Buck Angel (born June 5, 1962) is an American sex educator and former pornographic film actor and producer. He founded the media production company Buck Angel Entertainment. Angel is a transgender man. Angel served on the board of directors of the Woodhull Freedom Foundation from 2010 to 2016. The Foundation works to affirm sexual freedom as a fundamental human right through advocacy and education.

Early life

Angel was born in the

San Fernando Valley The San Fernando Valley, known locally as the Valley, is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, Los Angeles County, California. Situated to the north of the Los Angeles Basin, it comprises a large portion of Los Angeles, the Municipal corpo ...

area of

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

on June 5, 1962. He was born female and grew up as a

tomboy A tomboy is a girl or young woman who generally expresses masculine traits. Such traits may include wearing androgynous or unfeminine clothing and engaging in activities and behaviors traditionally associated with boys or men. Origins The w ...

; his gender-atypical behavior during childhood was generally accepted at home. Angel's home and school life became increasingly tense—especially around age 15 and 16—as his

secondary sex characteristics A secondary sex characteristic is a physical characteristic of an organism that is related to or derived from its sex, but not directly part of its reproductive system. In humans, these characteristics typically start to appear during puberty ...

developed. He was bullied in school due to his gender non-conforming behavior and clothing. Angel described that the

psychological distress Mental distress or psychological distress encompasses the symptoms and experiences of a person's internal life that are commonly held to be troubling, confusing or out of the ordinary. Mental distress can potentially lead to a change of behavior, ...

caused by being bullied made him isolated, angry, and difficult to interact with as a teen. He self-medicated with alcohol and

marijuana Cannabis (), commonly known as marijuana (), weed, pot, and ganja, List of slang names for cannabis, among other names, is a non-chemically uniform psychoactive drug from the ''Cannabis'' plant. Native to Central or South Asia, cannabis has ...

to cope with his distress. Angel made multiple

suicide attempts A suicide attempt is an act in which an individual tries to kill themselves but survives. Mental health professionals discourage describing suicide attempts as "failed" or "unsuccessful", as doing so may imply that a suicide resulting in death is ...

in high school and was put in a psychiatric institution. He turned to running as a means of isolation. Angel was employed as a female professional model when he was 17. During this time, Angel continued to abuse

illegal drugs Illegal may refer to: Law * Violation of law ** Crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and uni ...

and alcohol. Angel was unable to find appropriate help for transitioning during his adolescent years. He eventually met a therapist who affirmed his gender instead of viewing him as a " gay woman". Angel researched various methods of medically transitioning and began to transition at the age of 28. Angel and his therapist got in contact with an

endocrinologist Endocrinology (from ''endocrine'' + '' -ology'') is a branch of biology and medicine dealing with the endocrine system, its diseases, and its specific secretions known as hormones. It is also concerned with the integration of developmental events ...

who worked primarily with

transgender women A trans woman or transgender woman is a woman who was assigned male at birth. Trans women have a female gender identity and may experience gender dysphoria (distress brought upon by the discrepancy between a person's gender identity and their ...

as opposed to transgender men. Angel was, as his doctor stated, "going to be is doctor'sguinea pig" (for

human subject research Human subject research is systematic, scientific investigation that can be either interventional (a "trial") or observational (no "test article") and involves human beings as research subjects, commonly known as test subjects. Human subject r ...

). Angel's doctor experimented with different doses of

testosterone Testosterone is the primary male sex hormone and androgen in Male, males. In humans, testosterone plays a key role in the development of Male reproductive system, male reproductive tissues such as testicles and prostate, as well as promoting se ...

throughout a six-month period until they found a dose that met his needs. Eventually, he was taking 1mL doses of testosterone every 10 days. After beginning his hormonal transition, Angel searched for a surgeon who dealt with upper-body modifications to remove his breasts. Angel also wanted to pursue genital surgery to construct a penis. He felt that there was no sufficient technology at the time to create the penis that he desired and chose not to undergo genital surgery. Angel currently considers his medical transition complete. Angel chose to undergo a

hysterectomy Hysterectomy is the surgical removal of the uterus and cervix. Supracervical hysterectomy refers to removal of the uterus while the cervix is spared. These procedures may also involve removal of the ovaries (oophorectomy), fallopian tubes ( salpi ...

in 2011 after experiencing "debilitating cramps".

