Rick Cassidy (born Richard Edward Ciezniak Jr., July 22, 1943 – December 23, 2013) was an American

pornographic actor A pornographic film actor or actress, pornographic performer, adult entertainer, or porn star is a person who performs sex acts on video that is usually characterized as a pornographic film. Such videos tend to be made in a number of distinct ...

, model and

bodybuilder Bodybuilding is the practice of progressive resistance exercise to build, control, and develop one's muscles via hypertrophy. An individual who engages in this activity is referred to as a bodybuilder. It is primarily undertaken for aesthetic ...

. He appeared in both straight and gay porn films, using the name Jim Cassidy for the latter, during the early 1970s. Born and raised in

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, Cassidy spent two years in the

Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...

before moving to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

where he modeled for

physique photographer Physique photography is a tradition of photography of nude or semi-nude (usually muscular) men which was largely popular between the early 20th century and the 1960s. Physique photography originated with the physical culture and bodybuilding movem ...

Jim French. In 1969, he relocated to

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, ...

where he was approached by photographer and gay filmmaker Pat Rocco to pose for various gay magazines. Cassidy made his screen debut in Rocco's documentary ''Mondo Rocco'' (1970). Shortly afterwards, he appeared as the host in ''Inside A.M.G.'' (1970), a documentary about the male erotic photography studio

Athletic Model Guild The Athletic Model Guild, or AMG, was a physique photography studio founded by Bob Mizer in December 1945. During those post-war years, United States censorship laws allowed women, but not men, to appear in various states of undress in what were r ...

. That same year, Cassidy shot his first hardcore scene. The 8mm loop called ''Drilled Deep'' featured another rising gay porn star

Dakota Dakota may refer to: * Dakota people, a sub-tribe of the Sioux ** Dakota language, their language Dakota may also refer to: Places United States * Dakota, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Dakota, Illinois, a town * Dakota, Minnesota ...

, with whom Cassidy later appeared in more films and magazines. The duo became very popular among the gay community and was referred to as the "

Nelson Eddy Nelson Ackerman Eddy (June 29, 1901 – March 6, 1967) was an American actor and baritone singer who appeared in 19 musical films during the 1930s and 1940s, as well as in opera and on the concert stage, radio, television, and in nightclubs ...

and

Jeanette MacDonald Jeanette Anna MacDonald (June 18, 1903 – January 14, 1965) was an American soprano and actress best remembered for her musical films of the 1930s with Maurice Chevalier (''The Love Parade'', ''Love Me Tonight'', ''The Merry Widow (1934 film) ...

of gay porn". Cassidy continued making more films during the first half of the 1970s, mostly straight, and also starred in several stage plays. By the end of 1974, he went on a hiatus from porn and kept appearing only in small parts in various softcore films. Cassidy returned to porn in 1984. He appeared in a handful of straight films alongside the biggest porn stars of that time such as

Marilyn Chambers Marilyn Ann Taylor (née Briggs; April 22, 1952 – April 12, 2009), known professionally as Marilyn Chambers, was an American pornographic actress, exotic dancer, model, actress, singer and vice-presidential candidate. She was known f ...

and

Ginger Lynn Ginger Lynn Allen (born December 14, 1962) is an American pornographic actress and model who was a premier adult-entertainment star of the 1980s. She also had minor roles in various B movies. '' Adult Video News'' ranked her at #7 of the 50 ...

. However, after having shot the film ''

New Wave Hookers ''New Wave Hookers'' is a 1985 pornographic film that established the alt porn genre. It featured a cast of established performers from the era and was followed by a number of sequels and a remake. The movie starred Ginger Lynn, Desiree Lane, Kr ...

'' (1985) with then underage actress

Traci Lords Traci Elizabeth Lords (born Nora Louise Kuzma; May 7, 1968) is an American actress and singer. As a 15-year-old high-school dropout, she used Identity document forgery, fake identity documents to enter the sex industry, where she began appearin ...

