BijouBlog

By Josh Eliot

The 1999 movie The American Way and its sequels made in the early 2000’s were a pinnacle in producer/director Kevin Clarke’s career in the gay adult video business. From 1995 to 2006, Kevin Clarke directed 14 movies with one thing in common: cute, athletic and boyish young men. Within the course of his career in the adult industry, he met or worked alongside most of the major players and calls those days “the best times of my life.” But Kevin wasn’t initially destined to become a porn director; in fact, Kevin’s career from 1973 until his first adult project in 1995 was as a manager for musicians. He was introduced to David Forest, who at the time was managing Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckingham and Ozzy Osbourne’s guitarist, Randy Rhodes. Of course, I know of David Forest as a porn star agent – of Ryan Idol, to be exact, as well as others. Kevin’s other initial connection was with Vicki Wickham, who was managing the group Labelle's member Nona Hendrix, along with Dusty Springfield and Marc Almond of Soft Cell. Kevin credits Vicki with teaching him everything he knows about the music management business. His first client was Scott Gatewood, and he parlayed that into working with countless musicians throughout the years, including Ronny Drayton and Sarah Dash from Labelle. He and Sarah became close friends all the way until her death.

A music connection that had “six degrees of separation” to the gay porn world was Kevin’s encounter with gay porn model Tony Young. Kevin was working with a young band from Pawtucket, RI that had just fired their drummer (Tony Young) because they found out that he worked in some gay pornos: Backyard Boys (1990), Tempting Tommy (1990), Summer School (1990), Hot Summer Knights (1990), Beat Street Boys (1991), Sparky O’Toole’s Excellent Adventure (1991) and Takin’ Care of Mike (1992). The band regretted firing “Tony” and Kevin was playing negotiator. Tony Young wanted to make music, his focus, and to stop working in the movies, but the conversation between the two parties went south. In 1994, Tony Young worked in the movie Hip Hop Hunks in a scene with co-star Billy Houston. It was the last movie either one of them would ever make and Tony Young was never heard from again. Billy Houston is currently serving two life sentences for numerous murders. A haunting premise for Tony’s disappearance that has stuck with Kevin all these many years.

The following year, Kevin Clarke had his first introduction into adult gay video when he took a position as an offline editor for Richard Morgan’s movie Feels So Good (1995). A couple years later, his regular position was working as an editor at Delta Productions with Barry Knight and Russell Moore. Barry Knight worked with Monroe Beehler (aka Mark Aaron, director of Grease Monkeys) at Jaguar Films since the early 1970s. Barry and Russell wanted to bring back the Jaguar line of movies and asked Kevin to direct their initial effort. The idea from the beginning was to compete with Bel-Ami Studios whose founder, George DuRoy, specifically shot hairless young men with athletic bodies and boyish charm, mostly from Eastern Europe. The movie Kevin would debut his directorial skills in was called Pleasure Principle (1997), and upon its release became enormously successful and garnered Best Picture and Best Director nominations. Kevin rode the wave of acclaim and went on to direct Tony Donovan in Something Very Big (1998) for Odyssey Video, with our favorite gal-pal Sharon Kane in the credits for “make-up.” Kevin followed up with titles Heartland and The American Way in 1999, produced by Richard Morgan and starring Ashton Ryan for Rad Video. The American Way was extremely well received, won Best Twink Video at the Grabby Awards and birthed two sequels, The American Way 2: Lust and The American Way 3: Love.

From 2000 to 2003, Kevin directed Ashton Ryan’s B-Boys, Freshman Diaries and Kevin’s favorite movie by far, A Young Man’s World. In his movie A Young Man’s World (2000), he tells the story of five young men through the lens of their older selves. Playing the older version of the young characters in non-sexual roles are Ron Aaron, Barry Knight, Russell Moore, Kevin himself and, most surprisingly, 1980’s icon Derrick Stanton. Looking studly at (I would assume) age 44, Derrick Stanton featured a classic haircut, shaved on the sides, which made his facial features look striking. His physique in a black tank top was in peak condition as well!

A Young Man's World (2000): Kevin's locks get shaved off & Derrick Stanton takes on a non-sexual role

 

In 2004, Kevin relocated back home to New York City and finished off his career with five more movies for Latino Fan Club and IOP Productions: The American City (2004), Seduction of a Surfer (2005), American Boys (2006), Something Much Bigger (2006) and College Boys (2007). College Boys was his last before retiring from the adult film industry. During his tenure, he mixed and mingled with the likes of George Duroy, Jerry Douglas, John Travis, John Summers, Tom DeSimone, William Higgins and more. He has amazing stories to tell with great info that filled in a lot of cracks for me regarding the industry back then. I swear he knew everyone, and everything about them! Not to shoot myself in the foot but if Kevin were writing blogs for BijouWorld, I would venture to say that his stories would blow mine out of the water!

