Sean Michaels (born February 20, 1958) is an American

pornographic actor 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 di ...

, model, director and trade union leader. In 2002, '' AVN'' ranked him 14th on their list of ''The Top 50 Porn Stars of All Time''. Michaels has also been inducted into the AVN, NightMoves, and XRCO Halls of Fame.

Early life

Michaels was born Andre Allen and raised in Brooklyn,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * ...

. He attended

Boys and Girls High School Boys and Girls High School, the oldest public high school in Brooklyn, is a comprehensive high school in Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York, United States. The school is located at 1700 Fulton Street. As of the 2014–15 school year, the ...

, the oldest public high school in Brooklyn. After moving to the West Coast, he worked as a nurse for an urgent care facility in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles. He also did

runway According to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and takeoff of aircraft". Runways may be a man-made surface (often asphalt, concrete, ...

and print

modeling A model is an informative representation of an object, person or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin ''modulus'', a measure. Models c ...

prior to entering the industry.

Career

Michaels started out in the adult industry as a nude model. Dissatisfied with the portrayal of black men in porn, he began performing in adult films in 1989. He chose his porn name by combining the names from two celebrities he admired: his last name refers to

Michael Jordan Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials MJ, is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. His biography on the official NBA website states: "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the g ...

and "Sean" is a reference to Sean Connery (whom Michaels described in an interview as "a man's man, on and off camera"). Michaels gained recognition after appearing in John Leslie's 1990 film ''Oh What A Night''. In 1996, he started Sean Michaels Productions, which was changed to Sean Michaels International the following year when

Anabolic Video Anabolic Video was an American pornographic movie studio headquartered in Chatsworth, California. The studio was a pioneer of gonzo pornography, and is considered one of the most successful gonzo producers. They have since gone out of business. ...

began handling its distribution. In 2003, Michaels was issued a cease and desist order by

World Wrestling Entertainment World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vari ...

(WWE) on the use of his name due to the similarity it had to

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...

wrestler Shawn Michaels. Michaels name was already registered as a trademark, while Shawn Michaels had not registered his moniker. Along with

Lisa Ann Lisa Ann Corpora, known professionally as Lisa Ann, is an American pornographic film actress and radio personality. She has also worked as a director and talent agent. She parodied former Governor of Alaska Sarah Palin in six adult films and a ...

and

Nikki Benz Alla Montchak (born December 11, 1981), known professionally as Nikki Benz, is a Ukrainian-born Canadian pornographic actress. She was also a 2010 Penthouse Pet who was selected as the 2011 Pet of the Year. Early life Benz was born in Mariupol ...

, Michaels hosted the

XRCO Award The XRCO Awards are given by the American X-Rated Critics Organization annually to people working in adult entertainment and it is the only adult industry awards show reserved exclusively for industry members. Once every calendar year, XRCO ...

s in April 2010. In 2018, he performed in his first bisexual scene for Kick Ass Pictures. In regards to the scene, Michaels commented, "I feel strongly about doing the things you want to do in life. Cuckold fans have been asking me for years to do bi scenes, and I'm happy to be making this move. I believe it's important for people to grow sexually in any way they choose."

Advocacy and impact

In 2016, Michaels was elected President of the Adult Performance Artists Guild, then the Adult Performers Actors Guild (APAG). As President, he announced the APAG would push to raise the legal age to perform in adult films from 18 to 21, commenting that "it's 21 years old to drink, so you should have to be 21 to do porn." In 2018, drawing criticism from APAG members who saw him as reducing his participation in the union, Michaels was replaced in the role by

Alana Evans Alana Evans is an American pornographic actress. She was inducted into the AVN Hall of Fame in 2015 and the XRCO Hall of Fame in 2019. Career Evans entered the sex work industry after her husband was injured in his job. She became president ...

, who said that Michaels had been "blackballed" in the pornographic industry due to his guild participation. In the May 1997 issue of

Vibe magazine ''Vibe'' is an American music and entertainment magazine founded by producers David Salzman and Quincy Jones. The publication predominantly features R&B and hip hop music artists, actors and other entertainers. After shutting down production ...

, he was called "the preeminent force in interracial erotic entertainment." In her book ''A Taste for Brown Sugar: Black Women in Pornography'',

women's studies Women's studies is an academic field that draws on feminist and interdisciplinary methods to place women's lives and experiences at the center of study, while examining social and cultural constructs of gender; systems of privilege and oppressi ...

scholar Mireille Miller-Young notes how Michaels's portrayal of "suave and professional" characters in his films has challenged the stereotyping of black men as "sexual beasts" in pornography and expanded opportunities for black performers.

Violet Blue Violet Blue is an American journalist, author, editor, advisor, and educator. Blue wrote a weekly sex column for the ''San Francisco Chronicle'' until 2010. In her podcast, Open Source Sex, she reads erotica and discusses topics such as feti ...

shares a similar sentiment in ''The Ultimate Guide to Adult Videos'', calling Michaels a "major force in changing the face and attitudes of the adult industry towards black performers." Blue concluded by dubbing him "the most famous black man to ever appear in porn."

Select appearances

Awards

*1995

AVN Hall of Fame The ''AVN'' (''Adult Video News'') Hall of Fame has honored people for their work in the adult entertainment industry since 1995.NightMoves Award The NightMoves Awards are given annually in the pornographic film industry by ''NightMoves'', an Oldsmar, Florida-based magazine which was first published in 1987 and initially titled ''Sports South''. The awards began in 1993 and were initially t ...

– Best Actor (Fan's Choice) *2003 NightMoves Award – Best Director (Fan's Choice) *2007 NightMoves Hall of Fame

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Michaels, Sean 1958 births African-American male models African-American models American male models African-American nurses American nurses African-American pornographic film actors American male pornographic film actors American pornographic film directors American pornographic film producers Living people Male nurses People from Brooklyn Pornographic film actors from New York (state) Boys High School (Brooklyn) alumni Film directors from New York City Transgender Erotica Award winners 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American people