dark, this revelation will probably come as a "shok" to Lipshok fans reading this. Just read on to learn more about the Lipshok frontwoman. Above photo of Scarlett performing at the Mojo Lounge in Fremont, is courtesy of Scarlett, herself.

Elizabeth Di Prinzio & Angela Fong for Boost Mobile

The above TV commercial that ran earlier this year for Boost Mobile, features Los Angeles-based actress and model Elizabeth Di Prinzio, as a girl getting her purse “snatched” by a do-gooding motorcycle passenger in the form of model and former BC Lions (of the CFL) cheerleader, Angela Fong.

You can see more of Elizabeth at her official website and she's on Twitter. See more of Angela, who's also a former WWE Diva, and may be better-know by wrestling fans by her ring name, Savannah, at her Facebook fan page, and she's also on Twitter.

2013 Christmas Compilation

After catching Kristina Michelle (above) in her very recent holiday photo shoot with Scott T. Morrison of Discovery Photo, it gave me the idea for this Christmas-themed post featuring some of the ladies I've had the pleasure of interviewing over the past few years. A big thanks to all of them for sending me their photos, some of which were taken by them, exclusively for this feature. (Clicking on their names will take you to their interviews here.)

Soo Yeon Lee for Target

This recent Target commercial for Nature Made prenatal vitamins is entitled "Ravenous" and features actress, model, and world class table tennis player, Soo Yeon Lee, portraying a pregnant lady who's in a frenzy to satisfy her hunger cravings ....or just to make a mess in her kitchen. Said Soo Yeon (who was not actually pregnant here) of this role: "It was good practice to be a pregnant woman." See more of her at her official website.

Dayna Fuller

East Bay Area fitness model Dayna Fuller first caught my attention after I saw a photo of her in the gym, next to her workout partner, KPIX's Roberta Gonzales. I had the pleasure of interviewing Roberta for this site in January of this year and considering her achievements, I knew Dayna couldn't be any slouch to keep up with her in the gym.

I figured Dayna was a lady who was serious about her workouts and after contacting her about being featured here, I saw I was right. Despite having a fun and goofy side to her, Dayna doesn't take fitness lightly. Even though she's not currently competing (but is considering getting back into it), she spends five days a week in the gym and out on the running trails ....and the photo at left shows that's definitely no exaggeration.

Also an avid sports fan, Dayna's done promotional modeling for the Oakland Raiders and is a season ticket holder. She also frequents A's games to cheer on the green and gold. Her "lighter" activities include river rafting, compound bow shooting, and of course, collecting photos of five-star hotel restroom toilets.

Annie Cruz

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Kate Cloutier

A native of St. Paul, Minnesota, Kate Cloutier studied drama at the University of Minnesota but didn't start acting full-time until last year, when she decided to leave her career as an emergency medical technician. Besides knowing how to save lives, she also sings, plays guitar, substitute teaches, is a trained firefighter, and as you can see at left, is very serious about her workouts.

Kate jokingly said giving very detailed answers was part of her obsessive-compulsive disorder, but for anyone wanting to know what it takes to get in the shape you see she's in, you'll definitely appreciate the detailed rundown she gives on her workout routine. Oh, I should add the photo at left is from 2009 and Kate's appearance has changed since. Her hair's longer now.

Photographer Amanda Hu

Even though she takes great golf action shots, photographer Amanda Hu told me her favorite subjects to photograph are landscapes. She does have some fantastic examples of those in her portfolio, as well as some outdoor shots that are worthy to be made into jigsaw puzzles. I know that may not sound like it, but that's a sincere compliment. Just take a look at the high quality of the photos that are used for jigsaw puzzles.

Impressed with her work, I recently chatted with Amanda about a feature here. Since she doesn't step in front of the camera very often (and is a little shy), I suggested I feature her as a photographer with photos she's taken, rather than posed for. Landscapes weren't really what I had in mind but Amanda, being an amateur golfer herself, has also taken great action shots of some of the top talent in the LPGA who've played in tournaments she's covered. Of course, I still wanted to include some background info on Amanda herself, without it sounding like a formal interview. So, the following are excerpts from my conversation with Amanda while we were discussing her possible inclusion here. Above is Amanda outside the National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in Taipei.

Roberta Gonzales

If you live in a metro area where there are several local news stations to choose watching, you might gravitate toward a particular one, for one reason or another. In my case, it's KPIX Channel 5 in San Francisco, whose chief meteorologist is Roberta Gonzales. Besides having never been wrong about the weather, Roberta's bio reads like that of the main female character in an action movie.

