Entertainment News3 min(s) read
After 22 years in the adult entertainment industry, a veteran star has revealed the biggest sacrifice he has had to make for his controversial career.
Tommy Gunn, 57, has starred in over 2,500 porn movies since his career began in 2004. He even made it into the AVN Hall of Fame in 2016, the porn version of the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Despite the perks and sheer amount of money that come with the job, it takes far more than a generous member to make it work.
Although the job involves plenty of sex, it can have a serious impact on real romantic relationships, according to Tommy, whose real name is Thomas Joseph Strada.
The well-endowed actor revealed in a recent interview with adult filmmaker Holly Randall that his fortune and fame actually hurt his relationships with women.
In fact, the “porn legend” claimed that to become a pornstar “your buy-in is your personal life.”
Despite claiming to have little luck with the ladies outside the bedroom, Tommy has been married twice, once before entering the industry and later with a fellow adult star.
He explained to the host: “You’ve got to put your ante in – that money is to match everyone else, but your buy-in is your personal life and your intimacy.
“That’s what you're going to sacrifice.
“I had this feeling at one point I said, ’Is this is this going to be the right decision? I'm actually taking this action between two people which should be cherished… is this going to be a good idea to leverage that as a means of an income?’
“For me to wake up and say ‘Alright, sweetheart? I’m going to kiss you and then go and have sex with a stranger,’ that's kind of strange.”
Sex workers also suffer from a problem the vast majority of professionals never have to deal with: refusing sex before going to work. Some of Tommy’s girlfriends were offended when he turned down sex the morning he was shooting, and it became a big issue in their relationships.
Recalling the troubles in paradise, Tommy said: “I’ve had them say ‘I want you to have sex with me before you go to work,’ because in their psychology it’s marking their territory.
“That’s not conducive for me. If I was a boxer or something, why would I box the day before I got a big box match coming up?”
He adds that the same is true the other way around, if he’s dating someone who is also in the porn industry, he wouldn’t want to tire them out before a big shoot.
"The last thing I want you to do, honey, is go to work and be sore and worn out 'cos that's what happens. For a guy or girl, it’s the same – even though we're designed differently, it's the same friction at the end of the day.”