Adult film career

Angel began to produce and star in his line of adult films under the imprint "Buck Angel Entertainment". By this time, he identified and presented as male. As Angel had not undergone genital surgery, he promoted these works describing himself as "the man with a pussy", which became his trademark. In 2005, he appeared in the Titan Media release ''Cirque Noir'', becoming the first

trans man A trans man or transgender man is a man who was assigned female at birth. Trans men have a male gender identity, and many trans men undergo medical and social transition to alter their appearance in a way that aligns with their gender identi ...

to be featured in an all-male film produced by a company specializing in gay male porn. The same year, he performed in ''Allanah Starr's Big Boob Adventures'' (directed by transgender woman Gia Darling), which featured the first filmed sex scene between a

trans woman A trans woman or transgender woman is a woman who was assigned male at birth. Trans women have a female gender identity and may experience gender dysphoria (distress brought upon by the discrepancy between a person's gender identity and their ...

and a trans man. The performance was nominated for "Most Outrageous Sex Scene" at the

AVN Awards The AVN Awards are List of movie awards, film awards sponsored and presented by the American trade magazine ''AVN (magazine), AVN'' (''Adult Video News'') annually to honor achievements in the global Sex industry, adult entertainment industry. ...

. In 2007, Angel became the first and only trans man to win "Transsexual Performer of the Year" at the

. His 2008 performance in ''Buckback Mountain'' received nominations for "Best Alternative Release" and "Best Specialty Release" at the

GayVN Awards The GayVN Awards are film awards presented annually to honor work done in the gay pornographic industry. The awards were sponsored by '' AVN Magazine'', the parent publication of ''GAYVN Magazine'', and continue the recognition for gay pornogra ...

. Angel also appears in ''Naked'', a 2008 documentary book and film about the adult film industry by director Ed Powers. In the film, he appears in a sex scene with porn star Wolf Hudson, which mainstream photographer Justin Lubin produced.

Educational work

HuffPost ''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers p ...

'' writes that Buck Angel's work in adult entertainment "pushed the industry to rethink tsrelationship with transgender actors and create visibility for trans and gender non-conforming men." Angel's work in porn evolved into advocacy and

sex education Sex education, also known as sexual education, sexuality education or sex ed, is the instruction of issues relating to human sexuality, including human sexual anatomy, Human sexual activity, sexual activity, sexual reproduction, safe sex, birth ...

. He found the transition between his work as a porn actor and his work as an educational role model difficult because of the stigma surrounding the adult film industry. Angel received criticism from the trans community when he began working as an educator; in HuffPost, Angel expressed that the community feared his identity in porn would misrepresent transsexual men. In 2010, Angel had the opportunity to be a guest speaker for Ideacity, a conference billed as Canada's "premier meeting of the minds". At Ideacity, Angel discussed the physical changes and emotional adaptation he experienced because of his transition. Angel used his presentation to challenge societal ideas of what makes a man, highlighting how he was considered not to meet the requirements because of his vagina. Between 2010 and 2015, he created an award-winning four-part porn series about trans male sexuality called ''Sexing the Transman XXX.'' The film won "Most Tantalizing Trans Film" at the Feminist Porn Awards in 2012. In October 2010, Angel contributed to sex educator and columnist

Dan Savage Daniel Keenan Savage (born October 7, 1964) is an American author, media pundit, journalist, and LGBTQ community activist. He writes Savage Love, an internationally syndicated relationship and sex advice column. In 2010, Savage and his husband, ...

