HAPPY BIRTHDAY, APOLLONIA! THE PURPLE RAIN BABE IS 53 TODAY!

As a little boy in Texas I knew very little of the world, but I did know a girl group singing songs laden with sexual inudendo was pure, campy GOLD!! That is why I fell in love with Apollonia when she was the star of Purple Rain, playing a singer named Apollonia, and the lead singer of the Prince-mentored girl group Apollonia 6. She was gorgeous and just the right combination of slutty/relatable. The album, Apollonia 6, was on constant rotation on my record player in 1984, and I knew it was a naughty album even then. Odes to having sex for grades in high school in Happy Birthday, Mr. Christian, the classic Sex Shooter, and the nonsense perfection of Oo She She Wa Wa. LOVED IT!! Of course, Apollonia 6 was not long for this world and before I knew it, there was Apollonia playing, what else, a singer named Apollonia on the night time soap Falcon Crest. She sang quite a bit on that show also. Then her debut album appeared in 1988 and I was in love all over again. She had long since left Prince's camp and the album smacked of late 80s dance pop, a la Paula Abdul. The first single, Since I Fell for You, was a minor hit, but no sophomore album followed. Apollonia continued to work and is still seen occasionally, looking as beautiful as ever (the pic here is recent), to this day. So here are a few reminders of why this girl made her mark in the 80s. Enjoy some Apollonia below.