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from www.tenerewilliams.com – I once heard someone say… “to be considered a Hall of Famer in your field, you have to look at the industry that person was in… as a whole…and see if that industry’s history and a story can be told without that particular person. If it can’t, then they’re a Hall a Famer.”
Enter Sunset Thomas. Just consider what adult media mogul Larry Flynt had to say about the iconic actress,
“Sunset Thomas and I have a common ground—we both share a love of honesty in presenting sexuality, and it’s something I’ve been condemned for, and the adult film industry has been castigated for. Like Sinatra, I did it my way—and so did Sunset.”
So you want Hall of Fame stats, here’s just a few:
-Star of over 300 adult films
-Youngest inductee into the Adult Video News Hall of Fame
-Member of the Hustler Hall of Fame,
-Legends of Erotica Hall of Fame
-XRCO Hall of Fame
-Most photographed model for Penthouse magazine (including Cover and Pet of the Month)
-The only adult star to have a thoroughbred racehorse named in her honor
-The first adult star to work in Nevada’s legal brothel system
I mean, c’mon, when you get a horse named after you, that’s legendary status, I don’t care what anybody says!
But don’t think that her talents stop in the adult world. This down-to-earth country girl has done plenty of worked in mainstream movies, is an author, contributes to multiple magazines including Esquire, is featured in Robin Leach’s Luxe Life, starred in the HBO show Cathouse and now has her own reality show, Sin City Mom. Needless to say, the girl is doing her thing.
Gene Ross of AdultFYI.com may have summed it up best:
“You can talk about your Jenna Jamesons doing the big crossover, but for the money, pound for pound and press release for press release it’s Sunset Thomas who’s made the biggest splash on the other side.”
And in light of all the aforementioned accomplishments and the love she has for her fans, her most proud accomplishment is being a proud mother most of three.
So listen in as I talk with the iconic, Sunset Thomas…
Q: So you’re a legend in the industry, how did you first get started?
Well, before I got into the adult industry, I worked in Daytona Beach at the Daytona Speedway as a “Trophy Girl” then I did runway modeling at the malls and then I got tired of that and said, ‘I gotta go to California. I gotta go where the real action is at.’ So I went out to LA…and I don’t mention this in a lot of my interviews…and was in the movie Witchcraft. I played a Yen girl and I got my heart ripped out. So I actually started in mainstream before I got into the adult side.
Q: That’s interesting because it seems that a lot of people will start in the adult industry and then try and go mainstream.
No, I started in mainstream.
Q: Well, when you came from Florida to Los Angeles, what was one of the biggest differences that you noticed between the two places.
Oh my God, the lifestyle was totally different. LA had a more fast paced lifestyle and I was more of a laid back country girl, so I was like, ‘Whoa!’ Being around that glam lifestyle opened up a new door for me. But I had moved to Texas for a little bit when I first got married and had a big ranch out in Corpus Christi where I raised Quarter Horses. So you know, I’m a country girl.
Q: Wow, you’re really out there with nature getting your hands dirty. Not the typical LA starlet type life.
No, not at all. Actually when I came out to LA, I did a lot of casting and at that time in the mainstream world, it was like, ‘Well if you screw me , I’ll get you work.’ And I was like, ‘I’m not screwing anyone to get a job. I ‘m just not going to do that’
Q: So how did you get into adult industry?
I’ll tell you a good story. I was in LA working at the mall selling luggage. Well, this guy comes walking in with his bodyguards and he’s in a wheelchair and they lock the door. And of course me, not being used to this kinda lifestyle, I’m thinking, ‘Who does this guy think he is where he thinks he can lock the door to go shopping.’ And all of a sudden he comes up to me and goes, ‘I’m Larry Flynt.’
And at first, I was like, ‘Well who are you?’ cuz I’m still very young. He’s like, ‘I’m the owner of Hustler. You’re so beautiful . Be you turn 18, I would love to shoot you in your first layout. ‘ and I had never thought about doing nudity So I thought, ‘This is kinda interesting.’ So the first thing I ever did was work for Larry Flynt and I went to Mexico and shot a layout for his magazine. And I’ve known him ever since for 23 years now and he’s kind of adopted me as one of his daughters.
