After taking a hiatus from the adult industry in the prosecution crazed 80's, legendary director Jerome Tanner is back in action. He has been producing fuck-fare for Legend Video for 4 or 5 years now and he hasn't missed a step and he seems to be constantly churning out features chock full of pretty babes and well-shot banging that's greatly improved to compete with today's standards. I know you extreme gonzo freaks may scoff when you hear the name, but when I first got into porn in the 80's he was THE man in my opinion maybe that was because one of the first flicks I got hold of as an impressionable smut novice was his Sex 5th Ave featuring once-awesome fuck machine Traci Lords who has now metamorphisized for the worse into a wanna-be actress b-movie anti-porn history-distorting bitch.
Since his return a major improvement in his output was teaming up with scriptwriter Nelson X to produce some very entertaining and erotic porn films. These aren't your modern day gonzo slamfests, there's a horny story w/ funny dialoque that propels the sexual antics.... For now, read on to get the inside skinny straight from Jerome Tanner himself because there’s some interesting historical perspectives on 80’s porn, John Holmes and the once-great Traci Lords. Please keep in mind this conversation took place 2 years ago and I dug it out of the archives and slightly edited it a little to keep it timeless, but it may still reflect when it took place.
Smut: How did you get involved in the porn business?
JT: Well, I go back quite awhile, I got into
this busines in the 70's. First, I did a line called
the Diamond Collection and then I preceeded onto
Western Visuals. Then I retired for awhile
and came back into the business
where I have been having fun ever since.
Smut: Why did you retire?
JT: There were a lot of legal issues and I had a
couple of cases going. My family got tired of seeing
my face on the tube and we made the decision that I
was going to move onto something else. Of course,
right after I retired the laws changed, but I was
involved in a lot of other things. Then my situation
changed and I got back into doing what I really feel
like doing.
Smut: Was it always a dream of yours to be a
pornographer?
JT: No, once I started directing I really got to like
it. You know, I actually started directing because I
had no choice. One of my partners at Western Visuals
was a director, but I just didn't like what he was
doing for us. I didn't like the product he was getting
so I did it out of necessity. There wasn't that many
people producing and directing back then, so I said I
can do better then that and I did. Once I started
doing it I realized that's what I loved doing most.
Smut: What was your first feature?
JT: My first feature was The Idol with John Holmes.
Smut: How many features did you do before you retired
the first time?
JT: Roughly thirty.
Smut: How was it working with John Holmes?
JT: It was great. He was great work with. I also
worked with him on a feature called Dickman and
Throbbin'. It was a great experience. He was a real
pro. Always knew his lines. He never studied, but he
always knew his lines and always got wood. He'd pull
his dick out and stick it in. A real pro, absolutely,
he was always good at it. I always liked him.
VW: What was your first feature after you came out of
retirement?
JT: Farmer's Daughters Do Hollywood.
Smut: You did this for Legend?
JT: Yes, Jack Richman is my nephew. We all started
together at Western Visuals with Bruce and Jack. We
had history together, so I got an offer to come back
from Legend.
Smut: What were you doing in your retirement from porn?
JT: I owned a graphic arts company, basically
providing creative services. We used to make a lot of
video packaging. I really didn't like it, but you get
boxed in.
Smut: Were you always paying attention to the adult
industry?
JT: Always. I used to play cards with a
couple of guys from the industry.
Smut: In what way was your legal problems related to the
industry?
JT: Remember in the 80's when they used to bust us for
shooting? What do you call those charges?
Smut: Solicitation or pandering.
JT: It was pandering and I had one case tied into the
Hal Freeman case and they dropped the charges. The fun
leaves real quick when every time your hear an engine
you think it's a helicopter coming to bust you.
Finally I moved to San Francisco and started shooting
there and they were chasing me up there. For some
reason they really got a hard-on for me. I have never
broken a law in my life and they were treating me like
public enemy #1. At that point the work lost its
lustre, it wasn't fun. Aids was another issue. At that
time there was widespread drug use on the sets and
there was this fear. I didn't want to become this
merchant of death. Ron Sullivan used that term with me
once and I never forgot it.
Smut: Look at what happened to John Holmes.