The award-winning American Way & some candid shots with Kevin, Jerry Douglas & George DuRoy

 

Kevin and I were recently talking about William Higgins' The Boys of Venice and Derrick Stanton’s name came up. I mentioned that I recently watched a YouTube video featuring Derrick being interviewed at the Abbey in West Hollywood. Without missing a beat, Kevin offered to give me Derrick Stanton’s contact information, stating that he was a nice guy and would love to talk with me about his career. The thought of reaching out to Derrick intimidated me initially, so it took me a few weeks to muster up the courage, but I did. Derrick replied to my message within moments, which absolutely thrilled me, and when he agreed to do a Q&A about his 11 movies for William Higgins, I was over the moon! I am happy to say that our question and answer session is complete and will debut in two weeks on the BijouWorld Blog.

Derrick Stanton then & now

 

Derrick discussed his time on the set of the following William Higgins movies: Jack Wrangler Jocks (1979), The Boys of Venice (1979), Rear Deliveries (1980), Class of ’84 (1980), Class of ’84 Part 2 (1981), Brothers Should Do It (1981), These Bases Are Loaded (1982), Members Only (1982), Printers Devils (1982), Class Reunion (1983) and Route 69 (1984).

His recollections are vivid and intriguing. Thank you, Kevin Clarke for connecting me with icon Derrick Stanton and for your amazing contributions as writer, producer and director in the gay adult video industry!

 

Bio of Josh Eliot:

At the age of 25 in 1987, Josh Eliot was hired by Catalina Video by John Travis (Brentwood Video) and Scott Masters (Nova Video). Travis trained Eliot on his style of videography and mentored him on the art of directing. Josh directed his first movie, Runaways, in 1987. By 2009 when Josh parted ways with Catalina Video, he'd produced and directed hundreds of features and won numerous awards for Best Screenplay, Videography, Editing, and Directing. He was entered into the GayVN Hall of fame in 2002.

 

You can read Josh Eliot's previous blogs for Bijou here:

Coming Out of my WET SHORTS | FRANK ROSS, The Boss | Our CALIGULA Moment | That BUTTHOLE Just Winked at Me! | DREAMLAND: The Other Place | A Salty Fuck in Saugatuck | Somebody, Call a FLUFFER! | The Late Great JOHN TRAVIS, My POWERTOOL Mentor | (Un)Easy Riders | 7 Years with Colt Model MARK RUTTER | Super NOVA | Whatever Happened to NEELY O’HARA? | Is That AL PARKER In Your Photo? | DOWN BY LAW: My $1,000,000 Mistake | We Waited 8hrs for a Cum Shot... Is That a World Record? | Don't Wear "Short Shorts" on the #38 Geary to LANDS END | How Straight Are You Really? | BEHIND THE (not so) GREEN DOOR | The BOOM BOOM Room | CATCHING UP with Tom DeSimone | Everybody’s FREE to FEEL GOOD | SCANDAL at the Coral Sands Motel | DEEP INSIDE THE CASTRO: The Castro Theatre | DEEP INSIDE THE CASTRO: The Midnight Sun | RSVP: 2 Weeks Working on a Gay Cruise Ship | VOYAGER of the Damned | I'M NOT A LESBIAN DIRECTOR | Diving Into SoMa/Folsom: THE FOLSOM STREET FAIR | Diving into SoMa/Folsom: A TALE OF TWO STUDS | BALL BROTH | My 1992 “Porn Set” Diary | Out of Print | There’s a Gloryhole WHERE??! | LUNCH HOUR: When the Big Boys Eat | IN and OUT and All ABOUT | UNDER the COVERs with Tom Steele | 8 Is Enough on Sunsex Blvd | Steve Rambo & Will Seagers For Breakfast | The Many Faces of Adult Film Star SHARON KANE | The ALL-MAN Magazine Interview: The Man Behind Catalina Video | Captain Psychopath | BAD BOYS SCHOOL | VAMPIRE'S GRAVE | The Making of CatalinaVille (PART 1) | The Making of CatalinaVille (PART 2) | Private Dick & The Young Cadets | Meet RAY HARLEY | The GOLD COAST Gold Rush Boys | Colt Model MARK RUTTER: In His Own Words | Bringing in the BIG GUNS | “WHAT THE F@CK?” Moments | You So RUSSO | Bond, SCOTT BOND | I Just Watched: KILLING ME SOFTLY | Sex in Tight Places | Calling GLORIA | DOWN FOR THE COUNT | More Than a Mouthful | When JON KING Returned to Catalina Video | Junior Meets the BEAR Patrol | A Taste for Leather and Fur | Straight to Bed | The Hills Have Bi’s | The Malibu Pool Boy: Cody Foster | New England Summer | The Making of RUNAWAYS 1989 | The Making of FULL SERVICE 1989 | Hot Buttered Cop | The Making of HARD TO BE GOOD 1990 | The Real CONJURING HOUSE | It’s Not a Crime, It’s a SCORE | I Just Watched: Steve Scott’s SCREENPLAY (1984) | Wet and Wild | 69: Discover the Secret | What Really Happened BEHIND THAT BARN DOOR! | I Just Watched AL PARKER & WILL SEAGERS in WANTED | Secret Boys Club | Jawbreaker Pt. 1 | Jawbreaker Pt. 2 | I Just Watched CRUISIN’ THE CASTRO | 80s/90s Porn Star RYAN YEAGER | ADAM Film World’s GAY VIDEO GUIDE | ERIC STONE: Ranger in the Wild | THRILL ME with a SINGLE WHITE MALE... | The SPOILED BRAT | BUSTER & STEVE YORK | LANCE, TEX ANTHONY & MICHAEL GERE | KIP NOLL: The First Real Twink Superstar | THE GREASE MONKEYS | The "Other" Idol