's "

It Gets Better Project It Gets Better is an Internet-based 501(c)3 nonprofit with a mission to uplift, empower, and connect lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) youth around the globe. It was founded in the United States by gay activist, author, m ...

" by uploading his personal

coming out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBTQ people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. This is often framed and debated as a privacy issue, ...

story to YouTube. He has also produced multiple public service announcements on the topics of positive

body image Body image is a person's thoughts, feelings and perception of the aesthetics or sexual attractiveness of their own body. The concept of body image is used in several disciplines, including neuroscience, psychology, medicine, psychiatry, psycho ...

, LGBTQ family acceptance, queer people of colour, and transgender health and well-being. In 2012, Angel became a contributor to ''The Feminist Porn Book'', an anthology by feminist scholars and sex workers about understanding pornography and how feminists direct, act in, produce, and consume porn. Angel decided to focus further on his work as a sex educator in 2012 and began touring the world speaking about human sexuality. His presentation, "Bucking the System", aimed to challenge traditional notions of gender. Angel also began touring Q&A sessions about his documentary, ''Sexing the Transman'', and his autobiographical film, "Mr. Angel". Angel made an appearance at the San Francisco Film Festival in 2012. In 2015, he made an appearance at

Stockholm Pride Stockholm Pride (styled as STHLM Pride) is an annual LGBT pride festival held in Stockholm, the capital of Sweden. Since the start in 1998, Stockholm Pride has grown. In 2014, some 60,000 participated and 600,000 followed the parade at the stre ...

. He has spoken at Sex Week at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

and IdeaCity10 in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

. Angel created "Trantastic Storytelling" in 2015, a service that offers opportunities for trans people to share their life experiences for educational purposes. Angel has appeared on various talk shows, including

Howard Stern Howard Allan Stern (born January 12, 1954) is an American broadcaster and media personality. He is best known for his radio show, ''The Howard Stern Show'', which gained popularity when it was nationally syndicated on terrestrial radio from 1 ...

Tyra Banks Tyra Lynne Banks (born December 4, 1973), also known as BanX, is an American model, television personality, producer, writer, and actress. Born in Inglewood, California, she began her career as a model at the age of 15 and was the first Black A ...

Joe Rogan Joseph James Rogan (born August 11, 1967) is an American podcaster, Ultimate Fighting Championship, UFC color commentator, comedian, actor, and former television host. He hosts The Joe Rogan Experience, ''The Joe Rogan Experience'', which is o ...

, and Maury Povich's programs. He has also appeared on '' Secret Lives of Women'' in the US, '' This Morning'' in the UK, and ''

Jensen! ''Jensen!'' is a Dutch late-night talk show on the television station RTL 5. It airs on weekdays from 22:30 to 23:30 CET during winter, 20:30 to 21:30 UTC during summer. The show's creator, anchorman Robert Jensen, also acted as its produc ...

'' in the Netherlands. He has also starred as a guest on Blaire White's YouTube Channel. Many members of the trans community have been critical of Buck Angel's current appearances on conservative media and gender-critical media since 2021. In 2022, Angel began posting weekly videos to his YouTube channel and hosting a livestream every Wednesday with the help of his producer, Seth Carlson. In October 2023, Angel joined the Museum of Neon Art's "Light in the Dark: Queer Narratives in Neon" exhibition, participating in a

panel discussion A panel discussion, or simply a panel, involves a group of people gathered to discuss a topic in front of an audience, typically at scientific, business, or academic conferences, fan conventions, and on television shows. Panels usually include a ...

about LGBTQ+ connections to neon art and the

Glendale, California Glendale is a city located primarily in the Verdugo Mountains region, with a small portion in the San Fernando Valley, of Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is located about north of downtown Los Angeles. As of 2024, Glendale ha ...

community. Other panelists included museum

trustee Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, refers to anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility for the ...

