Herschel Savage (born Harvey Cohen on November 25, 1952) is an American former pornographic actor, director and stage actor who has appeared in over 1,000 adult films. In 2002, '' AVN'' ranked him 46th on their list of ''The Top 50 Porn Stars of All Time''. He has also been inducted into the AVN and

XRCO The X-Rated Critics Organization (XRCO) is a group of writers and editors from the American adult entertainment industry who each year present awards in recognition of achievement within the industry. After the controversy and criticism of the ...

Halls of Fame.

Early life

Savage was born to

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

parents on November 25, 1952 in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. His mother battled with obsessive-compulsive disorder. Growing up, he attended a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

synagogue. Savage saw his first adult film ''The Nun's Bad Habit'' at a movie theater in

Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and neighborhood in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd Street. Together with adjacent ...

. Savage began studying acting under

Broadway theatre Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences), 130 of the 144 extant and extinct Broadway venues use (used) the spelling ''Th ...

actress

Uta Hagen Uta Thyra Hagen (12 June 1919 – 14 January 2004) was a German-American actress and theatre practitioner. She originated the role of Martha in the 1962 Broadway premiere of ''Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'' by Edward Albee, who called her "a ...

and renowned acting teacher

Stella Adler Stella Adler (February 10, 1901 – December 21, 1992) was an American actress and acting teacher.
''

Savage was introduced to the adult film industry via the actor R. Bolla in 1976,Herschel Savage: The Evergreen Porn Star

The Rialto Report
November 3rd, 2013 He went on to become one of the biggest stars of the "

Golden Age of Porn https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MediaWiki_talk:Spam-whitelist/Archives/2018/01#Another_Worthy_Journal_Article_on_Wordpress ---> The term "Golden Age of Porn", or "porno chic", refers to a 15-year period (1969–1984) in commercial American porno ...

" in the 1970s and 1980s. Savage appeared in the 1978 classic ''

Debbie Does Dallas ''Debbie Does Dallas'' is a 1978 pornographic film starring Bambi Woods. The plot of the film focuses on a team of cheerleaders attempting to earn enough money to send the title character to Dallas, Texas to try out for the famous "Texas Cowgirl ...

'', for which he was paid about $150 a day. The film was a financial success, becoming one of the top five highest grossing adult films of all time. Some of the other films he has appeared in include ''Expose Me Now'', ''Bodies in Heat'', and ''Rambone Does Hollywood''. He created the stage name "Herschel Savage" with adult actor

Jamie Gillis Jamie Gillis (born Jamey Ira Gurman; April 20, 1943 – February 19, 2010) was an American pornographic actor, director and member of the AVN Hall of Fame. He was married to the porn actress Serena. Early life Gillis was born Jamey Ira Gurman ...

in an attempt to combine a 'nerdy

Jewish identity Jewish identity is the objective or subjective state of perceiving oneself as a Jew and as relating to being Jewish. Under a broader definition, Jewish identity does not depend on whether a person is regarded as a Jew by others, or by an exter ...

' with that of a stud. During the mid-1980s, Savage helped to organize sex workers in

San Francisco 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 ...

to fight for better wages. The initiative was ultimately abandoned after production studios threatened to

blacklist Blacklisting is the action of a group or authority compiling a blacklist (or black list) of people, countries or other entities to be avoided or distrusted as being deemed unacceptable to those making the list. If someone is on a blacklist, ...

performers. In 1986, Savage appeared in a cameo for the neo-noir crime film ''

52 Pick-Up ''52 Pick-Up'' is a 1986 American neo-noir crime film directed by John Frankenheimer and starring Roy Scheider, Ann-Margret, and Vanity. It is based on Elmore Leonard's 1974 novel of the same name, and is the second adaptation of it after '' The ...

'' starring

Roy Scheider Roy Richard Scheider (; November 10, 1932 – February 10, 2008) was an American actor and amateur boxer. Described by AllMovie as "one of the most unique and distinguished of all Hollywood actors", he gained fame for his leading and supporting ...

and

Ann-Margret Ann-Margret Olsson (born April 28, 1941) is a Swedish–American actress, singer, and dancer. As an actress and singer, she is credited as Ann-Margret. She is known for her roles in '' Pocketful of Miracles'' (1961), ''State Fair'' (1962), '' ...

