Taaffe O'Connell
| Taaffe O'Connell | |
|---|---|
| Born |
May 14, 1951 Providence, Rhode Island, USA |
| Other names | Taffy O'Connell |
| Occupation | Actress, publisher |
| Years active | 1974–present |
Taaffe O'Connell (born May 14, 1951) is an American actress and publisher, best known by her fans for her performance in cult-classic sci-fi horror film Galaxy of Terror. Her acting career began in the late 1970s and continued uninterrupted through the 1980s. Her career has seen a rebirth after 2000 and has continued to the present day.
Apart from acting, O'Connell started and owned the Canoco Publishing Company during the 1990s. Canoco is a Los Angeles-based company produced Astro Caster Magazine, which specialized in casting information and advice for actors and actresses. O'Connell has written numerous articles for the magazine as well as being its owner and publisher.
O'Connell was born in Providence, Rhode Island. O'Connell's early career consisted primarily of TV show appearances (Three's Company, Happy Days, Dallas, Laverne & Shirley, Blansky's Beauties). In 1980 she starred in the slasher cult film New Year's Evil.
She achieved lasting fame within the B-movie, horror film universe for her role as Dameia in Galaxy of Terror. Released in 1981, it was the second consecutive horror film she had appeared in, having also appeared in the 1980 film New Year's Evil. O'Connell's place as a scream queen legend was guaranteed with Galaxy of Terror due to the unique, bizarre, and exploitative scene in which her character is killed.
Trapped on an alien world, her character and fellow shipmates find themselves in a giant pyramid built by an ancient culture who used it as a mental playground/testing area for their children. The human crew unwittingly confront the pyramid, which creates monsters from the fears in their own minds, but the monsters come with more adult, psychological fears attached to them as well. The confrontations generally prove deadly to the crew since most of them are not aware of this and cannot overcome the sense of terror and humiliation generated by their attackers. O'Connell's character, Dameia, reveals at one point she has a significant fear of worms. Shortly thereafter, she is attacked by a giant 12-foot maggot. The psychological fear that Dameia confronts along with the worm is sexual in nature, because the monster graphically rapes her as it kills her.
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