Alex de Renzy

{{short description|American pornographic film director and producer (1935–2001)}} {{Infobox person | name = Alex de Renzy | image = | caption = | birth_name = | birth_date = {{Birth date|1935|08|13}} | birth_place = Brooklyn, New York City, New York, U.S. | death_date = {{Death date and age|2001|06|08|1935|08|13}} | death_place = Los Angeles, California, U.S. | spouse = | height = | website = | years_active = 1968-1997 }}

'''Alexander de Renzy''' (August 13, 1935 – June 8, 2001) was an American director and producer of pornographic movies.

Born in New York City, de Renzy served in the United States Air Force as a Survival Instructor.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://time.com/archive/6814805/show-business-sex-trip/ |title=Show Business: Sex Trip |date=July 20, 1970 |website=Time |access-date=June 8, 2024 |archive-date=June 9, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240609024416/https://time.com/archive/6814805/show-business-sex-trip/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Back in the United States, he began making documentary films in San Francisco. In October 1969, he went to Denmark to attend ''Sex 69'', the first porn trade show hosted in Copenhagen after the legalization of adult pornography there. This resulted in his first movie, ''Censorship in Denmark: A New Approach'' (1970),<ref name="NYT-19700617">{{cite news |last=Canby |first=Vincent |authorlink=Vincent Canby |title=The Screen: 'Censorship in Denmark' Begins Run |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1970/06/17/archives/the-screen-censorship-in-denmark-begins-run-derenzy-is-director-and.html |date=June 17, 1970 |work=The New York Times |accessdate=June 2, 2019 |archive-date=June 2, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190602112134/https://www.nytimes.com/1970/06/17/archives/the-screen-censorship-in-denmark-begins-run-derenzy-is-director-and.html |url-status=live }}</ref> which was released the following year.

He was the editor on ''Sexual Encounter Group'' (1970), was a cinematographer on seven movies, and wrote five screenplays. His production ''Lady Freaks'' (1973) introduced porn star legend Annette Haven. His films also include the two 1970s porn classics ''Babyface'' (1977) and ''Pretty Peaches'' (1978).

Another de Renzy discovery was Desireé Cousteau. She won the Adult Film Association of America Award in 1978 for "Best Actress" for her starring role in ''Pretty Peaches''<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078112/awards |title=Pretty Peaches (1978) - Awards |website=IMDb |access-date=2024-08-30 |archive-date=2021-11-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211113162932/https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078112/awards |url-status=live }}</ref> and became an international sex star. The plot of ''Pretty Peaches'' derives from Voltaire's literary classic ''Candide'' about a naive young woman undergoing a series of hardships which constitute the satire. ''Peaches'' contains a notorious enema scene (and for a time was censored from the VHS release, restored in Alpha Blue's DVD release) in which the powerful jet-spray from Cousteau's hindquarters knocks the administering physician to the bathroom floor, to which Peaches bemoans "I don't think he could cure anything!"<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://explodingkinetoscope.blogspot.com/2006/09/all-american-deep-dish-comedy-pretty.html |title=The Exploding Kinetoscope: All-American Deep-Dish Comedy: PRETTY PEACHES (1978) |access-date=2007-08-14 |archive-date=2015-04-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150418225246/http://explodingkinetoscope.blogspot.com/2006/09/all-american-deep-dish-comedy-pretty.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

A third actress de Renzy introduced to adult films was Juliet Anderson, better known as "Aunt Peg".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.salon.com/2002/04/13/juliet/ |title=The golden age of porn |last=Taylor |first=Charles |date=April 13, 2002 |website=Salon.com |publisher=Salon Independent |access-date=June 8, 2024 |archive-date=June 9, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240609024409/https://www.salon.com/2002/04/13/juliet/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

He won the Adult Film Association of America Award in 1977 for Best Director for "Babyface",<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0211108/awards |title=Alex de Renzy - Awards |website=IMDb |access-date=2024-08-30 |archive-date=2023-05-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230510223322/https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0211108/awards/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and was inducted into the AVN Hall of Fame and the XRCO Hall of Fame.<ref name="XRCO Hall of Fame website">{{cite web|url=http://www.xrco.com/|title=XRCO Hall of Fame|accessdate=August 25, 2014}}</ref>

After filming his final story-driven works, ''Slave to Love'' and ''Two Women'', de Renzy reinvented himself as Rex Borsky in 1991. He churned out adult video quickies, shooting over 200 hardcore videos, with a special emphasis on anal sex.

Alex de Renzy suffered a fatal stroke and diabetic attack while in his hotel room in Los Angeles during the production of his last video.

==Partial filmography== *''Censorship in Denmark: A New Approach'' (1970)<ref name="NYT-19700617" /> *''A History of the Blue Movie'' (1970) *''Little Sisters'' (1972) <ref>{{Citation |last=Renzy |first=Alex de |title=Little Sisters |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0125843/ |type=Adult, Comedy |publisher=Good Times Productions |access-date=2022-04-02}}</ref> *''Femmes de Sade'' (1976) *''Babyface'' (1977) *''Pretty Peaches'' (1978) *''Dirty Girls'' (1984) *''Wild Things'' (1985) *''Moving In'' (1986) *''Pretty Peaches 2'' (1987) *''The Big Thrill'' (1989) *''Rapture'' (1990) *''Two Women'' (1992) *''Slave to Love'' (1993)

as Rex Borsky: *''Anal Addict'' (1995) *''Anal Hellraiser'' (1995) *''Anal Sweetheart'' (1995) *''Anal Breakdown'' (1994) *''Gang Bang Wild Style I & II'' (1994) *''Anal Justice'' (1994) *''Booty Mistress'' (1994) *''Gang Bang Nymphette'' (1994) *''Anal Co-ed'' (1993) *''Anal Sensations'' (1993) *''Anal Siege'' (1993) *''Anal Taboo'' (1993) *''Anal Carnival'' (1992) *''Anal Cuties of Chinatown'' (1992) *''Anal Madness'' (1992) *''Anal Rookies'' (1992) *''Anal Innocence'' (1991) *''Anal Revolution'' (1991) *''Anal Starlets'' (1991)

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== {{Portal|Erotica and pornography|Biography}}

* {{IMDb name|id=0211108|name=Alex de Renzy}} * {{iafd name|id=AdeRenzy|gender=male|name=Alex DeRenzy}} * [https://web.archive.org/web/20070930094243/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,877099,00.html?promoid=googlep Time.com: Sex Trip - July 20, 1970]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Renzy, Alex De}} Category:1935 births Category:2001 deaths Category:American pornographic film directors Category:American pornographic film producers