, which resulted in a big scandal and investigation of her co-stars, Cassidy decided to retire from porn for good. He moved back to Pennsylvania and worked as a

real estate agent Real estate agents and real estate brokers are people who represent sellers or buyers of real estate or real property. While a broker may work independently, an agent usually works under a licensed broker to represent clients. Brokers and age ...

. Cassidy died in 2013 at the age of 70.

Career

Born and raised in

, Cassidy spent two years in the

. After he moved to

in the late 1960s, Cassidy met the physique photographer and founder of Colt Studio, Jim French, for whom he posed in leather and motorcycle gear. In 1969, he moved to

and was approached by photographer and gay filmmaker Pat Rocco who gave him the stage name Jim Cassidy and suggested him to enter the Groovy Guy Contest held by ''

The Advocate An advocate is a professional in the field of law. The Advocate, The Advocates or Advocate may also refer to: Magazines * The Advocate (magazine), ''The Advocate'' (magazine), an LGBT magazine based in the United States * ''The Harvard Advocate' ...

'' magazine. Sponsored by Rocco's company Bizarre Productions, Cassidy came in third. He continued his work with Rocco posing for a number of local gay magazines and making his first gay scene. Originally shot as a

screen test A screen test is a method of determining the suitability of an actor or actress for performing on film or in a particular role. It is typically a secondary or later stage in the audition process. The performer is generally given a scene, or sel ...

, the scene was later featured in the documentary ''Mondo Rocco'' (1970) which consisted of various short films. Cassidy made his first hardcore scene for a short

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 ...

-themed film ''Drilled Deep''. Produced by Scott Masters, the 8mm loop, originally to be called ''Wrong Number'', was about a telephone repair man fixing a phone. Cassidy thought the story was a bit clichéd, so he wrote a short script the night before the shoot. The cast consisted of three people: Cassidy, Judy Coleman and another rising gay porn star

whom Cassidy claimed as an old friend whose gym he worked out at. The duo later appeared together in two more scenes and shot numerous magazine pictorials. They were referred to as the "

and

of gay porn". Around the same time, Monroe Beehler approached Cassidy to appear as the host and narrator of his pseudo-documentary ''Inside A.M.G.'' (1970) about

Bob Mizer Robert Henry Mizer (March 27, 1922 – May 12, 1992) was an American photographer and filmmaker, known for pushing boundaries of depicting male homoerotic content with his work in the mid 20th century. Biography Bob Mizer's earliest photograph ...

's male erotic photography studio

. Cassidy found Mizer's treatment of models disconcerting and the idea of working in gay porn unappealing. After finishing the documentary, Cassidy went on to make numerous straight hardcore films before returning to gay porn. Cassidy kept on making more films and appearing in magazines. He constantly worked for the SPREE magazine and performed in their stage play ''Casting Couch''. By the end of 1973, he was asked by the editor of the gay magazine '' In Touch'' to write a regular column on bodybuilding. "The In Touch Body" articles were published monthly for a period of one year. In the summer of 1974, he appeared in the Los Angeles production of

Jerry Douglas Gerald Calvin Douglas (born May 28, 1956) is an American Dobro and lap steel guitar player and record producer. He is widely regarded as "perhaps the finest Dobro player in contemporary acoustic music, and certainly the most celebrated and prol ...

's play '' Tubstrip'', alongside Casey Donovan. By the end of the year, Cassidy went on hiatus from making porn films and focused on his job as a real estate salesman. However, he maintained appearing in magazines and small parts in films.Jones, Marvin. "Jim Cassidy Interview", ''In Touch'', 1974.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cassidy, Rick 1943 births 2013 deaths American actors in gay pornographic films American male bodybuilders American male adult models American male pornographic film actors American people of Czech descent American sailors People from Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania Pornographic film actors from Pennsylvania United States Navy sailors 20th-century American sportsmen

Career

See also

References

External links