Charles M. "Chuck" Holmes (May 5, 1945 – September 9, 2000) was an American adult film producer, businessman and

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

. He founded

Falcon Studios Falcon Entertainment (also known as Falcon Studios), a United States company based in San Francisco, California, is one of the world's largest producers of gay pornography. Founded in 1971 by Chuck Holmes, Archived by web.archive.org. the comp ...

in 1971.Staff report (October 24, 2000)
Transitions: Chuck Holmes.
'' The Advocate''

Life and career

Holmes was born in

Terre Haute, Indiana Terre Haute ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Vigo County, Indiana, United States, about 5 miles east of the state's western border with Illinois. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 60,785 and its metropolitan area had a ...

. He earned a degree in Business Administration from

Indiana State University Indiana State University (ISU) is a public university in Terre Haute, Indiana. It was founded in 1865 and offers over 100 undergraduate majors and more than 75 graduate and professional programs. Indiana State is classified among "D/PU: Doctor ...

. After working in sales for a construction firm that took him to

San Francisco, California San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

, he began Falcon Studios, a

gay pornography Gay pornography is the representation of sexual activity between males. Its primary goal is sexual arousal in its audience. Softcore gay pornography also exists; it at one time constituted the genre, and may be produced as beefcake pornogra ...

production and distribution business. He had named it Falcon after the bird of prey. At Falcon "there is generally someone who is the predator and someone who's the prey, but not in a harmful way", he explained.Jeffrey Escoffier The business was largely

mail-order Mail order is the buying of goods or services by mail delivery. The buyer places an order for the desired products with the merchant through some remote methods such as: * Sending an order form in the mail * Placing a telephone call * Placing a ...

and he was among the first to make the media switch from film to

videocassette Videotape is magnetic tape used for storing video and usually sound in addition. Information stored can be in the form of either an analog or digital signal. Videotape is used in both video tape recorders (VTRs) and, more commonly, videocassette ...

.Stabile, Michael (September 16, 2011
Falcon Studios Turns 40.
"

Adult Video News ''Adult Video News'' (also called ''AVN'' or ''AVN Magazine'') is an American trade magazine that covers the adult video industry. ''The New York Times'' notes that ''AVN'' is to pornographic films what '' Billboard'' is to records. ''AVN'' spon ...

"Van Meter, William (December 14, 2011
A Falcon Film
"

Out Magazine ''Out'' is an American LGBTQ news, fashion, entertainment, and lifestyle magazine, with the highest circulation of any LGBTQ monthly publication in the United States. It presents itself in an editorial manner similar to ''Details'', ''Esquire'', ...

" Holmes later directed his fortune toward philanthropy, funding

HIV/AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ...

outreach programs, as well as San Francisco Community Center Project,

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...

Global Green Global Green is the American affiliate of Green Cross International, an international non-governmental organization founded by former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev in 1993 to "foster a global value shift toward a sustainable and secure future. ...

Sierra Club The Sierra Club is an environmental organization with chapters in all 50 United States, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico. The club was founded on May 28, 1892, in San Francisco, California, by Scottish-American preservationist John Muir, who be ...

, The Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund and the

Human Rights Campaign The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) is an American LGBTQ advocacy group. It is the largest LGBTQ political lobbying organization within the United States. Based in Washington, D.C., the organization focuses on protecting and expanding rights for LGB ...

. He was also active in supporting political campaigns both locally in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

and at the national level for the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

. Holmes died from liver failure, a complication of AIDS. The Charles M. Holmes building at the

San Francisco LGBT Community Center The San Francisco LGBT Community Center, also known as the SF LGBT Center, is a nonprofit organization serving the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer community of San Francisco, California, and nearby communities, located at 1800 Mark ...

is named in his honor.Engardio, Joel P., and Horn, Lisa (February 27, 2000)
The House That Chuck Built.
''

San Francisco Weekly ''SF Weekly'' was a free alternative weekly newspaper founded in the 1970s in San Francisco, California. It was distributed every Thursday, and was published by the San Francisco Print Media Company. The paper has won national journalism awards, ...

'' ''Seed Money: The Chuck Holmes Story

a documentary on Holmes and his complicated relationship with the gay rights movement, was released in 2015.

References

1945 births 2000 deaths Businesspeople from the San Francisco Bay Area American pornographers Sexuality in San Francisco LGBT culture in San Francisco 20th-century American businesspeople AIDS-related deaths in California California Democrats {{US-film-producer-stub