Christy Canyon

Christy Canyon (born June 17, 1966^[1]) is a pornographic actress and American radio personality.^[2] She is a member of both the AVN and XRCO Halls of Fame and a recipient of the Free Speech Coalition Lifetime Achievement Award.

Christy Canyon
Canyon in 2006
Born	(1966-06-17) June 17, 1966 (age 58)[1] Pasadena

Career

Adult film career

Canyon has performed in over 100 pornographic films. She performed actively from September 1984 to March 1985; June 1989 to December 1992; and 1995 to 1997 (as an exclusive contract performer for Vivid Entertainment). She also appeared in photo spreads for Penthouse and Swank magazine.^{[citation needed]}

In her autobiography, Canyon stated that the pornographic actor Greg Rome approached her while she was waiting for a ride in Hollywood, and told her that she would be a terrific figure model. He gave her the business card of adult magazine and film recruiter/agent Jim South, of World Modeling Agency.^[1]: 23 After visiting South's office, Canyon posed for men's magazines and began her video career shortly thereafter.^{[citation needed]} Her first on-screen performance was with Ron Jeremy in 1984's "Swedish Erotica 57".^[3] She has stated that Jeremy soon afterward became a close friend in the business.^{[citation needed]}

Retirement and return

Canyon retired from performing in pornographic films in 1997.^[2] She remained active in related fields, hosting Playboy Radio's Night Calls and selling memorabilia on eBay.^[2] She has also managed her own X-rated website and self-published an autobiography titled Lights, Camera, Sex (2004).^[4]

In 2005, she appeared as a judge on the first season of Jenna's American Sex Star.^{[citation needed]} From 2005 to 2011, she was co-host of the Playboy Radio show Night Calls.^{[5][not specific enough to verify]} As of April 2011 she was co-host of Sirius XM's Spice Sex Circus with Ginger Lynn and sole host of Sirius XM's weekly Legends of Porn.^[6]

Canyon was interviewed for the ABC News program Nightline in 2010 for the series Modern Sex in America.^[7] She co-hosted Radio Sex's You Porn on Sirius/XM Channel 102, until October 2013 when the channel went off the air. In December 2013, she became the host of The Christy Canyon Show on Vivid Radio on Sirius/XM Channel 102.^{[citation needed]}

After a two-decade hiatus, Canyon returned to pornographic performance in March 2017 when she joined OnlyFans, initially offering streamed content and merchandise, and later adding newly shot pornographic scenes.^[8][9][10] In July 2024, Vixen Media Group announced that Canyon would make adult video content for its MILFY website.^[11]

Recognition

Canyon has won several "best female performance"-type awards and is a member of both the XRCO and AVN Halls of Fame.

She was namechecked by English electronic band OMD on their 1993 track "Heaven Is", in the line: "Heaven is Christy Canyon falling in love with me." ^[12]

Personal life

Canyon has been married and divorced three times. She is the mother of two adopted children.^[4]

Awards

• 1991 XRCO Female Performer of the Year
• 1991 F.O.X.E. Female Fan Favorite^[13]
• 1992 F.O.X.E. Female Fan Favorite^[13]
• 1995 XRCO Hall of Fame^[14]
• 1996 AVN Best Tease Performance for Comeback^[15]
• 1997 AVN Best Group Scene - Film for The Show^[15]
• 1997 Legends of Erotica Hall of Fame^[16]
• 1998 AVN Special Achievement Award
• AVN Hall of Fame^[17]
• 2004 Free Speech Coalition Lifetime Achievement Award ^[18]
• 2018 Vivid Hall of Fame^[19]
• 2025 XMA Best Sex Scene - Comedy Movie for American MILF^[20]

Partial filmography

• WPINK (1984)
• I Like to Be Watched (1984)
• Wild Things (1985)
• Hollywood Starlets (1985)
• Educating Mandy (1985)
• Black Throat (1985)
• Holly Does Hollywood (1985)
• Savage Fury (1985)
• Star 90 (1990)
• Passages 1-4 (1991)
• Comeback (1995)
• Oral Addiction (1996)
• Domination Nation 1 and 2 (both 1997)
• The Top 25 Adult Stars of All Time (1999)

See also

• List of pornographic performers by decade