Lorelei Lee
Lee in 2006
Born (1981-03-02) March 2, 1981[1]
Upstate New York[2]
Other names[1]
EducationSan Francisco State University
New York University (MFA)
Cornell University Law School (JD)
Height5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)[1]

Lorelei Lee (born March 2, 1981) is an American pornographic actor and writer. Lee identifies as non-binary.

Biography

Lorelei Lee debuted in the sex industry at the age of 19,[3][4] deriving their stage name from Marilyn Monroe's character in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.[5][6][7]

They graduated from San Francisco State University in 2008,[3] and later pursued a master's degree in creative writing at New York University.[3] They have been awarded a National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts "youngARTS Scholarship".[8][9] They are best known for their performances as a fetish and bondage model, particularly on the pornographic site Kink.com, where they have also worked as a director.[10]

In 2006, they wrote the centerfold text for the Sara Thrustra's Ten Pictures and Two Pin-Ups calendar.[11] Along with fellow Kink model and director Princess Donna, Lee was the subject of Brian Lilla's 2007 independent film Tale of Two Bondage Models, which appeared at the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival.[12][13] In 2008, they appeared in the documentary 9to5 – Days in Porn[14] and also toured nationally as part of the "Sex Workers' Art Show" with other prominent members of the kink and sex-positivity community.[15][16] In 2009, Lee appeared in Graphic Sexual Horror, a documentary about Insex, a now-defunct bondage website.[17][18]

Later that year, they were the subject and lead actress of the short movie Lorelei Lee, which was directed by Simon Grudzen and Jesse Kerman and shown at the Big Sky Documentary Film Festival;[19] the film received multiple awards at the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, including Best Directing, Best Original Score and Best Use of Social Issue/Political Genre.[20] In 2010, Lee published an essay, "I'm Leaving You" in Off the Set: Porn Stars and Their Partners, a book of documentary photography by Paul Sarkis that explores the off-screen romantic relationships of ten couples who perform in porn, and which features photos of Lorelei with their partner at the time.[21]

In May 2011, Variety announced the production of About Cherry, an independent movie written by Lee alongside Stephen Elliott, directed by the same Elliott and starring James Franco, Heather Graham and Lili Taylor.[10][22][23] The film premiered at the 2012 Berlin International Film Festival.[24]

Hustler Magazine ranked Lee at eight on their 2011 list of the Top 10 Smartest Porn Stars.[25]

In 2012 Lee, along with adult performers Isis Love and Princess Donna, was the subject of a documentary film about the website Kink.com, Public Sex, Private Lives, which was, in part, funded by donations made to Kickstarter.[26][27]

As of 2016, Lee teaches writing at New York University and at the San Francisco Center for Sex and Culture.[28]

Lee identifies as non-binary[29] and queer and has been married to a trans man since 2012.[30]

In 2020, Lee graduated magna cum laude with their JD from Cornell Law School and was inducted into the Order of the Coif. They became a Justice Catalyst Fellow at the Cornell Law School Gender Justice Clinic in 2021.[31]

Involvement in Milk Nymphos trial

Lee starred in John Stagliano's enema-focused film Milk Nymphos, which in 2008 became the subject of a federal obscenity trial.[32][33][34][35] The case reached federal court in Washington, D.C., and, on July 16, 2010, Lee was expected to testify as a witness on behalf of the defense.[36] Citing concerns of personal safety, Lee requested to testify under their stage name; the prosecution objected, arguing that allowing them to do so "gives some air of legitimacy to the porn star" (which Lee later called "incredibly insulting") and that "they shouldn't be treated any differently than anyone else in this case".[37] The case was ultimately dismissed on July 16, 2010,[38] before Lee was scheduled to testify.[39]

Writing

1. “Cash/Consent, The War on Sex Work” (2019), an extensive essay reflecting their personal experience in the pornography industry [40]

Awards and nominations

Year Ceremony Result Category Work
2015 AVN Award[41] Nominated Best Director – Parody Barbarella: A Kinky Parody
Nominated Best Screenplay – Parody
Nominated Most Outrageous Sex Scene (with Dylan Ryan)
Nominated Best Web Director —
FSC Award[42] Won Woman of the Year —