By Josh Eliot

Depending upon which generation you come from, when you saw the name IDOL within the gay adult industry it could have referred to two very different origins. If you were coming out in the 1970’s or early 80’s, you watched Tom DeSimone’s classic The Idol at the cinema or on a top loading VHS player. Similarly, If you were coming out around 1990 and you were watching a movie titled or starring an Idol, Ryan Idol was the headliner in a slew of features using his last name as the first name of their title. But wait, there was a third Idol of interest: the “other” Idol, a young, masculine Massachusetts stud with a flawless body, outstanding facial features and a very fuckable butt that directors put to very good use. If you were a gay porn aficionado in 1994, there was Tony Idol, the younger brother of Ryan Idol – well, for marketing purposes only.

Written, produced, and directed by Tom DeSimone with cinematography by Nick Eliot, the movie’s theatrical release was in 1979. From Hand in Hand Films, The Idol tells the story of a college track star who thinks he might be gay, and is determined to find out. The cast, led by Kevin Redding in his one and only adult gay film, also features Mark Bitler, Nick Rodgers, Greg Dale, Jerry Foxe, Jim Battaglia, Peter Borchard, Darla-Lee Barnett, and Derrick Stanton. The Idol was considered a movie like no other that, to this day, is considered one of the very best gay adult films of its time. Just read some reviews from Letterboxd and magazines: 

“One of the most beautiful and romantic coming of age movies in the history of homosexual erotica.” – Patrick S.

“A poignant, gentle and romantic story with sexy guys, believable performances and beautiful cinematography.” – Ben Kinney Harris

“The culmination of everything that Tom DeSimone had spent a decade working towards. DeSimone’s best film?” – Elizabeth Purchell

“The ultimate coming out story! If a person were to see only one sexually explicit gay film in his lifetime, The Idol is that film.” – The Advocate

1990 brought the world a new icon, Ryan Idol, who starred in his first movie, Idol Eyes, for director Matt Sterling. Coming off the success of his Playgirl photo spread in the February 1989 issue, Ryan Idol rose to fame because of his handsome looks, hot body, and debut movie from the most in demand director of the time, Matt Sterling. 1991 brought Score 10 for Sterling, Idol Worship for H.I.S Video, and, in 1992, a gay and straight movie pair for All Worlds: Trade-Off (gay) and Letters From The Heart (straight), where Idol worked with actress Bobbi Blair. In 1993, Catalina Video jumped on the band wagon to shoot the very first movie where Ryan Idol sucks dick – it was called Idol Thoughts. I remember when the GM told me how much he was getting paid to do the movie, I was quite shocked; the amount was more than the budget for one of our monthly releases. Chi Chi LaRue brought Ryan to Catalina, so he directed the movie and I was lead videographer. It was kind of cool to be the first ones to witness Ryan going down on a guy, and I made sure to shoot it beautifully! More movies followed, like Idol Country (1994) and Idol in the Sky (1996), which was his last before retirement from the industry. In 1999, Ryan joined the cast of the play Making Porn, followed by the stage production of Scent of Rain. He also played the role of “Cisco Patron” in the 2007 revival of Terrence McNally’s The Ritz. It’s no secret that Ryan Idol had his share of problems and jail time, but all of that is not really relevant to today’s story.

From the moment I received his pictures at the Catalina offices, I knew we found someone special. I immediately saw his resemblance to Ryan Idol, and my mind started racing on how we could market him. We would promote him as Ryan Idol’s younger brother Tony, who, unlike Ryan, is a bottom. We initially talked on the phone, and I remember thinking that his accent was so “Boston,” which added to his charm. It reminded me of working with Jake Corbin years earlier, that “Paaak the caa in the yaaaad” East Coast slang. When we flew him to California, we shot his introductory masturbation scene for the movie Stargazing 5, which featured up and coming stars. During that trip, we also gave him a full sex scene in Chi Chi LaRue’s movie Seeds of Love. Tony Idol was the epitome of a video virgin, freshly graduated from high school and still wet behind the ears, as they say. I felt obligated to go out of my way to make sure he felt safe and secure while on the set. I wasn’t sure how sexually active he was at the time, so I constantly checked in with him to make sure he was comfortable as things progressed within the sex scenes. When it came time for anal, he definitely needed to open up with a dildo so he wasn’t so tight for the co-star. We booked extensive magazine layout shoots with him and let him know step by step how we were going to promote his name. He made a number of trips to California in 1994 and 1995 for the following movies: Stargazing 5, Seeds of Love, Idol Dreams, Idol in Exile, Down On It, Revenge of the Bi Dolls, Idol Universe, The Roommate, and Jawbreaker.

