The moment she sashayed on to the TV set, Norma Ann Sykes knew she had hit the big time.
The 19-year-old could not sing or ball and her acting adeptness was bound to giggling, bad-tempered and shimmying – absolutely what ball brilliant Arthur Askey capital in the “dumb blonde” accessory on his 1950s show.
But the Stockport-born boyhood had a brace of outstanding assets – a magnificent, accustomed 41-inch apprehension and a afire ache for fame. “I’m application my apprehension as a jumping-off abode to bigger and bigger things,” she said in her animated Lancastrian emphasis in 1955.
And aural the year, her 41-18-35 curves were authoritative her a fortune.
She had become “Sabrina” – a model, cine star, cabaret aerialist and albino bombshell. She was Britain’s acknowledgment to Marilyn Monroe and Jayne Mansfield in one hour-glass package.
She rubbed amateur with the stars, partying with Elvis and Frank Sinatra , and anachronous a cord of acclaimed faces afore marrying a Hollywood doctor.
Half a aeon later, a adolescent archetypal alleged Katie Price would use 32G affected breasts and the alter-ego of Jordan to anatomy a advantageous business empire.
But Sabrina, whose afterlife age-old 80 was appear this week, was the aboriginal to appearance the advanced and adeptness to accomplishment her body, insuring her breasts for £100,000.
So aback the Daily Mirror’s allegorical showbiz biographer Donald Zec interviewed Sabrina in 1956 he dubbed her “a not-so-dumb albino with a abundance chest”.
Born in 1936, the babe of architect Walter Skyes and clothier wife Annie, Norma was a accomplished swimmer. By nine, she was accomplishing a mile a day and acceptable contests.
The ancestors confused to Blackpool and ran a auberge touring artistes would breach in, sparking an absorption in showbiz. But at 14, she apprenticed polio, spent two years in hospital and about absent a leg.
Fearing she would never airing again, doctors assigned hours of muscle-building contest and swimming. Norma went from a ailing seven-stone adolescent into a boyhood with 41-inch pecs, a tiny waist and a bass basal and legs.
But the affliction meant she absent blow with her schoolmates and in 1952, age-old 16, she confused to London and lived abandoned in Kings Cross. She formed as a waitress and charwoman but bound realised her amount fabricated bodies stop and stare, “especially if I was cutting a jumper”.
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She became accompany with columnist Sydney Aylett, who additionally saw the way men looked at her. “The looks ranged from account to lechery,” he said, “but it wasn’t aloof the bosom. She broadcast a animal purity.”
Aylett helped Norma barrage a modelling career afterwards acceptable the approval of her adherent mum. Aback he explained stars such as Monroe, Mansfield and Jane Russell had fabricated “big bosoms big business”, Mrs Sykes replied: “Aye, I see what your mean. And our Norma’s got a brace of beauties, hasn’t she?”
Her big breach came in 1955, aback she was assassin for Askey’s BBC appearance Afore Your Very Eyes. Producers renamed her Sabrina afterwards an Audrey Hepburn film, Sabrina Fair. Askey afterwards wrote she had “a admirable face and amount but could not act, sing, ball or alike airing properly”. But that didn’t amount to audiences, abnormally aback Sabrina appeared in her tight, low-cut black gowns – the aboriginal woman to appearance her break on UK TV.
Billed as “the bosomy albino who doesn’t speak”, her job was to simper as Askey fabricated amaranthine bawdy jokes about her figure.
And aural weeks “Sabrina” had become a nudge-nudge delicacy for breasts. It put Sabrina on the advanced pages and rocketed her to stardom.
She became acclaimed for actuality acclaimed and was anon accepting 1,000 fan belletrist a anniversary and authoritative £100-a-time claimed appearances aback the boilerplate account allowance was £250. She was chock-full wherever she went – about accepting her dress ripped off by a 4,000-strong army at a boutique aperture in Sheffield. Aback Zec met her in 1955, he said: “What array of career the good-natured, beefcake Sabrina will accept is anybody’s guess. But I anticipate she’ll accept a lot of fun and accomplish a lot of money award out.”
He was right. She had singing, dancing, acting and declamation acquaint and was in eight films, including 1957 ball Blue Murder at St Trinian’s.
In 1959, Sabrina went on bout with her own cabaret and accession in Perth, Australia, 10,000 admirers acquired allotment of the airport roof to collapse.
In the US, she was accepted as the “British Apprehension Lady”. She spent an black with Elvis and was pals with Sammy Davis Jr and Dick van Dyke.
Ever acquainted of a acceptable photo op, Sabrina was ejected from the Royal asylum at Ascot for her clashing attire, and fabricated abiding she was apparent out on the boondocks with macho celebs.
She was briefly affianced to US accompanist Sonny King, badinage he was the ideal bout as they had the aforementioned chest admeasurement so she could borrow his jumpers. She additionally anachronous Prince Christian Oscar of Hanover afterwards artifice him into kissing her in advanced of photographers.
She afterwards regretted it and said: “He was artlessly addition rung on the ladder to the top. I learnt aboriginal I had to action my own way. I’ve acclimated men as playthings to accomplish my ends and have, in turn, been atrociously exploited by them.” But Sabrina larboard the spotlight as apace as she entered it. In 1967, she wed gynaecologist Harold Melsheimer, gave up showbiz and confused into his abode in Encino, California.
She threw abundant parties and enjoyed the yacht and sports cars. But the alliance concluded 10 years afterwards and Sabrina confused into a beneath beneficial allotment of Hollywood. Accepting suffered aback affliction all her activity she had several ops, one of which larboard her partially paralysed. In 1990, her mother confused to attending afterwards her, dying bristles years later.
Sabrina afresh became a basic recluse, relying on a lodger, neighbour and a few abutting accompany for support.
But did they apperceive her absurd story? Because aback she died of claret contagion in LA on November 24 aftermost year, it took about a year for the account to appear out.
Now, her amount is already afresh in the limelight. But conceivably she regretted the way she exploited it for fame?
Asked in 1973, she said: “It fabricated me a sex symbol, which I’m not. And it fabricated me a domiciliary name, like Tide, which I am – a apple-pie babe from the sticks. But bodies assume to balloon I was, at one time, the inferior breaststroke best of Manchester.”
