Heather Henderson

Heather Henderson (born March 7, 1973) is a professional burlesque dancer, singer, model, filmmaker, producer, and podcast host who uses the stage name Baby Heather. She performs with Penn Jillette's No God Band. She is an advocate for skeptical inquiry and atheism and won the 2012 People's Choice Podcast Awards in the religion/inspiration category for her Ardent Atheist podcast. From 1989 to 1991, Henderson was a regular performer on the Dance Party USA television show. In her teens, she released a single, "Give It Up Baby Heather", which received a positive review from Billboard magazine.
Early life
Henderson was born on March 7, 1973, in Camden, New Jersey. Her mother was a Hungarian Jew. When Henderson was 10, in 1983, her father left the home. She attended Camden City Public Schools for elementary, middle, and high school. She describes herself as a "shy and quiet girl" who did not talk back and believed everything her mother told her. Henderson's mother died when Heather was 23 in 1996.
Henderson's father, Ed Henderson, was a self-taught musician who worked as an EKG technician. He quit that job when Heather was seventeen in order to work full-time as a musician, singing and playing the guitar and banjo. Henderson started singing with her father when she was seven. She also played the violin.
At age fifteen, she appeared on a nationwide teen dance show called Dance Party USA. She appeared on the show regularly for three years and went by the nickname Baby Heather.
When Henderson's mother became involved with Jews for Jesus, they started attending progressive Christian churches. Henderson was very uncomfortable attending these churches because of how they treated the members. As soon as she was old enough, Henderson told her mother she would not attend church again.
In 2011, Henderson moved to Los Angeles with friends. In order to raise money to purchase a plane ticket, she organized a fundraiser for herself with burlesque friends who donated their talent for a one-night show.
Film and television
Henderson was a regular dancer on the local television show Dancin' on Air and the nationally televised Dance Party USA from 1989 to 1991. In her last year, she became a co-host. Henderson has also appeared on Sesame Street, Nickelodeon's Double Dare, in the film Mannequin Two: On the Move, and on Disney's Annapolis.
Music and recording career
In her teens, Henderson released a single called "Give It Up" using her Dance Party nickname “Baby Heather.” Billboard gave the single a positive review.
Penn Jillette asked Henderson to join his No God Band to perform music at the yearly James Randi skeptic convention, The Amaz!ng Meeting. She recorded background vocals for the songs, "Clay Aiken by Penn Jillette", "I Quit My Job - Love Theme from Director's Cut", and "Penn's Sunday School Theme". The No God Band performed at The Amaz!ng Meeting from 2011-2014.
Henderson sings in an atheist choir in Los Angeles called the Voices of Reason Choir.
Burlesque career
Henderson worked from 1993 to 2010 in the erotica industry, doing stripping, burlesque, foot fetish parties, dominatrix work, and lap dancing. Henderson got involved with burlesque after a friend who was doing a "variety" show asked her to sing background.
In 2007, Henderson performed with the Peek-A-Boo Revue burlesque troupe and appeared at the monthly event Pousse Cafe' in Philadelphia.
She left burlesque in 2010. In 2013, Henderson returned to perform at the first Hollywood Burlesque Festival. Time Out Los Angeles listed her as one of the "Best Burlesque" performers and called her "the singing emcee with 'ferocious vocals.'"
Modeling
Henderson was a model for Dr Sketchy's Anti-Art School Philadelphia chapter in 2008 and 2009. She has been painted by illustrator Julie Bell, and was pictured in her 2009 fantasy art wall calendar. She was on the cover of Heavy Metal Magazine with illustrations by Dave Palumbo. Henderson has her own Magic: The Gathering card entitled "The Deft Duelist", and in 2008 was the female model on the cover of Son of Hulk, published by Marvel Comics. In 2013, Henderson was used as a model in Tony Marsico's Wild Things: Burlesque Beauties and the Pets they Love.
Palumbo has used Henderson for a series of oil paintings.
Film making
Henderson filmed several short fetish videos. Inspired by friend Norm Walker, her film PODONUTS features Walker eating cream-filled donuts off the feet of women (one of which is Henderson). Philadelphia Weekly states it "routinely wins over even the most squeamish spectators with its sex-positive message and thrillingly syncopated movement sequences.".
Henderson's 2009 film Marcella and Sofia, a fetish film about a young couple being sexually corrupted by two female captors (one of which is Henderson), won a Claw Award for best cinematography from the Terror Film Festival.
Podcasts
Henderson is the co-host of two podcasts with Emery Emery, Ardent Atheist and Skeptically Yours. They started producing the Ardent Atheist podcast in February 2011.
Notable guests on Skeptically Yours include, Brian Dunning, Mark Edward, Ian Harris, Dave Silverman, and Matt Kirshen.
In 2012, Ardent Atheist won best podcast in the religion inspiration category for The People's Choice Podcast Awards. Notable guests on Ardent Atheist include, Richard Dawkins, Neil deGrasse Tyson, Paul Provenza, Kelly Carlin, Jamie Kilstein,
From November 2012 to April 2013 Henderson appeared as a featured segment on the Skepticality podcast. Her segment was called News in Religion.
Skepticism
In 2014, Henderson, Wendy Hughes, Henderson's partner Emery Emery, Brian Hart, Ed Clint, and Paula formed Investigation Network, a Los Angeles-based skeptic group.
In October 2014, Henderson joined Susan Gerbic's efforts to try and catch a psychic in a hot-read with "Operation Bumblebee". Henderson and friends attended a Chip Coffey event in Los Angeles. Henderson had the lead role of the believer in "Operation Ice Cream Cone", in which Henderson portrayed the bereaved mother of a young boy. In November 2014, Henderson, with permission to record, had an hour reading with psychic Tim Brahn. He was able to clearly communicate with her non-existent sons, non-existent husband, and non-existent family.
Other activities by the Investigation Network include protests and handing out flyers at various psychics' presentations including Theresa Caputo, John Edward, and James Van Praagh.
Personal life
Henderson is an official Friar (pastor) for the United Church of Bacon, which started in 2010 when friends gathered at the home of Penn Jillette. The Church's mission statement is "Hail Bacon, full of grease, the Lard is with thee." Their goal is to fight prejudices against non-believers, promote church and state separation, and raise money for secular causes.
In April 2015, Henderson and other secular groups protested Wells Fargo bank in Las Vegas over what they felt was discrimination and insensitive treatment by an employee when a member of the United Church of Bacon was refused a notarization.
In an interview with Apple magazine in July 2014, Henderson describes software and hardware she used for her films and podcasts.
References
External links
Official Audio Give it Up by Baby Heather
Ardent Atheist podcast
Skeptically Yours podcast
1973 births
Living people
American atheism activists
American skeptics
American women podcasters
American podcasters
Musicians from Camden, New Jersey
African-American activists
African-American atheists
20th-century African-American women singers
American people of Hungarian-Jewish descent
21st-century American singers
21st-century American women singers
21st-century African-American women singers