Melody Damayo (born July 3, 1973
), known professionally as Mimi Miyagi, is a
Filipino-American
Filipino Americans ( fil, Mga Pilipinong Amerikano) are Americans of Filipino ancestry. Filipinos and other Asian ethnicities in North America were first documented in the 16th century as slaves and prisoners on ships sailing to and from New ...
model,
film director, and former
pornographic actress
A pornographic film actor or actress, pornographic performer, adult entertainer, or porn star is a person who performs sex acts in video that is usually characterized as a pornographic movie. Such videos tend to be made in a number of dis ...
.
In 2011, ''
Complex
Complex commonly refers to:
* Complexity, the behaviour of a system whose components interact in multiple ways so possible interactions are difficult to describe
** Complex system, a system composed of many components which may interact with each ...
'' magazine ranked her at #12 in their list of "The Top 50 Hottest Asian Porn Stars of All Time".
Early life and education
Melody Damayo was born in
Davao City
Davao City, officially the City of Davao ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Dabaw; ), is a first class highly urbanized city in the Davao Region, Philippines. The city has a total land area of , making it the largest city in the Philippines in terms of lan ...
,
the second of four children, to conservative
Seventh-day Adventist
The Seventh-day Adventist Church is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sabbath, and ...
parents. When she was six, she moved to the United States with her parents, and she grew up in
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
.
Damayo went back to
Mindanao
Mindanao ( ) ( Jawi: مينداناو) is the second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the island is part of an island group of ...
for
high school
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
, and her family enrolled her in a Seventh-day Adventist academy (
Mindanao Mission Academy
Mindanao Mission Academy (or MMA) is a private Seventh-day Adventist high school in Poblacion, Manticao, Misamis Oriental, Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republ ...
)
in
Misamis Oriental, hoping she would absorb
Filipino value
Filipino values are social constructs within Filipino culture which define that which is socially considered to be desirable. The Filipino value system describes "the commonly shared and traditionally established system of values underlying Fil ...
s. After finishing high school, she enrolled in an Adventist college in
Bukidnon
Bukidnon(), officially the Province of Bukidnon ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Bukidnon; fil, Lalawigan ng Bukidnon; hil, Kapuroan sang Bukidnon; Binukid and Higaonon: ''Probinsya ta Bukidnon''), is a landlocked province in the Philippines located in the ...
, studying
finance and
economics
Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services.
Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics analyzes ...
at
Mountain View College,
but she dropped out in her second year. She says she had been a
disc jockey
A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music festival), mobile ...
on the
college radio station
and had decided on a career in
show business
Show business, sometimes shortened to show biz or showbiz (since 1945), is a vernacular term for all aspects of the entertainment industry.''Oxford English Dictionary'' 2nd Ed. (1989) From the business side (including managers, agents, produce ...
.
Damayo returned to
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
and obtained a scholarship to the American College for Fashion Merchandising, but, once again, she dropped out without graduating
when she had run out of money and began looking for jobs. By age 18, she had become a Certified Master
Makeup Artist
A make-up artist, also called a makeup artist, and often shortened to MUA, is an artist whose medium is the human body, applying makeup and prosthetics on others for theatre, television, film, fashion, magazines and other similar productions incl ...
at the makeup artistry school at FOX studios in
Hollywood.
Adult film career and mainstream appearances
She took some part-time gigs as a
go-go dancer
Go-go dancers are dancers who are employed to entertain crowds at nightclubs or other venues where music is played. Go-go dancing originated in the early 1960s at the French bar Whisky a Gogo located in Juan-les-Pins. The bar's name was taken ...
at an Asian nightclub in
Beverly Hills
Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. ...
, before transitioning into
adult films and nude modeling.
Damayo says she saw an advertisement for nude models and answered it. She took the name "Mimi", the childhood nickname given by her
grandmother
Grandparents, individually known as grandmother and grandfather, are the parents of a person's father or mother – paternal or maternal. Every sexually-reproducing living organism who is not a genetic chimera has a maximum of four genetic gra ...
