Life and career Traci Lords

1 life , career

1.1 1968–83: life
1.2 1984–86: pornography career
1.3 1987–91: transition mainstream, not of earth , cry-baby
1.4 1992–96: breakthrough, 1000 fires , melrose place
1.5 1997–2002: profiler, blade , first wave
1.6 2003–06: underneath all
1.7 2007–09: motherhood , zack , miri make porno
1.8 2010–14: return music , excision
1.9 2015–present: fashion career , upcoming directorial debut

life , career
1968–83: life

lords freshman in high school, 1983

lords born nora louise kuzma on may 7, 1968, in steubenville, ohio, louis , patricia kuzma (née briceland). father s parents immigrants ukraine, while mother of irish ancestry. louis employed steelworker. lords has 1 elder sister, lorraine, , 2 younger sisters, rachel , grace. father alcoholic abuse mother on regular basis. according her, come home drunk , accuse of having boyfriends in house. during time, lords spend time grandmother lived nearby. parents divorced when 7 years old , lords moved mother , 3 sisters great-grandmother s house. following divorce, father got partial custody. around same time, mother enrolled @ ohio university , landed part-time job.

—lords teenage years

according lords, , sister lorraine both developed early; fueled father s concerns sexuality. think father hated women. dealt until eleven, started lay guilt on sex. @ age of ten, lords raped sixteen-year-old boy had befriended @ friend s birthday party. when twelve, lords moved mother , sisters lawndale, california, along mother s new boyfriend. last time saw father. in september 1982, began attending redondo union high school in redondo beach, california. during school years, lords developed rebellious attitude. angry @ mother, blaming poverty, , found father figure in mother s boyfriend. roger hayes, calls him in autobiography, cocaine dealer , molested lords in sleep. after mother broke him due drug use, began dating friend. lords refused follow them new place , left older sister lorraine. mother , 2 younger sisters ended in women s shelter until mother able find new apartment.

1984–86: pornography career

at age of 14, lords became pregnant high school boyfriend. afraid of mother s reaction, went hayes help. arranged have abortion without mother s knowledge. looking job money, introduced friend , started working babysitter. woman offered improve lords job opportunities helping fake driver s license. provided lords new birth certificate on condition if ever caught had stolen phony identification. lords had new driver s license name kristie elizabeth nussman stated 22 rather 15 years old. able line few job interviews. in february 1984, lords answered newspaper advertisement jim south s world modeling talent agency. posing stepfather, hayes drove agency. after signing contract, began working nude model , appeared in magazines such velvet, juggs, , club. during august, when selected model penthouse magazine s 15th-anniversary issue, lords asked choose stage name. chose traci—one of popular names had longed growing up—and lords, after actor jack lord, since fan of television series hawaii five-o, in portrayed character of steve mcgarrett. of schoolmates recognized in velvet magazine pictorial. lords subsequently quit high school @ age 15 , entered sex industry, formal education irrelevant. september 1984 issue, featured lords in nude centerfold – earned $5,000 shoot – became best-selling issue in history of penthouse, partly because featured nude pictorial of vanessa williams (appearing george burns on cover photograph), had won miss america pageant previous year. lords article stated 22 years of age, virgin until nineteen, , had studied interior design @ el camino college.

lords made first of many illegal movies during october 1984, when appeared in gets me hot! alongside tom byron, later became boyfriend off-screen. first appeared in non-sex role, later replaced hardcore scene. in next movie, young girls, appeared in sex role alongside harry reems , ginger lynn. after appearing @ age 16 john leslie (an actor 23 years senior) in porno parody of movie splash, talk dirty me part iii (which won avn award best movie), lords hailed princess of porn (she had appeared in torrid sex scene leslie @ end of film). became 1 of highest-paid porno actresses of time, earning more $1,000 day. besides work in porn, appeared in music video gimme gimme lovin heavy metal band helix. lords continued making more movies until autumn of 1985, when decided quit industry @ age 17 (she came out of retirement few months later). afterwards, met stuart dell, became boyfriend, manager, , business partner. during january 1986, announced return porn formation of tlc (the traci lords company). dell , lords made distribution deal sy adler, industry veteran ran vantage international, produce 3 movies company. during march, first tlc feature, traci takes tokyo, released. second, beverly hills copulator, released afterwards, , third movie, screamer, (eddie dzial) shelved.

