The weapon was owned by her boyfriend, a cocaine dealer. Jonna Lee, which was "very watchable" throughout, does a good job of portraying Grant. ''It`s unfortunate that Mother Nature put 18-year-old girls on the planet with beautiful bodies,'' Hicks says in the program. Scenes such as the one where Shauna goes back home for Christmas, proudly showing off a scrapbook of nude photos to her family and then getting rebuffed by her appalled mother, are both tender and sad, and Shauna's fight to reclaim her life at the finale is quite gripping. And the various settings and decor reveal both a rural Kansas home-spun comfort and the Hollywood Californian high-life of excess. She went scrambling back to Hollywood, where she received plenty of attention as a porn queen. The real "Pauline" (a.k.a. This TV-movie begins like most others in the good-girl-goes-bad vein, but it drew me in regardless. It is very difficult for the family. Copyright 2012-2020 Stories People All rights reserved, Adult filmmaker Roberta Findlay made the controversial, Grants career and death were fictionalized as the basis for the television movie, The musician Klaus Flouride honored Grant in the song "Dancing with Shauna Grant" from his album, American death metal band Ripping Corpse wrote a song for their album, Christian metal band Mastedon wrote a song "Innocent Girl" in memory of Shauna Grant on their debut album. Her lover, distressed by her disorderly habits, made it clear that she would have to leave his apartment. The rise and fall of Dirk Diggler in Paul Thomas Andersons film. I found it hard to believe that Jonna Lee's character of Pauline couldn't find a liveable wage job outside of the world of nude modeling and eventually porn. The film starts in 1981, but Lee's attire is pretty much late 80s stuff (torn, tight Guess jeans), and the soundtrack is right out of the 1970s (Fleetwood Mac, Frampton). She left her small-town home of Farmington, Minn., at age 18 to chase a dream in Hollywood. #1. In June 1990, Applegate's mother Karen Applegate appeared on the tabloid news show Hard Copy (1987) where she disputed the official ruling (she would later appear Entertainment Tonight (1981) echoing the same sentiment). Pauleen Anderson: [attempts to leave] Fine! My first thoughts upon seeing this film 14 years ago, on TV, were with regards to the level of difficulty, and subsequent success, that the producers/director must have had in making a movie about pornography without the ability to use nudity, coarse language or explicit scenes and situations that make up the core of a pornographic film. Some of Applegates acquaintances believe that it was stardom that she adored, not porndom, and that she was never comfortable performing sex on the screen as star of Virginia, Suzie Superstar and Flesh and Laces. In one year, were told, she developed herpes, had an abortion and had sex with 37 men. ), PBS Video., WGBH Educational Foundation., WCCO-TV (Television station : Minneapolis, Minn.), Documentary Consortium. ''We always got high before we did it,'' says a porn star who taught Applegate the ropes. It profiled Colleen Applegate, a small-town Minnesota teenager who, running away to Los Angeles in 1982, soon after became the porn actress known as "Callie Aimes" and then more famously as "Shauna Grant." Blonde, rosy-cheeked and meaty, she was the fantasy girl for every dirty-old-man-next-door. Grant's funeral was held on March 28, 1984, at St. Michael's Church, a Catholic parish near the center of Farmington, Minnesota. She was an actress. Jonna Lee is convincing in every way as a natural beauty who is not mature enough to handle what she's gotten herself into. The back door of Ehrlichs house was a possible means of access to the bedroom and to Grant. Hicks reflected on Applegate's appearance and personality, saying: "I deal with a lot of girls who are new in the business, a lot of young girls and a lot of girls from out of town. Shattered Innocence: Directed by Sandor Stern. She was completely un-hip and non-L.A."[citation needed], Her wholesome, "girl next door" looks soon landed her work posing for other magazines such as Chic, Hustler, Swank, and Penthouse. Hollander launched her adult film career, suggesting what he felt was a "classy" stage name, Shauna Grant. Shauna Grant (May 30, 1963 March 23, 1984), was an American pornographic actress and nude model. Far more interesting are outtakes from her films and some eerily candid footage that WCCO obtained of Applegate, still new to Hollywood, answering an ad and first interviewing with the agent who would introduce her to the world of nude modeling and erotic films. She stayed in the town, working first as a cashier and then as a repair clerk with the phone company. Search the history of over 797 billion When Pauleen is in Lou Gates' office, one of his boxing poster reads Ben Frankel, a play to Lou's actor, Ben Frank. Judy Woodruff, Alan Austin, WGBH (Television station : Boston, Mass. Ignoring Hicks' advice, Applegate continued working with World Modeling Agency, where she met veteran porn producer Bobby Hollander. Colleen Marie Applegate, known professionally as Shauna Grant (May 30, 1963 - March 23, 1984), was an American pornographic actress and nude model. While her desire to act in mainstream films had generated no offers, she was so prestigious at the time that famed director Francis Ford Coppola was seated at her table. this film was made in the late 80's and there was also a NY PBS documentary based on the same subject; her real name was Colleen, she was from the