Orita De Chadwick: To Hell and Back, Part 2

In the first part of our interview with early 1970s adult film performer Orita De Chadwick, Orita spoke about the shocking events of her childhood that resulted in her fleeing to Los Angeles, a young woman in a new city where she knew no one.

A short time later, Orita became an instantly recognizable figure in early Los Angeles adult films: her blonde hair, statuesque physique, and high cheekbones made her stand out in countless appearances in men’s magazines and adult movies, many of which featured the well-known names from the era – such as John Holmes, Candy Samples, Rick Cassidy, and Antoinette Maynard.

In this second part of the interview, Orita talks about the films she made, and reveals the dramatic events in her life after she left the film business.

This is the concluding part of Orita’s story. (You can read the first part here.)

Note: This interview includes topics some readers may find disturbing.

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5. Adult Films

What do you remember about getting film work for the first time?

I can’t remember exactly how it happened, but I got offered film roles almost straight after the men’s magazine work.

At first they always seemed to want women with big boobs for films, and I just wasn’t cut out for that. When that happened, I just walked off the set and left (laughs).

Did you ever feel any pressure to have a boob job?

No, no. The work wasn’t that important to me. And besides, even though my boobs were small, they were mine (laughs).

Also, the doctors did it differently back then: they injected silicon directly into a girl’s chest. And a lot of girls had problems with that later in life because it hardened, and they had to have their breasts removed. I didn’t want to go through that. I liked my body the way it was.

Some of your work was softcore and some was more explicit.

Sure. I did both R-rated and X-rated. They could do a film and make an R-rated version of it, or turn it into an X-rated. Sometimes I wouldn’t even know. We just had sex and they could film what they liked. We didn’t sign any contracts, just releases, so they could do what they liked.

Did you like the acting part of making movies?

Oh yes, I really got into the parts. Sometimes we had scripts, but I improvised a lot. Sometimes the filmmakers were happy about that… but sometimes they weren’t (laughs).

We always had a blast on set because it was basically the same people as the magazine work so it was a tight-knit group.

Who else were you friendly with?

I had several friends that I made movies with. There was Rene. I wish I could remember her last name. She went onto legitimate movies. She was beautiful.

Rene Bond?

It could be. I can’t remember her full name. I just recall she was always keen on moving onto regular movies.

One of my closest friends was Rick. He was a beautiful man. He had a strong muscular body, and was always exercising with weights. He did many movies and pictures. We became good friends.

Orita with Rick Cassidy

That sounds like Rick Cassidy.

Yes! That’s him. Rick was more into men than women but he did both. I was fascinated by that. You either accepted him the way he was or you didn’t (laughs). I liked him, and we’d sit by the pool all day and just chat and laugh.

He introduced me to Gene Kelly, who was one of my favorite actors and dancers. Gene was bi-sexual – I had no idea – and Rick was one of his lovers. I’d grown up with the old musicals and I loved those movies. Rick would gossip about Gene with me by the pool each day.

Rick was wonderful, not like John Holmes: now, he was a problem.

Orita with John Holmes

What was your experience with John?

John Holmes was a huge problem for everybody. Nobody wanted to work with him. I couldn’t. I did once and didn’t like it, so I didn’t do it again. He was not only large, but his attitude stank. He thought he was the bomb. He thought he was the greatest, and he wasn’t. He was so far from it.

But most guys were good to work with. One of my favorites was Keith. I wish I could remember his last name because he was awesome.

Was that Keith Erickson? A balding, funny guy?

Yes! That’s him. I worked with him in a few movies. He was such a good person. He had a big heart and was so decent. I’d like to know what happened to him.

Another guy was Rick Lutze. Very easy-going, sweet guy who always seemed to be around. I saw him a lot too. Didn’t he date Rene?

Orita with Rick Lutze

There were a few couples who worked together in films in those days.

That’s true. We had Margaret (Maggie Williams) and her husband, Adam (Ward). Maggie was lovely. She was really thin and really pale. Never in the sun. Adam had a paunch which made us laugh, but he was a good person. He loved her, so that’s all that matters. I don’t think they had any kids yet at that time.

Then there was Patricia and Scott. I don’t know if they stayed together or if they split. They were always having problems, but I was hoping that they’d work it out.

We got into that Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō thing together. We chanted that together as a group – we were serious about it!

