Lori Maddox was part of the wild Hollywood teenage groupie scene in the early 1970s. She reportedly lost her virginity at age 13 to David Bowie and Angie Bowie. One of her best friends was Sable Starr, who was the unofficial queen of the scene at the time. Lori, who was also known as Lori Lightning and Lori Mattix, wasnât as experienced as Sable, but Lori also became a regular at famous Hollywood groupie hangouts, like the Rainbow Bar & Grill, Rodneyâs English Disco, the Continental Hyatt House (also known as âThe Riot Houseâ), and the Whisky. Like Sable, Lori was often featured in Star magazine (a short-lived â70s magazine, not the Star magazine thatâs currently a tabloid), which often had articles detailing the activities of music groupies.
When Lori was 14 years old, she met a man who would change her life: Jimmy Page, guitarist of Led Zeppelin. Jimmy first spotted her when an associate of his showed Jimmy a picture of Lori. Jimmy was intrigued, and when Led Zeppelin stopped in Los Angeles on their 1972 tour, Jimmy immediately tried to get together with Lori. Even though Jimmy was dating groupie Pamela Des Barres at the time (back when she was known as Pamela Miller, aka Miss Pamela of the GTOâs), Jimmy pursued Lori relentlessly. Lori has said she was still a virgin at the time and she was afraid of Jimmy at first. But Lori has contradicted herself by reportedly saying that she wasnât a virgin when she met Jimmy. Because of her groupie activities before she met Jimmy, itâs more likely that she wasnât a virgin by the time she got together with him.
According to Lori, after Jimmy tried and failed several times to get together with her, Jimmy had Led Zeppelinâs tour manager âkidnapâ Lori and bring her back to the Continental Hyatt, the hotel where Led Zeppelin was staying. Lori was brought to Jimmyâs room, where as she described in the Led Zeppelin book âHammer Of The Godsâ: âIt was dimly lit by candlesâŠand Jimmy was just sitting there in a corner, wearing this hat slouched over his eyes and holding a cane. It was really mysterious and weirdâŠHe looked just like a gangster. It was magnificent.â
That night, Jimmy and Lori began a torrid affair, but they had to keep their relationship a secret from the public since Lori was underage and Jimmy was at risk of being arrested. Jimmy was still seeing Pamela (and other women), and the relationship with Pamela reached a dramatic end when Jimmy took Pamela to a Led Zeppelin party but he left the party with Lori. Pamela was said to be very bitter about being dumped by Jimmy, and Pamela considered Lori an âenemyâ of hers for years.
Lori and Jimmy were said to be very much in love and they carried on a relationship for the next year and a half. Lori often traveled with Led Zeppelin on tour, but that didnât stop Jimmy from having affairs with other women. Jimmy eventually began dating Bebe Buell and he dumped Lori. A humiliated Lori tried to get back together with Jimmy, but he continually snubbed her. Lori was reportedly devastated and people who know her say sheâs never really recovered. Although Jimmy and Lori briefly got back together in the early â80s, they never went back to the passionate love affair they had when she was a teenager.
After drifting out of the groupie scene, Lori held a series of low-paying jobs. She currently works as a buyer and manager at a fashion boutique in Los Angeles. Lori occasionally gives interviews where she talks about her groupie days (especially her relationship with Jimmy Page), but for the most part, she has stayed out of the public eye.
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