This was one of the first times that I felt part of a ‘serious’ adult film, where the directors seemed to care about the quality of the acting. When I got to New York, I found a different vibe.
“I’d been in a few films by this time – but most of them had been out west. Update: As found in The Rialto Report, Leslie would recall: Officially directed by “Martin & Martin” (it’s unclear who this – purported – duo was composed of), Anna Obsessed / Obsessed (1977) starred Constance Money as a sexually dissatisfied married woman who becomes involved with another woman (Annette Haven) who turns out to be the demented Long Island Rape Murderer.Īfter enjoying plenty of robust sexual escapades, a large chunk of the Anna Obsessed cast ends up dead, including John Leslie (instead of first choice Robert Kerman) as Money’s husband. Among those were Gerardo Damiano ( Deep Throat, Devil in Miss Jones), William Higgins ( Sailor in the Wild, Leo & Lance), and Radley Metzger ( The Opening of Misty Beethoven, The Private Afternoons of Pamela Mann).Īlthough none of John Leslie’s films achieved the renown (or notoriety) of Gerardo Damiano’s box office hits, he was featured in a number of classic XXX titles.
obscenity laws were changed and before the video invasion, the mostly Los Angeles-based American sex film industry gave rise to various “porn auteurs” – whether straight, gay, or bisexual. 25, 1945, in East Liverpool, Ohio ) was 65.Īt one point a vocalist and harmonica player for the band Brooklyn Blues Busters, John Leslie was featured in about 300 pornographic productions, a large number of them during what’s known as the (American) Golden Age of Porn, notably – albeit bashfully – depicted in Paul Thomas Anderson’s 1997 drama Boogie Nights.Īdditionally, Leslie directed and/or produced nearly 150 sexually explicit movies and videos from the late 1980s to the time of his death. 5 at his home in Mill Valley, California.
John Leslie, one of the best-known adult film performers of the 1970s and 1980s, died of an apparent heart attack on Dec.