To say Roberta has a busy schedule is an understatement. Besides being in the studio Monday through Friday to deliver the weather report four times a night on live TV, she also delivers it every half hour from 3:00PM to 9:00PM on KCBS radio. Her days "off" are usually spent training for whatever the next marathon or triathlon she'll be competing in and attending events for charities she actively supports. At one such event, she rappelled down a 38-story building. Oh, and if the San Jose Sharks are playing at home, the avid hockey fan can often be found in "The Tank," cheering them on.

Just last evening, Roberta found time in between news broadcasts at KPIX studios, to personally answer my e-mail questions and send me the online hello you see above. Even though our correspondence was through e-mail, Roberta, obviously not one to put things off until later, replied to me so quickly, it was practically a real-time interview.

Aby Rulloda

Abigaile (Aby) Rulloda (pronounced like her Facebook user name; "Rule Yoda") is hard to place in an single category, which is why I entered her under several here. She's a successful model, go-go dancer, ring girl, fashion designer, and competitive kickboxer who happens to be the current WCSC (World Combat Sports Challenge) Super Flyweight Champion.

Wanting to learn a little more about Aby firsthand, I contacted her through her website about an interview and, needless to say, was very pleased that she took time out of her busy schedule to answer my questions. Well, all except for how she got her nickname of "Bad" Aby.

More Wardrobe Malfunctions

A term coined by Justin Timberlake to describe the infamous 2004 Janet Jackson Super Bowl halftime incident, it's only surprising that "wardrobe malfunctions" don't happen more often, given the outfits many female celebs and models wear onstage and on the red carpet.

Above, we see Japanese-born K-pop singer Ayumi Lee head off stage for assistance after literally shaking off one of her adhesive bra cups during a 2007 lip-synced performance of her single "Wrongful Meeting." Taking it in stride, Ayumi returned to the stage to finish the number after adjustments were made, probably realizing that it could have been worse, as some other ladies will attest to.

Asian Ladies of the Lingerie Football League

Spawned by the popular Super Bowl halftime feature, the Lingerie Bowl, the Lingerie Football League had its inaugural season just last year. Having sexy, lingerie-clad players was probably thought to be the only way a womens football organization could survive, but these ladies aren't merely eye-candy in some powder puff league. In fact, some of the players even have semi-pro experience.

In the LFL, the ladies play all-out, full-contact football for two 17-minute halves on an indoor arena-size field under arena-type rules. However, you're not here to read about all that, so anyway ....browsing the rosters of the 10 teams revealed a handful of Asian gridiron girls, most notably Korean-born G-N Kang (above and yes; she uses a hyphen in her name), who plays center for the Philadelphia Passion. G-N's "day job" is co-host of the "Chio in the Morning" radio show on Philly's Wired 96.5 FM.

Pro Billiards Player Cha Yu-ram

21-year-old Cha Yu-ram is currently one of the two top ranked WPBA players from Korea. The other is Kim Ga-young (26), who definitely shouldn't be overlooked in this entry, nor should Korean-American favorite, "The Black Widow" Jeanette Lee. However, Yu-ram's recent photo shoot shown here, has now gotten fans to start appreciating her for more than her skills with a pool cue.

Korean Bodybuilder Yu Mi-hee

Former aerobics instructor Yu Mi-hee (34) started bodybuilding 12 years ago when she claimed she weighed 176 pounds and wanted to lose weight, but it wasn't until just last year that she won the Miss Korea Bodybuilding Championship. Although still a small field in Korea, the 5'2½", 112-pound Mi-hee is considered to be one of the top female Korean bodybuilders in her weight class. When in training, she says she works out everyday for 3-4 hours and in case you're wondering; she's stated that she does not take steroids.

"The Black Widow" Jeanette Lee

A couple of months ago, Korean racing girl Yoon Sun-hee was featured at Asian Sirens, which led me to find this video of her participating in a Racing Girl Billiard Tournament. I commented that she was "no Jeanette Lee," which made me wonder if the winner of 17 WPBA titles had ever been featured at Asian Sirens. I was surprised to find that she hadn't, so I'm featuring her here now and sharing this with Asian Sirens, for all to see why ESPN once named the Black Widow one of the sexiest female athletes in the world.

By the way, yours truly had the pleasure of meeting her last year when she visited Korea for some exhibition games, and she does have very a nice rack. (Pun intended.)