Consensus around the office was that, because we just loved throwing the Idol name around, we might have oversaturated him too quickly. His final scene in Jawbreaker was actually one of his best performances to date, and his scene with Vince Rockland and Hunter Scott was fireworks! I knew it was his last shoot with us at the time and it made me question myself as to why we were not going to book him anymore. There are models we used for decades because they were solid performers, but not necessarily “stars.” He was a solid performer and throughout his time with Catalina he never lost his innocent boyish charm, which is rare – trust me. I did take solace in the fact that when his contract ended with us, Chi Chi booked him in movies with All Worlds Video and Falcon Studios. He was in All Night Long (1996) for Jocks, then Freshman (1997) for Falcon, and his final movie Gold Diggers (1997) for All Worlds. In hindsight, I wish we wouldn’t have been stuck in the Idol box I created. Making him the younger brother of Ryan didn’t really work long term. If anything, when we started our Freshman Features and Generation Gap Features (mature men with younger guys), he would have been perfect for those types of movies, as he was still in his early 20’s. He would have been awesome as the lead in either the Junior or Rascal series that we started later on. A twink with a face and body like that would have really stood out. He is one of the models I still think about to this day; he would be in his late forties/early 50’s at this point. I’m confident with his level head and charm he is doing just fine.

Bio of Josh Eliot:

At the age of 25 in 1987, Josh Eliot was hired by Catalina Video by John Travis (Brentwood Video) and Scott Masters (Nova Video). Travis trained Eliot on his style of videography and mentored him on the art of directing. Josh directed his first movie, Runaways, in 1987. By 2009 when Josh parted ways with Catalina Video, he'd produced and directed hundreds of features and won numerous awards for Best Screenplay, Videography, Editing, and Directing. He was entered into the GayVN Hall of fame in 2002.

By Josh Eliot

Over the holidays, with all the nostalgia floating around, I decided to view the 1979 film The Grease Monkeys. It’s hard to believe that I went through so many years never actually watching this movie. In fact, I shot a video in 1989 called Full Service, which I based solely on seeing the movie poster and newspaper ads for Grease Monkeys while I lived in San Francisco. I walked by the Century Theater every single day on my way to the Art Institute. It felt like The Grease Monkeys was playing there forever! A different movie would premiere at the Century, then a couple of weeks later Grease Monkeys was back up on the marquee and the movie poster was back in a frame at the entrance. The same thing happened over at the Mitchell Brothers' Theater with Behind The Green Door. Using only my memory of the movie poster and my imagination as a guide to write Full Service, I somehow I ended up writing a race car scene in my movie. As I viewed Grease Monkeys over the weekend, I was kind of delighted to see that a race car scenario was a very big part of its storyline. Just a cool coincidence, I guess. Speaking of cool, there’s just something about this movie that felt ultra-hip. The way it was directed and shot felt far more progressive than most of the other gay adult films at the time.

In the opening title sequence of the film, the cool factor was over the top when the three leading men, Nick Rodgers, Kip Noll, and Lee Marlin strut down the streets of Glendale, CA in a beautifully shot montage. It was filmed from a moving vehicle, very much like a scene in the 1972 John Waters film Pink Flamingos where Divine sashays down the streets of Baltimore. The sequence had that “wow factor” that made it feel like a mainstream movie. The three leads worked it for all its worth and gave off the vibe of “Loud and proud!” -- decades before “loud and proud” was even a thing in mainstream society! The scene is even more enhanced with a soundtrack number that really made it shine, the kind of ballad where you want to jump to your feet and dance! This move feels realistic due to its locations throughout Southern California. The urban city locale adds to the grit, and only steps away from the urbanness for a hot and sexy threeway shot at Pismo Beach with Noll, Marlin, and Derek (aka Derrick) Stanton. Derrick Stanton remembers finishing up just before the police arrived to the location.

The lead, Nick Rodgers, is the real standout performer in this film, which showcases his incredible face and body throughout. Discovered while working for The Advocate, his naturally masculine demeanor made him a perfect choice to cast in the movie Hot Truckin’ (1977) for Tom DeSimone. Larry LeBlanc was the stage name he used for that movie, but it was changed to Nick Rodgers for his second film, The Idol (1979). When making the movie Rough Cut (1979), director Steve Scott was quoted as saying that Nick had the “best looking dick in the business.” I remember the first time I saw Nick Rodgers in a film -- it was Malibu Days / Big Bear Nights (1982), pounding Giorgio Canali. I became an instant fan, so it was great to see him showcased in Monkeys all these years later. His outstanding good looks were unique, allowing his career to run from 1977 to 1985 when he shot his final film, Arcade, for director Jim West.

