24.7 How did Joey Stefano die?
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This article is from the Sex Movies FAQ, by director@gti.net (The Director) with numerous contributions by others.
24.7 How did Joey Stefano die?
There are great reviews of Joey Stefano's life and work in GAY
VIDEO GUIDE (issue #15), MANSHOTS, and OUT magazine (September,
1995) also had an excellent review article on Stefano's life. For
more on his work, people should read those articles.
Joey Stefano (aka Nick Iacona) lived in Philadelphia, PA where he
lived a blue-collar, Catholic, poor lifestyle that led him into
drug (especially heroin) and alcohol abuse by the time he was 15.
Stefano was largely unsure of his homosexuality until he was 15,
according to reports. Gay porn actor Tony Davis (who also
discovered many other gay stars as well) was approached by Stefano
in a Philadelphia strip club in the mid 1980s and queried about how
to become an exotic dancer. Davis soon brought him to West
Hollywood to break into gay porn. Stefano was the consummate
bottom boy, redefining a role that few actors wished to play and
which had become lackluster ("most guys just lay there like a gunny
sack" was a common comment!). Rarely fucking another man, Stefano
became known for his aggressive bottoming, his sultry looks, his
naturalness, and his intensity. He could deliver a line extremely
well, and was known as a funny and intelligent actor. He was one
of the hardest working actors in gay porn, often producing as many
as 5 tapes a month at the height of his career--and often acting in
as many as 3 or 5 scenes in a 7 scene tape.
Stefano did some incredibly good and pioneering work in gay porn.
His all-oral film BACKDROP was extremely well received and
established a trend in the industry away from 'everything included'
sex films and towards niche porn-making. His performance opposite
Mike Henson in the safe-sex porn film MORE OF A MAN was highly
acclaimed, and critics noted that his ability to make the putting
on of a condom erotic and playful made significant strides in
making condom use acceptable among gay porn stars and gays as a
whole.
Stefano's work could be HORRIBLE at times, but on the whole his
work was above average. His bottoming for Rod Philips (R.I.P.) in
HARD STEAL showed that Stefano could take even the biggest cock--
and make it look easy. His cock pump scene with Rick Donovan in
MORE OF A MAN showed a kinky side that could excite an audience
regardless of the sexual content involved. His all-oral session
with Gary Dean in MY COUSIN DANNY was a masterpiece of seduction,
oral teasing, touching, and plain old "I'M CUMMMMMMMING!" sexuality
that never failed to amaze (the HUGE cumshot he has, and the way he
has to PUSH Dean's mouth off of his spurting cock was on-the-edge
performing that made the scene realistic...and I've seen men on the
edge of their seats, wondering if the cumshot will fill Dean's
mouth or not!).
Stefano got off the drugs while he was in the business, although he
lapsed often (most especially when working for award-winning gay
porn director and transvestite Chi Chi LaRue whose own cocaine
habits tended to drag Stefano down). Yet, Stefano refused to
escort or move to Europe where his looks and gay porn past could
have made him a fortune.
Stefano left gay porn in 1993, although his films continued to come
out. His life quickly fell apart without the income (Stefano was
only a high school graduate). Returning to drug use (primarily
heroin again), Stefano turned to prostitution for income. He added
a great deal of muscle and definition, at the same time losing a
few pounds of baby fat that had made him appear "natural" in film.
His hair grew down almost to his waist, giving him a "rocker boy"
image that he began to pedal as he tried to return to gay porn in
1994 and 1995. Stefano made (I think) 3 comeback films before his
death. Stefano's on-screen image changed from that of "hot bottom
boy" to "scary kinky top man" and yet it was applauded by reviewers
who recognized the work that had gone into such a makeover and by
audiences happy to see their pretty Italian boy back in action.
Stefano died in his apartment with his dealer standing over him,
letting him die. He died of a heroin overdose. Stefano had been
late for a shoot, and producers who showed up found him comatose in
his home. Paramedics were called, but they were unable to revive
him. The Stefano's dealer managed to escape and is still at large,
his identity not know or at least not made public yet. Although
rumors bounded that Stefano was dying of AIDS, it is not clear
whether he was in fact even HIV positive. Although (according to
my own sources) Stefano had been looking very bad in real life
(probably due to drug use, although others argued it was due to
AIDS), there are conflicting media reports as to whether he was
HIV-negative, HIV-positive, or had AIDS. At any rate, Stefano's
drug use did not seem linked to his HIV status, whatever it was.
Mega-thanks to Tim Evanson for this article.
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