Q: That’s crazy in terms of how people get discovered…
It is crazy! But I thought he was cool and he was gentlemen-like and really I just thought to myself, ‘Hmmmm, this is kinda interesting. Why not! What the hell!’
Q: Now, once you stepped into the adult world, how did you let your family know what you were doing? What was that conversation like?
Well, my philosophy was if you do something you enjoy, then keep doin’ it. So I just came out and told said, ‘This is what I do, mom. I like doin’ nudity. I like bein’ nekkid.’ And this was before I did porn. And she said, ‘Honey I don’t like what you do but I’ll support as long as you’re happy at what you do.’ And she’s always been supportive or all these years. In fact, she was my roadie when I started doin’ feature dancing.
Q: Do you remember the first scene you ever did?
Mr. Peeper’s Plaintiff Anniversary
Q: Were you nervous or were you more like let’s just jump into it? How were you feeling?
To be honest, I was scared to death! I had just shot a solo masturbation scene and I had so much fun and I was so turned on. And then, my first husband at the time and I were offered a chance to shoot a boy/girl scene together. So we looked at each other and said, ‘Why not! What the hell!’ Of course at first I was nervous, but once I got going, it turned me on and I looked at him and said, ‘This is what I wanna do! I want to do porn. I love being in front of the camera.’
Q: Now you recently were at AVN interviewing starlets on behalf of a show for the legendary Robin Leech of Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous fame.
Yeah, that was fun. Robin Leech is such a great guy and I was honored to cover that for him. And it was cool because I came in as Press and I’ve known the Press for so many years and they’d dug seeing me wearing Press just like them and I liked it because it wasn’t just me sitting around doing autograph signings like I normally do. I was actually interviewing people and stuff like that. It was so much fun.
Q: Having been in the industry for many years, what’s the biggest change you’ve seen in the adult industry from when you entered it to how the business is run now?
Well, the way the business is now is why I haven’t shot a movie in the last couple years. The movie sets are a lot different now from back in the day when I did it. I mean, back then, it was fun. We could hang out, you could play with your partner on the side while you’re in the make up room or screw each other in the shower before you go do your scene. Now, it’s much more business like.
It’s not as fun as it used to be. To me its just so…business like. I mean, if I want to sit here with a new partner that I never had sex with and play with their stick a little bit and get him started before we even get on camera…why not? What’s wrong with that? And a lot of girls don’t do that today. And to me…it was just a lot more fun back in those days.
Q: I heard that new girls entering the industry today have changed the economics of the industry because they’ll now do things essentially for free whereas at one point you would have been paid to do it.
Yeah, I have. And a lot of them will just think about the money. I mean, of course we gotta make money to pay our bills and everything but I don’t think about just the money. I REALLY enjoy it. I love what I do. And that’s why I haven’t shot a movie in the last couple years because if you’re gonna do something, have fun at what you do.
Q: What advice would you give girls trying to get into the business now?
If you want to get in the business, enjoy what you do, stay away from the drugs, keep a strong head, and really enjoy the sex. And don’t just think about the money. Again, we all gotta pay our bills and make a living, but you know what I’m sayin’. Stay away from the drugs cuz if you get involved in that kinda stuff, then get out.
And its funny how you say that because for awhile, my niece had gotten involved in the business and her stage name was Sunrise Adams. She got in for awhile and I helped her out and helped her get a contract with Vivid but it started getting to her head and at least she took my advice and she got out cuz she didn’t enjoy it.
You gotta have a good head on your shoulders to do this. And that’s the one gratifying thing for us girls who have been around for a while that love it like me, Nina Hartley, Amber Wren…all of us, we really love what we do. I’m not knocking girls, but now, you get girls who don’t really love it, they have attitudes and when you see the sex scenes, you can tell they’re not for real, they’re just acting and I hate that. And for us legends who really enjoy it, people who don’t know us figure, ‘Oh well, they’re all fakin’!’ No, none of us are! We love what we’re doin!