Kip Noll is the second of the three leads, and his sexual energy and fun-loving personality really shine in this film. The chemistry between Kip and Lee Marlin is evident every time they are together on screen. Lee Marlin started off in loops that were later released as parts of a compilation called Locker Room Loops: Bucky’s Triple XXX 1 & 3, from Something Weird Video. His first movie was Just Blonds (1979) followed by his role in Grease Monkeys. In 1980, he was on the original cover of Rear Deliveries for William Higgins. Higgins was quoted as saying that Lee Marlin was “funny and clever but, being a kid of the streets, he ended up in and out of jail a lot.” He went on to star in a bunch of movies for Robert Walters at Nova including Men at Work (1981) and Down on the Farm (1981). His career spanned from the late 1970s to 1982, and little is known of him after retiring from the industry. Lee Marlin is a natural-looking solid, beefy stud who gives off some great energy in Grease Monkeys while getting serviced under the auto-lift inside the mechanic’s garage. This standout scene is another iconic balls-to-the wall moment with a hand-held grease gun emulating Lee’s explosive cum shot in customer Richie Shaw’s hungry mouth. When Nick, Kip and Lee get together in the movie, there’s a real sense of comradery, which is evident in a fun scene where they wash the grease off each other’s arms and chests. It plays like a fun montage, showing the guys clowning around as real buddies do, proof that they genuinely all liked each other.

There are a couple more sequences that really help make this movie one-of-a-kind. The discotheque scene where Nick, Kip, and Lee go to dance off some stress was shot brilliantly and gave the trio an opportunity to really go to town on each other. It is like a time capsule of the era that anyone who lived it can attest to. Lastly, there's the memorable Nick Rodgers scene where he fantasizes about having sex with himself. Shot with the use of a body double, things could have gone terribly wrong, but to my surprise and delight it played on screen as one of the hottest scenes in the movie. Nick Rodgers sucking and fucking himself took this movie to a whole other level. It’s exceptional. How is it that watching this movie caused me to become instantly obsessed with Aaron’s filmmaking? How could I have allowed myself not to see this incredible movie until now, 47 years after it’s release? With a script by Robert Werner and stunning cinematography and editing by Brandon Ryan, Mark Aaron was able to bring about a progressive, instantly consuming film, which made all of the top actors seem bigger than life but accessible at the same time. Everything works, from the lighting, the theatrics, the montages, the creative sexual situations, and even having the balls to shoot a real drag race on the I-10 freeway on-ramp! Who was this director with such great instincts named Mark Aaron?

Mark Aaron’s real name was Monroe Beehler, he started Jaguar Productions in 1971 and later became the owner for the Century Theater in Los Angeles, which he used to premiere their movies on the west coast. Jaguar’s productions ended sometime in 1980 and the Century Theater closed in 1988. Aaron previously directed The Boy With the Hungry Eyes (aka) Youthful Lust (1970) and Time It Was (1971) followed by The Rivermen, shot in 1975 but not released until 1980. That’s definitely one I will watch next on Bijou VOD, because I am sold on his style from the Monkeys viewing. After Grease Monkeys, Mark Aaron did not direct any further movies, which is a loss for all of us. As far as I can tell, he seems to have lived a very low-key life all the way until May 15, 2018 when he passed away. Every once in a while, you see a movie that impresses and engages you. Grease Monkeys did that for me many, many times throughout the viewing. I’ll be ordering my physical copy for my collection. Better late than never, it’s a must!

Watch these trailers by Josh Eliot!
Grease Monkeys New Extended Trailer
Trailer for Full Service

Bio of Josh Eliot:

At the age of 25 in 1987, Josh Eliot was hired by Catalina Video by John Travis (Brentwood Video) and Scott Masters (Nova Video). Travis trained Eliot on his style of videography and mentored him on the art of directing. Josh directed his first movie, Runaways, in 1987. By 2009 when Josh parted ways with Catalina Video, he'd produced and directed hundreds of features and won numerous awards for Best Screenplay, Videography, Editing, and Directing. He was entered into the GayVN Hall of fame in 2002.

By Josh Eliot

There were Bob and Jeff and Scott and Marc who used the surname “Noll,” but the “Noll” that brought the name into superstar status was Kip Noll. Bob Noll was the first, a very popular Trademark Studios magazine and solo loop star in the early 1970’s. A masculine, handsome man whose work drew instant attention. When producer/director Mark Reynolds (Larry Ginsburg) discovered an eighteen-year-old named Thomas, he cast him under the stage name Kip Noll, assuming the role of Bob’s younger brother. The two of them did have a strikingly identical appearance and demeanor that Reynolds wanted to play off of. Initially, Reynolds wasn’t convinced that Thomas (Kip) had anything special to offer. Kip’s overgrown hair and bushy moustache hid his most attractive attributes, but once he was clean shaven and polished up, the potential was obvious.