Eric Lynxwiler, filmmaker Rachel Mason, neon artist Dani Bonnet, glendaleOUT member Paul Manchester, and activist Shant Jaltorossian of GALAS LGBTQ+ Armenian Society.

Other activities

British artist

Marc Quinn Marc Quinn (born 8 January 1964) is a British contemporary visual artist whose work includes sculpture, installation, and painting. Quinn explores "what it is to be human in the world today" through subjects including the body, genetics, ident ...

included a life-size sculpture of Angel in his global tour. Angel posed for Quinn's sculpture series on human transformations in 2010; the series was revealed at London's ''White Cube'' gallery. He was featured in four bronze sculptures, including two solo pieces and two pieces featuring Allanah Starr. The life-sized sculpture of Angel is now a permanent fixture at the Art Gallery of South Australia. In 2012, Angel created a dating website for trans men called BuckAngelDating.com because "there was still no special dating site catering to the unique needs of trans men." In 2015, Angel and Leon Mostovoy founded the

cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae that is widely accepted as being indigenous to and originating from the continent of Asia. However, the number of species is disputed, with as many as three species be ...

brand Pride Wellness, which would donate a dollar to charity from each product sold. They ended the venture in 2021, citing competition from big corporations. In 2020, Angel launched a cannabis delivery service, Wings Of Wellness, aimed at LGBTQ customers. In 2016, Angel partnered with Perfect Fit Brand to create a sex toy specifically for trans men. The product is meant to reduce

gender dysphoria Gender dysphoria (GD) is the distress a person experiences due to inconsistency between their gender identitytheir personal sense of their own genderand their sex assigned at birth. The term replaced the previous diagnostic label of gender i ...

and help trans men connect with their bodies and their sexuality.

Personal life

Angel is

bisexual Bisexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior toward both males and females. It may also be defined as the attraction to more than one gender, to people of both the same and different gender, or the attraction t ...

. Angel married

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

-based dominatrix Karin Winslow (known professionally as Ilsa Strix) in 1998. In 2001, Angel filed for divorce after Winslow left him for film director

Lana Wachowski Lana Wachowski (born Larry Wachowski, June 21, 1965) and Lilly Wachowski (born Andy Wachowski, December 29, 1967) are American film and television directors, writers and producers. The sisters are both trans women. Together known as the Wacho ...

, her client at the time. Angel met his second wife, body piercer Elayne, on a dating website in 2002. The two married in

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

on November 17, 2003. Elayne filed for divorce in May 2014. Angel claimed that Elayne had moved $500,000 from their joint bank account and requested $2,000 in monthly spousal support. To avoid alimony payments, Elayne claimed that their marriage should not have been legally recognized as Louisiana did not recognize same-sex marriage in 2003; Angel had not undergone genital reconstructive surgery, and his birth certificate was not updated to male until after their marriage.Two Trans Men Come Away With Major Court Victories
''The Advocate''. August 14, 2014. Retrieved August 16, 2014. In August 2014, the

California Superior Court Superior courts in California are the State court (United States), state trial courts with general jurisdiction to hear and decide any civil or criminal action which is not specially designated to be heard in some other court or before a governm ...

ruled that their marriage was valid due to the ambiguity in Louisiana's statute regarding

sex reassignment surgery Gender-affirming surgery (GAS) is a surgical procedure, or series of procedures, that alters a person's physical appearance and sexual characteristics to resemble those associated with their gender identity. The phrase is most often associat ...

, which might include the " top surgery" that Angel had already received. Angel later married his third wife, the artist and director Rachel Mason. In February 2021, Angel was a witness to the shooting of

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta (born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her image reinventions and versatility across the entertainment industry, she is an influ ...