Q: Do you ever take new girls under your wing to mentor them?
Well, I did take my niece under my wing and I gave her my advice which is she got out. I do work at the brothels, and was the first adult star to work at the brothels, and they were like, ‘Sunset, you’re making us look like sluts and whores’ and all these companies out there were like, ‘We’ll never hire you again cuz you work at a whorehouse.’
And all this stuff. Then all of a sudden, it was a whirlwind and they were like, ‘Oh my God, Sunset, we want you back. We want to put you back on the crack track.’ And I just looked at them like, ‘Remember back in the day when you said it was bad to work at a brothel?’ The truth is most girls on the road feature dancing are screwing guys in their hotel room. I mean, c’mon! I took it to a brothel.
Q: When you were doing movies, were there ever any rivalries between girls to the point where there were girls who wouldn’t work with each other?
No, I never saw that. I was always a contract girl so I always picked who I wanted to work with. But even on other sets, we were like a big ol’ family and we all got along great. And that’s what I like about working at the brothels. I work at the Chicken Ranch Brothel (www.chickenranchbrothel.com).
I’ve been to a lot of brothels and I really like the Chicken Ranch because us girls get along great cuz we’re like a big family. Some days might be quiet, cuz guys haven’t come in yet, but we get together and do fun things like workout together or we’ll have a cooking class.
Q: Yeah, I’ve definitely seen it on TV in terms of the behind the scenes and how the girls get along…
You probably saw the behind the scenes of the Bunny Ranch, but I’m talking about the Chicken Ranch…
Q: Oh! The Chicken Ranch! My bad!!
No problem. But I really do enjoy working there. Like I said, I’ve been to a bunch of brothel and I like the Chicken Ranch. I mean, we really are family. We’re different from the Bunny Ranch because the girls at the Bunny Ranch can come and go but at the Chicken Ranch, we’re locked in for two week. Literally. Two weeks locked int hat place. So you really have to learn to get along. But again, we’re a big family and its really neat.
Q: You ever see movies / scenes where the girls are being so over the top with screaming and yelling that you laugh?
I don’t really watch it. I do it for a living, I don’t really want to watch it!
Q: Ever had an awkward run in with a fan while you’re out doing regular errands like grocery shopping or doing laundry?
No, I’m pretty cool with my fans. If I’m out shopping, I’m always grabbin’ em, huggin’em, you know, havin’ a good time. There was one time when I was walking through an airport and their was an older couple in their 70’s or 80’s and they just walk up to me and were like, ‘Hey you’re Sunset Thomas. You’re that girl from HBO…’ They never watched a porno, they just know me from HBO. I felt that was cool and it made me feel good.
Another time, I went to my youngest one’s school when he was in kindergarten and the teacher comes up to me and she’s being really, really quiet and she like, ‘I didn’t want to say anything out loud cuz I didn’t want to embarrass you or anything but I know who you are. You’re Sunset Thomas.
I’ve seen you in Playboy and Penthouse. ‘ and I was like, ‘Yeah, that’s me.’ (laughs) It doesn’t phase me. I love it. I love my fans and they mean a lot to me. That’s why when I did my final movie, Into the Sunset, what I wanted to do was give a gift back to my fans, because I love them so much. So I decided to bring a fan in to have sex with me on my final movie. We did a big thing here in Las Vegas and had something like 400 guys show up. I had one guy show up from Pennsylvania, his name was Chris, and I picked him to be in my final movie with me.
Q: When you were on set, can you remember a funniest blooper that happened?
I was doing a scene one time with me, another girl and a guy. He’s having sex with her in the doggy position, and I’m going down on her, and she starts doing these pussy farts and her pussy juices kept squirting in my face. So much to the point I was like, ‘Cut!!’ cuz I couldn’t take it anymore. And I was like, ‘Dude, you gotta stop doing those pussy farts in my face.’
Q: Was she embarrassed?
She was like, ‘Oooh I’m sorry…’, blah, blah blah. But that was kinda funny.