Orita with Maria Arnold and Uschi Digart

Do you remember Candy Samples?

Oh yes, she was one I really hated. She had boobs from here to China and back (laughs).

I had to do this tying-up scene with her in a film called The Candy Shop (1972). She got carried away and started doing it for real, tying me up really tightly. I freaked and told them to untie me. I finished what I had to and left without talking to her. Never worked with her again. Never wanted to work with her again. She thought she was top bitch.

Orita, in ‘The Candy Store’ – with Candy Samples (left)

Did you date anyone from business that you met making films?

I worked with a guy named David Merritt, who became my boyfriend at the time. I did a lot of work with him – magazines and films. We moved in together with my daughter, and we were happy.

He had a mustache and shoulder length hair, and sometimes he looked scraggly for not shaving. We rode motorcycles and used to go to Death Valley and spend the night down at the bottom where we’d have a fire with a bunch of our friends. David’s father owned a Porsche car dealership back in Texas where he was from, so he always had a great car or motorbike.

Orita, with David Merritt

Do you remember any of the people who hired you, or who shot the films?

I didn’t get to know them personally so most of them were anonymous – but I do remember Hal Guthu made a number of the early films that I did. He had a little office – perhaps it was on Sunset? – and we did a lot a shoots in the backroom there.

I think he had a waterbed there for a time. There always seemed to be waterbeds wherever we shot. You don’t see them nowadays, but I love waterbeds (laughs).

Making adult films in Los Angeles was still technically illegal during this period: did you ever get arrested?

We got busted because of ’69 Sunset Strip (1973). Normally the cops weren’t interested in us actors, they really didn’t want us. They were more interested in the distributors. But if we got caught up in a bust, the cops were always ready to arrest us as well.

What happened on ’69 Sunset Strip’?

We were filming in a nightclub that was owned by one of the distributors or producers of the film. I was working with my boyfriend David on that film.

Maggie Adam, Pat, Scott, we were all there having sex for the movie, and everybody was giving each other head. I was giving head to David. Somehow there was a guy in the audience who was an undercover cop. Obviously we didn’t know that, and after everything was wrapped, we all got busted.

Orita, with David Merritt in ’69 Sunset Strip’

What were the charges?

Oh, public indecency or something dumb like that.

We had to go to court. I remember in the court room they closed all the blinds on the doors because people were trying to look in to see what was going on. They played the movie for the judge, and in the dark, we were saying, “Hey, where’s the peanuts and popcorn?” We were young and stupid, but it was funny.

Everybody got a $375 fine – except for me, because I pled not guilty. So, when everybody got out, I was still in jail. I stayed there for the weekend. I refused to give them any of my money.

Was that the end of the story?

Well, no. When I was eventually released, I found that David’s mom and dad had showed up from Texas, snagged him, and taken him back to Texas.

So he wasn’t there waiting for you?

Nope. I never saw him or heard from him again. That was sad.

Did you ever get recognized by people who’d seen you in movies?

I did for a few years, but I’d just say, “You’ve got the wrong person” and I’d keep walking: “I’m sorry, that’s not my name” (laughs).

Orita, with Jason Yukon in ‘The Godson’

What other work were you doing during this time?

I did some tricks, some escorting. Especially when things got really tight. You do the things you have to do. I did wealthy men, older men, the usual. They were my sugar daddies.

Was that with guys that you met in bars or clubs?

No, it was for an escort service. Adam (Ward) took that over when he dropped out of making films. Adam was the one with Maggie (Williams). They stopped doing movies, and started this escort business.

Did that agency have a name?

It did, but I don’t remember it. It was on Sunset, and it was just a little place, nice offices.

How did it work?

People came in to find a male or a female date. Adam had a book with our pictures in it and our information. And the client got to choose who they wanted. I was busy an awful lot with that work.

Did you see the clients in that same office space there?

No. Clients just would come there to pick you up. After that, you were on your own. Sometimes they’d just take out to dinner. Or to a business meeting where they needed someone to be on their arm. And that was me (laughs).

Did you have regular clients?

Yes, this guy Roger, for example. I met him through the escort service. I was with Roger for five years. He was a big shot for Santa Paula Insurance, and he needed someone for business socials. I never had sex with him though. Not even once.