during late may 1986 (around 3 weeks after lords 18th birthday), authorities discovered had been underage when appeared in porn movies. had lied law enforcement, photographers, producers, directors, co-workers, , general public 2 years. owners of movie agency , x-citement video, inc. arrested. (see united states v. x-citement video) taken protective custody , hired high-profile lawyer leslie abramson. on july 10, district attorney s investigators searched lords redondo beach home sun valley offices of vantage international productions (a major producer of adult movies) , sherman oaks offices of modeling agent jim south. south , other industry officials said lords, seeking employment, provided california driver s license, u.s. passport, , birth certificate, stated name kristie nussman , gave birth date of november 17, 1962. leslie jay, spokeswoman penthouse publisher bob guccione, said lords showed identification indicating older 18 before illicit photos september 1984 issue taken (she fifteen years of age in photographs). when investigators used lords fake birth certificate , fake state identification cards locate real kristie nussman, nussman said birth certificate had been stolen few years earlier , impostor had apparently forged name on official forms. 2 adults knew lords, requested anonymity, said saw picture in adult magazine velvet during july 1984, , telephoned district attorney s office inform authorities underage, investigator told them, there isn t can it.

on july 17, 1986, video rental shops , adult movie theaters in usa ordered withdraw shelves hardcore material featuring lords, because videos classified child pornography. john weston, attorney of adult film association of america, said distributors should withdraw movie made before may 1986, featuring lords in sexual conduct, no matter how briefly . withdrawal of lords movies market cost industry millions of dollars. government prosecutors declared lords victim of manipulative industry, maintaining drugged , made non-consensual acts. industry insiders, including ron jeremy, tom byron, peter north, , ginger lynn, said never saw use drugs , aware of actions. while of movies permanently removed distribution in united states, several re-edited remove lords scenes entirely (such kinky business , new wave hookers), or in few cases, had new footage filmed different actress playing part (as in talk dirty me part iii). movie legally available in united states traci, love you, filmed in cannes, france. 2 days after 18th birthday. sold rights traci, love during 1987 $100,000. action resulted in claims herself had tipped off authorities gain immunity prosecution, while being 1 profit movie. lords denies notion in autobiography , says reluctant sell rights, since @ time trying become ordinary actress, , wanted no older movies still available. traci, love last porn film featured traci lords. lords offered enormous sums of money continue in porn, declined requests.

1987–91: transition mainstream, not of earth , cry-baby

after spending several months in therapy, lords decided concentrate on acting. enrolled @ lee strasberg theatre , film institute, studied method acting 3 months. after leaving school, lords placed advertisement in hollywood reporter looking representation. contacted fred westheimer , although agency refused represent her, decided send out on few auditions. result, offered guest role in episode of television series wiseguy. shortly afterwards, met director jim wynorski, directing remake of roger corman s 1957 sci-fi classic not of earth. cast lords lead role of nadine story, , not of earth (1988) became first mainstream film debut since departure adult film industry. although film failed @ box office, did in video sales, and, based on success, lords offered appear in wynorski s next film, haunting of morella (1989). however, lords turned down offer due requirement of having nude scene, since trying establish herself serious actress. signed modeling agency under birth name nora kuzma , appeared on 2 covers of joe weider s magazine muscle & fitness. around time, lords became spokesperson children of night, organization runaways , abused children, , planning release book titled out of blue: traci lords story.

in november 1988, lords enrolled in acting class , again began looking agent. in december, mass-mailed resume various agents , arranged meeting don gerler. lords auditioned part of breathless mahoney in film dick tracy (1990), role went madonna. in march 1989, john waters auditioned teenage comedy musical cry-baby (1990). won audition , appeared in film alongside johnny depp , ricki lake. film critical , commercial success, , portrayal of rebellious teenager wanda woodward established legitimate actress. on set of film met property master brook yeaton, whom began dating. couple married in september 1990 in baltimore, maryland. in june 1990, exercise video warm traci lords released. directed , produced former boyfriend , business partner scott bell (under name stewart dell), video had been filmed in 1988. lords wrote in autobiography, unsatisfied final version of video. extended version reissued in 1993 under title traci lords: advanced jazzthetics.

in 1991, lords starred in thriller raw nerve , action crime film time die. lords pursued modeling career. relocated london , began modeling many fashion designers including thierry mugler.