According to a bio written for Live Journal, Kip began an extensive initial career in the Trademark Studios loop business, many released years later in the compilation Surf & Turf from Cream of the Crop Video. Loops with titles I’ll Do It If You Will and Double Your Pleasure featured Kip as mostly a bottom. Most of the loops were shot while Kip had a front tooth missing. Mark Reynolds filmed and released a solo and accompanying magazine which was called The Kip Noll Story in 1978. Kip continued to work in more silent loops for Reynolds (examples: Fuck Truck and Dreamboys) and took over the spotlight as his “older brother” Bob faded from the industry.

After taking a short break from making movies, Kip made a huge jump into stardom when Reynolds introduced him to William Higgins, who cast him in the starring role for The Boys of Venice (1979). In that movie, Kip's deep masculine voice is heard on screen for the very first time, enhancing his desirability to the audience. It also marked his first role as a top when he mounted Greek stud Emmanuelle Bravos who, unlike Kip, only ever worked in this one movie. The film was a smash hit! In 1979, he followed the success of his initial “talkie” with Grease Monkeys for Jaguar, taking top billing alongside Nick Rodgers and Lee Marlin. The macho role he played hit a chord with his audience, but the shoot itself was no walk in the park. Kip described the threeway sex scene on Pismo Beach as his most difficult because of the ice cold water and very vocal crowd yelling down from the top of the cliffs.

Born in Greenwich, Connecticut on August 7th, 1957 Kip's lean muscled frame, shaggy hair, free spirit and east coast upbringing all added to his charm. He is said to have had a very high sex drive. Even though he was a street hustler when Reynolds met him, he was not gay but leaning more straight or bisexual. The drive for him was the money, that was his motivation. 

Shortly after his rise to superstar status, other Noll “siblings” and “cousins” started popping up out of the woodwork. There was Jeff Noll (brother), Marc Noll (cousin), Scott Noll aka Chris Noll (brother). All a schtick from producers and agents trying to cash in on Kip's success. Hell, Scott Masters and I even worked with another Noll sibling in my movies 69: Discover the Secret and Junior Meets the Bear Patrol, Chip Noll, in 2004! Not to be outdone, in 2017 William Higgins discovered Igor Galek, a Czech model who sometimes shot movies under the name Greg Noll! With all those Nolls I mentioned, there are bound to be four or five more, don’t you think? You can see the solo loops of Bob, Jeff, Kip, Mark and Scot Noll in the movie For You Solo Signature Series 6 (1980) from Mark Reynolds and H.I.S. Video.

Kip’s career was on a constant rise. He promoted Grease Monkeys while performing at the Eros Theatre in Times Square with co-stars Lee and Nick. Kip’s next big release was Kip Noll & the Westside Boys (1979) for Higgins, who was all about riding the wave when he planned to star Kip in his next movie Rear Deliveries. Just prior to production, Kip was involved in a motorcycle accident and could not star in the movie. After recovering, he worked with Lee Marlin and Kourey Mitchell for the Mark Reynolds movie Roommates (1980). The hits kept coming with Cuming of Age (1980) which matches Kip, Scott Noll and Steve York, Al Parker’s Flashback (1981) where Kip and Chris Noll have a scene together, Pacific Coast Highway (1981) with Jack Burke, Brothers Should Do it (1981) with Derrick Stanton, Class of ’84 Part II (1981) with Jeremy Scott and The Legend of Kip Noll: Superstar (1981).

The Legend of Kip Noll: Superstar is basically a compilation for most of the movie, where Jon King interviews Kip and asks questions about some of his movie memories from various scenes in his films. A typical comp film until the end, which is more than worth the price of admission. I read that Higgins described how when it came time for Kip and Jon to start their sex scene, they literally ripped the clothes off each other and, before Higgins could tell them to stop (because he was still loading film into the camera), Noll was fucking King on the floor, pounding away like an animal so wildly that Jon King started cumming all over himself, causing Noll to blow his load up King's ass. Without missing a beat, Noll spun King around and continued fucking doggie style. Why weren’t more of my movie sets like that! The film got loaded, Higgins kept shooting and the two kept at it, not even fazed by the fact that they already shot their loads. They came back the next day to shoot the “intro” they had missed and, supposedly, once the intro was shot, the two started screwing again and wouldn’t stop while the crew just packed up the equipment around them. A stark contrast to his off-set life, where it is written that he was dating adult film star Velvet Summers, a petite (4’ 11”) young actress who specialized in bondage themed movies. Velvet was born September 22, 1960 and was also from Massachusetts. She worked in seventeen movies between 1981 and 1984 with titles like Wicked Schoolgirls (1981), The Taming of Rebecca (1982) and When She was Bad (1983).

