Gay Porn Stars We Lost in 2021

In August of 2020, porn star Koldo Goran tweeted about three fellow performers who had recently died. In one of those instances, Goran’s tweet remains the only public notice that one of them, Dani Rivera, had been murdered. “I realize nobody talks about it, we are unprotected and forgotten;” Goran tweeted “We are humans, people, enough of contempt.”

Most gay news outlets choose to ignore the passing of all but the biggest names in the adult film industry.  Porn companies also seem reluctant to broadcast the death of a performer who is still on their roster, forever young and present in their website content. An obit is a real boner killer, ya know? Why jeopardize the profit margin?

Additionally, performers who abandon their porn personas and return to life under their real name often pass away unnoticed by former employers and scene partners.

In 2021 we lost two of the biggest gay porn filmmakers: Wakefield Poole, who basically invented the genre with 1971’s Boys In The Sand; and Jerry Douglas, director of many critically acclaimed gay adult films that were story-based but incorporated hot sex scenes. Poole’s passing was marked with a New York Times article and Douglas’s death was also widely reported in the gay press.

In contrast, some of the porn star passings that we note here have no verification other than the crumbs of information posted on the IAFD database. We remember those that we lost in 2021 to prove Koldo Goran wrong – they are not forgotten:

1) Alex James, one of the most popular performers at Active Duty, passed away of a “heart attack” on 2/15/21, according to the menofporn blog. He appeared in several dozen scenes starting in 2018 with new content steadily released in the six months following his death.

2) According to the IAFD database, Eric Pryor was 38 years old when he passed away on January 12, 2021. No other details were given. The Michigan native primarily worked for Randy Blue from 2009-2013 and also appeared on Baitbus as Mikey McKenna.

3) Teyon Goffney was the straighter half of the identical Goffney twins. Their brief foray into gay porn gained national attention after they were arrested for a daring burglary in 2008. Post-prison, Teyon released two versions of his memoirs. He died of cancer at age 38 on 2/20/21.

Teyon Goffney with identical twin Keyon (l), and solo.

4) Flex-Deon Blake, aka Kevin Moss was a 2004 inductee into the Grabby’s “Wall of Fame” after a 10 year career in the industry. He was the long-term partner of fellow porn star Bobby Blake and founded a Dallas-based ministry to help people resolve any conflict between their spirituality and sexual orientation. He passed away due to ongoing medical issues at age 58 on 3/1/21.

5) Tattooed top Bo Dean, aka Michael Jensen worked primarily for Jake Cruise but also appeared in scenes for Raging Stallion, Lucas Entertainment and Next Door Studios between 2009-2014. In 2015, he was shot in the chest and left paralyzed from the waist down. His cause of death was not disclosed when he died on 3/30/21 at age 41.

6) Treshawn / Treyshawn Valentino appeared in films for various companies (including Bacchus, Lucas Entertainment, Titan, Thugmart and Latino Fan Club) over a jaw-dropping 15 year period. The Illinois native passed away on 4/2/21, according to his IAFD listing. No other details have surfaced.

7) Michael Watts was an Oregon security guard who also worked as a Freddie Mercury impersonator. He chose Freddie as his porn persona when he did two scenes for The Guy Site in 2019. According to this website, the 37 year-old was being “pursued by a mob” during the May Day protests in Portland when he disappeared on the night of May 1st. His body was found in the Willamette river two weeks later. The investigation is ongoing.

8) Versatile blond Ty Thomas, aka Steven Ates, began his porn career at Jason Sparks in 2016 and went on to appear in 30+ scenes for Next Door Studios. According to the obit, he was attending nursing school when he passed away on 5/6/21 at age 29.

9) The death of 22 year-old Alex Riley on 5/9/21 was widely reported in the gay press. The popular performer was best known for his work with Helix Studios but had previously worked for Men, FraternityX, RealityDudes, and Next Door Studios. Riley was nominated as Best Newcomer at the 2020 Str8UpGayPorn Awards, and he won GayVN’s Best Newcomer award. Rumors of suicide circulated but were unconfirmed.

10) Muscular Bryce Evans loomed large in the gay porn industry for close to a decade with versatile appearances in scenes for Lucas Entertainment, Men, Pride Studios, Dominic Ford, Men Over 30 and several others. The 46 year-old reportedly suffered a “heart attack” in early June but his death was not made public until three weeks later.

11) In late June, Rob Navarro tweeted about the death of Connor, aka Casey Van Mersbergen. The 37 year-old was killed in a pedestrian accident in Blythe, California. He appeared in a handful of scenes for Military Classified in 2015.

12) On July 22nd, Chi Chi La Rue tweeted “Tommy Ritter passed away. No details have been given. Tommy was a great guy who saved many a movie with his amazing performances, even before he decided to be fully on camera!” Ritter, a versatile Channel 1 / Rascal Video exclusive, appeared in a dozen films circa 2005-6.

13) Max London, aka Joshua Gower, a ginger top Texan who was a popular member of the Randy Blue stable from 2010-2012. After a stint behind bars on burglary charges, he expanded his repertoire briefly at Bromo and Reality Dudes. The menofporn blog reported that the 34 year-old passed away on 8/8/21 with no further details.

14) Mel Grey, aka Elder Packer (missionaryboyz) aka Toby Muck (familydick) aka Michael Lindblom was only 24 years old but had been in the business for three years, working with the studios listed above as well as Treasure Island Media. On 12/11/21, the Spokane, Washington native was shot by a random intruder who then turned the gun on himself.

15) A reader alerted me to another passing: Hoody LaVaye, aka Justin Miley. His film work spanned 8 years, with scenes for FlavaWorks, Rawrods and several other outlets. The Virginia Beach native passed away of a “heart attack” on 12/3/21 at age 33.

16) Versatile Brazilian daddy Ivan Hollms (aka Ivan Holms, Ivan Roms) was active from 2005-2009 with Brasileirinhas, Sparta, Caballero and other studios. He died on 3/18/2021.

17) Single-monikered Martin (above left) appeared in a handful of scenes for MaleSpectrum from 2004-2007. According to the IAFD website, he took his own life on 6/27/21.

18) Eric Michaels (above right) did scenes for Dudes Raw / Factory Video and Pumphouse Media in 2011-2012. The IAFD reports that he overdosed on 10/25/21.

19) Tony DiAngelo, aka Christopher Scott appeared in 4 films in 1993 for Falcon/Jocks & Studio 2000, most memorably in scenes with Chase Hunter. According to his obituary, he was a former Mr. Gay USA, pianist, cosmetologist, real estate broker, and clairvoyant. The 53-year-old Ohio native passed away “unexpectedly of a sudden illness” on 12/04/21.

See Also:
Gay Porn Stars We Lost In 2023
Gay Porn Stars We Lost In 2022
Gay Porn Stars We Lost In 2020
Remembering prolific pornographer Robert Prion
Costello Presley and 80’s Gay Porn Guilty Pleasures