Midwest, she moved to L.A. to get her "big break". At the same time Jake Ehrlich, another boyfriend and cocaine supplier for Grant, telephoned from prison informing her that their relationship was over and that Grant had to move out of his home in Palm Springs. Scenes such as the one where Shauna goes back home for Christmas, proudly showing off a scrapbook of nude photos to her family and then getting rebuffed by her appalled mother, are both tender and sad, and Shauna's fight to reclaim her life at the finale is quite gripping. ***SPOILERS*** ***SPOILERS*** I've seen this movie in italian,as I do live in Italy. Shauna Grant (Colleen Applegate) and Jamie Gillis interviewed by Bobby Hollander, from 1982 1 videocassette (58 min.) Was college a worse alternative than becoming a strung out porn star?? ''Death of a Porn Queen,'' shows the porn industry for what it is--people who are willing to exploit other people for cash. In the film the lead has a fake ID stating she is 21 while she is only 19 but in 1983 the legal drinking age in the US was 19 and didn't change to 21 until 1985. This only leads one to imagine an even harsher world for girls in pornography today (and is evidenced in the fact that several others have also taken their own lives since this story originally took place). **SPOILERS** Surprisingly good made for TV movie about the short life and violent death of Colleen Applegate who was known by her many fans as porno film star Shauna Grant. The true story of Colleen Applegate/Shauna Grant arturopanduro 1 April 2000 This biopic shows us the tragic story of Colleen Applegate, who at a very young age moved to Hollywood from the midwest and became porn star Shauna Grant. Shortly before Grants shooting, two unidentified visitors showed up outside the home. When they did, they issued an ultimatum, which, of course, she ignored. Shauna Grant) was born Colleen Marie Applegate on May 20, 1963. Joanna Lee does an excellent job of portraying this poor young girl. Marcell then saw an ad for the World Modeling Agency in Van Nuys, which sought recruits for "figure modeling". A few days after the awards show, Marcell, her former boyfriend flew to Los Angeles to visit her, but Grant forgot about his arrival. I'll just move the hell out of here! Her parents offered to pay for her college expenses, but she believed she would no longer be comfortable at home in Minnesota. Join Facebook to connect with Colleen Applegate and others you may know. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. That's what you wanna do with your life, go ahead. The impresario who named her Shauna Grant promised, ''You have the capability of being an overnight sensation,'' and indeed during her most successful year, she made some 30 X-rated movies with more than 30 partners for the booming video-cassette market, had an abortion, came down with herpes and built up a cocaine habit that exhausted most of the $100,000 she earned and appears to have exhausted her as well. The Applegates - Colleen had three younger sisters and one younger brother - cooperated with the producers in hopes that the movie might prevent similar tragedies, said Applegate, who is portrayed by actress Melinda Dillon. It is really a sad and moving story, well directed and acted. Jonna Lee also does well to give us a sense of the innocent, starry-eyed and naive teen who, so soon and so sadly, becomes self-destructive, emotionally and morally devastated, and completely lost in a world of corruption. This is a movie that could have been tawdry and exploitative, and indeed, I recall reading that the parents of Colleen Applegate (whose life this is loosely based on) were displeased with it, saying it made the pornographers look like they were just running a business and Colleen got into trouble on her own. Though the names have been changed, it is her story. In the light of porn-glamourizing films such as "Boogie Nights", this tepidness accentuates the intent of "Shattered Innocence". Many liberties were taken with the characters in "Shattered Innocence" but it remains fairly true to actual events/people. The short, tragic odyssey of Colleen Applegate, who left Minnesota at 18, became porn star Shauna Grant, and killed herself at age 20. Shauna Grant (May 30, 1963 March 23, 1984) was an American nude model and pornographic performer. She ran away from her small town in Minnesota and proceeded to appear in over 30 pornographic films, earning up to $100,000 in her two-year career. Uplevel BACK 644.1M . We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. Occasionally the digitization process introduces transcription errors or other problems; we are continuing to work to improve these archived versions. She refuses to take anything that just pays minimal wage, even to start gaining experience, and when she does find a profession where the salary for modeling provides a nice wage, she's soon disrobing, and that leads to adult loops and eventually Penthouse and theatrically released adult entertainment. 