Harry Reems during an interview ( CBC )
I am very saddened by this news.
Harry Reems was genuinely funny, and he was good enough to make it in so-called "mainstream" movies - had people NOT interfered.
Far too many folks running things in the "mainstream" studio system, shun people like Mr. Reems. And YET, they do NOT have a problem giving work to CHILD RAPISTS, or giving them awards!... They're the ones with NO shame!
Do any of you remember, when a studio fired a female writer for the unforgivable sin of lying about her age?!... The reaction was absurdly out of proportion.
Sadly, this is what passes for "morals" in much of HollyWEIRD.
The so-called "mainstream" studios that crank-out countless "EDGY" movies, and tv shows, owe people like Harry Reems a HUGE DEBT OF GRATITUDE!.... AND so does EVERYONE in the arts, AND the general public.
Why?... Because freedom of expression / free speech would be far LESS FREE, had he - and others - not won their battles.
I'm NOT a religious person, but I'm hoping Mr. Reems is indeed, in a far better place.....
Amber Lynn and Harry Reems in one of his films
Harry Reems during an interview ( IGN )
QUOTES FROM THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE ( March 20, 2013 )
"Harry Reems, star of legendary pornographic film "Deep Throat," has died, according to a self-described close friend, Don Shenck, who posted a personal obituary on a message board Tuesday"
"Reems was recently diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, entered the the Salt Lake City VA Hospital March 5 due to jaundice and fell into a coma last week, Shenck wrote"
"The controversy surrounding the film led the FBI to indict Reems for conspiracy to distribute obscene material across state lines, a charge he was initially convicted of before a higher court overruled the decision"
"Reems aspired to be an actor in non-pornographic films, and in the late 1970s was cast in his first studio movie, "Grease," but was kicked off the project because of his scandalous past"
"Acting was my true love, and I buried that possibility by going into adult films," Reems told Dave Itzkoff for a 2005 New York magazine piece. "The writing was on the wall. There was no place for me in conventional entertainment"
"by the late 1980s, Reems moved to Park City and not only got sober but had a second act as a successful real estate broker. It was in Park City that he met Jeannie, his wife of the last two decades"
"He is survived by Jeannie and his brother"
Mr. Reems had a part in NATIONAL LAMPOON'S MOVIE MADNESS ( aka NATIONAL LAMPOON GOES TO THE MOVIES )
QUOTES FROM THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS ( March 20, 2013 )
"Reems was charged with federal conspiracy to transport “Deep Throat” to Memphis — a city he’d never set foot in"
"The conspiracy charge was later dropped, but Reems was convicted of obscenity — setting up a legal battle on the limits of free speech"
"Hollywood came to Reems’ rescue, setting up a legal defense fund and hiring famed defense attorney Alan Dershowitz to represent him"
“Initially it was seen as joke, ha, ha, porno star gets busted," Dershowitz said at the time. "But now people are going around seeing it as a very serious issue"
"Depressed, Reems turned to drink and drugs and wound up homeless in Utah"
"There, in 1987, Reems found God, got sober, and married his wife Jeanne, who was with him to the end"
"Instead of denying his past, Reems chose to keep his nom-de-porn and became a successful real estate salesman with a sterling rep in his business"
“This past, is the past,” he would tell clients"
