Porn actor and director Paul Thomas, 76, died on June 10, according to the site XBIZ. Thomas appeared onstage in Hair and Jesus Christ, Superstar (on Broadway and on tour, and in the 1973 film), and in Beach Blanket Babylon. After struggling in mainstream films and TV, Thomas began acting in and directing porn: his more than 400 (!) films included Pretty Peaches, Candy Stripers, Hot & Saucy Pizza Girls, The Oddest Couple, Guess Who Came at Dinner, Please Mr. Postman, Fox Holes, Young Doctors in Lust, Nasty Nurses, Supergirls Do General Hospital (I wonder, do they meet any nasty nurses or candy stripers?), Supergirls Do the Navy (those Supergirls do get around!), Backside to the Future, and the winner: Yank My Doodle, It’s a Dandy! Gawd I love porn titles. “People want some story with their eroticism,” Thomas told L.A. Weekly. “If you can make them believe in the characters and their conflicts, it heightens the inevitable sex in the screenplay. I’m constantly surprised that sex really brings out the righteous indignation in people — and how big a deal and demon they make sex out to be when it really doesn’t deserve the attention. Even the mildest pornography is shocking to the average person. I’m surprised it’s legal.”