He was a good man. I met his sons. He took me to England in the mid-1970s. We went to London and stayed at the Savoy, and I got to see Big Ben, and have crumpets in the morning for breakfast. And the bathtub in the room was six feet long! I had a blast.

We also flew in his Cessna to all different kinds of places. We had such a great time.

How did the relationship end?

He was possessive. I just ended up not wanting to be around him anymore. He made me crazy. He wanted to own me.

So you’d continue to go into Adam’s agency whenever there was someone who was interested in you?

Yes. Once I went to the office, and they were shooting an episode of the ‘Six Million Dollar Man’ with Lee Majors right in front of the building. Adam closed the business for the day, and we went to watch the filming. Lee and Richard Anderson saw me and called me over. Lee said that I wore my hair like his wife, Farrah Fawcett, who he’d just got married to. I wore that style because I had long hair and I could do anything with it. Lee was good looking, and he had the most beautiful blue eyes I’ve ever seen. He invited me to come down to join him with the cast and crew at the bar up the road after work. I said no. He made me nervous because he was such a big-name actor. But it was nice to have met him and Richard.

What made you stop doing the movies?

One day, I just knew I was done. I’d done it for a few years and I wanted something different. I wanted more out of life than just that.

I got a call to do an 11-day shoot for a film called Sex in the Comics (1973). I thought about it, and decided that would be the last shoot I did.

Tell me about ‘Sex in the Comics’.

I think that was my favorite film. We had such a great time. It was produced by a big shot from New York. He took us all away to a nudist camp in San Bernardino. That was exciting for me: I hated wearing clothes. Always hated it. My daughter was like that when she was little too. I just liked to be free so the nudist club was perfect for me.

‘Sex in the Comics’ was rather more ambitious than most other films of the time.

Yes, it was a big deal – not an 8mm or a super 8mm. It was 35mm.

We had all the food we could eat, and they cooked especially for us. We had all the drugs anybody wanted to do though it was just pot and alcohol in those days (laughs). We had the run of the camp and the pool. We got to ride horses naked.

Each one of us got paid $1,000 for that movie. Normally we were paid on a daily basis – every day. This time we had to wait to get paid at the end, so we had to trust the people we worked for.

Orita, in ‘Sex in the Comics’ (1973)

Do you remember the director of ‘Sex in the Comics’?

Not very well, except that he knew what he wanted. Like a confident big-shot.

Who do you remember from the film?

I remember Buck Flower. He was hysterical. And Rick (Cassidy) and Keith (Erickson) were in that movie too.

I don’t know if they cut it out or not, but the last scene was us dancing around a big May pole, which was actually papier-mâché cock with ribbons!

I think the last scene that I ever did was on a table in the woods. And you couldn’t see the table, and people were supposedly coming out of me. That was supposedly the last scene of the movie. But we had a blast doing that.

‘Sex in the Comics’ (1973)

But you decided that was your last film?

Yes, I just didn’t want to do it anymore. I was just tired of it.

There was a final shoot that took place in my apartment. Someone needed a quick place to do a scene, so they did it in my apartment. I wasn’t involved in it. It was a guy-guy thing. I just let them use my bedroom. And then… that was that.

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6.     After Films

How did you support yourself after the films?

Well, I had a few sugar daddies like Roger.

And my daughter and I were living in Laurel Canyon with my boyfriend, Ken, who was a law student. I always helped pay the bills and took care of everything, like groceries and stuff. It was wonderful living there. I loved that part of town.

Did Ken know about the films and the escorting?

No, he didn’t know about anything. I went by another name, which was ‘Aunnar.’ That’s what he thought my name was. It was a Swedish name, I think, and I looked Scandinavian. I had a few different identities.

Did he ever find out about the sex work?

Yes. I can’t remember how he figured it out, but when he did, he just lost it. He called me every name in the book that he could think of. It was nasty. He left that day.

Did you see him again?

He came back once, and offered to pay me to have sex with him. He called me a whore, threw 20 bucks on the table, and said that’s what I was worth.

I said, “Uh-uh, honey, that’ll cost you a hundred bucks now.” That wasn’t the smartest thing to say, but I was hurt.

But in some ways, I could understand his reaction: Ken was a law student. What if he got into politics, for example? It could have really hurt him if he stayed with me… my past would have caught up with us at some point.

I was sad for my daughter because she was only four and Ken was the only man that she’d known in her life.

