Image: Hollie Stevens, via Flickr.
The alt-adult performer known as Hollie Stevens (Twitter, Tumblr, Flickr, Wikipedia, MySpace) has died of breast cancer.
In addition to her work in indie pornography (including "clown porn", NSFW link), she was also a model for, and contributor to, the weirdo horror-rotica zine Girls and Corpses.
From an early account of Hollie's story by Vanessa Pinto at SF Weekly, it sounds like the lack of access to affordable health care (and health insurance) was a significant factor in the case of Hollie, a freelance creative based in San Francisco:
She was no different than a lot of us when we were young who believe we're invincible.
So when this very young healthy woman noticed a lump on her breast, she let it go at first."I noticed it and paid attention to it, but going to the doctor is hard when you don't have insurance," says Stevens.
The lump didn't go away.
More from Vanessa Pinto, this time writing Hollie's obituary one year later:
Debuting in 2000 as feature dancer, "Holly Wood," she traveled across the U.S. performing to packed houses. She was nominated for an AVN in 2004 for Best Group Sex Scene, (The Bachleor) and won the AVN award in 2004 for Best All-Girl Scene (The Violation of Jessica Darlin). Hollie performed in over 170 titles as well as being featured on kink.com, DungeonCorp.com, hogtied.com, chantasbitches.com, The Howard Stern Show, performing at the Lusty Lady, and more.
An accomplished painter with works hanging in the Hyena Gallery in Burbank, Hollie was also a long-time writer and model for Girls and Corpses magazine, a DJ, live visual manipulator, performance artist, kickboxing champion, and an extraordinary wife and friend.
This woman was diagnosed at age 29 with stage 3 metastatic breast cancer just over a year ago. Now she is gone. Fuck you, cancer.
From the blog for Solace SF, an organization in San Francisco that helps provide health care resources to people who work in the adult industry:
in one of our last conversations, i asked her what she wanted to be known and remembered as. the following was her answer:
“I hope people know I’m always myself. I take pride in what others think may be weird about me! [she laughed for about 10 seconds and then said:] I’d also want people to know what I love most, what what makes me happy, is being a friend and a wife. That’s what I would want them to know and remember.”
i love you, Hollie. and we will always remember.
Farewell, fellow happy mutant.
@holliestevens memorial has been planned for Monday, July 23rd, here in SF, with a private service, and a public party, more details soon.
— eric cash (@ericcash) July 8, 2012
(thanks, @gillyarcht)
Image: Cover of an edition of "Girls and Corpses," featuring Hollie Stevens.
"Lady Diabla," 11"x15" unframed watercolor on paper, Hollie Stevens. Via hyaenagallery.com.