References

  1. 1 2 3 Lorelei Lee at the Internet Adult Film Database
  2. ↑ Big Jonny (February 2, 2007). "Lorelei Lee". Drunk Cyclist. Retrieved June 12, 2013.
  3. 1 2 3 Kerry Burke & Rich Schapiro (October 12, 2009). "Meet Lorelei Lee, queen of porn and NYU master's degree student (fine arts, of course)". New York Daily News. Retrieved November 1, 2011.
  4. ↑ Molly Freedenberg (November 26, 2008). "I want to be a porn star when I grow up: Meet Lorelei Lee". San Francisco Bay Guardian.
  5. ↑ Chris Nieratko (January 2008). "Sleaze: Interviews – Lorelei Lee". Bizarre Magazine. Archived from the original on 2008-02-04. Retrieved 5 November 2011.
  6. ↑ "Inside Lorelei Lee". XRentDvd. March 3, 2007. Retrieved November 6, 2011.
  7. ↑ "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster. Retrieved 2010-10-18.
  8. ↑ "Graphic Sexual Horror Documentary | Characters". Retrieved November 1, 2011.
  9. ↑ Malia Schlaefer (May 12, 2009). "Art of Restraint feat. Lorelei Lee, Fivestar, & surprise celebrity guest". Femina Potens. Archived from the original on April 25, 2012. Retrieved November 11, 2011.
  10. 1 2 ""Cherry": Lorelei Lee writes about porn for a bigger screen". Gram Ponante. August 9, 2011.
  11. ↑ Kimberly Chun (February 7, 2007). "Splendor in the ass". San Francisco Bay Guardian. Retrieved November 5, 2011.
  12. ↑ "Tribeca Film Festival Catalog", 2008.
  13. ↑ Tristan Taormino (April 24, 2008). "The Princess and the Submissive". OC Weekly. Archived from the original on May 23, 2012. Retrieved November 1, 2011.
  14. ↑ "9 to 5: Days in Porn" (in German). Filmkritik. Retrieved November 6, 2011.
  15. ↑ Oscar Pascual (January 21, 2008). "Concert Review: Sex Workers' Art Show at Victoria Theatre; "Anal Beads Made of Money"". SF Weekly. Retrieved November 5, 2011.
  16. ↑ Amanda Hess (February 15, 2008). "The Money Shot – Onstage, sex workers exploit you". Washington City Paper. Retrieved November 5, 2011.
  17. ↑ "Graphic Sexual Horror | Characters". Retrieved November 1, 2011.
  18. ↑ Bryan Byun (August 20, 2010). "Graphic Sexual Horror: Special Edition". DVD Verdict Review. Retrieved November 1, 2011.
  19. ↑ "Big Sky Documentary Film Festival 2010: Lorelei Lee". BigSky. Archived from the original on April 25, 2012. Retrieved November 1, 2011.
  20. ↑ "2009 Doc Challenge Jury Winners Announced". Doc Challenge. Archived from the original on May 22, 2009. Retrieved November 1, 2011.
  21. ↑ "Off the Set: Porn Stars and Their Partners". Sundance Channel. February 16, 2010. Archived from the original on 2010-03-24. Retrieved December 13, 2011.
  22. ↑ Jeff Sneider (May 18, 2011). "Franco, Graham, Patel board indie 'Cherry'". Variety. Retrieved November 1, 2011.
  23. ↑ Peter Warren (May 19, 2011). "Lorelei Lee: The Next Diablo Cody?". AVN. Archived from the original on April 13, 2014. Retrieved November 1, 2011.
  24. ↑ Bob Minzesheimer (February 27, 2012). "You've got (real) mail: Letters from writers". USA Today. Retrieved June 4, 2012.
  25. ↑ "Top 10 Smartest Porn Stars". Hustler Magazine. November 5, 2011. Archived from the original on August 25, 2010. Retrieved November 3, 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  26. ↑ "Public Sex, Private Lives - The New Documentary That Will Challenge Everything You Know About Porn". Intent Blog. May 2, 2013. Archived from the original on January 19, 2020. Retrieved May 31, 2013.
  27. ↑ "Documentary on Kink.com Stars Seeks Kickstarter Crowdfunding". XBIZ Newswire. March 29, 2012. Archived from the original on July 3, 2017. Retrieved May 31, 2013.
  28. ↑ Shira Tarrant (March 2016). The Pornography Industry: What Everyone Needs to Know. Oxford University Press, 2016. pp. 61–2. ISBN 978-0190205133.
  29. ↑ @missloreleilee (June 29, 2021). "Just came out as non-binary to my family and they are being so supportive 😭😭😭" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  30. ↑ Eric K Arnold (June 9, 2013). "Interview with a Porn Star: Lorelei Lee on sex, gender, and "Public Sex, Private Lives."". Oakland Local. Archived from the original on July 13, 2015. Retrieved November 3, 2015.
  31. ↑ "Clinical Program Faculty Updates for Fall '21". Cornell Law School. November 11, 2021. Archived from the original on March 19, 2022. Retrieved 21 November 2022.
  32. ↑ Obscenity indictment, xbix.com; accessed November 3, 2015.
  33. ↑ Steve Javors (2008-04-09). "John Stagliano, Evil Angel Charged With 7 Obscenity Violations". XBIZ. Archived from the original on 2009-05-06. Retrieved 2009-04-17.
  34. ↑ John Stagliano, Evil Angel Indicted On Federal Obscenity Charges Adult Video News, posted April 8, 2008
  35. ↑ Kevin Poulsen (2008-04-10). "Feds Charge Porn Producer With Selling Adult Content to Adults". Wired News. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
  36. ↑ Hess, Amanda (15 July 2010). "Porn Star Lorelei Lee to Testify in Buttman Trial". Washington City Paper. Retrieved January 6, 2012.
  37. ↑ "Buttman Trial: Should Porn Star Testify Under Her Real Name?". Washington City Paper. 14 July 2010.
  38. ↑ Mark Kernes (2010-07-16). "All Charges Dismissed Against Stagliano and Companies". business.avn.com. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
  39. ↑ Tracy Clark-Flory (2010-07-19). "Porn star Lorelei Lee talks obscenity". Retrieved January 6, 2012.
  40. ↑ Lee, Lorelei (October 1, 2019). "Cash/Consent". search.esbcohost.com. N+1 Foundation. Retrieved August 29, 2023.
  41. ↑ "2015 AVN Award Nominees". AVN Awards. Archived from the original on 2014-11-25. Retrieved 2015-01-09.
  42. ↑ Lila Gray (2015-01-09). "2015 FSC Award Recipients Announced". XBIZ. Retrieved 2015-01-09.
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