In 1981, the Follies Theatre opened in New York City and Kip appeared to sold out crowds, which was unprecedented at the time. Noll became famous for incidents where he would have sex with the audience, often putting his erect cock in different audience members' mouths. Quite the showman! His career was more about “on the road” appearances at this point, but he made one final movie in 1983, a movie that he himself financed and directed called Kip Noll’s Casting Couch. Kip was involved in all of the scenes within the movie and it’s said to include the one and only time Ron Jeremy performed auto-fellatio on himself. At this stage in his life, it is reported that Kip Noll got married and worked as a machinist in San Diego. He reappeared again in 1984 for a grand re-opening of the Follies, alongside Lance and Daniel Holt, but no further sightings are noted after that performance. In 1985, rumors circulated of his death but were proven groundless by Manshots magazine. An obituary in a Salt Lake City newspaper shows Thomas (Kip) died on May 21st, 2001 of a heart attack at age 43. Being one of seven brothers, he is survived by his wife and three daughters.

Watch Josh Eliot's excerpts/trailers for Kip's classics!
Kip's interview with Jon King from The Legend of Kip Noll: Superstar
Trailer for The Boys of Venice

Bio of Josh Eliot:

At the age of 25 in 1987, Josh Eliot was hired by Catalina Video by John Travis (Brentwood Video) and Scott Masters (Nova Video). Travis trained Eliot on his style of videography and mentored him on the art of directing. Josh directed his first movie, Runaways, in 1987. By 2009 when Josh parted ways with Catalina Video, he'd produced and directed hundreds of features and won numerous awards for Best Screenplay, Videography, Editing, and Directing. He was entered into the GayVN Hall of fame in 2002.

By Josh Eliot

I wrote in Part 1 of this series about Buster and Steve York, two very hot models from the early, early Catalina Video days. I came upon some movies in the Catalina warehouse that were made by Dan Allman, who was assigned to shoot loops for William Higgins to sell as 8mm and Super 8mm reels and for use in his bookstore booths. I spoke about The Big Surprise as one of the movies Dan worked on but I had not yet addressed Good Times Coming (1982) and Spring Semester (1985), his two other VHS movies I saw on the shelf. In Good Times Coming, the movie revolves around a solo scene with a certain new blond model fantasizing about hot studs: T.N.T., Chaz Holderman, Jamie Wingo, Thor, Jeff Holden and Jake Conners. That hot new blond on the scene was named Lance.

LANCE: Born November 25, 1962, Lance took center stage in virtually every scene he was a part of. In Good Times Coming’s campsite scene (original loop title: “Hilltop Retreat”), Lance works with blonde "Mark" and stops the scene cold when he takes his partner’s load on the face, then continues to clean the piece off with his mouth. An onscreen novice adding that kind of magic to a scene was bound to get William Higgins' immediate attention. It was some kind of progressive thinking that compelled Higgins to match Lance with another up and coming star of the time called Leo Ford. Leo was just coming off a career high with the release of Falcon’s Spokes, Steve Scott/Surge's Games and Catalina’s Sailor in the Wild (1983). Story has it that Lance was partners with producer/director Richard Morgan (who also dated Buster at one time) and one day went out for some coffee but didn’t come back for hours. It turns out he went to shoot Leo & Lance for William Higgins instead, and when Richard Morgan found out all hell broke loose. Morgan and Higgins were mortal enemies. Prior to his role in Leo & Lance, Leo was already drawing attention from previous 1981 releases: Flashbacks (J. Brian), and The Summer of Scott Noll (Mark Reynolds). The movie poster for Leo & Lance (1983) was simple yet effective; the one shot of the pair said it all, and the title just kind of rolls off the tongue, doesn’t it? The pairing was pure cinema magic, and it’s written that after the movie came out, the pair would work together as male hustlers. They also appeared together on screen again in 1986 for Blondes Do it Best (Richard Morgan).

Some of Lance’s other also very notable releases are Good Hot Stuff (Buckshot), Student Bodies (LeSalon/Magnum Griffin) and Backstrokes (Video10). Lance’s career ran from 1982 – 1988 with his final appearance in Backstrokes, performing in a masturbation-only scene. It is written that Lance grew up in foster homes and had numerous brushes with the law in his early years. On May 26, 1991 in San Jose, California, Lance passed away from complication from AIDS. In a horrific twist, just 52 days later, his former co-star and friend Leo Ford died from head injuries suffered in a motorcycle accident. I don’t believe it was the same motorcycle, but coincidentally Leo Ford won a motorcycle William Higgins was giving away in an on-set drawing to one lucky member of the cast of Class Reunion. This was the 1983 William Higgins movie with a ton of guys in a poolside orgy. I was told that the models all worked for free with the chance of winning the motorcycle. Chet Thomas told me the contest was rigged for Leo Ford to win, which he did. I don’t know if that was true or if Chet was blowing smoke up my ass. Surely the models received some payment for all that sucking, fucking and cum guzzling, right?