's dog walker and the theft of two of Gaga's

French Bulldog The French Bulldog () is a French breed of companion dog or toy dog. It appeared in Paris in the mid-nineteenth century, apparently the result of cross-breeding of Toy Bulldogs imported from England and local Parisian ratters.Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

Awards and nominations

*In January 2007, Buck Angel won the

AVN Award The AVN Awards are List of movie awards, film awards sponsored and presented by the American trade magazine ''AVN (magazine), AVN'' (''Adult Video News'') annually to honor achievements in the global Sex industry, adult entertainment industry. ...

for Transsexual Performer of the Year. *In 2008, 2009, and 2010, he was nominated for the AVN Award for Transsexual Performer of the Year. *In April 2008, he won the Feminist Porn Award for Boundary Breaker of the Year. *In 2012, he won the Feminist Porn Award for his film ''Sexing The Transman XXX''. *In 2012, he won Best FTM Performer of the Year at the first

Transgender Erotica Awards The Transgender Erotica Awards, originally known as the Tranny Awards, are a group of movie awards presented annually in the United States recognizing performances and performers in the field of transgender pornography, with an emphasis on ero ...

. *In 2015, he won the PORyes Award (Feminist Pornfilmpreis Europe) in Berlin. *In 2015, he won the Ida Feldman Award at the 23rd Brazil Mix Festival. *In 2016, he was given an Honorary Award at the Tel Aviv Film Festival. *In 2017, he won the

XBIZ Award XBIZ Awards, renamed as XMAs Awards from 2025 onwards, are given annually to honor "individuals, companies, performers and products that play an essential part in the growth and success of adult films". They have been described by XBIZ publisher ...

for Specialty Product/Line of the Year. *In 2017, he won the Outstanding Innovation Award at the AVN "O" Awards. *In 2017, Angel and Valentina Nappi won the AVN Award for Best Transsexual Scene for the film ''Girl/Boy 2.''

Partial list of works

Adult films

*2004: ''Buck's Beaver'' *2005: ''The Adventures of Buck Naked'' *2005: ''Cirque Noir'' *2005: ''Allanah Starr's Big Boob Adventures'' *2006: ''Buck Off'' *2006: ''V for Vagina'' *2006: ''The Buck Stops Here'' *2007: ''Even More Bang for Your Buck Vol.1'' *2008: ''Even More Bang for Your Buck Vol.2'' *2008: ''Buckback Mountain'' *2009: ''Ultimate Fucking Club Vol. 1'' *2009: ''Ultimate Fucking Club Vol.2'' *2010–15: ''Sexing The Transman XXX Series'' *2016: ''Girl/Boy'' (Evil Angel)

Documentaries

*2008: ''NAKED'' *2012: ''Sexing the Transman'' *2013: ''Mr. Angel'' *2016: '' The Trans List'' (HBO) *2016: ''Finding Kim'' *2016: ''BLOWN''

Others

* 1993: Music video of "Cursed Female" by

Porno for Pyros Porno for Pyros was an American alternative rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1992, following the first break-up of Jane's Addiction. The band currently consists of Jane's Addiction members Perry Farrell (vocals) and Stephen Perki ...

* 2015: "Technical Difficulties of Intimacy", short film * 2016: Music video of "Bi" by Alicia Champion * 2016: Music video of "Shivers are Proof" by Loki Starfish

References

External links

* *
Video-Interview with Pictures as a woman part 1

Interview part 2

Interview part 3
{{DEFAULTSORT:Angel, Buck American pornographic film producers 1962 births Bisexual male pornographic film actors Bisexual businesspeople Living people American LGBTQ businesspeople LGBTQ people from California LGBTQ film producers American transgender male actors American transgender writers American bisexual actors American bisexual writers American transgender actors Transgender businesspeople Transgender male actors Transgender male writers Transgender pornographic film actors American sex educators American motivational speakers AVN Award winners Transgender Erotica Award winners 20th-century American LGBTQ people 21st-century American LGBTQ people American male pornographic film actors Businesspeople in the cannabis industry Transgender bisexual men Crime witnesses American founders LGBTQ conservatism in the United States