John Leslie, American pornographic film actor and director, died from a heart attack he was , 65

John Leslie Nuzzo ^[1] was a prolific porn actor who went on to have a long-running career as a producer and director of adult movies died from a heart attack he was , 65. Usually credited under the name John Leslie, he has also worked under a variety of pseudonyms, including John Leslie Dupre, Frederick Watson, and Lenny Lovely.


(January 25, 1945 – December 5, 2010)

Career

Beginning with 1973's Sensuous Delights, Leslie was a performer in almost 300 adult films. He won numerous awards during his days as a performer. He appeared with some of the era's most noted porn stars, including Seka, Kay Parker, and Annette Haven. His most noteworthy roles were in Talk Dirty To Me (1980), Nothing To Hide (1981), and Talk Dirty To Me, Part II (1982).




He was one of the first porn actors to make the transition from performing to directing, beginning with 1987's Nightshift Nurses. Since then he directed more than 90 adult movies, including The Chameleon (1989), Curse of the Catwoman (1992), Dog Walker (1994), and Drop Sex (1997), along with the Voyeur, Fresh Meat and Crack Her Jack series. He won many awards for his work behind the cameras as well. Though much of his recent work, in keeping with current trends in adult video, has been in the gonzo genre, such as the "Fresh Meat" and "Crack Her Jack" series, Leslie has continued to make feature films, or "sex dramas"; most recently, in 2007 he directed the film "Brianna Love, Her Fine, Sexy Self."

John Leslie in "Talk Dirty To Me" from Miki Maus on Vimeo.


In the early 1970s, he was a vocalist and harmonica player for the The Brooklyn Blues Busters, a southeastern Michigan-based musical group sometimes accompanying John Lee Hooker.^[1] The Brooklyn Blues Busters were the backing band for Victoria Spivey during the 1973 Ann Arbor Blues and Jazz Festival.^[1] Nuzzo also worked as a bartender in the early 1970s at Mr. Flood's Party, in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
He was a member of the AVN^[2], Legends of Erotica^[3] and XRCO^[4] Halls of Fame.
John Leslie died on December 5, 2010, from a heart attack,^[1] at his home in Mill Valley, California at the age of 65.^[5]

  Awards

• 1977 AFAA Best Supporting Actor for Coming of Angels^[6]
• 1980 AFAA Best Actor for Talk Dirty to Me^[6]
• 1980 CAFA Best Actor for Talk Dirty to Me^[6]
• 1981 AFAA Best Actor for Wicked Sensations^[6]
• 1982 AFAA Best Actor for Talk Dirty to Me 2^[6]
• 1982 CAFA Best Actor for Talk Dirty to Me 2^[6]
• 1984 AFAA Best Actor for Dixie Ray and for Every Woman has a Fantasy (tied with himself for both movies)^[6]
• 1984 XRCO Best Copulation Scene for Every Woman has a Fantasy^[7]
• 1985 AFAA Best Supporting Actor for Taboo 4^[6]
• 1985 AVN Best Supporting Actor - Film for Firestorm^[8]
• 1986 XRCO Best Actor for Every Woman has a Fantasy 2^[6]
• 1988 AVN Best Actor - Film for Firestorm 2^[8]
• 1988 XRCO Best Actor for Beauty and the Beast^[6]

As a director

• 1987 XRCO Best Director - Video for Nightshift Nurses^[6]
• 1988 XRCO Best Director for Catwoman^[6]
• 1989 AVN Best Director - Video for Catwoman^[8]
• 1992 XRCO Best Film for Chameleons: Not The Sequel^[4]
• 1994 XRCO Best Film for Dog Walker^[9]
• 1994 XRCO Director of the Year^[9]
• 1995 AVN Best Director - Film for Dog Walker^[8]
• 1995 AVN Best Director - Video for Bad Habits^[8]
• 1997 AVN Best All-Sex Release for John Leslie's Fresh Meat 3^[8]
• 1997 XRCO Director of the Year^[9]
• 1998 AVN Best All-Sex Release for John Leslie's Fresh Meat 4^[8]
• 1998 XRCO Director of the Year^[9]
• 1999 AVN Best All-Sex Release for John Leslie's Fresh Meat 5^[8]
• 1999 AVN Best Director - Video for The Lecher 2^[8]
• 2000 AVN Best All-Sex Release for The Voyeur 12^[8]

Other awards

• 1989 AVN Best Screenplay - Video for Catwoman (with Mark Weiss)^[8]
• 1995 AVN Best Screenplay - Film for Dog Walker^[8]

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