How was your daughter doing when you embarked on your new life after films? She would have been starting school at this point.

Well, that was one of the saddest parts of my life.

What happened?

Over the previous years, when I’d been working or making films or whatever, there had been times when I was working late, and I would call my daughter Tracy’s preschool teacher, Kathy, and say, “I’m on my way.”

Kathy would sometimes say, “Why don’t I just take her home, and I’ll bring her back to school with me in the morning?”

I trusted her. She was a preschool teacher after all. And she was my daughter’s teacher, for God’s sake.

So what was the problem?

Apparently, Kathy couldn’t have kids, so she and her husband had set her sights on Tracy. Before I knew it, they were trying to take her. They wanted to adopt her by claiming that I was an unfit mother.

What happened?

I went to pick Tracy up one day. At that stage, I didn’t know anything about what Kathy’s intentions were, so I just called Kathy and said, “I’m coming to get Tracy.” And this time she said, “I don’t think so.”

Apparently, they’d filed adoption papers for her that day. I don’t know what they did or how they did it, but the Adoption Services department was involved. The next thing I knew was that they took my daughter out of state.

And I spent the next 50 years trying to find my daughter.

I don’t even understand how that’s possible. That’s crazy.

Don’t ask me, honey. I don’t know either. I wish I did. But that’s what happened.

What did you do after that?

After I split up with Ken, I moved down to a Spanish house on Melrose. It was a beautiful home. And that’s where I ended up for a while. Without my daughter and without Ken.

Meanwhile, were you still escorting?

Yes.

What types of men would you meet?

All sorts. I remember a gentleman from Vietnam who had nothing down there left. It had all got blown off. But I still was able to make him happy. That was important to me.

And then I met my husband through escorting.

Tell me about your marriage.

I got hitched to Bill when I was 27. He’d just got out of the Navy. The day we got married was the day of the Jonestown massacre: November 18, 1978.

Where were you living when you were married?

After I got married, I moved to Maine with Bill.

I imagine your life changed a lot?

Completely. I went from wearing jeans in Los Angeles to having to wear dresses and skirts and boots. That was because his dad owned the only department store in town, and their name was very well known there, so… I had to dress the part.

Did Bill know about the adult films and the escorting?

No, I would never tell him. It was in the past. His family was really good to me, and they became my family for a time too.

But a year and four months later, I was divorced, and that was that. I drove all the way back to Florida.

What did you do when you went back to Florida?

I lived in Sandy Shores, Orlando, which back then was a well-known and well-kept place. I had a nice one-bedroom apartment, double-wide with a carport, and a shed for all my tools. I started a company called ‘Bitches Crew’, which was an all-female construction crew.

How did that work?

Over the years, I’d occasionally worked for some construction owners, hanging ceilings, doing the grid work, cutting the tiles to fit, things like that. Basically, learning how to do construction stuff. So I hired some girls that had something to offer and who could teach the rest of us. They’d show up at my place at 8 o’clock every morning, have a meeting, drink coffee, and then we’d just go to work. We wore shorts, tank tops, and construction boots. We had a lot of fun and we worked our butts off in that hot sun in Orlando.

I also had a home cleaning business, Total Home Management, which I eventually sold to a gay guy who had more time to run it than I did.

So you stayed in Florida for a good number of years?

Yes. Except for a period when I went to Kentucky.

Why did you go there?

I can’t say anything more about it, but for a time I changed everything about myself and my life. I called myself ‘Alexandria Cruet’ and changed my social security too.

Why did you change your name?

I can’t talk about it, I’m sorry. I just needed to get away and be on the down low for a while.

Were you afraid of something that made you flee?

No. Well, yes, a little bit. I can’t say anything more about it.

I understand. Why did you choose Kentucky?

I went to Louisville. It was a good place for me to go at the time because nobody knew me there.

Where did you live?

In a shelter. I didn’t know where to go or what to do, so I went into a shelter for a while. I got a job at a Chi-Chi’s restaurant and just lived there anonymously. No one knew I was there.

When I was ready, I went back to who I really was, and returned to Florida.

Did you reconnect with your mother at any point?

Not immediately. She was back in Michigan, and had married an Italian, her fourth husband…

How did you end up back in Michigan?

I came back to Michigan from Orlando in ’89 to visit my mom. Initially I turned up for just two weeks, with one suitcase and the same old overnight bag I’d always had.