Finding myself back in the Catalina warehouse, I remember coming upon the VHS for Spring Semester (1985), which I immediately assumed was directed by William Higgins. The movie was shot on film, produced by Higgins and had all the usual attributes like an incredible score by Costello Presley and editing from the team at the time which was Sam Deliloh, Dan Pack and Tony DeVito. But looking closer, I discovered that it was written, photographed and directed by Dan Allman. Spring Semester has an incredible cast headlined by Tex Anthony and featuring Mike Gere, Mark Scott Solo, Grant Fagan, Johnny Shovel, (yes I said shovel) Blake Dawson, Shaun Peters and (introducing) Mitch Henderson. It was Dan Allman’s first real full feature with all the bells and whistles. Tex Anthony and Michael Gere both had careers filled with roles in major hits and roles that gave them both instant notoriety.

TEX ANTHONY: His 1982 debut in the industry was in The New Breed, directed by Al Parker for Falcon Studios, where his stage name was simply “Tex.” John Travis and Richard Morgan were shooting 8mm loop reels and were selling them to adult shops around the state. Travis’ connection to Falcon exposed him to models, one of them being Tex, who he introduced to Higgins. From the get-go, they modified his name to Tex Anthony and 1984 became a very busy year for the young stud, making many movies released in 1985 under the Catalina/Laguna Pacific Ltd umbrella. Hits like The Young and The Hung, The Big Switch, Bi Bi Love and Bi-Sexual Fantasies started his career off with a bang. The infamous watermelon scene where Tex Anthony took the lead made him standout from other actors in the movie as charm and wit exuded out of him. The movie Sex Lunch (1985) from director Roger Earl features Tex Anthony, Cole Carpenter, Michael Ram and Shane Michaels and is currently available on DVD or for streaming on the Bijou VOD site. In 1986, he starred in Tough Iron for director Stephen Lucas, Social Studies for J.D. Slater, Foreplay for Richard Morgan and accepted work from Le Salon, All Worlds and H.I.S. video companies. In 1987, he only showed up in straight movies for Vidco and Standard Video; the titles included Cabaret Sin, Empire of the Sins and Tropical Lust. His final movie was the Private Collection Screen Test (1989) for Telstar Video, where he masturbated only. A soft finish to what was a very strong and successful introduction to the industry, working in scenes from an array of well-known and diverse directors. Unfortunately on June 12, 1992, Tex Anthony passed away from what is reported as complication of AIDS.

MICHAEL GERE: Michael Gere came onto the scene in 1985 with three back-to-back hits: Spring Semester with Grant Fagan, Pizza Boy: He Delivers with Chad Johnson/Sean Gage and The Young & The Hung with Troy Ramsey, Tex Anthony and Ken Kurns. Gere was the original cover boy for the Higgins super hit The Young & The Hung, both on the VHS cover and magazine ads. The following year, director John Travis cast him in the Jeff Stryker mega-hit Powertool. In Powertool, Gere was in the (now infamous) jailhouse scene playing the inmate getting worked over by Johnny Davenport while Jeff Stryker watches and beats off. Later that year, Gere appeared in Two Handfuls from combined directors John Travis, Matt Sterling and Paul Norman. In the movie, Gere is matched with Bill Bix, a hot cowboy who wanders into the local bookstore and ended up inside Gere’s hole. Michael finally got to grace another box cover when he starred in Spike Video’s Sticky Business (1986), which was a parody of Risky Business star Tom Cruise. Michael's short but sweet career in the adult film industry was like a flash, 1985 – 1986, that’s it. Short indeed, but in that time he had roles in arguably six majors hits that still live on as classics today. That’s a pretty great run! Very little can be found about Michael’s life or career after leaving the business.

I considered Buster, Steve York, Lance, Tex Anthony and Michael Gere to be top stars when I was just coming out of the closet in the early 1980s. By the time I saw them again on the Catalina shelves in my mid 20s, they had reached a kind of superstar status in my mind and maybe even in reality as well.

Watch Josh Eliot's trailers for several of these classics!
Trailer for Good Times Coming
Trailer for Spring Semester
Watermelon clip from The Young & The Hung

Bio of Josh Eliot:

At the age of 25 in 1987, Josh Eliot was hired by Catalina Video by John Travis (Brentwood Video) and Scott Masters (Nova Video). Travis trained Eliot on his style of videography and mentored him on the art of directing. Josh directed his first movie, Runaways, in 1987. By 2009 when Josh parted ways with Catalina Video, he'd produced and directed hundreds of features and won numerous awards for Best Screenplay, Videography, Editing, and Directing. He was entered into the GayVN Hall of fame in 2002.