1992–96: breakthrough, 1000 fires , melrose place

during 1992, lords decided emphasize career recording artist. first got signed development deal capitol records, later dropped due disagreements between , company. after meeting rodney bingenheimer @ birthday party, recommended jeff jacklin, hired record song love never dies movie pet sematary 2 (1992). producer of soundtrack, gary kurfirst, signed lords company radioactive records. later featured on songs little baby nothing manic street preachers , love ramones. during 1993, lords cast in television adaptation of stephen king s novel tommyknockers.

during spring of 1994, lords began working on debut album. company arranged fly london , meet producer tom bailey. after finishing recording bailey, lords introduced producer ben watkins of juno reactor whom recorded more techno-influenced songs. later met mike edwards, main singer of band jesus jones. around same time, lords cast in television series roseanne, appearing in 3 episodes. during january 1995, lords appeared in 4 episodes of television series melrose place, played part of rikki abbott. debut studio album, 1000 fires, released on february 28, 1995. received positive reviews , lead single control peaked @ number 2 on billboard hot dance club songs. instrumental version of control remixed , released on soundtrack mortal kombat (1995), certified double platinum recording industry association of america (riaa). album s second single, fallen angel , successful in charts, peaking @ number eleven on hot dance club songs. paul oakenfold remix of song included on soundtrack of movie virtuosity (1995), in lords had cameo appearance. after release of album, lords embarked on small tour performing dj, in miami nightclubs. on august 12, 1995, opening act of lollapalooza after party, enit festival, alongside moby, sven väth, dj keoki , single cell orchestra.

by end of 1995, lords divorced husband of 5 years, brook yeaton. in 1996, appeared in commercial guess juliette lewis.

1997–2002: profiler, blade , first wave

in 1997, lords appeared in small part in gregg araki film nowhere, , starred in drama thriller stir. guest starred on television series nash bridges , viper. in november, became recurring cast member in second season of crime television series profiler. played felon, sharon lesher, manipulated serial killer jack-of-all-trades , becomes partner in crime jill-of-all-trades. in 1998, lords had supporting role in crime thriller boogie boy , starred in drama extramarital. appeared in action horror film blade (1998) in played vampire seductress racquel. lords approached appear in sequel blade ii (2002) portraying racquel s twin sister valerine in seeking of vengeance upon blade. however, turned down offer because of contradictory schedule. @ premiere of film, lords announced finishing sophomore album on radioactive records released in spring of 1999. however, later neglected after left record label. in august, lords ended two-year relationship john enos after reportedly got argument because cat killed 1 of enos dogs.

in 2000, lords had lead roles in films epicenter , chump change. role of sam in romantic comedy chump change earned film discovery jury award best actress @ u.s. comedy arts festival. in september, became regular cast member in third season of sci-fi channel television series first wave, becoming first recurring female character featured on series. played jordan radcliffe, heiress , leader of human resistance group raven nation after aliens used brother murder parents.

2003–06: underneath all

lords @ dragon con, 2006

her autobiography, traci lords: underneath all, published during july 2003 harpercollins. in book, lords chronicled childhood, career , past in porno movie industry. book received positive reviews critics , commercial success making new york times best seller list. criticized porno movie industry insiders. in book, lords revealed received $35,000 total compensation porno movies, including $5,000 underage appearance in penthouse. lords continued use famous stage name had given herself minor, , made legal name. explained, chose stop running it. instead, won it, legally changing name traci elizabeth lords. s was, , s going be. in interview oprah winfrey stated: found can run, cannot hide.

during 2003, announced lords working on new music , had recorded cover version of missing persons song walking in l.a. . directed mike ruiz, music video premiered during interview on oprah winfrey show. on december 28, 2004, independently released 2 songs, sunshine , burn inside of me , via online music store cd baby. both of songs along cha gonna featured in television series joan of arcadia. burn inside of me used in commercial duprey cosmetics, in lords appeared.