But my mom started getting really sick, and I couldn’t leave – so I stayed.

That’s pretty good of you considering the difficult relationship you’d had with her.

I guess so, but you do what you have to. I sold my business in Florida, sold my home, everything, and move back to Michigan to take care of her.

Did you become closer to her?

Yes. For the first time in my life, we became mother and daughter – and friends, which was something I’d longed for all my whole life.

Towards the end of her life, she asked me again about Dick, and whether he had really abused me when I was a girl. I told her it was all true, but she still didn’t believe me.

She passed October 28th, 1996.

How did that affect you?

I just lost it. That was the last time I ever lost it. I was devastated.

Where are you living now?

Believe it or not, I’m still stuck in Michigan. I hate Michigan. I’m a native Floridian. I wish I was back in Florida. Are you kidding me? I don’t like the cold.

Did you ever find your daughter?

I finally found her a few years ago after looking for her for decades. She was living in Washington.

At first, I couldn’t control the anger towards Kathy that had been building all these years, and I just lost it.

What was it like to re-connect?

Tracy called me. And she said, “Hi, Mom.”

I said, “Hi, daughter.” I called her ‘Punky’ when she was little though she didn’t remember that.

It was really strange for us to even talk, and it was wonderful. But you can’t try to pick up something that you never had. I’d missed out on her whole life. Her whole life. So a proper relationship was difficult.

What did you learn about her life?

She’s a good kid, but she’s different. Apparently, when she grew up, she felt like an outsider… so she got into trouble. Drugs and stuff like that. Her life wasn’t easy.

And now she’s a mother, she’s 56. I have pictures of her that she sent, but I still haven’t seen her in person. I haven’t seen her since she was five, so it’s been rough.

I have a grandson, Andy, who has some autism, but he’s a good kid. I’ve never met him either.

Where does she live?

California.

I never went back to Los Angeles after I left, but she lives there now. She moved to Simi Valley about a year ago, and she works for the church, handing out food for the poor.

Do you speak with her?

I haven’t spoken to her since 2017. She has her own life.

Families can be complicated. How can you step in and be a person’s mother after everything that has happened? You can’t. And I couldn’t. And so she couldn’t be my daughter any more either.

Once she was a Chadwick and she was my daughter. But now she’s not, I guess. She knows I loved her, but she had no control of her life. I had no control either. It was all taken from me. From us.

As you look back to that period of your life in Los Angeles in the early 1970s, do you ever watch any of the movies that you made over 50 years ago?

Never – until recently. Then I sent off for a DVD which featured several of my films. I was surprised that someone is still selling them so… good for them (laughs).

What did you think when you watched them?

Well, the one I saw was in black and white… and I didn’t like it. It looked so old! I felt ancient (laughs).

But I have to say, I was surprised how good I looked. I don’t want to sound big-headed, but I wish I’d realized that back then. I was beautiful. You never seem to appreciate that when you’re young.

What is your life like today?

I still raised hell up until about a couple of years back, but now I live in the country, surrounded by woods, in a 32-unit complex. I don’t have a computer. Everything is calm.

I have a 61-year-old boyfriend that I see. He’s awesome. I’ve known him since he was 20. He takes care of me and makes me happy.

You’re still doing that surviving thing…

I am. I’ve been to hell and back, and now I just live my life quietly every day. I have a 2005 Chevy Impala in mint condition. And if I want to go somewhere, I just go. I don’t answer to anybody. Nobody tells me what to do. I do what I want, when I want to do it. I consider other people’s feelings, but now I come first.

After the life that I’ve had, I deserve it, you know?

And how’s your health?

Not good. I have cancer. I’m sick. But it’s okay. I’m not doing any treatment for it. I’ve already lived three years longer than I should have. My doctor shakes his head when he sees me.

How are you dealing with that?

When I wake up in the morning, I breathe and I think, “Oh God, I’m here for another day.” And I’m happy about that. I take pain medication when I need to, which is pretty often, but I try not to depend on it. And when my anxiety gets way out of control, I take something for that too.

It’s been good to talk with you. I’m grateful we got the chance to share your memories.

I’ve enjoyed it, honey.

I’m 76. I’ve aged, but gracefully. Now I have long white hair instead of blonde white hair.

If you squint, I still look like Orita De Chadwick.

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