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Lee Ryder (1959 - 1991)
By his own account, his career began when three scouts who had seen him around West Hollywood came to his apartment and asked if he would do a screen test. He agreed, and the test led to a starring role in the film "All American Boys," in 1982, under the name Lee Ryder, derived from the 501 jeans he wore. Poor lighting and sound led to a year-long delay in the film's release, but by then Lee Ryder was already an established star with the release of "Huge" and the inclusion of his screen test as the final sequence of "Biker's Liberty," starring Jon King and Kristen Bjorn, among others. From 1983 to 1986 Lee was one of the most popular of stars in the gay adult film industry, appearing in "Spokes" (with Dick Fisk, Leo Ford, and Lee's then-lover, Rod Philips/Ron Greer); "High Voltage" (again with Rod Philips); "Biggest One I Ever Saw" (with Rod, Jon King, and Rick Donovan); "A Few Good Men;" "Giants I;" "Screen Play" (for which he won a Gay "Oscar" for a scene with Jon King); and "Sticky Business." "Hard," his last video, came out in 1986. At this time Lee retired from adult films to run his own florist business, funded with money he had made from his films, photo shoots, public appearances, and, perhaps, escorting. While he enjoyed enormous popularity and was something of a local superstar among the gay community in West Hollywood, Lee Ryder's life was far from glamorous. Lee himself admitted his motivation for doing porn was to make quick cash, and he had no illusions of his work ever leading to a mainstream film career. Like many in the industry, he used cocaine. His relationship with Rod Philips involved fights and even domestic violence, as evidenced by the black eye he sported in "A Few Good Men." By 1984 they had broken up, but still agreed to appear together in a Valentine's photo shoot in Torso magazine in 1985. Lee Ryder had contracted AIDS, and was already looking noticeably gaunt when he agreed to pose for photos for his former manager in leiu of rent in 1988. Medical expenses had apparently forced him to move in with his manager, and eventually forced him to close down his florist shop. He finally died of AIDS complications on 10 July, 1991, less than a month shy of his thirty-second birthday. He was buried in his family's plot in San Bernadino. Lee Ryder's credits include "Huge 1" (1982); "Huge 2" (1982); "Biker's Liberty" (1982); "The Wilde House" (1983); "Spokes" (1983); " All American Boys" (1983); "Giants" (1983); " A Few Good Men" (1983); "Screen Play" (1984); "Falconpac 34: Winner Takes All - High Voltage" (1984); "Two By Ten" (1985); "The Biggest One I Ever Saw!" (1985); "Sticky Business" (1985); and "Hard" (1986). Links:
Lee Ryder Admirers of America (Adult Content) Lee Ryder Pics Yahoo! Group (Adult Content) MouseArt - In Memoriam (Adult Content) Internet Movie Database - Lee Ryder Gay Porno Project - Lee Ryder (Adult Content) "My Dead Friends" List on Homepage of Stephen Arod Shirreffs, Ph.D.
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