JT: Yes, but I don't know if he got necessarily from
the industry because he was involved with a lot of
other questionable things. There was this fear out
there that you could get Aids at any second. There
wasn't this military testing like now and nobody
worked with condoms back then. Now the sets are more
relaxed, but back then the sets became like a
makeshift morque. It was really terrible and it wasn't
any fun, so I made the best decision for me.
Smut: Were any of these legal problems related to Traci
Lords?
JT: No, I worked with Traci quite a few times, but I
never had any trouble with that. There was nothing the
government could do, because they issued her a
passport and if should could fool them why couldn't
she fool us? The truth of the matter is nobody knew
she was underage. Nobody. Because at that time we
wouldn't have tolerated anybody being underage. Nobody
would've wanted to lose all the product. I made five
movies with Traci Lords and I lost those movies. We
had to basically destroy them so you lose all the
foreign rights and the domestic to sell. We used to
sell a lot of her product.
Smut: Hell yeah, she had me fooled, too,
and I was 16 at the time as well.
How was she to work with?
JT: She really couldn't act, but sexually I think she
was second to none. She was really incredible. I've
never worked with anybody like that since.
Smut: She was the best?
JT: I think so. You'll never hear anybody say that,
but yeah. I've worked with some really good girls, but
Traci definately was the best.
Smut: I agree. What has changed since the 80's?
JT: It has really become more of an industry and the
talent is more focused. Now they are more business
oriented. They are shooting all over the place and
back then we didn't have that. Another big thing is
Viagra, which is really great.
Smut: It really helps the older guys out?
JT: (laughing)It really helps the younger guys out,
too.
Smut: Do they use it a lot?
JT: The reason that there is good wood is that there's
Viagra. Don't forget,too, that now we shoot cable
versions and hardcore versions. It takes a long time
to shoot a scene and you got to have a guy to have
wood for up to an hour or an hour and a half. It's not
that easy, it really isn't, unless you're Marc Davis.
That guy's horny all the time and he's nearly forty I
think.
Smut: What about the girls?
JT: They are prettier then they used to be and there's
a lot more of them. I remember on one of my sets we
had Traci Lords, Christy Canyon, and Ginger lynn. One
of them said, "If the three of us go on strike you
would have nothing to shoot." You know what? They were
right.
Smut: They were the top.
JT: Pretty much until a little later Taija Rae came
along.
Smut: Yeah, she was really hot.
JT: Now, as soon as the scene is over they are on
their cell phones. The worst thing that ever happened
to this industry is the cell phone. You should see
what happens as soon as we yell "cut." Everybody is on
their cellphones.
Smut: Yeah, just like on the highways. It's annoying.
Are the girls easier to work with now?
JT: Not really. They still want to be involved with
good projects and big budgets. The acting seems to be
better now, especially Gwen Summers, she's incredible.
Smut: Who else do you like of the female talent these
days?
JT: Lola's great and I like Sophie Evans a lot.
There's Nikita Denise, she's great and Jewel DeNyle.
Hannah Harper gives you a hot scene.
Melanie Jagger is one of favorites also.
Smut: Mine, too You've had Tera Patrick in a few of your videos.
She's awesome.
JT: Yeah, Tera Patrick is great. I wish I could get
her more, but she signed an exclusive deal with
Digital Playground.
Smut: What do you think of gonzo?
JT: The gonzo thing is great, but it's just that some
people take it to a questionable level of decency.
People are forgetting that we're going to get at some
point legal issues. The community standards thing has
never been resolved. If the law comes back after us,
we're out. The law isn't any different then they were
back then. They're like the persecution things can
change. If it's not now it can happen four years from
now. We still have a Republican congress. This one
company is putting out a fisting tape. Come on, get a
life. It's not responsible. Why do they have draw such
negative attention. Put fire hydrants up a girl's
pussy and you're going get attention, but what's the
point?
Smut: Are you going to keep working with Nelson X?
JT: Yeah, he just wrote two for me and he's going to
do more. His dialogue is sharp, crisp, very nice.
What's nice with Nelson is that we work together on
ideas and get good stuff.
Smut: That's for sure. Any final words?
JT: Basically I want to thank every one for watching
my movies and allowing me the creative outlet that I
have. It's a wonderful opportunity.
For info on obtaining Jerome Tanner's videos go to
www.legenddirect.com or write to: Legend Video, 8955 Fullbright Ave., Chatsworth, CA, 91311
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