2. Grant died by suicide after the arrest of her partner in March 1984. Her friendly director passed her along to his cocaine supplier, a man twice her age, with whom she moved in. The producers originally had a dramatization closer to the gritty details, but it had to be softened because of prime-time television, production representative Karen Ocamb said in a telephone interview from Los Angeles. After arriving in Los Angeles, Applegate and Marcell unsuccessfully pursued several employment leads. Coleen's age is 75. This Lorimar TV flick must have been ahead of its time in 1988, as the story of 17-year-old Pauleen Anderson, who, wanting to grow up faster than she knows how, leaves home and becomes in turn a centerfold, a porn star, a cocaine abuser and finally a suicide when things go wrong. [2] She was sometimes credited as Callie Aimes, Callie Aims, or Colleen Applegate. All the acting is solid and Sandor Stern's direction is both careful and easy. She moved back to California in 1982 and fell into the adult movie industry. She retired from adult films in 1983. I think the producers and writers try to take aim at the pornography industry for the sleazy business it is, but this girl's impatience with life and desire to "have it all" the fast and easy way seem just as much to blame for what happened to her. A small town girl gets caught up in the drug-fueled and lucrative nude modeling and porn industry, then her life goes down the toilet. She ran away from her small town in Minnesota and proceeded to appear in over 30 pornographic films, earning up to $100,000 in her two-year career. 2 Favorites. She had three sisters, Veronica, Sheila and Shelrae and one brother, Mike. "Shattered Innocence", loosely based on the short life of porn star Shauna Grant, tells the story of a girl from the midwest who moves to California, gets into drugs and porn, and commits suicide. NEW YORK As if PBS didn`t have enough trouble, what with conservatives and liberals moaning about the network`s supposed bias one way or the other, now comes pornography. Coleen K Applegate, 76. She ran away from her small town in Minnesota and proceeded to appear in over 30 pornographic films, earning up to $100,000 in her two-year career. Everyday that we insist on fragmenting ourselves we ensure that we will continue to produce this type of individual. On March 21st 1984, Grant committed suicide at the age of twenty in Palm Springs by shooting herself with a . Born in Bellflower, California, Colleen Applegate grew up in the small town of Farmington, Minnesota. The rise to fame, decline and suicide of Colleen Applegate - who was 20 when she put a rifle to her head and pulled the trigger on March 21, 1984 - are the subject of Shattered Innocence, a CBS-TV movie being broadcast tonight. A high school graduate leaves behind her modest life and finds work in the sex industry, but it ends in disaster. Back home, Applegate`s parents were aghast, and they flew to Los Angeles to find her. Coleen can be reached via e-mail c_rapplgate@sbcglobal.net. Applegate attempted suicide in December, 1981 by overdosing on prescription sinus pills. How did a cheerleader become a porno star and commit suicide?. She is shown with high school pal Kris Kamm going in and out of various businesses and constantly turned down. It's quickly apparent that "Shattered Innocence" is a well-made, well-acted and written picture and it really caught me off guard. You burned a hole in your nose. If you would like to change your settings or withdraw consent at any time, the link to do so is in our privacy policy accessible from our home page.. She was a small town girl from Minnesota. He even tracked down some of her belongings she had left behind when she changed identities. The stars get the grief. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Fox News finally reveals its kryptonite: the bottom line, Unlike Andor, Mandalorian is going all in on Star Wars lore. I keep coming back to this film, some 17 years after I first saw it, for the script, the cast, the acting and even the background music. In a way, Applegate caught up with her star-struck dream. Mr. Austin is given to observations about Colleen being ''lost,'' ''unprepared'' and so forth. (785) 332-2892 is the phone number for Coleen. She was born in California but moved with her family to Minnesota in 1973. . This is a digitized version of an article from The Timess print archive, before the start of online publication in 1996. Her family moved there in 1973, when her father took a managerial position with Central Telephone Company of Minnesota. Preliminary investigations by Palm Springs police posed questions regarding the circumstances surrounding Grants death. Two years earlier to the week, she had arrived in Hollywood a fresh and beautiful 18-year-old, full of hope and unfocused dreams, soon to be making $100,000 a year as X-rated film star Shauna Grant, and blowing most of it on fast living and drugs. Is Kate Forbes Christian Faith A Career Killer? Also known as Colleen M Spezio, Colleeen Nale, Colleen Applegate. If it helps somebody else, thats the whole idea of it, Applegate said. Reviews There are no reviews yet. Shauna Grant. [9], At the awards show, Grant agreed to work on her first adult film in 10 months, Matinee Idol. With Jonna Lee, Melinda Dillon, John Pleshette, Kris Kamm. 'FRONTLINE' DOCUMENTARY, 'DEATH OF A PORN QUEEN', https://www.nytimes.com/1987/06/09/movies/frontline-documentary-death-of-a-porn-queen.html. As a fast-rising adult entertainment personality, she was featured in Virginia, Suzie Superstar, and Flesh and Laces 1 & 2, among many other films. She had three sisters, Veronica, Sheila and Shelrae and one brother, Mike. While the name and hometown have been changed, the film depicts the final years of Colleen Applegate, who left her Farmington home in March 1982, posed nude for magazine photos and soon became porn movie star Shauna Grant. It's quickly apparent that "Shattered Innocence" is a well-made, well-acted and written picture and it really caught me off guard. 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