Deadly Beauty: Horror’s Scream Queens and Rising Talent: Janine Sarnowski
“Born in Cleveland, Ohio to Thomas and Dorothy Bowles, Janine lived in Maple Heights, then moved to Brecksville where she lived and graduated from Brecksville Senior High School in 1968. While in school she was a member of the FTA, choir and the Dramatics Club, Working as a waitress for Howard Johnson’s paid for her first year of college at Tri-C where she intended on getting her Elementary Education Degree. Things changed and instead she won the Tri-C women’s Billiard Competition and left to work in graphic arts with AGA. Janine married her first husband in 1969 and had two children but was divorced shortly after. Moving back to her home ground, she met her present husband and has been married now for over 37 years. During her marriage she worked a multitude of jobs, including proofreading for a major law firm, being a steel buyer for a Cleveland company, various sales positions and has owned 4 businesses. Janine taught exercise classes for over 12 years and her and her husband ran a gym for several years.
Always wanting to be an actor or singer, and with her children grown, she finally auditioned for a theater performance of the Christmas Carol when she was 51 years old and was hooked! She went on to play in Quilters, Yente in Fiddler on the Roof, Commissioner Doyle in Anne Warbucks, and various parts in Red Hot & Cole, Guys & Dolls, Sound of Music, Blame it on the Movies and was Sister Hubert in Nunsense.
Somewhere in there she attended a local modeling school and began modeling for advertisements such as Juzo, Purell, Arrow, Improvements Catalog, various school catalogs for teachers, finally adding TV commercials to her many venues.
Janine has been in over 20 commercials, and has even done a few voice overs. She has been an extra or held a part in over 10 local films, the most recent role in The Melon Heads.
Always keeping busy, she also works for “Parties for a Living” playing various roles for corporate events, day care agencies, country clubs and private affairs such as: The Gypsy Fortune Teller, Minnie Pearl, Mother Goose, Mrs. Claus, the Bag Lady, Professor Trelawny and more. And if that isn’t enough, she plays the game show host for PCI Entertainment on their “Family type Feud” Games for corporate fundraisers.
Janine’s Gift shop that she runs inside her home has been a great addition to her costumes as she changes from one character to the next.
Janine has an exceptionally upbeat attitude, which showed up during her bout with lung cancer. She continued doing a few commercials in wigs during her chemo/radiation treatments and even did a quick extra as a bald zombie!
What does she hope her best role is? Probably playing a cancer survivor. But whatever it is, she is a hard working, positive role model for just about anyone. And she plays the part well.”*
Location: Home base for me is Medina, which is half way between Akron and Cleveland and in between Pittsburgh and Columbus.
1. How did you get into the industry?
After doing theater for a few years, I went to an audition for a local director and got a part. It turned out to have a lot of blood and gore and was a riot to film. I went to a few more auditions, but seem to have the “nice” lady syndrome in most of the storied. I have had the chance to kill in the last few I’m had parts in. I got a short part in 2 zombie movies, loved chewing up people, and played an alien boob (yep, breast. I was the left one) as well as a mean mother-in-law that gets strangled! I really like medieval things, skulls, skeletons, etc. Although if anyone put a spider of any size by me I would have a heart attack!
2. What Scream Queen inspired you most?
I don’t know who inspired me the most…I guess Linda Blair and Jamie Lee Curtis. Most of the time I was watching from between my fingers and couldn’t see much because I was always scared! HAHA But I loved them!
3. What are the next couple projects you are working on?
I am going to have a part in the Figure…and I might even die horribly in it! Also have a part coming up in Dark and Disturbing with Charles Bailey. Looking forward to that one as well. I am currently working on The Dawson War, as Betsy Stark, who is a little more than she seems. In pre-production is “The Melon Heads” by Fright Teck Production, who I also worked with in “Kandieland“. At this time I have been in over 25 films with for coming up. I enjoy the character parts the most.
*Bio Courtesy of Janine Bowles Sarnowski’s IMDB Page
