A “True Hollywood” Mystery….
The entertainment industry has quite a few unsolved mysteries, and this is one of the saddest….my friend Angel suggested I look at it and share the story of Tammy Lynn Leppert…
Tammy Lynn Leppert’s story became a nationwide mystery, including coverage on one of the most popular TV shows of that time…
Tammy Lynn was born in Rockledge Florida in 1965 – she was immediately drawn to the world of entertainment…
As “Dimos” from the terrific website IMDB.com reports in her biography:
Leppert spend most of her childhood in near-constant competition for beauty pageants. She is estimated to have been a contestant in about 300 beauty pageants, and to have won about 280 crowns. She started a modeling career in her late childhood, and continued modeling into her teen years. In 1978, her photos appeared in the magazine “CoverGirl”.
Here’s an ad from that time promoting the magazine, using Tammy:
In 1980, Tammy began acting in films shooting in her area – she had a small role in the film “Little Darlings”, and then would be featured in another small role in a comedy that supposedly used a bit of her on the film’s poster as well!
According to several online biographies of the young Actress, Tammy Lynn’s “hips” are featured on the poster!
She appeared as a female participant in a boxing match in the film – here’s a look at the film’s trailer:
What Happened To Tammy Lynn?
Just as she was booking roles, something strange began to happen as well.
Here’s when Tammy’s life begins to unravel. As reported on IMDB.com:
After the end of the film’s shooting, Leppert decided to party. She went unaccompanied to a weekend party, but reportedly had a disturbing experience there. After she returned home, Leppert started displaying signs of paranoia and persecutory beliefs. She was convinced that somebody would try to kill her, and started taking precautions to prevent anyone from placing poison in her food and drink.
Here’s another Actress I profiled who was also in the film “Spring Break”:
Corinne Alphen had a nice run of cult films during the 80’s – see more of her career here:
As for Tammy Lynn, her last acting role was in Brian DePalma’s “Scarface”. In the shocking scene with Al Pacino, a bathtub and a chainsaw, Leppert is the girl who distracts his partner while he waits in the car for Pacino.
While there is no confirmation of this, some online stories say that Leppert reportedly “displayed irrational behavior on the film’s set, and was escorted to her home after the fourth day of filming.”
IMDB.com picks up the story:
After Leppert stopped working on “Scarface”, Leppert’s mother became convinced that something was wrong with her daughter. She arranged for Leppert to undergo a medical evaluation in a medical center. After staying there for 72 hours, Leppert was released. The examining doctor found no signs of drug or alcohol use in Leppert, and she appeared to be physically healthy.
Remember, she was just 18 years old and beginning to land film roles when changes in her behavior worried her family.
Another story about her revealed this:
Shortly before her disappearance, the teen’s mother claimed Leppert became obsessed with the delusion someone was out to murder her because she had “seen something she shouldn’t have” while at a party.
Then, Tammy Lynn’s Shocking Disappearance…
Sadly, what happened next has never been solved.
As IMDB.com continues:
On July 6, 1983, Leppert arranged for a male friend to drive her to an unspecified location. They argued during the drive, and the friend dropped her off at Cocoa Beach, Florida, not far from Leppert’s residence. He was the last person to see her alive. Leppert vanished without a trace, and the police and FBI soon started investigating her disappearance. As of the early 2020s, the investigative authorities have acquired a DNA profile of Leppert, but they do not have her dental records and fingerprints.
The family went wide with her story to see if anyone could help locate the 18 year old.
There have been reports that the FBI considered if she had been murdered by one of two well known serial killers who worked in that area around that time, but have never discovered any evidence to support those theories.
Her shocking story was featured on season five of “Unsolved Mysteries”, one of the most popular show on TV.
That didn’t result in any leads – and almost 40 years later, no one has ever uncovered what happened to her. It’s a very said story, and the family has suffered for decades…
This is a sad story, and we may never know what happened to this empowered young Actress…
I shared this story of Actress / Model Corinne Russell, who also disappeared after a career that included a role in a James Bond film.
See her story here:
Sometimes, an Actress can just decide to leave the spotlight and return to a normal life…that may be the case with Marlene Appelt:
This Actress appeared in a number of cult films before disappearing – no clue as to what happened next…click here for her story:
As I said, I’ve shared stories about Actresses who simply drop out of sight – most are by choice of course, but it is a bit of a mystery:
Kimberly McArthur worked opposite Rodney Dangerfield and more – check out her credits here:
And the most popular story I have ever posted was indeed a “True Hollywood” mystery:
Carol Wayne was a regular on “The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson” for years before drowning mysteriously in Mexico – click here to read more:
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