Herschel Savage

Herschel Savage was born as Harvey Cohen on November 25, 1952, in New York City, to Russian-Jewish parents.^[6][7][8] His mother battled with obsessive-compulsive disorder.^[9] Growing up, he attended a Conservative synagogue.^[10] Savage saw his first adult film The Nun's Bad Habit at a movie theater in Times Square.^[9]

Savage began studying acting under Broadway theatre actress Uta Hagen and renowned acting teacher Stella Adler.^[11][12] Savage initially sought a mainstream stage and screen career.^[8] However, he became disillusioned by the constant auditioning and competition for roles.^[11] He also worked for an exercise company.^[9]

Savage was introduced to the adult film industry via the actor R. Bolla in 1976.^[11] He went on to become one of the biggest stars of the "Golden Age of Porn" in the 1970s and 1980s.^[11] Savage appeared in the 1978 classic Debbie Does Dallas, for which he was paid about $150 a day.^[12] The film was a financial success, becoming one of the top five highest grossing adult films of all time.^[7] Some of the other films he appeared in include Expose Me Now, Bodies in Heat, and Rambone Does Hollywood.^[12] He created the stage name "Herschel Savage" with adult actor Jamie Gillis in an attempt to combine a 'nerdy Jewish identity' with that of a stud.^[11]

During the mid-1980s, Savage helped to organize sex workers in San Francisco to fight for better wages.^[2] The initiative was ultimately abandoned after production studios threatened to blacklist performers.^[2] In 1986, Savage appeared in a cameo for the neo-noir crime film 52 Pick-Up starring Roy Scheider and Ann-Margret.^[6] He was credited as "Harvey Cowen". In 1988, Savage was inducted into the XRCO Hall of Fame.^[5][13] That same year, he left pornography to work in sales and video distribution.^[8] He returned to performing in 1997.^[8]

Savage appeared as a guest during the fifth season of the NBC sitcom Just Shoot Me, with Ron Jeremy, which aired on February 1, 2001.^[14] In 2003, he performed a stand-up routine on an episode of the reality television series Family Business. Savage portrayed a detective in the 2008 parody film The Texas Vibrator Massacre.^[15] He appeared alongside other adult performers in the documentary series After Porn Ends 3 in 2018.^[16] Savage appeared in more than 1000 adult films.^[2] He was also inducted into the AVN Hall of Fame.^[4]

Savage performed under the name "Max Cohen" in a 2006 production of Neil Simon's The Prisoner of Second Avenue.^[6][8] In January 2013, he portrayed pornographic film director Gerard Damiano in the Los Angeles production of The Deep Throat Sex Scandal, a play described as the "theatrical telling of the back story of Deep Throat."^[10][17] His performance drew positive reviews.^[18] Writing for The Los Angeles Times, Charlotte Stoudt called Savage's portrayal of Damiano "surprisingly cogent".^[19] Myron Meisel from The Hollywood Reporter remarked that he "engenders endearing empathy as the amiably deluded director Damiano."^[20] Steven Leigh Morris from LA Weekly deemed his performance "dramatic comedy terra firma".^[21] Savage credited the play with "renewing [his] love for performing on stage."^[9]

Savage appeared as himself in Pretty Filthy, a musical about the adult film industry.^[22] He also performed in the interactive dinner show Joni and Gina's Wedding.^[23] In July 2016, Savage premiered Porn Star: My Life In The Sex Industry, an autobiographical one-man show, which he successfully funded through a Kickstarter campaign.^[24]

Savage was a practicing Buddhist.^[18] He resided in California.^[18]

Herschel Savage died on October 8, 2023, at the age of 70.^[25]