. "Miyagi" was derived from the character
Mr. Miyagi in the film ''
The Karate Kid
''The Karate Kid'' is a 1984 American martial arts drama film written by Robert Mark Kamen and directed by John G. Avildsen. It is the first installment in the ''Karate Kid'' franchise, and stars Ralph Macchio, Pat Morita, Elisabeth Shue an ...
'',
although she has nothing to do with him. She says she cloaked her actual ethnicity in Asian
mysticism
Mysticism is popularly known as becoming one with God or the Absolute, but may refer to any kind of ecstasy or altered state of consciousness which is given a religious or spiritual meaning. It may also refer to the attainment of insight in ...
.
In 1996, she retired from adult film acting and moved to
Henderson, Nevada. She married a former professional football player. She hired a consultant to set up a website (MimiMiyagi.com), then got embroiled in a legal battle over control of the
domain name
A domain name is a string that identifies a realm of administrative autonomy, authority or control within the Internet. Domain names are often used to identify services provided through the Internet, such as websites, email services and more. As ...
.
In 1998, she appeared in an ''
America Undercover
''America Undercover'' is a series of documentaries that aired on the cable television network HBO from 1983 through 2006. Within the series are several sub-series, such as ''Autopsy'', ''Real Sex'', and ''Taxicab Confessions''.
History
The seri ...
''
documentary entitled ''Strippers: The Naked Stages''.
She was the
publisher
Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...
of the erotic American Asian magazine ''Oriental Dolls''
(now known as ''Asian Hotties'').
In 2001, after a
divorce
Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...
, she quietly dedicated herself to several humanitarian
and animal volunteer organizations.
Nearly
bankrupt
Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...
ed by her divorce, in September 2003, "Mimi" came out of retirement and appeared in the adult film ''Happy Ending''
(not to be confused with ''
Happy Endings'' later released by
Lions Gate Entertainment).
She again transitioned out of the
adult film industry
Pornographic films (pornos), erotic films, sex films, and 18+ films are films that present sexually explicit subject matter in order to arouse and satisfy the viewer. Pornographic films present sexual fantasies and usually include erotical ...
in 2007 and starting acting in mainstream movies like ''Little Bruno''. She also had a
cameo role
A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly ei ...
in the 2013 mainstream movie ''Speed Dragon''.
/ref>
In 2012, she became a fashion reporter for ''Eyestrane'', an online magazine
An online magazine is a magazine published on the Internet, through bulletin board systems and other forms of public computer networks. One of the first magazines to convert from a print magazine format to being online only was the computer mag ...
focusing on Asian talent internationally.
Political career
On May 12, 2006, she filed as a Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
gubernatorial candidate in the state of Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...
,birth name
A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth r ...
Melody Damayo,stalking
Stalking is unwanted and/or repeated surveillance by an individual or group toward another person. Stalking behaviors are interrelated to harassment and intimidation and may include following the victim in person or monitoring them. The term ...
legislation.2003 California gubernatorial recall election
The 2003 California gubernatorial recall election was a special election permitted under California state law. It resulted in voters replacing incumbent Democratic Governor Gray Davis with Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger. The recall effort spa ...
. On May 16, 2006, her campaign was endorsed by the liberal blog Wonkette
''Wonkette'' is an American online magazine of topical and political gossip, established in 2004 by Gawker Media and founding editor Ana Marie Cox. The editor since 2012 is Rebecca Schoenkopf, formerly of ''OC Weekly''. ''Wonkette'' covers U.S. ...
.Libertarian Party
Active parties by country
Defunct parties by country
Organizations associated with Libertarian parties
See also
* Liberal parties by country
* List of libertarian organizations
* Lists of political parties
Lists of political part ...
.
References
External links
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Miyagi, Mimi
1973 births
Living people
Visayan people
American female adult models
American pornographic film actresses
American pornographic film actors of Filipino descent
Filipino emigrants to the United States
Nevada Libertarians
Nevada Republicans
People from Davao City
Pornographic film actors from California
21st-century American women