The late John Leslie, a multi-award-winning actor and director, passed away Dec. 5, 2010, at his home in Marin County. He was 65 years of age.

Leslie began his film career in the mid-1970s, and had his first major role in the Mitchell Brothers' production Autobiography of a Flea (1976), where he shared acting duties with legendary stars such as Annette Haven, Jean Jennings, John Holmes and Paul Thomas.

Leslie continued hardcore acting until the late '80s, though he essayed a few hardcore scenes after that—notably one with the star of his film, Naomi... There's Only One, in 2006—and had several non-sex roles after that. By 1988, however, he had turned his attention to directing—one of the first performers to do so—creating 27 movies for VCA Pictures and later nearly 100 for his own production company, John Leslie Productions, all of which were distributed by Evil Angel Productions.

Over his career, Leslie received 10 acting and directing awards from AVN, and several others from the X-Rated Critics Organization (XRCO), the Adult Film Association of America (AFAA) and the California Adult Film Association (CAFA), and was inducted into the AVN and XRCO Halls of Fame, as well as the Legends of Erotica.