2007–09: motherhood , zack , miri make porno

by beginning of 2007, lords became unexpectedly pregnant. first announced pregnancy in june: kind of thought children thing off table. i’m expecting boy! re stunned , thrilled. want know, these 36-ds mine. haven’t had boob job. 5 1/2 months pregnant! i’m starting show. , husband happy changes in figure. on october 7, 2007, @ age of 39, gave birth son, joseph gunnar lee, first child husband of 5 years, jeff lee.

in january 2008, announced lords had been cast in kevin smith s comedy zack , miri make porno (2008). said @ first wanted refuse changed mind after reading script. great in taking movie, because didn t plan on going work right away, dying work kevin. never thought on called zack , miri make porno. what? went , read script @ house , prepared no. thought have perfect out. had kid. no 1 going blame me if can t right now. made me laugh out loud , made me literally cry. funny. initially, lords had topless scene in movie, refused since breastfeed in between takes. katie morgan, former pornographic actress, appeared in film.

in 2009, lords appeared in direct-to-dvd science fiction movie, princess of mars, alongside antonio sabàto, jr. later regretted making movie saying: somewhere in heart of hearts worried might doing wrong believed voices of around me said no, ll artistic, no ll creative. ll beautiful. have limited budget honest, ll proud. , bad, bad. @ least told. after watching first 2 minutes had turn off , hide under covers.

2010–14: return music , excision

in march 2010, lords announced began working on new album pretty being lead single. however, project later shelved , pretty released promotional single only. lords starred in drama comedy au pair, kansas premiered in april 2011 @ kansas city filmfest. in july, lords officially signed independent record label sea sun recordings , in october made musical comeback song last drag . single successful in dance charts debuting @ number forty-five , peaking @ number 4 on billboard dance club songs.

lords starred alongside annalynne mccord , ariel winter in horror excision (2012), premiered in january 2012 @ sundance film festival. portrayal of hyperreligious , controlling mother phyllis earned lords fangoria chainsaw award best supporting actress fright meter award , cineuphoria award. in september, lords released compilation of dance music traci lords presents: m2f2 (2012). featured 3 of own remixed tracks songs other artists. song s bitch managed chart on billboard dance club songs peaking @ number twenty-five. lords voiced character of layla stockton in 2012 video game hitman: absolution. following steubenville high school rape case, lords spoke on topic , subsequently released song stupidville response case. born in steubenville, ohio , raped in there. mother. think there s sickness in city, lords said. in 2013, lords appeared in horror movie devil may call (2013) , episode of web series eastsiders. nominated best guest star – drama @ 2014 indie series awards.

2015–present: fashion career , upcoming directorial debut

designer laura byrnes , lords @ pinup girl clothing launch party, 2016

in may 2015, lords appeared in episode of fourth season of reality television series celebrity wife swap, swapped lives jackée harry. lords co-starred in jim wynorski s television horror sharkansas women s prison massacre (2015) , made second appearance val on series eastsiders. in march 2016, lords co-starred in television thriller nightmare nurse (2016) in played psychopathic nurse looking revenge dead husband. lords voiced several characters in action-adventure video game hitman (2016) after having had voiced character of layla stockton in hitman: absolution (2012). in june, lords announced collaboration pinup girl clothing. inspired character of wanda woodward cry-baby (1990) 1950s fashion, clothing line available exclusively through pinup girl clothing website. commented on inspiration behind line: john [waters] wrote such strong characters in cry-baby. , in rockabilly, punk rock, vintage pin-up girl kind of world, wanda woodward pretty queen.

lords co-starred in viaplay original comedy series swedish dicks. played jane mckinney, private investigator , competitor of show s protagonist. in october, series renewed second season lords confirmed cast. in united states, first season premiere in august 2017. later month, lords confirmed direct first feature film called unquiet grave. filming scheduled commence in 2017. in november, announced lords voiced character of jackal z in upcoming video game let die (2016), , appear on third season of eastsiders. in july 2017, helmut lang s fashion campaign fall 2017 collection featuring lords unveiled.