Q: Worst set you ever shot a movie at?
The Jimi Hendrix house. I can’t remember the name of the movie but we shot in Jim Hendrix house. It was just weird to me cuz I felt like he was there. I felt like his spirit was there and I couldn’t really get into my sex scene. It just felt weird.
Q: Just hovering over checking things out…
That or smokin’or something! I don’t know what he was doin’. (laughs)
Q: What’s something interesting about yourself that no one would know unless you said it?
That’s a hard question because what do they not know about me. Everyone knows I love horseback riding, I own a lot of gentlemen clubs. I guess I would say that I’m down to earth. I’m still a country girl, don’t really car too much about shopping or things like that. I’m not into the party scene and I’m pretty much in bed by 7 or 8 o’clock.
Q: Wow! So in the summer when the days are longer and the sun is still out, you’re getting in the bed.
Well, I didn’t say I was sleepin’! But yeah, I’m an early riser.
Q: Did your kids ever have it rough in school or in social circles because of what you did?
No, my kids are very cool about it and you’ll see that on the show. They know what mom does, there cool with it. It’s not something they want to do but like my oldest, she goes to UNLV and is in her last year of college, my other one works up at the casino and again, there cool with what mom does, its just not for them.
Q: If you could have any superpower in the bedroom, what would it be?
Eating my own pussy!
Q: Wow, you said that so fast, sounds like you had thought about that before…
Yeah, that was easy. Mostly cuz I’m good at it! Back in the day when Ron Jeremy was skinnier, he shot a movie where he blew his own dick. If I could eat my own pussy, you’d never get me out the bedroom! (laughs)
Q: What kinda projects do you have coming up that people can check you out in?
I got a lot of things. I do have a book out there called Anatomy of an Adult Film and you can get that on Amazon. It’s all fictional. Great book to read and it’s been a great little seller that’s doin’ really good.
I also write for Dog House Boxing and Esquire magazine. Obviously I’m at the Chicken Ranch so you can check me out at www.chickenranchbrothel.com .
There’s also a new book coming out by photographer Jane Hilton called Precious. What she did was travel around to all the different brothels and shot a lot of the girls and did it very artsy and tastefully. The book will be out in June and accompanied by an art opening in New York City and an art opening in London. I also have my own art gallery that you can find at www.sunsetthomasartgallery.com.
I also have a reality show, Sin City Mom (www.sincitymom.com) but if you go to YouTube you can see the trailer.
And the good thing about the show is that my two oldest kids are in it and it shows that we live normal lives too. I am a mom, I go to soccer games, I go to school meetings and I want people to realize that we have normal lives like everyone else. And that goes back to your earlier question that people would be surprised about the lives of adult stars, and especially living in Vegas, how normal they are. Like I said, I’m in bed by 9 o’clock and up at 4 am. The only time you’ll see me out is if I’m doing a signing or stuff like that.
I’m also working with Jimmy Red on a potential off-Strip show.
Lastly, even though I haven’t shot a movie in a couple years, there are a couple companies who have been pursuing me to do one so we’ll see what happens.
Q: Wow, you really do have a lot goin on…
Well, I’ve been in show business all my life, even my mom was in show business when I was a little girl, so its all I’ve ever known. I love being in the limelight.
TO CHECK OUT MORE INFO ON SUNSET THOMAS:
TWITTER: @sunsetthomas
IMDB: www.imdb.com/name/nm0859552/
SUNSET THOMAS ART GALLERY: www.sunsetthomasartgallery.com
CHICKEN RANCH BROTHEL: www.chickenranchbrothel.com
CHECK OUT ALL THE EPISODES OF SIN CITY MOM: www.youtube.com/user/SinCityMomTV
OTHER LINKS INCLUDE:
www.vegasdeluxe.com/blogs/luxe-life/2013/jan/17/tour-2013-adult-entertainment-expo-sunset-thomas/
www.lasvegassun.com/blogs/kats-report/2013/jan/17/sunset-thomas-chicken-ranchs-biggest-star-still-fa/