. He was credited as "Harvey Cowen". In 1988, Savage was inducted into the

XRCO Hall of Fame The XRCO Hall of Fame lists well-known adult entertainment works and workers. The list is managed by X-Rated Critics Organization and inducted annually during the XRCO Award The XRCO Awards are given by the American X-Rated Critics Organizat ...

."XRCO's Hot 'n' Horny Heart-On Awards!", ''Hustler Erotic Video Guide'' Vol. 3, No. 5, September 1988, pp. 8-9. That same year, he left pornography to work in sales and video distribution. He returned to performing in 1997. Savage appeared as a guest during the fifth season of the NBC sitcom '' Just Shoot Me'', which aired on February 1, 2001. In 2003, he performed a stand-up routine on an episode of the

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early ...

series ''

Family Business A family business is a commercial organization in which decision-making is influenced by multiple generations of a family, related by blood or marriage or adoption, who has both the ability to influence the vision of the business and the willingn ...

''. Savage portrayed a detective in the 2008 parody film ''

The Texas Vibrator Massacre ''The Texas Vibrator Massacre'' is a 2008 pornographic horror film written and directed by Rob Rotten. It is based on the 1974 film '' The Texas Chain Saw Massacre''. Plot While traveling through Texas (in the vicinity of where several bodies ha ...

''. He appeared alongside other adult performers in the documentary series ''After Porn Ends 3'' in 2018. To date, Savage has appeared in more than 1000 adult films. He has also been inducted into the

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.Neil Simon Marvin Neil Simon (July 4, 1927 – August 26, 2018) was an American playwright, screenwriter and author. He wrote more than 30 plays and nearly the same number of movie screenplays, mostly film adaptations of his plays. He has received mo ...

's ''

The Prisoner of Second Avenue ''The Prisoner of Second Avenue'' is a 1975 American black comedy film directed and produced by Melvin Frank and starring Jack Lemmon and Anne Bancroft. The film was adapted from the 1971 play by Neil Simon. Plot The story revolves around the es ...

''. In January 2013, he portrayed pornographic film director

Gerard Damiano Gerardo Rocco "Gerard" Damiano (August 4, 1928 – October 25, 2008 ) was an American director of adult films. He wrote and directed the 1972 cult classic '' Deep Throat,'' which starred Linda Susan Boreman ''aka'' Linda Lovelace. He also dir ...

in the Los Angeles production of '' The Deep Throat Sex Scandal'', a play described as the "theatrical telling of the back story of Deep Throat." His performance drew positive reviews. Writing for ''

The Los Angeles Times ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

'', Charlotte Stoudt called Savage's portrayal of Damiano "surprisingly cogent". Myron Meisel from ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly larg ...

'' remarked that he "engenders endearing empathy as the amiably deluded director Damiano." Steven Leigh Morris from '' LA Weekly'' deemed his performance "dramatic comedy terra firma". Savage credited the play with "renewing islove for performing on stage." Savage appeared as himself in ''Pretty Filthy'', a musical about the adult film industry. He also performed in the interactive dinner show

Joni and Gina's Wedding ''Joni and Gina's Wedding'' is an interactive dinner theater comedy, conceived by Marianne Basford and written by Ann Lippert and Marianne Basford, under the production company Hilarity Ensues. It was originally produced by Basford and directed by ...

. In July 2016, Savage premiered ''Porn Star: My Life In The Sex Industry'', an autobiographical

one-man show A solo performance, sometimes referred to as a one-man show or one-woman show, features a single person telling a story for an audience, typically for the purpose of entertainment. This type of performance comes in many varieties, including auto ...

, which he successfully funded through a Kickstarter campaign.

Personal life

Savage is a practicing Buddhist. He resides in California.

Select performances

Film

Television

Theater

Awards

References

External links

* * * *
The Rialto Report"Herschel Savage - The Evergreen Porn Star"
November 3, 2013 - new audio podcast interview with Herschel Savage {{DEFAULTSORT:Savage, Herschel 1952 births Living people American people of Russian-Jewish descent American male pornographic film actors American pornographic film directors People from Bensonhurst, Brooklyn Pornographic film actors from New York (state)